Thanks! Yeah, the quilt is nice. Oddly enough my ASS semi's cherry burst has the same boat wake quilt. Love the trans gold, obviously, but that cherry burst quilt might be the most beautiful guitar I've ever seen. The depth in person is unreal. Totally 3-dimensional. Man, I have a nice pair of balls!
I knew what to expect soundwise--although the Axis seems to have a tad more punch and cut above my semi. The semis are a little bit warmer to my ears (and project almost like an acoustic by comparison when unplugged), but the pups are the same. Very responsive to pick attack and style. I'm actually looking forward to playing with the dynamics of using only volume and picking to affect tone. The fact that it almost forces you to pay attention to how the guitar is responding is something I probably should have learned a long time ago. I'm by no means at a level where I can coax unlimited tone out of a guitar with one volume knob and two humbuckers, but maybe if I eat right, study hard, and practice, one day I can. : )
Vic, where are you in NC? (Where I was born and raised.)
