Question: Edward Van Halen's Greatest Guitar?

[clarathecarrot]

First off I am no aficiando..?

I say Ed is a contender to not only go into the R&R Hall of Fame as a member of Van Halen/ Musician (allready has), but also as a man who was one of the worlds greatest guitar builders.

I say, he has solidified his place by changing the worlds..(other guitarist) approach to playing the guitar. That is a given.

I say, he has done the same as far as the constuction and innovation of the guitar creation.

I want to know from a few professionals around here, (if possible).. is this as beautifull of a guitar as I think it is ?

I say the Gibson SG, The Les Paul Hollow Body, The Strat and Telecaster etc...are inovations of greatness, is this in the same league as these great ever lasting guitar shapes and styles and versatility,sound, etc... It is not one of those guitars that is simply a shape of a Volkwagon or Jack Danield body, it is a stand alone masterpiece.

Does it play and deliver as well as I think it does. I think, and in the flat black, it is absolutely user friendly and just look like a beast.and beautiful machine.

Is it called the Wolfgang what is it..?

Please help us maroons..?



If this can be dumped into a already existing thread I don't know about please feel free to do so I am not attempting to, -one up- anyone.

[crowhue]

Dont think its in the same league, although its a great guitar. It borrows too much from the classics rather than innovates.

[jhale667]

The Wolfgang Stealth model he's been playing of late is the coolest version I've seen (or played) of the series IMO, but agree it's more an upgraded combination of features of the classic designs that he's custom-spec'd to meet his requirements than a seperate beast. Diggin' the Ebony fretboard on the Stealth, though!

[ThrillsNSpills]

The Wolfgang Stealth model he's been playing of late is the coolest version I've seen (or played) of the series IMO, but agree it's more an upgraded combination of features of the classic designs that he's custom-spec'd to meet his requirements than a seperate beast. Diggin' the Ebony fretboard on the Stealth, though!

The dark one with the rosewood neck gets a hell yeah from me. It really looks like it can deliver the goods.

[ThrillsNSpills]

I like the old Kramers with the thin necks as well.

[ELVIS]

The Wolfgang is a great feeling and well made guitar that combines elements of both a Stratocaster and a Les Paul...

It's modern and up to date, but also traditional in it's design...

Not really my cup of tea, but they are very nice...

I think the blonde looks very cool...

[Nitro Express]

Right now I have five Wolfgangs. All mine are Peaveys. I have two standards. Two specials one with a Les Paul styled bridge and tail piece, and an export model made in Korea. All are good guitars. I never really cared for the looks of the Wolfgang. I think a Les Paul custom is one of the most beautiful guitars owned one years ago an frankly never liked playing it. I think SG's are ugly but love playing them. I love Strats. Gigging I found myself reaching for the Wolfgang. It's just a reliable user friendly guitar that sounds good through just about every amp. It also cleans up well with the volume knob. The pickups can sound like a thick Telecaster or they can rip your head off. It's one of those guitars you can just leave around. It can fall off the couch onto the wooden floor and not have the head stock snap off. Kids can fuck around with it and not break anything. You never have to redo the wiring because it's top notch from the factory. In fact, the Wolfgang is the only guitar I ever bought that I have left the electronics, setup, and everything else totally stock. Your grand kid will be playing it because they are just that durable and well made. Wolfies are not collector items or something to hang on the wall and admire. They are well built tools to get a job done and they do that well.

Playing a Wolfgang for me reminds me of a Telecaster more than a Strat or Les Paul. It's a beefy chunk of wood with a maple neck on it. I would liken it to a Telecaster as well. The Stratocaster and Les Paul get all the attention but look how popular the Telecaster has been through all the decades since the 1950's. Some great players won't play anything else. The Wolfgang will be the same. It will have it's following and you will see a Musicman Axis or Wolfgang type guitar being sold even when Ed is long gone. Super strats for that matter. It was Ed who put a humbucker in a Strat and was the first to use a locking tremelo. He invented that style of guitar.

[Diamondjimi]

I wonder if Ed got the idea from seeing Robbie Robertson's guitar back in 76?

[ZahZoo]

Sorry but don't view EVH as any sort of guitar innovator... maybe the most famous version of Dr Frankenstein of guitar parts assemblers.

Ed wasn't the first to slap a humbucker into a strat body... He didn't invent the floyd rose system... just an early adopter who was famous. Ok, I believe Ed invented the D-Tuna... give him that. He didn't invent pickup winding, wax potting nor low friction pots... Unfinished necks... nope. 5 or 6 ply binding... nope.

The EB Music Man, Peavey Wolfgang and EVH/Fender Wolfgang are all hybrid Les Paul/Stratocaster off-shoots. He incorporated top parts and pickup windings to suit his style. The pickup placements and attaching directly to the body are just variations that he adopted... not invented.

The guitars are excellent instruments... but nothing about them is anything new nor invented by Ed.

[Nitro Express]

Sorry but don't view EVH as any sort of guitar innovator... maybe the most famous version of Dr Frankenstein of guitar parts assemblers.

Ed wasn't the first to slap a humbucker into a strat body... He didn't invent the floyd rose system... just an early adopter who was famous. Ok, I believe Ed invented the D-Tuna... give him that. He didn't invent pickup winding, wax potting nor low friction pots... Unfinished necks... nope. 5 or 6 ply binding... nope.

The EB Music Man, Peavey Wolfgang and EVH/Fender Wolfgang are all hybrid Les Paul/Stratocaster off-shoots. He incorporated top parts and pickup windings to suit his style. The pickup placements and attaching directly to the body are just variations that he adopted... not invented.

The guitars are excellent instruments... but nothing about them is anything new nor invented by Ed.

I think Ed would agree with you. He would just say there wasn't a guitar on the shelf that had the features I wanted and I didn't have the money to buy it anyways so I make my own. Ed always points out a lot of his techniques and sound comes from the simple fact he didn't have the money to buy things so he got really creative with what was available to him out of necessity. Where he's innovative as hell is in his actual playing.

[ZahZoo]

I'm not sure about the money part... he parted out a 59 Les Paul gold top of which allegedly one of the pickups from the LP ended up in the bridge position on the first Frankie.

Now old LP's weren't anywhere near the sick value they are today... but a 59 LP back in the early-mid 70's still wasn't cheap by any means.

[jhale667]

I'm not sure about the money part... he parted out a 59 Les Paul gold top of which allegedly one of the pickups from the LP ended up in the bridge position on the first Frankie.

Now old LP's weren't anywhere near the sick value they are today... but a 59 LP back in the early-mid 70's still wasn't cheap by any means.

IIRC the PAF pickup in Frankie came out of the ES-335 (likely not as pricey as LPs even then) the band told him to "either get some sunglasses of a new guitar" because it was Roy Orbisons's instrument of choice at the time? I also seem to remember him saying in yet another interview he got a couple of '59 LPs AFTER they started making money...

[Diamondjimi]

Ed's '59 Flametop...

[lesfunk]

My fave is this one simply because it's what he played the first time I saw VH live

[Golden AWe]

I think his greatest guitar innovation is heard on And The Cradle Will Rock, Hammond via guitar amps