Skip to main content
MusicRadar MusicRadar The No.1 website for musicians
UK EditionUK US EditionUS AU EditionAustralia SG EditionSingapore
Sign in
  • View Profile
  • Sign out
  • Artist news
  • Music Gear Reviews
  • Synths
  • Guitars
  • Controllers
  • Drums
  • Keyboards & Pianos
  • Guitar Amps
  • Software & Apps
  • More
    • Recording
    • DJ Gear
    • Acoustic Guitars
    • Bass Guitars
    • Tech
    • Tutorials
    • Reviews
    • Buying Guides
    • About us
Don't miss these
Harley Benton goes for the '80s vibe as it refreshes its ST-80FR shred guitars in six Sparkle Burst finishes – including Hologram.
Guitars Harley Benton takes on the high-performance heavyweights with a Sparkle Burst refresh of its $400 Floyd-equipped S-style
deadmau5
Synths “I have severe Gear Acquisition Syndrome”: Deadmau5 shows off his insane synth collection
A PRS McCarty 594 on a hard case
Electric Guitars Best electric guitars 2026: Our pick of guitars to suit all budgets
Close up of a Taylor GS Mini acoustic guitar lying on a wooden floor
Acoustic Guitars Best acoustic guitars 2026: Super steel string acoustics for all players and budgets
Paul Gilbert wears a tricorn and period dress as he poses in shred mode with his signature Ibanez guitar
Artists “I’ve got to compete with Bach and Beethoven and Mozart and The Beatles!”: Inside the mind of guitar hero Paul Gilbert
Mark Morton with his signature Les Paul Modern
Artists How Mark Morton and Gibson reinvented the Les Paul for modern metal – and why passive beats active humbuckers hands down
Ozzy Osbourne and Zakk Wylde shirtless onstage in 1989, with Wylde playing his Gibson Les Paul Custom Grail
Artists Why Zakk Wylde brought his “Grail” Les Paul Custom out of retirement for Ozzy Osbourne tribute song
Close up of Squier Classic Vibe '50s Telecaster
Electric Guitars Best electric guitars under $500/£500 2026: Affordable electrics
Harley Benton ST-Modern Carlos Asensio
Electric Guitars “An absolute steal when it comes to quality and value for money”: Harley Benton ST-Modern Carlos Asensio CGM review
BEHRINGER
Tech Behringer's "supercharged" Roland Juno-60 clone is now available for pre-order
Harley Benton NAMM 2026 releases include left-handed options on its V-style electric and offset bass guitars, fresh finish options for the SC single-cuts, and new colours for its HSS S-style
Guitars Harley Benton’s 2026 mega-drop: Metallica makeovers, fresh colours and a baritone SC Custom III, all-solid acoustics for under $250 and more
Midge Ure guitar synth
Artists Back in 1984, Midge Ure appeared on TV to reveal our MIDI guitar synth future with his Roland GR-700
Joe Satriani wears dark shades and performs with his Ibanez "Chrome Boy" signature guitar.
Artists Joe Satriani on what he told David Lee Roth and Alex Van Halen when they called about EVH tribute tour
A black and white live shot of Richie Sambora playing his iconic modded Gibson Explorer in 1984, onstage with a shirtless Jon Bon Jovi to his right.
Artists Richie Sambora was so desperate to track down his stolen Explorer he hired a private detective – 41 years later he has it back
Epiphone Inspired By Gibson Acoustics 2026: the new all-solid core range takes its design cues from classic high-end Gibson USA builds.
Guitars Epiphone raises the bar for its acoustic guitar range with all-solid builds, rosewood fingerboards and affordable takes on Gibson classics
More
  • Sly and Survivor
  • In My Life
  • 95k+ free music samples
  • One chord Diamond
  1. Guitars

Replicas of Steve Vai's Emerald Ultra Guitar now available

News
By Joe Bosso published 18 September 2012

"At first I wasn't sure if I should plug it in and play it or crawl inside of it and fly it to Venus" - Steve Vai

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.

Replicas of Steve Vai's Emerald Ultra Guitar now available

Replicas of Steve Vai's Emerald Ultra Guitar now available

Last month, we brought you news of the Emerald Ultra guitar, the futuristic, otherworldly looking instrument that Steve Vai is playing for the song The Ultra Zone on his current The Story Of Light Tour.

The guitar was custom-built for Vai by Alister Hay of the Ireland-based Emerald Guitars. Hay based his design on Aaron Brown's illustration for Vai's 1999 album, The Ultra Zone, which depicts an "alien Steve" playing a guitar that could have come from a sci-fi film.

Replicas of the Ultra guitar are now available from Emerald Guitars. Each is an exact replica of the Ultra Guitar owned by Vai and will precisely maintain the same standard and specs as the one the guitarist is currently playing.

The Ultra guitar's body is constructed from a carbon/glass composite and its neck is carbon fibre. It features built-in lasers and what is said to be a "chameleon-like tendency to change color." The run of Ultra Guitars is limited to just 100 pieces. Each Ultra guitar comes with a hand-crafted “Pod” guitar case like Vai’s, along with a letter of authenticity.

The price is $8,450 USD, and orders can be secured with a $1,000 USD deposit. To pre-order and for more information, visit Emerald Guitars.

Page 1 of 6
Page 1 of 6
The Ultra guitar - front and back views

The Ultra guitar - front and back views

Page 2 of 6
Page 2 of 6
The Ultra guitar - plus "Pod" case

The Ultra guitar - plus "Pod" case

Page 3 of 6
Page 3 of 6
The Ultra guitar - snazzy lighting stand not included

The Ultra guitar - snazzy lighting stand not included

Page 4 of 6
Page 4 of 6
Steve Vai vibes out in rehearsal with his Ultra guitar

Steve Vai vibes out in rehearsal with his Ultra guitar

Page 5 of 6
Page 5 of 6
Designer Alister Hay with the Ultra guitar

Designer Alister Hay with the Ultra guitar

Page 6 of 6
Page 6 of 6
Joe Bosso
Joe Bosso

Joe is a freelance journalist who has, over the past few decades, interviewed hundreds of guitarists for Guitar World, Guitar Player, MusicRadar and Classic Rock. He is also a former editor of Guitar World, contributing writer for Guitar Aficionado and VP of A&R for Island Records. He’s an enthusiastic guitarist, but he’s nowhere near the likes of the people he interviews. Surprisingly, his skills are more suited to the drums. If you need a drummer for your Beatles tribute band, look him up.

Read more
Ibanez Alpha Series: 7 and 8-string guitars with an all-new shape, metallic finishes, and photographed here in profile against a dark gradient background.
Guitars Stylistically radical, Ibanez’s multi-scale Alpha series might just be the 21st-century prog-metal player’s favourite new guitar – but do you get the 7-string or the 8?
 
 
Keith Richards tries out the meticulous Custom Shop replica of his original 1960 Gibson ES-355, with many more replicas in the background.
Artists Gibson surprise launches $19,999 Keith Richards Collector’s Edition 1960 ES-355, signed by the man himself
 
 
Gary Clark Jr plays his signature Cobra Burst ES-355 live onstage.
Artists Gary Clark Jr channels the King of the Blues for limited edition Gibson Custom Shop collab
 
 
The Gibson Michael Schenker 1971 Flying V Collector's Edition is a forensic replica of the guitar made famous by the former UFO and Scorpions guitarist – a guitar that is now owned by Metallica's Kirk Hammett.
Artists How a broken string, a loan from his brother and a fresh paint job helped Michael Schenker turn this Flying V into an icon of rock
 
 
Gibson Mark Ronson Les Paul Custom
Guitars Gibson unveils Murphy Lab replica of Mick Ronson’s Bowie-era 1968 Les Paul Custom
 
 
Derek Trucks [left] plays his Dickey Betts SG live onstage; [right] a portrait close-up of Jerry Garcia's Tiger guitar, which recently sold for $11,560,000.
Artists Derek Trucks reveals what it’s like to play Jerry Garcia’s record-breaking $11.6mn Tiger guitar
 
 
Latest in Guitars
Catalinbread CB Paint
Guitars “Six room sizes, a gated reverb patch and a reverse reverb patch for your consideration”: Catalinbread launches compact reverb pedal with inspired by the Neil Young and Daft Punk-approved Alesis Microverb
 
 
Mark Morton of Lamb Of God takes a solo onstage with his prototype signature Les Paul
Artists Mark Morton on the chemistry behind Lamb Of God's twin-guitar groove and what he owes ZZ Top
 
 
Thundercat performs at Aviva Studios on March 27, 2026 in Manchester, England
Singles And Albums “Mac’s death was a traumatic experience for me”: Thundercat on how losing Mac Miller made him change his life
 
 
Beetronics Pollinator Hazee Delay
Guitar Pedals “It feels more like a DIY creator building something weird for themselves”: Beetronix Pollinator Hazee Delay
 
 
Lindsey Buckingham
Artists "Oh, wow!": Lindsey Buckingham reacts to TikTok covers of Fleetwood Mac’s Never Going Back Again
 
 
The JHS Pedals Coyote is a replication of the Moonrock Fuzz, a cult classic made by G.S. Wyllie, and it comes in a gold enclosure with artwork featuring a black Coyote howling.
Guitars JHS Pedals’ turns loose the Coyote – a fuzz pedal tribute to a “lost” cult classic and its maker
 
 
Latest in News
Catalinbread CB Paint
Guitars “Six room sizes, a gated reverb patch and a reverse reverb patch for your consideration”: Catalinbread launches compact reverb pedal with inspired by the Neil Young and Daft Punk-approved Alesis Microverb
 
 
Kanye West wearing sunglasses and wearing a black shirt
Artists Wireless Festival cancelled and tickets refunded after UK Government blocks Kanye West’s entry to the UK
 
 
Music Studio
Music Production Tutorials 5 creativity-enhancing studio workflow tips
 
 
Sky Ferreira holding a microphone on stage with red light on her and blue lights on the background
Artists Sky Ferreira expresses frustration on Twitter and tells a fan on X that her music was used in Wuthering Heights without credit
 
 
jimmy douglass
Producers & Engineers "This guy pops out of a trash can – it was Ginger Baker!": Jimmy Douglass on his early days working for Atlantic Records
 
 
Gary Numan in 2024 playing a live show dressed in black with red stage lights behind and holding a Les Paul guitar
Artists Gary Numan claims to be “90% deaf”
 
 

MusicRadar is part of Future plc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site.

Add as a preferred source on Google Add as a preferred source on Google
  • About Us
  • Contact Future's experts
  • Terms and conditions
  • Privacy policy
  • Cookies policy
  • Advertise with us
  • Accessibility Statement
  • Careers

© Future Publishing Limited Quay House, The Ambury, Bath BA1 1UA. All rights reserved. England and Wales company registration number 2008885.

Please login or signup to comment

Please wait...