When Premier Guitar caught up with Van Halen before their April 27, 2012, performance at Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena, the only thing more thrilling than getting a guided tour of Eddie’s and Wolfgang’s rigs from their techs, Craig DeFalco and Jim Survis, was getting to sit through soundcheck and hear Ed, Wolf, and Alex pound out flawless versions of classics such as “Unchained” and “Runnin’ with the Devil.” Sadly, we can’t share the unreal listening experience with you—but they are sharing their great shots of their gear. Enjoy!
Of the seven guitars in Eddie’s guitar boat on April 27th, this faithful recreation of his original Frankenstein guitar was just one of two red-white-and-black axes. Its only apparent departure from the original look is its EVH Wolfgang neck (it even has a screwed-on quarter and the original’s over-routed bridge-pickup cavity).
Eddie played this graphite-colored Wolfgang Stealth equipped with an ebony fretboard, a titanium D-Tuna, and a large red kill switch for most of the show. The tape surrounding the bridge pickup is to prevent the high E string from catching under the pickup.
The standard-tuned, 4-string take on dad’s original Frankenstein guitar is dubbed “Booberry.” It features active EMGs and a rosewood fretboard, and is primarily used for “I’ll Wait” and “Tattoo.”
View all 21 gear photos at Premier Guitar.