The new Dark Fire is an upgrade in every respect. The Robot Tuners™, the tuning brain, the battery functions, and even the unprecedented sonic capabilities of a fully digital guitar and Chameleon Tone Technology. Imagine the ability to change your guitar’s tone to better match your environment. Everything is here to give you a new, stunning level of tonal and functional freedom that allows you the uninhibited release of your creative potential.
Gibson’s traditional flowerpot inlay graces the peghead of the Dark Fire. This art nouveau inlay was first used in a similar form on the headstock of the 1911 F4 mandolin, and later on the L5′s peghead veneer directly below the Gibson logo. This classic inlay also graces the headstock of several other Gibson models, including the Byrdland, the new Longhorn Double-Cutaway, and several other mandolins, banjos and acoustics.
This powerful control has been totally redesigned with improved user-intuitive ergonomics and clear, well-defined full-color matrix display, and it accesses an upgraded Robot brain (with onboard software) that can now contain a full 500 different tuning presets, so virtually any conceivable open or alternate tuning is available at the touch of a button, in addition to the popular preset tunings loaded in at the factory.
Simply activate the MCK, strum the strings lightly, and in one second the Dark Fire’s digital brain and Robot Tuners™ work together to put you perfectly in tune. Or to achieve any open or alternate tuning, rotate the MCK to the desired preset, strum, and you’re ready to play in Open E, Dropped D, DADGAD, Open G, Hendrix Tuning (half-step down) or any of your own custom tunings.
Each of the Gibson Dark Fire Limited Edition First Run guitars features a dramatic Dark Fire nitrocellulose finish created especially for this exclusive run. It is one of the most striking finishes ever to leave a Gibson factory and is achieved by combining the time-tested techniques of applying a standard nitro finish with several new procedures that help bring out the natural beauty of the wood. The result is a stunning, deep gloss color that naturally highlights each piece of wood’s distinctive grain patterns. The mahogany back and neck of the Dark Fire are given a satin finish, while the top and peghead face are sprayed with a gloss finish.
DUAL BLACK BINDING
The body is also bound with dual black binding, which accents the Dark Fire’s exclusive finish perfectly and provides both the protection and beauty of traditional Gibson binding. The process of applying the body binding to the Dark Fire is the same process employed by Gibson craftsmen for over 100 years. And while some question the value of adding binding to a guitar, Gibson believes it to be an essential part of is rich guitar-making history, and a vital design element that adds elegance and helps protects the edges of the body.
FINISHING TOUCHES
Other exclusive design elements limited to the Dark Fire are a distinct nut made from a special Teflon-based material that allows for smoother and faster tuning action, a truss rod cover made from anodized aluminum, black top hat volume and tone knobs with chrome inserts, and a super fast and comfortable asymmetrical neck profile design with Gibson’s PerfectSetup™, which is made possible by the revolutionary computer-controlled PLEK system, acknowledged as the most precise guitar set-up technology in the industry.
The classic block inlays found on the Dark Fire remain one of the most distinguishable features of many traditional Gibson models, including the ES-335s of the early 1960s and today’s Flying V Custom. On the Dark Fire, the block inlays are made from acrylic and given a unique, carbon-fiber look for an ultra-modern appearance. They are inserted into the fingerboard using a process that eliminates all gaps and doesn’t require the use of fillers. The result is a fingerboard that plays as fast and smooth as it looks.
CHAMBERED MAHOGANY BODY
Next is the Dark Fire’s chambered mahogany body, which helps deliver near-perfect tone, balance and weight. One of the ways the expert craftsmen at Gibson achieve this equilibrium is by carving carefully mapped-out chambers in the solid mahogany backs of the Dark Fire using a Computer Numeric Controlled (CNC) router before the maple top is glued on. The positioning of the routes were first established after careful examination of the resonant characteristics of the Les Paul. Gibson approached this process with the awareness that every change to the formula would have repercussions on the instrument’s sound. The results are comfortable, lightweight guitars that are acoustically louder, with increased sustain and resonance.