Now this is one badass bass! I haven’t seen any bands using this yet, but I think it’s a matter of time before it starts to show up on the darker side of the metal scene.

You can’t go wrong with this thing on stage. The top of the mahogany body shape is somewhat similar to the BC Rich Warlock, but with a curvier feel to it. The bottom reminds me of the Silvertone Apocalypse’s pointy and symmetrical horns.

The long and sleek neck goes all the way through the body for optimal tone, and features tribal style inlays all down the fretboard. It’s a mean, thunder-packed, goth-chick magnet from hell.

I hope to have a review of the AX-404 here soon. Until then, drool over the specs, or check out what some players are saying over at Musician’s Friend.

Technical specifications for the ESP LTD AX-404

* Neck-Thru-Body
* 34” Scale
* Mahogany Body
* Maple Neck
* Rosewood Fingerboard
* 40mm Standard Nut
* Extra Thin U Neck Contour
* 24 XJ Frets
* Black Nickel Hardware
* Grover Tuners
* ESP BB-604 Bridge
* EMG 35DC (B&N) Active p.u.
w/ EMG B64 3-Band Active EQ
* Finish: Black

Click here to order it at the lowest price I have found, at MusiciansFriend.

New BC Rich Widow Bass Guitar announced. In early 2007, BC Rich announced a new (and long-awaited!) bass guitar in their catalogue of extreme and cool shaped guitars. The new WMD BC Rich Widow Bass Guitar, is now for the first time produced on a larger scale and not limited to expensive custom orders or metal rock stars with a big fat wallet. Several online guitar stores now sell the BC Rich Widow 5-string Bass. The best deal I have come across is this one: BC Rich WMD Widow 5-String Bass Guitar at InstrumentPro. Let me tell you right now - not only does it look evil and wicked….it sounds killer too! It has good action on the fretboard, a thunderous and defined bass tone, and of course true BC Rich craftsmanship. It is worth every penny.

This new model has the following features:

• Construction: neck through
• Body wood: nato (eastern mahogany)
• Body thickness: 45mm
• Top style: side beveled
• Body binding: no
• Headstock style: Widow
• Headstock color: onyx
• Headstock binding: no
• Tuners: Grover Rotomatics
• Neck wood: maple
• Back of neck: onyx
• Neck binding: no
• Fretboard: ebony
• Inlay: none
• Frets: 24 jumbo 2.9mm
• Factory strings: 45 – 130
• Scale: 35”
• Bridge / Tailpiece type: adjustable stop
• Pickups: 2 active EQ black P style
• Controls: 2 volumes and 2 tones (center detent)
• Hardware: black chrome
• Finish: painted glossy
• Color: onyx with red pinstripes on the body edges

This Widow bass looks about as close as it gets to the one used by Blackie Lawless in this classic video:

This guitar was the new custom signature series designed by Paul Stanley for the 2000 Kiss Farewell tour.

This first Washburn PS series (not to be confused with the more recent, 2006 Washburn PS series) came in several versions:

- Washburn PS2000MIL, Millenium Edition. Only produced in a quantity of 100, this version was covered with genuine Swarovski rhinestones - creating an incredibly sparkly guitar.

- Washburn PS2000B, Black Edition. This was the cheapest version with plain black finish, but otherwise good quality and similar features to the other versions.

- Washburn PS2000FL, Flameburst Edition. This one is also considered very rare. It features a gorgeous sun flameburst maple top, similar to a Les Paul finish.

- Washburn PS2000Rose. A black verison of the PS, decorated with a copy of the rose tattoo Paul wears on his shoulder.

- Washburn PS Black Diamond. A fractured mirror guitar only produced in a quantity of 100. The cracked mirror Washburn PS continued the tradition from the old cracked mirror, or “Mirrorball” Ibanez Iceman that Paul created in 1979.

Other common features of the 2000 Paul Stanley Washburn PS series included a star tailpiece, dual Seymour Duncan pickups, Grover tuners, Tune-o-matic bridge, abalone block inlays, Buzz Feiten Tuning System, and ebony fingerboard. A signature Paul Stanley studded leather guitar strap also came with these guitars. Many of them initially retailed for around $10.000.

One of a kind Washburn PS models: