Brandon Ellis is taking a deep dive into his Jackson Pro Plus Series Signature Kelly KE27 – explaining the design choices and influences behind the guitar while putting its various tonal configurations through their paces – in a new video from Sweetwater.
Based on Ellis’ personal Jackson Custom Shop model, the Kelly KE27 features a lightweight Nyatoh body with a Gold Crackle finish and a through-body Maple neck with graphite reinforcement. Ellis discusses the guitar’s vintage inspirations, his DIY approach to modifying instruments, and why he settled on a 25.1″ scale and 27 frets.
The guitar is equipped with a Seymour Duncan Brandon Ellis Signature Dyad Parallel Axis bridge humbucker alongside a PA-STK1 single-coil-sized humbucker in the neck position. A push-pull Volume knob adds series/parallel options, while a 3-way selector handles the core pickup configurations. Ellis demonstrates the different sounds throughout the video, including clean tones.
Elsewhere, Ellis discusses the Gotoh GE1996T double-locking tremolo, the guitar’s neck angle, and the combination of a 12- to 16″ compound-radius Maple fingerboard and 27 jumbo stainless steel frets. Get the Jackson Pro Plus Series Kelly KE27 here for $2,199.99.
