Jackson Legend Series Signature Marty Friedman Kelly KE-1 Gloss Black E-Gitarre

Marty Friedman Kelly KE-1 — A Faithful Reissue of a Megadeth-Era Icon

The Jackson Legend Series Limited Edition Signature Marty Friedman Kelly KE-1 revives one of the most sought-after signature guitars of the late 1990s, built from an original sample to match the angular Kelly shape, the minimalist electronics, and the unmistakable white "1" body marking. The Legend Series KE-1 is the right choice for metal lead players and Marty Friedman devotees who want the exact look, feel, and response of his personal instrument without hunting for a vintage original. Every detail of the late-'90s model has been preserved, from the color-matched gloss neck finish to the pearloid sharkfin inlays and the single Seymour Duncan JB that drove his melodic, Eastern-tinged lead lines through the Megadeth catalog.

What Sets This Kelly Apart From Other Jackson Signatures

Where most signature models layer in extra switching and dual pickups, the Legend Series KE-1 deliberately pares the guitar back to one bridge humbucker, one volume knob, and a fixed bridge — the layout Marty kept on stage. The 3-piece maple neck runs the full length of the alder body in true neck-through construction, eliminating the heel at the body joint so all 24 jumbo frets stay within easy reach. A graphite-reinforced neck shaft adds stability against temperature and humidity swings, while the Kahler 7330 Series fixed bridge anchors the strings with solid body contact, so wide bends and unison lines stay in pitch without the drift a floating tremolo can introduce.

Body Construction and Sustain — Built for Lead Work

The angular Kelly body shape has been a Jackson staple since the early 1980s, and on this reissue it pairs with an alder body that delivers a balanced tonal foundation with clear attack and tight low end. Neck-through construction routes the 3-piece maple neck through the entire body cavity, creating a continuous wood path that feeds every note back into the bridge with added sustain and resonance. The Gloss Black finish runs unbroken across the body, the color-matched neck, and the pointed 6-in-line headstock, while 1-ply white binding frames the fingerboard and headstock for the stark black-and-white look Marty carried on stage.

• Body Material: Alder — balanced tonal response with clear note definition under high gain
• Body Shape: Kelly, double cutaway — angular silhouette with unrestricted upper-fret access
• Body Finish: Gloss Black — high-gloss surface with color-matched neck and headstock
• Construction: Neck-through-body — continuous neck wood for maximum sustain and resonance

Neck and Fingerboard — Speed and Reach Across 24 Frets

A graphite-reinforced 3-piece maple neck provides the structural backbone, resisting warping and keeping the action consistent through climate changes on tour. The ebony fingerboard carries a 12"–16" compound radius that rounds out near the nut for comfortable chord shapes and flattens toward the body for low-friction bending and precise lead playing. Twenty-four jumbo frets extend the playable range across two full octaves, while pearloid sharkfin inlays mark the positions without crowding the playing surface. A graphite nut and dual-action head-adjust truss rod round out the adjustment points.

• Scale Length: 648 mm (25.5") — firm, responsive string tension for tight rhythm and articulate bends
• Fingerboard Radius: 305–406 mm (12"–16") compound — curved for chording, flat for bending higher up the neck
• Fingerboard Material: Ebony — smooth, dense surface with crisp attack and clear note separation
• Nut Width: 42.86 mm (1.6875") — comfortable span for both rhythm chording and lead runs
• Frets: 24 jumbo — extended two-octave range with room for expressive upper-register work

Electronics and Hardware — One Pickup, One Knob, Fixed Bridge

The Legend Series KE-1 keeps its signal path deliberately short: a single Seymour Duncan JB TB-4 humbucker in the bridge position feeds a single Master Volume control and out to the amp, with no tone knob or pickup switching to complicate the layout. The JB's hot output and pronounced upper-midrange push drive an amp harder for crunching rhythm work, while its tight low end keeps palm-muted riffs defined and its crisp highs let single-note lines cut through a dense mix. The Kahler 7330 Series fixed bridge sits in solid contact with the body for sustain and keeps intonation and tuning stable under aggressive playing.

• Bridge Pickup: Seymour Duncan JB TB-4 humbucker — high-output passive pickup with tight lows, crisp highs, and a midrange push
• Controls: Single Master Volume (dome-style knob) — direct control over output and gain response
• Bridge: Kahler 7330 Series fixed — solid-body contact design for sustain and tuning stability
• Hardware Finish: Black — matches the body for a cohesive, stage-ready look
• Strings (Installed): Nickel-plated steel, .009–.042 gauges — light top end for easy bending with enough body for rhythm

Who the Legend Series KE-1 Is Built For

The Jackson Legend Series Limited Edition Signature Marty Friedman Kelly KE-1 is the right choice for metal lead guitarists who want a stripped-down, single-pickup workhorse tuned for expressive bends and articulate high-gain riffing. It suits players who lean on wide vibrato, unison bends, and melodic lead lines in the Marty Friedman tradition — the kind of phrasing where one humbucker, one volume knob, and a fixed bridge are all you need between your fingers and the amp. Collectors chasing a faithful reissue of the late-'90s original will appreciate the white "1" body marking, the color-matched gloss neck, and the included Jackson KE-1 foam-core case. Right-handed players who prefer a 25.5" scale, an ebony board, and a neck-through alder Kelly will find this signature model ready to gig straight out of the case.

Marty Friedman and the Late-'90s Kelly KE-1

Marty Friedman established himself as one of metal's most influential lead guitarists during his decade with Megadeth from 1990 to 2000, layering melodic, Eastern-tinged phrasing and unconventional note choices over some of the band's most celebrated recordings. His Jackson Kelly became part of his visual and musical identity throughout that era, eventually inspiring the distinctive KE-1 signature model of the late 1990s — a limited, highly sought-after collector's piece that has now been faithfully reissued as part of Jackson's Legend Series. The Legend Series KE-1 preserves the angular silhouette, the minimalist single-pickup electronics, and the unmistakable styling of that rare instrument, while delivering the neck-through performance and powerful Seymour Duncan tone that defined its original appeal.