EVH Wolfgang Standard Electric Guitar - Gloss Black Reviews

I had been thinking about one of these for some time but didn't know if I would enjoy playing one. The body is a reduced size and the upper horn extends out farther than many of the double cut guitars I own. When I saw the roasted maple neck I thought I would give this one a try as it was the lowest priced option. My assumption was that it would be good but not great. That was a mistake.

The neck... I can't say every single one will be like this but the fretwork on mine is perfect. No tall frets, no sprout, no sharp edges and all were polished and smooth as glass. While the fretboard edges aren't rolled to the degree of a $3000+ instrument they are rolled making the neck very comfortable to play. The profile on the neck is almost identical to Eddie's older EBMM model and the roasted maple just feels solid like a much more expensive guitar.

The body is a great weight, not to heavy, not too light and basswood works well with the pickups. Speaking of pickups, while I'm sure the USA versions of the Wolfgang pickups are probably better, these are very usable. I did lower the neck pickup for a little more clarity as it's a higher output then the bridge, but very happy so far playing through a few different amp types - tube, solid state and digital.

Setup - like all the guitars I have received from Sweetwater the guitar was playable right out of the box. I was able to tune it up and start playing. However the setup, and I'm assuming they come from the factory like this, was a great standard setup but not how EVH would set his up - which is having the trem flush with the body and decked so it can't be pulled back. Changing it though was quite simple. The neck angle from the factory was perfect. After loosing the strings and springs I just lowered the bridge until it was flush. Once that is done just tightened the strings and gave the neck a little relief, the truss rod wheel is simple to use AND they give you a rod to use rather than having to use a allenwrench. Mine needed about just a little more than half a turn (towards the top of the body if you haven't done it before). As noted the neck angle was already correct so just a little bit of relief, the neck was perfectly straight when I got it, and the action is right where I want it and the trem is tight to the body, ready to install a D-Tuna if I want.

The above may sound like a lot of work but it's not, as noted the guitar setup was fantastic from Sweetwater and probably the way many would want it so this isn't a ding on them. Rather just a note on how to make minor modifications. I'm sure you can also find some videos on this as well or have someone do it for a very reasonable cost.

Resonance... once I brought the trem down flush the resonance between all the parts was astounding. Unplugged you can hear the guitar sing from "across the room" and "it was love in the 1st degree." Even the FR "Special" trem is working well and holding tune as expected.

Other points to note - belly cut and forearm cut. To my knowledge the Special and the USA models do not have these cutouts. While that may or may not concern some players it can take time to get use to if you have played Strat most of your life. The standard does have them both, making it a little more comfortable and the flat top works well for a harder rock style of music IMHO.

In summary I was pleasantly surprised with this purchase. I had thought if I liked it I might eventually get the USA model, which I still may at some point, but this is a keeper, the neck alone is pure joy to play. No matter what you like, from super thin D shapes to fat U shapes to a standard C profile this neck will be comfortable for anyone to pickup and play.

My rep Simon was fantastic as always which is one of the reasons I choose to make most of my instrument purchases here at Sweetwater.

If you have been on the fence about trying a Wolfgang, don't hesitate, even the standard model is phenomenal and quite possibly the best guitar made in this price range.