How do you set your bridge - floating or fixed?

[Robert]

I like to have my tremolo bridge floating, so I can pull the bar up as well as push it down, to make tremolo effects. The drawback is it goes out of tune easier, and I also think the sound might be a little thinner. I guess that's why some people prefer the "hard tail way", a fixed bridge so you can only push the tremolo bar down.

Which do you prefer?

 

[Tim]

Well I have not perfected tremoloing yet, but was told that by fixing it against the guitar body you get better sustain. I guess it could be a true statement.

 

[Plank_Spanker]

The claw screwed down tight and the bridge resting on the body........

 

[SuperSwede]

I´m really a hard tail player (non-trem that is) but I really love to play on a floating Floyd Rose trem sometimes. But I would probably not want a floating trem on my "main" axe.

 

[Tone2TheBone]

Mine is slightly floated. About a nickel thickness from the body. I too like to swirl chords and notes up or down. I don't feel and hear any difference between closing it flush cause I've tried that on my guitar and it sounded the same.

 

[sunvalleylaw]

Mine came with the float adjusted down tight by the prior owner, and I have not changed it. I do not use the whammy bar yet, so don't know if I will change it later on. I will probably play around with it on the Fully, then maybe adjust my Strat if I decide I want to. I like how my Strat plays now though.

 

[Ro3b]

When I'm in a mood to use the tremolo, I like it floating. I like being able to use full vibrato on chords, and it sounds weird to me if all I can do is bend them downwards. On the other hand, when I'm in a mood to stay in tune (which is most of the time) I put another spring on so the bridge is set against the body and put the tremolo arm in my case.

 

[Spudman]

For me it depends on the guitar. Ones that have good sustain and projection I'll float slightly. Like Tone I like to swirl my chords and notes a bit. If the guitar lacks a little in the tone department I'll put the bridge on the body and it does enhance the tone and sustain a bit.

 

[marnold]

All three of my guitars are hard tails, so I can't really comment. Oh, crap, I just did.

But seriously folks, someday I will have a Floyd-equipped guitar.

 

[tremoloman]

I love the full floating. Tuning seems to stay more stable for me with it set this way. And if you have a real steel block it doesn't thin your sound out like a cheap zinc block will.

 

[abraxas]

I have one of the Strats setup with a slightly floating tremolo and the other flush with the body. I haven't noticed any degradation of tone or serious detuning with the floating approach.

To tell you the truth, for full floating operation (and appropriate tremolo effects) I prefer the original Floyd Rose in my old Kramer. It simply refuses to go out of tune and in fact it's the most "musical" tremolo unit I have used.

Note: we should really call it "vibrato" and not "tremolo"

 

[Tone2TheBone]

Ab - good point on the Floyd.

Trem - I concur. A steel trem block resonates just as loud and full no matter if you close it shut to the body or float it.

 

[TS808]

I keep mine floating about 1/16-1/8" on all my strats, depending on the string gauge I'm using. I prefer the sound from the floating trem and never really noticed a big difference when it was flush. I've never had tuning problems with a Fender and floating trem. I lubricate the nut with graphite, set it up to Fender specs, and stretch the strings real good when I change them. It seems to work.

 

[kerc]

My Hamer clone is set up so that I can only press down. I don't do heavy diving, because it's not my style--I just use the tremolo to give a nice shimmer and singing tremolo to sustained notes.

 

[Jimi75]

I thought religious threads are not allowed in here *lol*

I prefer a fixed bridge. I have never really experimented much with the trem and as I do not use it I fix the bridge. Soundwise I guess the tone develops more direct than with a floating system, but this is subjective feeling only.

 

[tiefnig]

On my ibanez superstrat it's floating
on my fender I had it floating some time, but now it's fixed because I don't really use the fender tremolo on stage with my band so it's useless, but I liked to use it at home, maybe I'll make it float sometime...

 

[pes_laul]

too bad i dont know how to float the bridge on my strat

 

[tot_Ou_tard]

I had the bridge on my Godin SD fixed, then floating, it's back to fixed now.

gee...I dunno.

 

[pes_laul]

can you float the brigde on a squire

 

[rkwrenn]

All my strats are set up non floating except the '76. I installed a graph tech trem nut on it recently and decided to let it float a bit about 1/16. Also, they all have 5 springs.

Cheers,

Bob

 

[Tim]

I have had my bridge fixed against the body for 3 years. I am ready to try floating it and learn how to work the tremolo arm. Can I just loosen it or do I have to go through the hole set up from scratch? Any ideas on how far to float it?

 

[Robert]

pes_laul, you just loosen the two spring screws at the back of guitar. There is usually a plate that you have to take off first.

It should work for a Squier too. It will probably be harder to keep the guitar in tune if you do this, especially on a Squier.

 

[pes_laul]

pes_laul, you just loosen the two spring screws at the back of guitar. There is usually a plate that you have to take off first.

It should work for a Squier too. It will probably be harder to keep the guitar in tune if you do this, especially on a Squier.

but the two screws how far do they go out and since their wood screws wont they pull out of the body

(im a little paranoid cuz this is my only guitar right now)

 

[Iago]

mine was floating... not that I really used the vibrato bar all time.. actually, I almost never used it.. it was set that way mainly because of my inexperience.

 

[333maxwell]

I like to have my tremolo bridge floating, so I can pull the bar up as well as push it down, to make tremolo effects. The drawback is it goes out of tune easier, and I also think the sound might be a little thinner. I guess that's why some people prefer the "hard tail way", a fixed bridge so you can only push the tremolo bar down.

Which do you prefer?

I block my Floyds with a piece of Hardwood so they only go down.

Keeps them in tune better, intonation dead on, string guage changes are a snap, and any string breakage on stage can be played right thru without loss of tuning.