Reviewed: October 14, 2008
Reviewed by: Mark Smith
Manufacturer
Mad Catz
Type: Guitar Stand
System: Universal
Rating: 10
Features
MSRP: $29.99
Before we dive into this review I need to make one thing perfectly clear. The Mad Catz Official Rock Band Triple Tree Guitar Stand won’t self-destruct or in any way harm or damage your Guitar Hero guitars should you decide to hang one on this tree. I know the benefits of licensing and getting the Rock Band logo plastered all over your otherwise universal piece of hardware, but in doing so you could also alienate an entire fan base of Guitar Hero players. To pigeon hole this guitar stand as being remotely exclusive to Rock Band is about as ridiculous as saying it will only work with Xbox 360 guitars.
Okay, now that my licensing rant is over we can get down to business. The Triple Tree Guitar Stand is easily the most useful piece of music-related hardware to find its way into my game room since guitar games came onto the scene. My axe collection now tallies at right around 15, which mean only 12 guitars now have to lean against the wall or lie in a jumble pile behind my sub-woofer. Frankly, I could use about 4 more of these trees but space prohibits such a lavish display of my collection.
Thankfully, out of all my guitars I have three that I used regularly, so those have been granted the extreme privilege of hanging from this professional style guitar stand with soft foam U-shaped hangers that cradle the neck and a foam backrest to support the back.
It was almost like cosmic karma that this tree stand showed up when it did. I had recently attended a Guitar Hero World Tour event in Santa Monica that was being held at a real recording studio and the place was littered with similar stands. I made a mental note to investigate picking up such a stand when I returned home, probably from the local music store, but thankfully Mad Catz saved the day.
The Triple Tree stand has an adjustable height although I see no reason to ever have it lower than the maximum height. The tripod base is very wide, which makes the stand extremely stable, so when you remove one guitar to play the weight from the other two don’t send the tree crashing over. This even holds true for the new Guitar Hero World Tour guitars, which has some of the heaviest guitars available.
In my research to purchase my own guitar stand prior to reviewing this one I was finding padded stands for three guitars ranging from $60-80 at music stores and online, so the $30 cost of the Triple Tree is a great bargain.
If you have more than one guitar (and who doesn’t) for Rock Band, Guitar Hero, or both, then the Official Rock Band Triple Tree Guitar Stand is a must-own peripheral. It will keep your room tidy and your guitars safe and on display for all to see.