Ernie Ball Music Man Axis Super Sport (2002)

Oh my, such a great guitar! The Axis Super Sport is one of those guitars that can get you through practically any session: comfortable as a glove, packed with useful sounds and built to take some abuse. And with its quilted maple top, it looks the part too.

The Super Sport is closely related to the Music Man Axis, but its five-way switching makes it the more versatile of the two. The pair of DiMarzio Zebra humbuckers can be used in full-humbucker mode or split for brighter single-coil sounds, giving you a surprisingly broad range from one straightforward control layout. Positions 1 and 5 give you the full bridge and neck humbuckers, while the intermediate positions use split coils for the familiar Strat-like in-between sounds.

The playing experience is pure Music Man: a compact, comfortable body, fast 22-fret neck and excellent fretwork, with the two-point tremolo and locking tuners making it easy to go wild without constantly worrying about tuning. It is the kind of guitar that simply disappears in your hands – equally at home on stage or in the studio.

This 2002 example has the classic quilted maple top and is in very good condition, with a couple of small nicks on the headstock and body. Fully original apart from the switch cap.

Specifications

• Model: Music Man Axis Super Sport
• Year: 2002
• Made in USA, San Luis Obispo, California
• Body: Basswood with figured/quilted maple top
• Neck: Maple, bolt-on
• Fingerboard: Maple
• Frets: 22
• Scale: 25.5"
• Pickups: 2 DiMarzio Zebra humbuckers
• Switching: 5-way selector with coil-split combinations
• Controls: Master volume, master tone
• Bridge: Music Man vintage-style 2-point tremolo
• Tuners: Schaller locking
• Finish: Quilted maple top
• Weight: 3.69 kg
• Condition: Very good, small nicks on headstock and body
• Originality: Fully original apart from switch cap
• Includes: Tremolo arm, EBMM guitar strap and non-original case