Description
Roadhouse USA location:
Brand New EVH Striped Shark Guitar Burgundy Silver Stripes W/Case.
Only taken out of the box for pictures. Comes with soft EVH case which is a $125 value.
These are a very cool addition in the Striped Series that are actually made in Korea and much higher quality than the Mexican made ones. The Pau Ferro fretboard is particularly awesome.
A high-performance axe with unique style.
Eddie Van Halen is known for infusing his iconic guitars with their own identity. With his visionary hands-on approach to personally modifying his style and tone, Eddie has created some of the most memorable guitars in rock ‘n’ roll history.
One of those guitars became as iconic to Van Halen’s sound as tapping was to Eddie’s playing. Aptly named the “Shark” Eddie took his angular offset axe and sawed a chunk out of the body, leaving jagged edges in the wood that resembled teeth. After applying a coat of silver paint, Eddie added tape in his famed striped pattern and then grabbed a rattle can of burgundy Schwinn bicycle paint to finish the job. The final striped creation was initially seen live during the first Van Halen World Tour in 1978, but became more widely known and adored by fans after appearing on the back cover of Van Halen’s 1980 album, Women and Children First.
After years of receiving requests for this famed instrument, EVH is proud to release the new Striped Series Shark model. This high-performance axe features an angular ash body that is paired with a rock-solid set maple neck, carved to a comfortable modified “C” profile. The neck also features a “hockey stick” headstock and the same striped paint job on the back, while the fast-playing 12″-16″ compound radius Pau Ferro fingerboard has 22 jumbo frets and white dot inlays.
The Shark is also fitted with custom designed EVH Wolfgang® alnico 2 Humbucker bridge and neck pickups, delivering the ideal amount of power and articulation with sweet sustain and thick chunky rhythms in a perfectly balanced EQ curve. Adding to the unique style of this instrument, the bridge pickup features parchment bobbins with metal braid wire, while the neck pickup features black bobbins with metal braid wire. A low-friction volume knob with treble bleed provides for unmatched performance and even-volume tapering for the smoothest volume swells, while a chrome-plated solid-brass harmonica bridge provides massive attack, presence and sustain.
In addition to its instantly recognizable Burgundy with Silver Stripes paint job, the Shark boasts other eye-catching features including black numbered speed knobs, three-way toggle switch housed on a brass mounting plate, brass nut, gold and chrome custom EVH-stamped Gotoh tuners and chrome eye hooks with turnbuckles.
A Tribute to EVH’s Shark
The EVH Striped Series Shark is a tribute to (although not quite a re-creation of) one of the guitars that Eddie Van Halen used to attain the early Van Halen sound. Experience resonant tone, sustain, and crunch thanks to an ash body and dual EVH Wolfgang humbuckers. Benefit from a comfortable maple neck and fast-playing compound-radius fingerboard. Beyond that, a brass nut and EVH chrome-plated solid brass harmonica bridge yield massive sustain, while EVH Custom Gotoh tuners ensure rock-solid intonation. The Striped Series Shark is teeming with classic Van Halen aesthetics, but most importantly, it provides killer tone and lightning-fast playability. This axe belongs in every Van Halen fan’s guitar collection.
The Shark — a brief history
When fans dive into the history of Eddie Van Halen’s guitars, they generally gravitate toward his iconic “Frankenstrat.” But just as important to Van Halen’s history is Eddie’s often-overlooked Ibanez Destroyer, which he later dubbed “the Shark.” The guitar historians here at Sweetwater find it puzzling that this guitar is so frequently disregarded, as it was all over Van Halen’s 1978 self-titled debut. In fact, since he preferred the Shark’s heavier tone, Eddie allegedly reached for it anytime he didn’t need a whammy bar. While this guitar was simply a stock Destroyer during the recording of Van Halen, Eddie later modded it by removing its pickguard, carving up its body, placing Les Paul–style knobs on it, and decorating it with his trademark striped paint job. The fully modded Shark was later highlighted on the cover of 1980’s Women and Children First.
EVH Wolfgang humbuckers nail Eddie’s tone
The Striped Series Shark comes loaded with a set of EVH Wolfgang humbuckers. Superhuman chops aside, Eddie forged his unmistakable sound through incessant tinkering with guitar parts and pickups. To achieve his signature tone, Eddie paid particular attention to different pickup windings. Wolfgang humbuckers are the direct product of Eddie’s tone chasing, and they nail his classic lead tone: stinging, singing highs, snarling mids, fat brown sound, and all. Thanks to these killer pickups, the Striped Series Shark delivers Eddie Van Halen’s classic tone — instantly.
Compound-radius fretboard makes chording and soloing effortless
The EVH Striped Series Shark features a super-playable 12″–16″ compound-radius fretboard. That means its fingerboard has a 12″ radius down by the nut, which makes it easy to grab chords and strum rhythms. As you move up the fretboard where you’re more likely to bend notes, the fretboard flattens out to a 16″ radius, which allows you to more easily bend notes, effectively offering you extra fretboard space so you’re less likely to run off the edge. Ultimately, the Striped Series Shark’s compound radius makes transitioning between rhythm and lead playing effortless.
A spot-on cosmetic duplicate of Eddie’s original
The Striped Series Shark endeavors to be a spot-on cosmetic duplicate of Eddie’s original, and it shows. The channel where the silver wire connects to the guitar’s selector switch is rough and deliberate, as are the “shark teeth” on its body. The Shark’s squared-off corners were replicated to a T — imperfections and all. What’s more, the guitar’s vacant tone control hole looks completely DIYed. The Striped Series Shark is as close to the real thing as you’re going to find.
EVH Striped Series Shark Solidbody Electric Guitar Features:
- Inspired by Eddie Van Halen’s modded Ibanez Destroyer
- A spot-on cosmetic duplicate of Eddie’s original
- Ash body and dual EVH pickups deliver resonant tone, sustain, and crunch
- Comfortable maple neck enhances the guitar’s snap and sustain
- Fast-playing compound-radius fingerboard
- Brass nut and EVH chrome-plated solid brass harmonica bridge enhance sustain
- 3-way pickup selector, master volume, and master tone — easy to dial in
- Rock-solid EVH Custom Gotoh SG381 tuners
