Larry Carlton - Q7 LH Metallic Gold

When you pick up the Sire Larry Carlton Q7 LH Metallic Gold for the first time, something doesn't sit quite right with the appearance - the body feels too light for what it promises. It's the chambered mahogany body, hollowed out in zones to lighten the mass without sacrificing vibratory transmission, that produces this sensation: an instrument that weighs less on the shoulder but whose residual mahogany continues to nourish the midrange with that organic, woody warmth so typical of this wood. The set of LC Q humbuckers in H-H configuration work on this favourable terrain - high output, double coils that cancel out parasites, spectrum balanced between fleshy bass and defined treble. The 5-position selector opens up an extended sound palette beyond the simple three-step toggle: the intermediate positions deliver hybrid voices between the two humbuckers, with nuances of timbre that the classic H-H configuration doesn't cover. The Volume and Tone controls remain in the background, with two Gold Speed Knobs accessible without leaving the neck.

The Q7 LH's construction is based on an architecture designed for playing in position. The Sire Q Shape double cutaway frees up both sides of the body, providing unrestricted access to the high frets - the left hand can be raised to the upper position without the body blocking the elbow. The 635mm scale mahogany neck rests on this body via a glued joint that merges the two wood masses into a single continuous vibratory path. The 254mm radius Edgeless™ ebony fingerboard concentrates two qualities in one: the dense, smooth ebony glides under the finger with near-zero resistance on fast travel, and the Edgeless treatment rounds each fret edge to eliminate lateral friction points. The 22 2.7 mm Medium Jumbo frets anchor the finger with directness, and the mother-of-pearl/abalone inlays in rounded rectangular blocks line the fingerboard with a sober legibility that contrasts with the black ebony background. The 43 mm bone nut distributes the strings at the correct distance and transmits the vibrations to the neck with the bite that only this natural material produces.

The chrome-plated Wilkinson WVP-6SB vibrato is the centrepiece of the Q7 LH's ecosystem - its arm geometry and calibrated spring system ensure a stable return to tuning after each tremolo use, where vintage systems stall. Sire Premium Locking Tuners lock the string to the mechanical nut and reduce the length of free string behind the nut, eliminating the main source of tuning drift during long vibrato plunges. The DR Dragon Skin+ DEQ-10 strings fitted as standard complete the balance between controlled tension and playing dynamics on the 25-inch scale. The MGO-specific chrome hardware finish maintains a cool, luminous visual consistency against the metallic gold of the body - a calculated contrast, not an accidental one.