Birdy Posted October 3, 2012 Share Posted October 3, 2012 Hi there! :) Has anyone of you ever tried to exchange the pretty heavy banjo tuners on a Firebird for Steinberger gearless tuners? http://guitarchitecture.org/2010/10/13/steinberger-gearless-tuners-review/ My Firebird V is a little heavy on the neck side and I wondered if putting in the Steinberger tuners would help with the balance, besides the fact that they would also improve tuning stability. I have found only one review online regarding an Epiphone Firebird with Steinbergers on it and the owner complained about the balance. Well, an Epiphone FB is no Gibson FB, so I wonder if it would make a difference with my Firebird? Any practical experiences on your side? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gizmotron Posted October 3, 2012 Share Posted October 3, 2012 Hi people, hi Birdy I tried gearless Steinberger on my buddy's Firebird. IMHO are well built, sharp, providing a sensation of steadiness to the guitar. Not a vintage look at all but the tuners doesn't effort the overall light weight and balance (or unbalance, as you thought). By the way stock banjos tuners are just not good enough. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Birdy Posted October 4, 2012 Author Share Posted October 4, 2012 Hi Gizmotron, thanx for your reply. Looks like I gotta live with the "unbalanced" behavior but well, Steinbergers could be an improvement regarding tuning stability. Right now I hardly have tuning issues except for the high B and e strings (lots of bending notes). No big deal yet but I haven't had my Firebird for long, so I might come back to Steinbergers if the tuning stability issues should become worse. Today's my first day in my (hopefully!!) new rock band, so time will show... Thanx for your confirmation about no balance improvement. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grog Posted October 6, 2012 Share Posted October 6, 2012 I just bought a slightly used 2012 Firebird V with Steinberger tuners about a month ago. So far, I have to say I really like them! When I notice that the tuners were changed in 2010, I decided to buy a used one with banjo tuners. I'm more of a vintage guitar guy and changing the tuners on a Firebird just seemed wrong! I started reading a few reviews on 2010 model & the two features everybody seemed to like were the Steinberger tuners & the ceramic pickups, so I took the plunge........... The tuners are great, I haven't changed strings yet, but I like the way they tune. (Tuners are only suppose to do one thing and how many of us are always changing the stock tuners because they work poorly!) I think the guitar is balanced well, the strap button is slightly up from center on the guitar, the Thunderbird bass is on center like most strap buttons. I have banjo tuners on my '59 EB-2, they look cool but are crappy tuners. I would like to see more models come stock with these tuners, they are a great fit for the Firebird! \:D/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluezguy Posted October 8, 2012 Share Posted October 8, 2012 Hi people, hi Birdy I tried gearless Steinberger on my buddy's Firebird. IMHO are well built, sharp, providing a sensation of steadiness to the guitar. Not a vintage look at all but the tuners doesn't effort the overall light weight and balance (or unbalance, as you thought). By the way stock banjos tuners are just not good enough. There is NOTHING wrong with the stock FBV tuners aside from them being a bit heavy. I have a 2004 FBV ... she rehearses 2X a week and sees 4 hour shows 2x a week most weeks of the year since 2004. My 1976 FBV ALSO served her master in the same way from 1976 to 2001 (or so) when she got stolen. This FBV gets retuned to 4 different tunings (open E, D, G and 440) during the course of the night and NEVER lets me down. I almost got sucked into spending $240 for a new replacement set because this forum got me worried about my tuners as I'm a roadhouse roach who's out there more than most. My strings are .011s - .048s. Again .. There is NOTHING wrong with the stock FBV tuners Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Birdy Posted October 12, 2012 Author Share Posted October 12, 2012 There is NOTHING wrong with the stock FBV tuners aside from them being a bit heavy. I agree, bluezguy! After playing it for a while (and just having bought a second one), I cannot confirm tuning instability. Once set up properly with new strings (including pre-stretching them), they both stay in tune very well! There's only two things I don't like very much: the high ratio which makes you tune past the intended note easily, if you're used to "standard gear ratio" on other guitars. Advantage: you need way less turns on the tuners when restringing the guitar. Once you get used to it, it's at least acceptable. Second, they're REALLY heavy. I compensate for that by using a broad suede leather strap by PRS. I can even let go the neck and it won't immediately dive down, just hang a little heavy on the left. I'm not sure anymore if these minor "glitches" are worth spending 100 bucks on each guitar to get Steinbergers. I'll further evaluate during the weeks to come... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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