How to make your guitar sound better ... with Paul Gilbert.

Paul Gilbert talks about installing a DiMarzio The Tone Zone and Air Zone in the 1978 Ibanez Iceman guitar that he bought on Reverb.
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The Paul Gilbert Rock Guitar School at Artistworks
my.artistworks.com/paul-gilbert
Paul Gilbert Wiring Diagram:
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[@billhillard]

How to make your guitar sound better with Paul Gilbert?! 1. Have Paul Gilbert play it. There is no number 2. 😁

[@UnboundOdysseus]

Alternately (1a?): Q: “How do you make any guitar sound better?” A: BE Paul Gilbert !

[@sparkyguitar0058]

I came to say the same thing. My guitar always sounds like me. Not good not bad just....ME.

[@gretchenmenn]

Paul is a gift to the guitar community. 🤘🙇🏼‍♀️

[@michaelsingley5641]

As are you Fair Lady. 🎸

[@know_juan_special6365]

I love the look of double cream pickups. Especially in a cream bound guitar. Great choice Paul! Looks awesome!!! Sounds awesome!! 😉👍🏻

[@These_go_to_eleven_1959]

PLeeaasse!!!! DON"T GO THERE!!!! 🤣🤣🤣

[@UnboundOdysseus]

Paul Gilbert is just ridiculously good.

[@rodbelding9523]

Something about cream pickups in a guitar with cream binding is just super appealing visually.

[@gtb5216]

How to make your guitar sound better; hand it to Paul Gilbert!!

[@Barracuda007]

those cream covers make the guitar look so much better too!

[@uranusoyster1108]

OMG ! This is great, if you could do the same with all Dimarzio pickups it would be awesome, won't have to be all famous players either. I think people will really appreciate having a database of Dimarzio sounds by Dimarzio.

[@These_go_to_eleven_1959]

I agree! 👍 as a Dimarzio user/fan would love to see that happen!

[@ilmisxx2]

That would be extremely expensive and kind of pointless

[@castleanthrax1833]

@@ilmisxx2 Yeah, cause no advertising ever improves sales.

[@t3hgir]

@@castleanthrax1833 I think DiMarzio advertises themselves quite nicely with players like Steve Morse, John Petrucci , Steve Vai, Joe Satriani, Billy Sheehan, etc.. :)

[@crash921]

I’ve never understood why they don’t have a sound sample library for their pickups

[@cudapaul957]

Damn can you imagine selling your guitar and have THIS GUY come to your place to pick it up ,... oh man best day ever!! ;)

[@stricknine8623]

Paul Gilbert is as good as anyone and more gifted than most. He is a great teacher and a pleasant person and cool dude.

[@troypaskert685]

Paul Gilbert is a gift to anyone with a heart and soul.

[@rich068]

Paul Gilbert is the Jeff Goldblum of shred.

[@a-nus]

I wish Paul would do a podcast, he's a great talker and I'm sure he's got a lot of stories

[@martenpine245]

Hell, I'd never leave this chair if he did! But until then.....Play this vid on 75% speed and Paul sounds like Christopher Walken lol

[@albertlopez2237]

Back in the 90s who ever thought Paul Gilbert could look so nerdy he'd make it look cool.

[@implayingsomebass4753]

Paul is simply the absolute best. Amazing player and what a personality... His enthusiasm is always inspiring.

[@unicogirone]

A big THANK YOU to DiMarzio for all the wiring diagrams that posted on the official website. Paul is a fantastic genius, thank you for existing.

[@fasteddievh2072]

I can never get enough Paul Gilbert. Although I never met him personally, he comes off as the most personable and “down to earth” of all the Guitar Gods. He manages to not only shred but also plays with so much “soul”. Please keep the PG content coming!!!

[@user-kv4ct4qm2y]

Ive just watched Paul use the whammy bar more in 2 minutes than all of his concerts and instructional videos. Rock on Paul. Branch out. Paul is the man.

[@thejonathandoan]

For me, there are few guitarists who rival the joy and plethora of stank faces than Paul Gilbert. Not only is he a master, he is a hoot to watch! Love this video.

[@clayearth8287]

Mr. Gilbert, I'm 59 yrs old. Many influences to name pre 70s to post 90s. You are the best teacher and player I have come across....all times brother. All times!! That speaks volumes

[@TheMeJustMe75]

You can't help but smile when you hear him play. It also makes you realize how good he is, period. DiMardio pickups, each pickup has it's own solar system of sound.

[@These_go_to_eleven_1959]

Most probably are not aware of this but the TONE ZONE was one of the last two remaining pu's left when Eddie Van halen was having Dimarzio pu's made for his EBMM sig guitar. He got down to what is now in the EBMM AXIS bridge spot and the TONE ZONE and could not decide so Steve lukather said pick that one pointing to the guitar that has the Custom wound EVH/AXIS p'u in it. Larry dimarzio really liked the p'u that did not get picked that day and later released it as "The Tone zone". The one that did get picked is only available on the EBMM guitar.

[@angusorvid8840]

I've always loved the Tone Zone. I think I got my first Tone Zone at a Sam Ash in Hollywood, in blue. I had it popped into my single bucker Charvel and a couple weeks later rocked The Roxy with it. But I would not put a Tone Zone in a 24 scale like an Iceman or Les Paul. It really excels at beefing up strats. Great pickup. Paul's a terrific player. I saw him with Racer X many times in the late 80s.

[@GeoffSweet]

And I love them. Dimarzios best pickup set...

[@t3hgir]

Tone Zone is great but I prefer the Steve's Special/Air Norton combo :D

[@cooperst765]

Phenomenal as always brother! You never cease to inspire me.

[@Obxhatman]

Paul , you sir are an amazing influence and an artist with a special gift of gab. You genuinely sound as if you love life to the fullest. Rock on brother

[@TheOneTrueSpLiT]

This just made my day. PG - never change, you super-duper shreddy dude. Now, play us some more.

[@damonstewart70]

TONE ZONE my FAVORITE pickup. Man I LOVE ALL DIMARZIO

[@These_go_to_eleven_1959]

👍 It is a great p'u! I prefer using it with only a 1 meg volume pot and no tone knobs. There is a guy here on YT that demo's old Marshalls and does amp mods named Michael RT and he turned me onto using the 1 meg in place of the standard 500K pot.

[@xeroblade012]

When he did the whole run on clean tone. Unreal.

[@tylerarrigoni7700]

Seems to be one of the coolest guys in rock... He always makes me want to play with his enthusiasm for the craft

[@joeydebellis300]

I met Paul back in 1987 at a guitar clinic he was demonstrating the ADA MP1. He was a super nice guy.

[@angusorvid8840]

I remember when Paul and Bruce were using the ADA. I also met them about that time. I actually jammed with Jeff Martin when Racer X broke up. He was in another band for a while before he ended up replacing Eric Singer in Jake E. Lee's Badlands. Jeff had gone back to drums then, and he's just as great on drums as Scott Travis, who had also left Racer X to join Judas Priest, replacing Dave Holland. Jeff is a really cool guy. All the dudes in Racer X were good people. I just wish that band could have made it. But I think the issue was that for all the attention they got they never got a big label interested in them. Their music, although good, was not that special when it came to songwriting. Most of the songs were about beer, pussy and driving fast, and that wasn't going to set them apart. They also didn't have much of an image, and the music biz is, sadly, very shallow. But Racer did serve as a springboard for Paul getting Mr. Big together with Billy Sheehan who had just left David Lee Roth's band, for Bruce getting into The Scream with John Corabi, and John Alderete eventually forming Mars Volta and Scott joining Priest.

[@crypticreality8484]

The Iceman is a cool guitar. The Japanese companies were copying in the 70's and I respect the fact that they decided to make a bold design of their own. It was a success!!! Anyone like Racer X?

[@mlaforce]

Love Racer X even though I was never a huge fan of the Drummers singing voice but having said that I grew accustomed to it.

[@mikeseadorf4952]

Love my Tone Zones & Air Nortons!! Thanks again Paul for turning me onto these pickups!! 🤘🤘🤘

[@These_go_to_eleven_1959]

What surprised me here is that PG uses the air zone in the neck and not the air norton? I prefer the Air norton in the neck of the two.

[@valinhorn42]

Paul is always a joy to watch. I've been doing nearly the same mods on my guitars for years, too: Air Norton / Air Classic, individually switchable between series/parallel coils, blocking the tremolo system if there is one, and of course: swapping the volume and tone knobs around (thanks, Paul!) :D

[@arronhartley2606]

Paul Gilbert you are my second favorite guitarist next to your former student Buckethead.

[@SCOTT-ki3ve]

Paul Gilbert is SOOOOO cool. I've been watching all of his you tube appearances. He plays amazing, he's hilarious and gives so many tips

[@freddylive3597]

.. always good to hear Paul.

[@johnstitt2615]

Ole Man Gilberto is at it again.

[@BA99253]

Living legend.

[@martysradioshow5979]

Mr PG sound tone getting nice and the speed still never fades

[@PittsburghTimeMachine]

Paul Gilbert is sort of the Jeff Goldblum of the guitar world.

[@bajangbiru]

Never understand why Ibanez love Tone Zone so much, but I love the AIR ZONE in bridge pos on my strat!

[@WeeFreeMan78]

I've had the tone zone in an alder Washburn Nuno and it sounded, well, let's just say not good. Too bassy, scratchy and fuzzy. How different is the air zone to your experience? Is it worth the try?

[@martenpine245]

Man that's awesome, I had a PGM back in the day and I loved it! Put a true floyd in it, stained the finger board a dark red and bunged a fred and a pro in it. It was my best mate from early 99 to 2002 when it was stolen from me....the DAY before i left for an interstate gig. Never got it back. I miss my old mate, but I really must thank you from the bottom of my dorky heart for inspiring me to love this shit so much, and for gifting the world with not only your chops sir; but also your character.

[@neilmurphy7594]

I've got an RG7420 coming back in a few days with a TZ + AN + half-out-of-phase switch, and I'm so stoked. Really happy to find this video to get a preview!

[@angusorvid8840]

Best pickup combo of all time. I've been using it for decades. I love it.

[@fredericadda]

I love this guy since I discovered him with Mr Big in 1992.

[@Imokyourok440]

Hooray for pickups!! I just got a green Gravity Storm bridge pickup! Love it!!❤️❤️

[@FurtiveSkeptical]

Jeez, look at him.... Having absolutely all the fun. ✌️

[@joker57]

Paul is a Gift everyday

[@themetalminster8752]

Met him at GIT back in the day when I went to Hollywood to make it big, he was in a hurry but was nice guy. oddly enough he was in a practise room on the weekend.

[@MichaelKirbyMusic86]

Always so inspirational!

[@danmcalester1716]

Damn! That tone is just phenomenal!

[@bazzingabomb]

Doesn't get any better than this....Paul Rocks!

[@Exhul666]

Guitar Faces Gone Wild! Great video! Paul is always fun.

[@johnskerlec9663]

Awesome demo. Thanks man. I've got an itch to get these into some of my guitars.

[@marstudios7879]

Paul is amazing teacher.

[@dillavou444]

I literally have a Tone Zone in the Bridge position of my own 1978 Ibanez Professional Scruggs signature! AMAZING!!!!!!

[@roaddogrob9102]

Am I the only one who begins to salivate when hearing some of these awesome tones with this kind of expression?

[@user-kp7ls7ml1h]

thanks so much for sharing nice to see PG on youtube

[@thorstentrabold8398]

Great Guitar, Great Sound and a Great Playing 🤘🤘

[@troygardiner6428]

I've been accumulating parts for my own 1977 Ibanez 2350 for a while now to do a similar electronics upgrade. Good to know Paul's following in my footsteps. I don't care if he finished his first, he's GOT money.

[@zeus-bx9xw]

That was well worth the watch.

[@MrPrincebass99]

Mr. Big....1988, opening for Rush in Dallas. So damn glad I saw y'all then. Paul, you are a siiiick guitarist. Some Zep for the solo on that gig....Kashmir, I think. 😮😮😮 Much appreciation for you, Billy, and Pat. So inspiring.

[@patpolowyk6434]

I brought out my 1995 ps10 Iceman,out of sleep lol Great videos as always.

[@georgevillanueva6926]

i truly came for the guitar set up but cant get past how well ur shirt n top hat marry together i def need that in my life my granpa was a shirts shoes and button up kinda guy n used to wear the good ones to school lol

[@strings83]

Paul Gilbert is my favorite guitar player for his personality alone. I love being around this guy through the KZbin videos. So humble, genuine, and what a character. He is always animated.

[@robertacatanese1041]

Glad I got to see you a few days ago, Paul :D

[@GeoffSweet]

Sounding stellar as always teach...

[@montlejohnbojangles8937]

God that's a delightful tone. The Air Zone especially is just killer.

[@angusorvid8840]

The Air Zone is also a great bridge pup. That's what I would have put in the bridge of that Iceman, although I do love the Tone Zone. I just think the TZ works better in 25 scale strats, which is sort of what it was made for, to beef up thin sounding guitars, make them bigger and warmer. You can put an Air Zone in anything and it will sound great. I would also have put an Air Norton in the neck which is my favorite neck pickup of all time.

[@kennyh5083]

I've loved the Air Zone for ages but now maybe drop it in the neck and a DP100 Super D in the bridge is in order! (The DP100 is my all time fav bridge HB) Thanks for the demo Bro! You Rock!

[@JohnnyMrHattersmith]

Great seeing Paul using a Kahler. Loved his old Epis and Ibbys with Kahlers.

[@atlasproject87]

To this day i am still a Paul fan, he is the best guitarist on the planet

[@ze1kiljaeden]

damn I'm buying myself an Iceman from 1980 now ! thx so much Paul ❤️

[@mikedenkinger9570]

If you mounted decent pickups and strings to a canoe paddle, Paul could still melt faces by soloing on it.

[@GerryBlue]

Cool guitar and great licks!

[@SLASHFANG]

Tone Zone and Air Norton are one of the best pickup combos !!!

[@mafiashpagety]

I have a Norton (bridge) and Air Zone (neck) and the sound of my basswood body guitar is wonderful.

[@angusorvid8840]

@@mafiashpagety Nortons are awesome! I have four of them.

[@kingbrutusxxvi]

I've been playing almost 40 years and have used this combo on four guitars since I first heard it. I even put the single-coil version of the "Tone Zone" in a Strat (with an "Area 67" in the middle and an "Air Norton" on the neck) and I have a "Tone Zone P90" in an LTD EC-256P with a "Virtual P90" in the neck. From metal to blues and everywhere in between they are so versatile. I can't recommend them enough.

[@JacksonGuitarsPlayer03]

From extreme shred to Jazz lookin musician Still incredible player the fact can play a lot of things is incredible. That guitar is sick I managed to get a washburn like that guitar body.

[@nigel900]

The Iceman is one of, if not the most beautiful guitars ever. 👍🏻

[@svincentr]

Thank you Paul for being you🤘🏽🤪🤘🏽

[@timothyweesner6286]

Nothing against Paul’s choices, but I’d have put a super distortion in the bridge. Just my preference. Killer Musician!!!

[@SandBoy408]

Love the out of phase sound!!

[@benoitducon9851]

I love it , i love kahler tremolo good job 👍🤩

[@willsonlang1403]

Welcome PG back to The Tone Zone 🔥🤘🔥

[@snoolee7950]

Lovely video

[@5olas]

Nice try LarryDiMarzio , but we know this is really Elvis Costello.

[@InAtlasAtLast]

How can you sound that good with a clean tone? Wow

[@willsonlang1403]

For so long that, DiMarzio did recommended combo Tone Zone bridge paired Air Zone neck; now good that features by PG

[@RokDAWG1]

Yeah that sounds awesome!

[@DiedrichKnickerbocker1783]

I prefer the PAF Pro in the neck, but that is just me. Love the video by the way.

[@jasonswitzer1748]

This is easily the coolest iceman ever made. No question.

[@setzergabbiani200]

Thank god he plays with the right bridge!

[@clutchcarabelli8054]

I don't always listen to guitar wizards but when I do they are Paul Gilbert

[@monty4336]

The first time I seen the ice man were concert photos of Kiss from the early summer of 1977. I was 8 years old and thought, that's a really cool looking guitar. Have been very familiar with it since.

[@KabutungKabayo]

I have the Paul Gilbert Injector and Area 67 kit installed on my 2019 Fender American Performer Strat. Gain is at 5 and it still screams!

[@julitarsihombing4918]

I like your batik. I proud you Paul Gilbert

[@noamhemsky]

How to make your guitar sound better: Step 1: be Paul Gilbert Step 2: repeat Step 1

[@sholland42]

I love the sound of DiMarzio pickups even if it’s not Paul Gilbert playing them.

[@elevenAD]

same! they have saved several guitars for me!

[@discotex2236]

My favorite configuration is Air Zone in the bridge and Air classic in the neck. With that combo I'm ready for anything, but I'm mainly playing blues oriented stuff with a medium amount of overdrive and reverb through my Boogies; also performs really well through my pedal board. Dimarzios rule!

[@hendrixhendrix9368]

Amen lord bless you sir guys!

[@minnesotatomcat]

Love the iceman’s! I never had an original but I bought one of the reissues they did back in the late 90s. Not as great at the first ones but still a great ax and I felt like a fuckin rock star when I unboxed that thing!!!

[@kermheat]

Awesome!!

[@brutalmaniactv3870]

keren om gilbert pake batik,, 👏👏👏