You would or would not buy a Floyd Rose or other floating / locking nut tremolo equipped guitar ?

mudslide73

I loves a Floyd. I've had a great time with Schallers, Floyd Originals and Edges. I don't break strings very often so I don't see the downside often either. I'm a massive fan of all the weird noises and flutters you can do. 

Alnico

I put new strings on before a gig.
They don't snap.
QED.

Alnico

Voxman said:

Winny_Pooh said:

They make guitars look ugly. Never have and never will. 

ICBM said:

Would not, because .. quick string changes are less practical on a Floyd.

Would NOT for both these reasons - a friend of mine has an HSS Strat with a Floyd Rose. If he had a string break it would take him twenty minutes to change the string and retune it...nightmare at a gig.  And they are ugly as sin.  The vibrato systems on my PRS Cu24 and even USA Standard Strat are plenty good enough for my needs.

You're not supposed to change a string with a Floyd if it snaps at the bridge.
You're *Supposed* to put more winds on the tuner post than normal (As it's locked out by the nut it just doesn't matter) and then if it snaps at the bridge, you undo the nut and wind more out until you've enough to re-attach it at the bridge clamps.

Roughly 4 minutes start to finish and the string is already stretched in so it's a quick tune-up and good to go PLUS when you bring that string back to correct tension the others will fall back into place too.

Gizmo

These days i wouldn't buy a guitar without a floyd type bridge,Im just far to used to them & i really cant get on with how TOM's grate the sides of your hand and while most 2/5 point non floyd trems are ok for light pitch abuse i just find there wang arms to have a very weedy feeling  & as Alnico says if your gigging a floyd don't cut your balls off just wind the strings in reverse,balls at the tunning pegs with  a few extra winds in case of a break.....

Alnico

@Gizmo ;

Agree with all of that expect the ball ends thing.
I don't do that as i think it burrs the tuners. 
What I meant was to still cut the balls off as normal but to leave more slack in the string and create about 3 to 4 winds on each post.
Winding more back out if it snaps is still easy. I've never had one pull right back out of the tuner before as it's locked in there on the first wind.

Telejester

Gizmo said:

These days i wouldn't buy a guitar without a floyd type bridge,Im just far to used to them & i really cant get on with how TOM's grate the sides of your hand and while most 2/5 point non floyd trems are ok for light pitch abuse i just find there wang arms to have a very weedy feeling  & as Alnico says if your gigging a floyd don't cut your balls off just wind the strings in reverse,balls at the tunning pegs with  a few extra winds in case of a break.....

if a string did break at the bridge and you do as you say and then reclamp at the bridge, will the trem return perfectly to the floating position where its perfectly in tune ? trems are 1000% not for me at all but im just curious.

ICBM

Telejester said:

if a string did break at the bridge and you do as you say and then reclamp at the bridge, will the trem return perfectly to the floating position where its perfectly in tune ?

Yes.

There's an amusing trick with a Floyd... if you need to do something under the pickguard, you can do it very quickly - instead of taking the strings off, if you take the *springs* off from round the back, lift the bridge out and clear of the guitar, take the pickguard off and do the work, then reassemble in the reverse order, nine times out of ten the guitar will still be in tune.



They really are that stable! Assuming all the clamps are locked properly etc.

LesbianWithAGun

I have done..
I have done and... The only people who'd set it up or me when I had it was also the people who supplied and installed it for me (it was an aftermarket part I had the guitar upgraded with)...
I had wood cut out, it was 'floating' meaning, only the strings kept it from falling into the guitar...
However, other businesses were like 'we don't want to set it up'...

Despite all of that though, I would own one again, for sure.
The Floyd Rose Original Trem' 'when floating' (for dive bombing) - Is way cool. 

Neil

They just look hideous with all of their large lumps of metal and nuts and bolts and ruin the look of perfectly decent guitars.

Besides, the '80's are over. 

olafgarten

Neil said:

They just look hideous with all of their large lumps of metal and nuts and bolts and ruin the look of perfectly decent guitars.

Besides, the '80's are over. 

I agree, unless you are doing dive bombs, a Strat trem with a good nut (preferably TUSQ), roller trees and locking tuners should stay mostly in tune. 

LesbianWithAGun

For me... It came down to pickups.
It was actually THIS GUITAR (now that I think about it) when I learned that I love 2 humbuckers and a 3 way toggle switch)...
I think I remember though, I went 'Stratocaster' with it though (it was a Stratocaster copy) and had two tone, 1 master volume...
Which is alright, I guess, maybe for Estranged - It had a cool pickup combination in the end and it being a cheap guitar with those parts... Gave it a really cool and unique sound. - It was a cheap guitar, so wasn't as nice to play, but sounded amazing!

peteri

I absolutely hated changing strings on my Ibanez RG with it's lo-pro edge trem (or whatever it was called).

Since I sold that and got my Feline with a Schaller Floyd - I absolutely love that guitar and likely play it more than the other five I own combined, tuning is spot on, sustain is amazing and honestly - half the time I'm not even aware there is a trem, but at the same time I've got all the fun and games.

So yes - but only a good really good quality one!

ThePrettyDamned

Absolutely would.

I miss my bc rich gunslinger, it was an ace guitar. Floyd Rose trems are great fun, easy to use and provide ultimate tuning stability. 

I say that as someone who adores the 6 point strat trem - yep, it holds tune well when set up, but anyone who suggests it holds tune as well as a Floyd is kidding themselves. 

Plus, divebombs. 

adamm82

I would avoid a Floyd Rose in the future.
I had one on my kramer and it was nothing but frustration. the first time ever doing it probably took me a weekend to get it right. not the best start when you have a new guitar and just want to start playing. You'd get one bit right then the bridge would not be level so you'd have adjust the springs and screws and then start retune in the hope it would work out this time.

Probably I was doing something wrong but I learned as much as I could about floyds. I had a weird issue with elixir strings that wouldn't stay in tune despite it all being tuned set up and locked.

I love the guitar but in the end I sold it as the floyd was too frustrating so in the end I got rid of it. 

On the positive I spent so much time tuning the bloody thing I have developed the sense of tuning by ear. 

FelineGuitars

peteri said:

I absolutely hated changing strings on my Ibanez RG with it's lo-pro edge trem (or whatever it was called).

Since I sold that and got my Feline with a Schaller Floyd - I absolutely love that guitar and likely play it more than the other five I own combined, tuning is spot on, sustain is amazing and honestly - half the time I'm not even aware there is a trem, but at the same time I've got all the fun and games.

So yes - but only a good really good quality one!

Good that you are having fun with it 

The Schaller Lockmeister is an original tremolo made in Germany exactly how the original Floyd Roses were and still are

The only difference is that it says Schaller instead of Floyd Rose

On your one Peter I changed the sustain block to a custom one we get made by an engineer from cold rolled steel

It doubles the mass of the block and pretty much makes the guitar sound less floyded (restoring many of the frequencies that some miss with the regular floyd block)

So yes I agree with getting quality

FX_Munkee

I would buy one (again) but it has to be top mount, dive only for me, because I'm picky like that.
Also I use a D Tuna on them so it's kind of necessity.

peteri

FelineGuitars said:

peteri said:

I absolutely hated changing strings on my Ibanez RG with it's lo-pro edge trem (or whatever it was called).

Since I sold that and got my Feline with a Schaller Floyd - I absolutely love that guitar and likely play it more than the other five I own combined, tuning is spot on, sustain is amazing and honestly - half the time I'm not even aware there is a trem, but at the same time I've got all the fun and games.

So yes - but only a good really good quality one!

Good that you are having fun with it 

The Schaller Lockmeister is an original tremolo made in Germany exactly how the original Floyd Roses were and still are

The only difference is that it says Schaller instead of Floyd Rose

On your one Peter I changed the sustain block to a custom one we get made by an engineer from cold rolled steel

It doubles the mass of the block and pretty much makes the guitar sound less floyded (restoring many of the frequencies that some miss with the regular floyd block)

So yes I agree with getting quality

Jonathan - thanks for that, interesting to know.

And yes - absolutely love it, the pickup switching is absolutely wonderful (as is the rest of the guitar!)

Jonathanthomas83

vasselmeyer said:

You don't need a Floyd if you play a PRS 

@vasselmayer, was this tongue in cheek or serious? I’m intrigued as I own a PRS, love the trem but still find myself hankering for a FR equipped guitar (PRS probably), do you think it’s pointless? The trem on my Custom 24 is lovely to be fair!

ICBM

FelineGuitars said:

On your one Peter I changed the sustain block to a custom one we get made by an engineer from cold rolled steel

It doubles the mass of the block and pretty much makes the guitar sound less floyded (restoring many of the frequencies that some miss with the regular floyd block)

I would guess that this significantly reduces the warble, as well. (Which I hate.)

ToneControl

never liked floyds
was happy with olde strat style, but now leaning towards fixed bridge