EVH Striped Series '78 Eruption - Black / White Stripes Relic (877)

On the cover of Van Halen’s 1978 eponymous debut album, Eddie Van Halen thrusts his black-and-white striped Strat-style guitar towards the camera as if he’s showing you the future. He played this guitar on his unprecedented and mind-blowing “Eruption” guitar solo, thus its nickname, and almost immediately, this monumental instrument became a timeless icon, symbolic of a paradigm shift in guitar-driven rock and roll.

Back when this trailblazing album first appeared, nobody had ever seen or heard a guitar like that because no such guitar ever existed. What was this? You couldn’t buy one.

That’s because he made it himself. The 22-year-old Eddie Van Halen had the mind of not only a great musician, but also of an innovative inventor—a constant tinkerer who was always messing with his gear. Eddie would say it was out of necessity as no off-the-shelf guitar had the features he needed to really do his job and realize his full potential. So, he took matters into his own capable hands — refretting the neck, installing a humbucking pickup which he potted in paraffin wax, as well a single master volume knob (famously labeled as “Tone”), brass nut and tailpiece from a ’58 Strat, cutting out and mounting his own homemade black and of course, coming up with iconic striped motif.

The all-new EVH Striped Series ’78 Eruption guitar combines many of those famed mods along with modernized features and a relic treatment.

The Stratocaster-style body sports Eddie’s famed white-and-black-striped paint job and has been paired to a quartersawn maple neck with a hand-rubbed satin urethane back finish. The 12”-16” compound radius maple fingerboard with 22 jumbo frets was designed for fast and furious playing styles with maximum comfort, while a heel-mount truss rod wheel makes for time-saving neck adjustments.

A single EVH Wolfgang® humbucking bridge pickup provides classic Eddie Van Halen guitar tone – from crystal cleans to fat and rich mids and lows, while the brass nut and six-saddle vintage Fender Stratocaster synchronized tremolo bridge with a 43mm brass block allow for authentic EVH tone.

Other features include a skirted white Strat-style volume control knob (labeled “tone”) with 500K EVH Bourns low friction pot and treble bleed circuit, black pickguard, chrome hardware, oversized strap buttons, EVH neck plate and larger, ‘70s-style licensed Fender Strat headstock with gold EVH logo.

Model: EVH '78 Eruption 

Body: Basswood

Color: Black and White Striped Pattern

Neck: Quartersawn Maple

Neck Shape: EVH Modified "C" Shape

Neck Finish: Hand Rubbed Satin Urethane

Fingerboard: 12" to 16" Compound Radius

Frets: 22 Jumbo

Inlays: Black Dots

Nut: Brass

Headstock: Strat (large) 

Tuning Machines: EVH Branded

Scale: 25.5"

Bridge: 6-Saddle Vintage-Style Fender Synchronized Trem. 43mm Brass Block 

Bridge Pickup: EVH Wolfgang Humbucker

Controls: Master Volume (Labeled Tone) 

Switching: N/A

Strings: .009-.042

Included Accessories: Tremolo Arm, Wrenches, Stripped Series Gig Bag