Picture 2 - large body closeup
Picture 3 - EVO & FLO
The following Ibanez JEM guitars were built for Steve Vai. All were built after his Ibanez contract and introduction of the JEM 777 guitars at Summer NAMM 1987. None were mass produced or resold to the public.
Special thanks to the Vai staff & Dave Weiner for permission & help with the photos.
Picture 2 - large body closeup
Picture 3 - EVO & FLO
Evo as played in the Ultra Zone tour 1999-2000. Very similar to the past variants. Added the tape over the neck humbucker high-E edge.
EVO-II (JEM7VWH backup) looked to be an ebony neck straight VWH. No mods.
Picture 2 - large body closeup
Picture 3 - rear body
FLO 1999 updated w/ Fernandes Sustainer. This FLO pictured is customized JEM77FP w/ AANJ added, 555 neck (rosewood board with 555 serial number on headstock) and Sustainer in the neck pickup. The fretboard is not scalloped from frets 21-24.
Flo has/had interesting "wavy fret" modification at fret 1 & 2 at the G/B strings. Relief (flattened) at fret-1 of G-string & fret-2 of the B-string. This is said to provide a "tempered tuning" much like Buzz Feiton
Steve played FTLOG with FLO (& sustainer) which personally I did not find to sound as good as EVO as the reliance on the sustainer was a bit much.
This guitar has the Ibanez Backstop device (see below)
Better picture needed
POX is another hybrid JEM7VWH with 555 neck/fretboard. Otherwise unmodified to the naked eye, POX is the only guitar on tour tuned to Eb. This is used for the song "Aching Hunger".
Black Fender Strat w/ metalflake everything & lit fretboard - Played for Little Alligator & is very cool. Would be cooler if it was a JEM. This is not the Strat used on the Boy From Seattle. Has a built in wireless system, built in tuner & fretboard that light a very bright blue. Everything plus the kitchen sink.
It has two signatures on the guitar "Jeff Beck '99" and "Joe Walsh '79"
Picture 2 - body closeup
Picture 3 - w/ Dave Weiner
Used during Fever Dream on the album and tour. Very cool usage. Has three outputs. The left neck has a capo to ring the drone chord that Steve repeatedly hits during the song.
Update 6/2001 - This guitar was raffled to raise money for the Make A Noise Foundation (a nonprofit charity founded by Steve Vai & Richard Pike). Entrants all over the world bought tickets at $2 each for their chance to win Steve's Heart. The raffle raised nearly $10000 for MANF, and we thank everybody who participated! 7 other random winners won bottles of Fire Garden Honey farmed by the Vai family & bees.
The lucky winner of was Eddie Andersson of Orebro, Sweden!
Photo Soon
Standard JEM90HAM. Included is a sustainer pickup system. Played by Dave W. & Mike K, not Steve.
Miscellaneous Notes
Ibanez Backstop device. Steve uses an old Ibanez tremsetter type device on EVO, FLO and most all of his guitars.No longer manufactured it provides a bit of counter pressure to the tremolo, allowing for a more balanced tuning when bending strings or resting your hand on the bridge. It has two stabilizers w/ springs in addition to the 3 springs in the trem cavity. Unlike the Hipshot Trem-Setter, which replaces the center spring, it has a lesser effect on bar stiffness.
Sustainer Pickups - Steve's guitar with sustainer
pickups (FLO, 90) have 2 toggle switches. One toggle switch turns the
device on & off. One toggle switch adjusts the sustain effect from high,
medium or low. In addition each guitar with the Sustainer pickup has an additional
volume knob, to control the pickup. The sustainer pickup itself is the size
of a single-coil pickup and is installed in place of the typical neck-coil of
the neck humbucker. It is not certain if the remaining coil of the neck humbucker
is usable, or just present for looks and to fill the space. It is possible that
the sustainer and humbucker's remaining coil can be used together.
Markings & Names - most of the JEMs have tape or writing on the body
edge to identify the guitars in the rack. Flo has tape by the lower horn, Evo
has it in marker in the lower horn and upper body edge.
Neck Humbucker Tape - On some of the guitars there is a piece of tape over the high-E side of the neck humbucker. It is there so the string never gets caught on the pickup. It says "KONX" on it. Pickups are spaced regularly but anyone who picks hard (or w/ tremolo) will invariably find the high-E caught on the pickup once when it's least desired. The tape will prevent that since there's no edge to catch the string.
