Guitar Journal: Van Halen Kramer Sells, Korn & More!
Signature Korn Pedals SOLD OUT and Benson and Milkman Sounds collaborate
This week, we look at how much the Van Halen Kramer sold for and the new Korn signature effects pedal, which has already sold out! Finally, we look at the new Milkman Sound and Benson Amps Benson The Amp, an amp in a pedal.
Guitar Journal
Van Halen Kramer
The Eddie Van Halen-owned Kramer we told you about back in August has just recently been sold for a lot of money; it actually sold for a whopping $2,734,000!
That’s a lot of cash for a guitar he didn’t really play regularly, and that was only used in an advertising campaign for Kramer. However, it was well documented, and this type of provenance will always make a celebrity-owned instrument worth more money to collectors.
Allegedly, this is the 6th most expensive guitar to be sold in recent years, so someone had deep pockets to pick this beauty up.
Frankenstein Stripes
I personally think it also helped, as it has the Frankenstein Stripes of Eddie’s favourite homemade guitar, which is a visual association that really lets everyone know who this guitar belonged to. Ultimately, the provenance is what really pushed the price up on this guitar.
The guitar has a rich history, starting with its use by Eddie Van Halen in the early 1980s before he gifted it to his tech, Rudy Leiren. Van Halen left a heartfelt signature: “Rude – it’s been a great ten years – let’s do another ten. Eddie Van Halen.”
Furthermore, the back of the headstock is permanently marked with its official designation: ‘#1 Edward Van Halen model’. Its legacy continued when Leiren sold it to Mick Mars, who famously played it on Mötley Crüe’s recording of Dr. Feelgood.
I’m just thrilled that Wolfgang owns his father’s original Frankenstein and that he uses it to make music, as he is a great musician in his own right, and his father’s legacy lives on through his creativity.
Korn Pedal
Unfortunately, these Korn signature stompboxes have already sold out by the time you read this. They were pretty exclusive, only available via the band’s official site, so you would have needed to be a fan to grab one anyway.
Indigo Sludge Preamp + Fuzz
The whole idea was to capture the ’90s Korn tone in a single pedal. The Indigo Sludge Preamp + Fuzz (as it is known) replicates the original tones from the band’s seminal early hits, including “Blind” and “Shoots and Ladders.” It delivers the “preamp roar and fuzzed chaos” of their mid-90s Indigo Ranch sessions with producer Ross Robinson.
Heavy Tones
This signature pedal is built to deliver the classic, super-heavy tones of Munky and Head’s seven-string riffs. It has a Preamp based on the high-gain amps used at Indigo Ranch, which produces a tight, saturated crunch. With three-band EQ, Volume, Gain, and Presence controls.
Plus, a Fuzz with a dedicated fuzz circuit adds a “woolly, sustain-drenched chaos” texture, and with its own Gain, Volume, and Tone controls. Finally, an Octave switch is included for an extra layer of gut-rattling depth.
They made only 500 pedals, priced at $249.99 each. Each unit came with a Certificate of Authenticity personally signed by Munky.
Benson The Amp
This collaboration between Milkman Sound and Benson Amps has created the new Benson The Amp, and that can only be a good thing, as these two amp makers really know their stuff!
It uses the signature preamp from Chris Benson’s Chimera and Monarch amplifier models and puts it into a pedal-format amp. Obviously, Milkman Sound has made a few iterations of the pedal format amplifier, so this should be a great collaboration to check out for anyone who loves great sounding guitar amps.
Tube Tones
The tube preamp has been voiced by Chris, as mentioned above and he also worked on the cab sim, to make it sound nearly identical to his ceramic speakers. It also has a Room control that allows the amp to simulate early reflections. The kind that you would get when playing a regualr guitar amp in a room and this can be used on either the direct outputs or out of the speaker.
Controls
It also has a three band EQ and an output control, so a nice simple to use setup. The amp has a built-in reverb and a 24dB boost circuit which are both footswitchable. The wattage is reated at 50W at 16ohm 100W at 8ohm , and 200W at 4ohm, so it’s pretty flexible depending on what cabs you use with it.
MSRP – $899



