Jackson and Suicide Silence’s Mark Heylmun reimagine the Rhoads as a brutal 7-string metal machine

Jackson Pro Series Signature Mark Heylmun Rhoads RR24-7
(Image credit: Jackson Guitars)

Jackson has partnered with Mark Heylmun, guitarist for deathcore heavyweights Suicide Silence, for a radical new take on the Rhoads V electric guitar format.

The Pro Series Signature Mark Heylmun Rhoads RR24-7 is a seven-string designed for punishing down-tuned contemporary metal playing, and Heylmun has spec’d it accordingly.

For starters, the nyatoh body is sculpted to provide a belly cutaway and a shredder’s heel, while the through-body maple neck features a scarf joint and graphite reinforcement for enhanced stability.

Crucially, the compound-radius 12-16” ebony fingerboard features a 26.5” scale length, primed for down-tuning.

Fishman Fluence Modern humbuckers offer a choice between high or medium output – switched via a single push/pull volume control – while a Floyd Rose 1000 Series seven-string double-locking tremolo is there for those all-important squealies.

There are some neat visual touches, too: the Gloss Black finish pops with those white pinstripes, and the gold hardware and reverse Jackson headstock cap the whole guitar off nicely.

“We thought about it and I knew I wanted to play a Rhoads,” said Heylmun. “There is a lot of power in the Rhoads. It’s a legacy piece. I wanted something that was going to be an homage to the classic but also modern, and looking sleek and new. I knew that the black and gold would give that classic Rhoads look.”

The Pro Series Signature Mark Heylmun Rhoads RR24-7 is available now for $1,699 – head over to Jackson Guitars for more info.

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Michael Astley-Brown

Mike is Editor-in-Chief of GuitarWorld.com, in addition to being an offset fiend and recovering pedal addict. He has a master's degree in journalism from Cardiff University, and over a decade's experience writing and editing for guitar publications including MusicRadar, Total Guitar and Guitarist, as well as 20 years of recording and live experience in original and function bands. During his career, he has interviewed the likes of John Frusciante, Chris Cornell, Tom Morello, Matt Bellamy, Kirk Hammett, Jerry Cantrell, Joe Satriani, Tom DeLonge, Ed O'Brien, Polyphia, Tosin Abasi, Yvette Young and many more. In his free time, you'll find him making progressive instrumental rock under the nom de plume Maebe.