Unleash Your Love for Rock! Introducing My Favorite EVH Products

Introduction

At least once in a guitar player’s life, they must have seen the iconic combination of a rear humbucker, Floyd Rose, and the classic red, white, and black stripes. When I first saw it, I thought, “What is this bold statement of a guitar?” (in a good way, of course).

But this was the famous Eddie Van Halen signature guitar.
For rock lovers, this must be something you’ve at least thought about trying once, right?
The brand EVH deals with the equipment that helped create the signature tones Eddie used, and it continues to produce some fantastic gear.

EVH is a brand under Fender, just like Charvel and Jackson, and it’s beloved by a wide range of guitar players, from Eddie’s fans to others.

In this post, I’m going to introduce three EVH products that I’ve used and highly recommend.

① EVH / EVH Frankenstein Relic Series Maple FB

This guitar is modeled after the famous Frankenstein with its iconic stripe pattern. The attention to detail is incredible, with a pickup selector switch installed in the routed center pickup space and a dummy front pickup that closely resembles Eddie’s famous setup.

Interestingly, this version doesn’t have the typical stripes but comes with a solid lacquer finish. So, if you’re interested in playing an EVH model guitar but hesitate because of the bold design, this one could be a great option for you.

Regarding the sound, in my personal opinion, it has a powerful and clear tone. With just one volume knob and a maple neck, it seems to retain the high-end frequencies quite well. It’s different from the thick, soft tones you might expect from a Les Paul.

The pickups are EVH’s own Wolfgang humbuckers (for the bridge), featuring Alnico 2 magnets with a resistance of around 14k (according to the manufacturer’s website). They’re not ultra-high output, which means you can also create clean, expressive tones.

However, be aware that the lacquer finish and the mostly unfinished neck make this guitar very sensitive to temperature and humidity changes. During the summer, the neck may warp due to humidity (or dry out during winter), and there’s a possibility that the finish might melt from the heat.

② MXR / EVH 5150 Overdrive

When it comes to EVH effects, this is the one. The matte black body with stripes gives it an amazing design, and the light that turns on when you switch it is also very easy to see.

The sound is a thick, gritty distortion that recalls the classic Brown Sound of the early years. As many reviewers have pointed out, it can handle everything from crunchy rhythms to smooth leads with ease.
Given its texture, it might be more accurate to describe it as a distortion rather than an overdrive.

The knobs for gain and volume offer a lot of adjustability. However, the EQ doesn’t change the sound drastically, even when turned all the way up. It’s hard to get an extreme scooped mid sound. While there is some tonal variation when adjusting the knobs, the changes are subtle, and it’s best to use the EQ for minor tweaks rather than major tonal shifts.

The boost switch on the right side of the pedal does increase the amount of distortion, but the effect is minimal, and the switch itself is quite small, making it difficult to activate during a performance. If you want more distortion, I would recommend using a separate compressor or booster.

The noise gate can be a bit unnatural depending on the settings. It tends to cut off the sustain at moments when you might want a little more, so I personally don’t use it much. However, it can be useful in situations where you’re playing with crunch tones that tend to pick up more noise, like during cutting rhythm parts.

On the back, as shown in the photo, the screw heads and battery compartment are recessed, so you can easily attach Velcro to secure it to your pedalboard.
It’s the little details like this that are really appreciated.

③ EVH / EVH Frankenstein Humbucker

The final product I want to introduce is the pickup. This humbucker is a model that replicates the one originally installed in Eddie Van Halen’s iconic Frankenstein guitar.

The output is neither too strong nor too weak, which makes it suitable for a wide range of tones from clean to lead. I didn’t feel any particular frequency range was overly pronounced. This pickup works well with just about any guitar, and I’ve installed it on my Strat with a synchronized tremolo. It also pairs perfectly with the previously mentioned 5150 Overdrive.

Van Halen’s riffs often involve multiple notes being played simultaneously or arpeggios, and with this pickup, every individual note rings out cleanly without getting muddled, making it ideal for rock music players to try out.

One thing I did notice personally is that it tends to pick up a bit more noise than expected. However, this could be due to installation or individual variation, so please consider this as a point of reference.

That concludes the introduction of the equipment items.

Setting Examples

Lastly, I’d like to share a couple of examples of setups using the gear introduced in this article.

My recommendation is to use the 5150 Overdrive as a preamp! Of course, it’s fun to use it as a regular overdrive pedal, but if you want to capture the EVH tonal texture, using it as a preamp is the best option.
If you’re using a studio amp, you can simply insert it into the return input. However, since I create music with a DAW, I’ll show you the setup using Logic Pro as an example.
For this example, I’ll be using the Frankenstein Relic Series guitar I mentioned earlier.

Let’s start by recreating the early sound of the 70s to early 80s.
The songs I referenced are “Runnin’ with the Devil” and “Panama”.

Here’s the setup for the 5150 pedal.
To add thickness to the tone, I increased the mids and cut the lows significantly. If the lows are set too high, it will sound too much like a metal boomy tone.

Here’s how the DAW setup looks. I’m using all default plugins that come with Logic Pro. For the amp, I selected the Transparent Preamp model, which doesn’t color the sound too much. This lets me use the 5150 pedal as a preamp. The cabinet I used is the Brown 4x12.

The tone characteristics are clear; even when playing chords, each note rings through distinctly. The pedal’s overdrive texture really highlights the EVH vibe. Also, if you increase the gain on the 5150 pedal, it works well for leads, and by adding chorus, you can easily create a 90s EVH sound. The sustain is long, and it pairs perfectly with Floyd Rose arming.

As a side note, if you insert the Kramer Master Tape plugin by Waves, you can further enhance the warmth of your guitar sound with an analog-era feel.

⇒ Waves / Kramer Master Tape

Here’s the next setup. Try to guess whose sound I’m recreating.

The key points are that the 5150 pedal settings are a bit scooped, and I’m using the modern-type cabinet, the Modern British 4x12.
Additionally, there’s a very subtle chorus effect, so light you might not notice it unless told. This is mainly to soften the sharp distortion texture.

Now, let’s reveal the answer.
The sound is inspired by Hiroshi Shibasaki’s ‘Wands 5th Era’. It’s a modern sound with a unique charm that matches well with 90s songs.

By boosting the bass frequencies, I’ve managed to achieve a heavier, punchy sound when doing bridge muting on the lower strings.

Shibasaki himself likely doesn’t use chorus as a basic effect. However, for this setup, I used a free plugin to keep things simple. This gives a more contemporary sound without over-sharpening the edges.
Interestingly, Shibasaki has mentioned in an interview that he uses EVH amp modeling, so the overall tonal direction seems quite similar.

I’ve explored sound creation this far, but besides the plugins used, you can also experiment with freely available or commercial IRs to create a sound that feels completely different from Eddie’s style. There’s a lot of potential for diverse sound creations, so it might be fun to experiment!

In Conclusion

EVH products are known for their strong individuality, but I believe that’s what makes each one truly unique. Especially the 5150 Overdrive that I introduced earlier—it’s highly recommended for Eddie Van Halen fans who want to recreate the classic Brown Sound.

I’m sure it will bring new inspiration, so if you’re interested, I highly encourage you to give an EVH product a try, even just once.

Thank you so much for sticking with me through this!

The “sound & person” column is made up of contributions from you.
For details about contributing, click here.