Anyone here prefer a fixed bridge?

[glassjaw7]

I see a lot of FR love around here. Am I the only one who prefers a stop tail piece or string-through body with no trem? I like FRs and I realize that there are restrictions with fixed bridge axes, but every time I pick up a FR equipped axe, I don't like the feel and I am tempted to over use it and the result is cheesy dive-bomb madness!

I am much more at home with a LP or a strat with standard trem. Another issue is that I bend the B and high E strings a lot and that seems to pull a FR toward the neck resulting in pulling the whole axe flat during the bend. Also, I think the strings resonate better and in a more solid way without the FR block in there. My vibrato is much cleaner and smoother on a fixed bridge axe too.
Ok, discuss!

 

[DEWD]

I definitely like a stop tail or wraparound fixed bridge more despite my thread about looking for a Floyd guitar.

 

[RedB4Black]

I hate trem guitars. I gave them up long ago......but like DEWD, I wouldn't mind having one just to have, but I'm in no real hurry to get one.

 

[zerohawk]

Sadly I have had nothing but problems with floyds, so I love me a good hardtail or fixed bridge also.

 

[Tvd]

Everytime I'm in the music store screwin around with the FR equipped guitars I'm never all that happy... Just not comfortable with them i guess, fine tuning fixed tail piece ftw!

 

[crankyrayhanky]

I played an RG, a Jem, and a Universe for 15 years of whammy wildness- broken strings, broken bars, broken guitars...I played one night where the other axeman in my band- a guy who was clearly inferior to me- destroyed me in tone with his Les Paul.

I sold my Floyds, went Gibson....now instead of tuning all night, i get tone all night!
i do miss my bars though

 

[glassjaw7]

I watch people like Dime or Vai use em and I think I should try again to good at using one. Then when I try it's ultimate whammy bar fail. I guess that's what happens when you spend 15 years developing your playing style on LP type guitars and then switch over to a Floyd.

 

[crankyrayhanky]

I watch people like Dime or Vai use em and I think I should try again to good at using one.

Vai has his roadies run a fresh axe out to him every time he hits the bar- mid-song, after the solo, fresh guitar. If you're on your own, that's too much upkeep too constantly be tuning on stage

 

[Nico]

I like Les Pauls, I do have an Ibanez with Floyd Rose....

Haven't tried Suhrs Moderns, those things must kick serious ass!

 

[Heritage Softail]

For blues and classic older rock I like a fixed. My Parker is a string thru, and with the coil tap on the neck pup, it is blues heaven in a class A amp with just power section distortion.

IMO you just are not going to get that old ZZ Top Tres Hombres tone without that solid string to body connection. That just may be my ears, but I can tell a diff in stoking some Jesus Just Left Chicago on a strat vs. the Parker string-thru.

It is just a piece in the puzzle though. A great strat will sound better than an average quality LP or other fixed bridge IMO. And I am no Dimebag on using a whammy bar, so that is something I can't exploit to the fullest anyway. This is funny since every 'metal' guitar I own has some kind of FR or whammy. It's more there for rare use and looking cool.

The FR is more effective depending on how many sharp points are on the guitar and headstock....

 

[D-Rock]

I only own and play fixed/TOM bridge guitars.

 

[JakeAC5253]

I see a lot of FR love around here. Am I the only one who prefers a stop tail piece or string-through body with no trem? I like FRs and I realize that there are restrictions with fixed bridge axes, but every time I pick up a FR equipped axe, I don't like the feel and I am tempted to over use it and the result is cheesy dive-bomb madness!

I am much more at home with a LP or a strat with standard trem. Another issue is that I bend the B and high E strings a lot and that seems to pull a FR toward the neck resulting in pulling the whole axe flat during the bend. Also, I think the strings resonate better and in a more solid way without the FR block in there. My vibrato is much cleaner and smoother on a fixed bridge axe too.
Ok, discuss!

I do tend to agree with this. It's not that I have anything against FR or floating bridges, it's just that I too learned on a hardtail bridge and that's what my hands expect to feel. Tone wise I probably prefer a vintage floating bridge guitar. They're a lot of maintenance, but when they're properly set up I think they sound absolutely tits, especially with some vintage medium output pickups. Right now I'd say tone wise my Floyd guitar wins, but I still very much prefer playing leads on my Fender with hardtail because as you mentioned with the floating bridge the notes go flat and that screws up the whole vibe. A Tremol-no is in the future for me. On my Floyd guitar I do not lock the nut and the bar is removed at all times. I simply do not use it. That guitar just has a lot more mids and is more chunky sounding to me, but this could be a pickup difference mostly.

 

[Khoi]

I really dislike trems now, I realized I pick up my PGM500 90% of the time because I don't have to fiddle with the tuning and can just pick it up and rock, and change tunings whenever I want

 

[stephen sawall]

Not a fan of the Floyd Rose .... have not owned a guitar with one since 1997. My Strat has the tremolo that was put on it in 1969 at the factory. I use my Les Paul most of the time.

I have found most guitars with a tremolo sound like crap. YMMV

 

[IndyWS6]

I bought a Robert Cray Strat (MIM version) specifically to get something with a fixed bridge. Before that, there was some form of tremolo device on every guitar I owned (Washburn "Floyd", Ibanez Edge, Bigsby). I have since added an Epi Les Paul Tribute. I like the stability of the hardtail guitars, but it's great to have both.

 

[lolzgreg]

I hate trem guitars. I gave them up long ago......but like DEWD, I wouldn't mind having one just to have, but I'm in no real hurry to get one.

Nuff said. I just can't give with them. Even blocked, they don't feel SOLID to me.

 

[glassjaw7]

So how the hell did Dime stay in tune after such crazy whammy abuse onstage? When I saw Pantera/Damageplan live he just killed it and at one point at the Pantera show, he held his guitar up in the air by the bar and gave it a hell of a shake! Brought it back down and locked into a groove riff and was perfectly in tune!?

 

[steve_k]

I keep just a couple Floyd guitars. Hate tuning them, hate messing with them. I tend to play with my palm resting on them and end up over the course of a few minutes of playing making some unintentional minor adjustments.

My favorite trem guitar is my Cantrell signature G&L Rampage. The Kahler trem is the best, stays in tune and isn't a bastard to tune. And, the fine tuners have a lot of travel in them so it can take a lot of stretch and still fine tune. I can easily play with the hand resting on it and even give it a wiggle sometime for some trem effect.

If I bought another tremelo tailpiece guitar, especially a big Floyd, it would certainly have to be a recessed design. Surface mount gets too much in the way with that monster.

Steve

 

[Tone Zone]

I prefer a fixed bridge the majority of the time. I've done the whole Floyd thing way back when and have no desire to go back.

 

[verderacer]

Both have the purposes with me. I do prefer my LP and Deans though. I get better sustain and feeling out of them.