The godfather of heavy metal tone is back. Gibson has officially relaunched the Tony Iommi Signature Humbucker, the company’s very first artist-branded pickup, created in collaboration with the legendary Black Sabbath guitarist himself.
First introduced in the late ’90s, the Tony Iommi Humbucker was born out of extensive experimentation in Nashville, where Iommi and Gibson worked tirelessly to capture the tone and sustain that defined classics like Paranoid and Master of Reality. Designed to handle Iommi’s light gauge strings and low tunings while still delivering bone-crushing output, the result was a humbucker that delivered searing sustain, crystalline clarity, and a thunderous low end.
The newly reintroduced pickup features a hybrid configuration of ceramic and Alnico 2 magnets, plus custom windings that ensure both brute force and nuanced expression. Fully wax-potted and epoxied to eliminate unwanted feedback, it’s also wired with a four-conductor harness, offering series, parallel, and coil-split options. Whether you’re chasing Sabbath riffs or just looking for a high-output humbucker with remarkable clarity, this pickup has the range to cover it all.
For Iommi, seeing his signature pickup return was a long time coming. “I’m really excited that Gibson’s bringing back my signature humbucker, they were getting pretty hard to find!” he says.
“This pickup came about after a lot of time spent in Nashville, just experimenting with different setups to get that perfect tone and sustain from my favourite guitars. We had to make sure it worked with my light gauge strings and low tunings, but still pack a punch, and the result has got some serious output. They’re on my signature guitars too, and I couldn’t be more pleased with how they turned out.”
The relaunch also comes with high praise from Gibson’s leadership. “I’d personally installed these on one of my Gibson guitars 15 years ago, and I was blown away with the distinct Tony Iommi and Black Sabbath sound I was able to get out of them,” says Cesar Gueikian, President and CEO of Gibson.
“They have such a great, clean look with the unique pickup cover, and we are excited to bring the Rifflord’s signature humbucker back as we continue to pay tribute to Tony.”
Lee Bartram, Gibson’s Head of Commercial and Marketing EMEA, adds: “It’s great to have the first signature pickup from Gibson back, and there really isn’t a more fitting artist than Tony Iommi. Tony is synonymous with the Gibson SG, but now the volume, presence, and overall power he produces through his playing can be experienced in other models too, whether at home, in the studio, or on stage.”
Get the Tony Iommi Signature Humbucker here for $229 and keep up with all our Gibson coverage right here.
