Kramer Baretta
One of the first and most
well known production
guitar models to be inspired
by Van Halen’s Frankenstrat
was the Kramer Baretta.
EVH had a close relationship
with Kramer in the ‘80s, so
much so that the company
even let him build at least
one guitar (the legendary
“5150” guitar) himself in its
factory from stock parts. Ed
had a number of Kramers
over the years, appearing
publicly with them on
occassion, and many of his
homemade guitars were
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TONE TALK //
built from Kramer
parts. It was no
surprise then
that the company
would eventually
base the design for
one of its most beloved
and defining models on
the Frankenstrat blueprint.
The Kramer Baretta was
introduced in 1983, and it
featured a single, slightly
angled bridge position
humbucker, a single volume
control, an original Floyd
Rose vibrato system, and a
thin neck built for speed.
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The Baretta
has been recently
reissued by Kramer (now
a Gibson brand) at several
different price points, and
vintage models regularly
sell for up to 1000 dollars
or more, depending on the
version.