Imagine if Eddie Van Halen never cut up his Destroyer?

[paulyc]

If Eddie loved that Ibanez Destroyer so much and he ruined his, why didn't he replace it? The year was 1980 or 1981. Those guitars sold for what, $300 back then? He couldn't have snagged 10 more on his world travels and with his wallet? There's a '58 LP that he somehow found and bought in that pic. If that Destroyer was in fact the holy grail, IMO he would have replaced it with 30 more of them.

The ones he liked weren't run of the mill Ibanez Destroyers though...he liked the Korina wood ones, he said when they changed to regular ash or alder they sucked...The Korina ones are NOT easy to find.

 

[Chubtone]

There's so much conflicting stories about whether Ibanez ever made ANY Destroyers out of real Korina. Personally I don't really care. It's all about the superstrats for me.

I think that is the 2" thick mahogany body Eddie had made. I can see why he didn't like that. I am not a fan at all of mahogany bodies with bolt on maple necks.

 

[nitro]

There weren't korina they were made out of mahagony a very limited run and they were calling them korina because of the famous 1958/59 Gibson explorers and flying Vs that were made out of korina.This was explained to me indepth by a Ibanez worker in the mid 70s I will try to dig up his name,I just cant remember.

 

[Kelly]

There weren't korina they were made out of mahagony a very limited run and they were calling them korina because of the famous 1958/59 Gibson explorers and flying Vs that were made out of korina.This was explained to me indepth by a Ibanez worker in the mid 70s I will try to dig up his name,I just cant remember.

Sen ash, not mahogany.

 

[nitro]

Yes I/we know the majority were made out of ash(with a clear
dyed korina finish) but there was a limited run that were made out of mahagony.

 

[sytharnia1560]

1.) He really didn't like the tone anymore after he cut it up. He's said it numerous times. As an example of why I don't think he was just saying that to throw people off, he borrowed Chris Holmes' Destroyer for recording VH II because he needed a good sounding, unmolested one - you can see it on a stand in some of the VH II era studio pics. Chris has talked about this as well...

chris has also said numerous times that when he got it back from eddie it was all messed up the way eddie set it up, what ever that means

 

[paulscape]

I always thought Ed looked bitchin' with the destroyer. I also loved the silver and red paint, rather than white.

He never really played it much after the early days. Maybe it was just a pain to take around live or didn't stay in tune well and in the studio he borrowed Chris Holmes.

I also wish he could have recorded a song with that mandolin!

 

[Rocksoff]

He did the Shark mod to the Destroyer some time after recording the first album at the end of August 1977 and before the first world tour in early 1978.

He used the Shark mod Destroyer on the 1978 world tour and also to record some songs on the second album beginning in early December 1978.

So, that's a long time to play something that is ruined IMO.

He had a thing about people copying him and companies trying to copy his gear and Hoshino (who own the Ibanez brand) asked EVH to promote Ibanez and EVH said no, so that is a reason why EVH gave up the Destroyer IMO and he did borrow Chris Holmes's Ibanez Destroyer but never used it in public and EVH still has the Shark mod Ibanez Destroyer as far as I know.

 

[Rocksoff]

There weren't korina they were made out of mahagony a very limited run and they were calling them korina because of the famous 1958/59 Gibson explorers and flying Vs that were made out of korina.This was explained to me indepth by a Ibanez worker in the mid 70s I will try to dig up his name,I just cant remember.

There were (African) Mahogany Ibanez Explorers for a short time at the start (1975) but that changed to Sen Ash soon after.

 

[paulyc]

I always thought Ed looked bitchin' with the destroyer. I also loved the silver and red paint, rather than white.

He never really played it much after the early days. Maybe it was just a pain to take around live or didn't stay in tune well and in the studio he borrowed Chris Holmes.

I also wish he could have recorded a song with that mandolin!

He actually did record something with the mandolin...Ted Templeman told a funny story back in the day about the band trying something with a mandolin track on it in the studio, and Ted asked Eddie after a take to go again, and Ed looked up at Ted through the control room glass and yelled, "Hey Ted...FUCK YOU !" and proceeded to smash the mandolin to bits all over the studio. When he was finished destroying it, he looked up grinning...he told Ted he just wanted to get the sound of the mandolin dying on tape. So there must be a mandolin tracked tune somewhere in the VH archive backlog...

 

[drod1985]

EVH still has the Shark mod Ibanez Destroyer as far as I know.

He does! Here's a recent pic of it alive and well courtesy of Wolf's Instagram...

 

[Mr. Willy]

Is that a super distortion in the bridge?

 

[Rdodson]

Could be a Mighty Mite 1300, I think.

 

[nitro]

Its a mighty mite,a dimazrio super distortion has little holes on the bobbin.

 

[paulyc]

I thought the Mighty Mite's had 2 mounting screws on one side of the pick up ring and one on the other...?

 

[nitro]

Its a mighty mite pickup in Edwards destroyer,do a search on vintage mighty mite pickups and then compare them to the Dimarzio Super Distortion.

 

[paulyc]

I have 2 of them that I bought used...they both have two screws mounting the pick up to the ring on one side and one screw on the other side, double row of hex allen pole pieces, double crème bobbins, and chrome (rusty now) pole piece screws. I'd say they're old considering the rust and discoloration of the crème plastic...

 

[Anonymous]

I thought the Mighty Mite's had 2 mounting screws on one side of the pick up ring and one on the other...?

Nah, not all of them I guess - here are two vintage Mighty Mite 1300 pickups (each measures about 13K).they both have just one mounting screw on each side. I just won these on Reverb! Yay me! Psych'd to hear how they compare to the Dimarzio Super D (my fave bridge pickup!

Steve

 

[cardinal]

Unfortunately, just because it's in the Shark now doesn't mean it was in the Shark back then.

 

[Anonymous]

Unfortunately, just because it's in the Shark now doesn't mean it was in the Shark back then.

It was. You can see it in the old pictures...

Steve