It's not just software. Kramer had a brief stint with Gibson circa 2010. Then it disappeared a few years later, (maybe 2012). I believe Gibson had a role in this as well. Thankfully, Kramer is back:
http://www.kramerguitars.com/I'm not sure when they reappeared.
EDIT: I'm not sure what exactly happened, but Gibson owns Kramer now....which sucks. Here is a Wikipedia excerpt:
The Kramer brand was sold out of bankruptcy to
Gibson Guitar Corporation. Gibson's
Epiphone division has produced guitars and basses under the Kramer brand since the late 1990s, mostly factory-direct through the now-defunct MusicYo.com website. Encouraged by the resurgence of interest in the Kramer brand, Epiphone has been reissuing classic Kramer models, including the "1984 Model;" (a homage to Eddie Van Halen's famous "5150" guitar used from 1984-1991) the "Jersey Star;" (a homage to the
Richie Sambora signature 1980s Kramer) and most recently, the "1985 Baretta Reissue (A standard slant-pickup Baretta)". These high-end instruments are assembled in the USA from American components. In January 2009, Gibson shut down the MusicYo.com website, instead promising that Kramers would be available through dealers and in music stores by the end of 2009. But supply was not consistent and promised new models were either seriously delayed or never produced.
More recently however under guidance from a dedicated Kramer team at Gibson, new models have made it to stores, and now includes the budget priced Baretta Special (a model touted on the MusicYo pages but never released until now) plus designs never seen before including the Pariah & Assault (including FR tremolo models) ranges brought out to bring the Kramer name to a new generation of rock musicians, while homages to vintage models like the Stagemaster in the form of the SM-1 and Classic Pacer Imperial now simply called the Pacer Vintage are also still produced.[
citation needed]
In 2007, a Kramer Striker
controller was created for
Guitar Hero III for the
PS2, under a licensing agreement with
Gibson Guitar Corporation. A Kramer Focus was also available as an in-game guitar, as was one of the earlier aluminum neck model Kramers. The Kramer Fatboy has been featured in
Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock and
Guitar Hero Aerosmith.
Original Kramer guitars are now highly collectable, after being considered undesirable in the early-mid-1990s. They regularly fetch high prices on
eBay and other auction sites. Kramer collectors held a
Kramer Expo every year in
Nashville, Tennessee, near the Gibson plant, from 2003-2008. More recently, expos have been held annually in locations around Europe including the
Netherlands,
Newcastle upon Tyne in 2006 & 2007, and
Liverpool, UK in 2010 & 2012, to showcase and celebrate Kramer guitars.
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