Bridge replacement for tone enhancement?

[hawkfanatic]

I'm really stuck trying to make a decision here, being there are so many different TOM's available. I'm a firm believer in the bridge being crucial to tone, and my fenders all have callaham trems or hardtails. But the callahams are expensive and i DO know at times they can be trebly on some guitars. So I've also looked at tonepros, pigtail, faber and ABM, the latter being the only other i know of besides callaham to mill thier bridges out of a solid piece of brass rather than casting them. But i'm not sure whether i'd like the tone of brass or not. They are cheaper than cally but more than others.

 

Problem with this decision is there are tons of people giving thier opinions of every one (except ABM which i think may be a relatively new company) and there are good and bad reviews of every one. So i'm looking for thoughts on the subject by those who've used more than one and what they found, or any ideas or links to info that might somehow make it easier to decide. Mine is a LP special with a nashville, and i have zero issues with it aside the fact i know the right bridge will w/o a doubt give it more clarity, and i really feel it's the one thing this LP needs more of.

[badbluesplayer]

I have replaced Gibson bridges with Tonepros but any difference in the tone was negligible.

[Guest Farnsbarns]

I'm with BBP. I was going to reply to this thread yesterday but thought I'd see if anyone was able to give you the answer you wanted. Only thing I can say is I would bet enough money to buy one of every bridge on the market that you can't pick one from another on a blind audition.

[rct]

The best sounds ever recorded with Gibsons and Fenders, the sounds everyone wants, the holy grails of "tone", were all done with plain old junky stock stuff. There is a very subtle message in there!

 

rct

[capmaster]

I have replaced Gibson bridges with Tonepros but any difference in the tone was negligible.

My Les Paul guitars came stock with twice Gibson Nashville TOMs, and once each Tone Pros Nashville locking TOM, non-wire ABR-1 TOM bridges, and Graph Tech LB63 licensed Floyd Rose piezo vibrato bridge/tailpiece combo. The only very big difference depends on the tailpiece - see below.

 

I'm with BBP. I was going to reply to this thread yesterday but thought I'd see if anyone was able to give you the answer you wanted. Only thing I can say is I would bet enough money to buy one of every bridge on the market that you can't pick one from another on a blind audition.

+1 IMHO. The only bridges I ever replaced were the Gibson Nashville TOMs of my Frank Zappa "Roxy" SGs since every use of the Maestro vibrato moved them to and fro, caused clicking noises, further deteriorated tuning stability and would have promoted break of strings I believe. I put Schaller STMC roller bridges on, and what might have an influence is the allowance of string spacing alignment, but there was no audible difference. Of course, I had left the same set strings on as before, or it wouldn't have been valid to compare.

 

The best sounds ever recorded with Gibsons and Fenders, the sounds everyone wants, the holy grails of "tone", were all done with plain old junky stock stuff. There is a very subtle message in there!

 

rct

There are very crude messages in some typical stock equipment, too. E. g. I reject the so-called Vintage "tremolos" Fender still uses on Strats instead of a sensible vibrato unit, and the three-saddle bridges on Teles. I disclaim their messages gratefully and prefer Floyd Rose units as well as one saddle per string for compensation.

 

A very fine message, however, is that of the aluminum stopbar tailpieces compared to that of brass made. It compresses string attacks, allows for lower string action, creates a fast tone buildup, and converts lots of transient longitudinal vibration into resonant transversal vibration, i. e. keeps up sustain. The tradeoff is somewhat less upper midrange and treble.

 

My 1973 L6-S had a chrome-plated aluminum stop bar stock, and my CS LP Std F still has its nickel-plated from the factory. When I replaced that of the 1973 L6-S with a TP-6 fine tuning tailpiece, the strings had a whopping reaction to attack, the guitar sounded significantly brighter, and I had to severely increase string action. The string set was reused here, too, and restrung without creating any torsion. There was no such effect when I replaced brass stopbars with TP-6 units on three Les Paul, two SG, and two 2011 L6S guitars.

[rct]

There are very crude messages in some typical stock equipment, too. E. g. I reject the so-called Vintage "tremolos" Fender still uses on Strats instead of a sensible vibrato unit, and the three-saddle bridges on Teles. I disclaim their messages gratefully and prefer Floyd Rose units as well as one saddle per string for compensation.

 

Sure, intonation, I know. The original poster wants to change the tone of his guitar by changing the bridge. I don't buy it.

 

A very fine message, however, is that of the aluminum stopbar tailpieces. It compresses string attacks, allows for lower string action, creates a fast tone buildup, and converts lots of transient longitudinal vibration into resonant transversal vibration, i. e. keeps up sustain. The tradeoff is somewhat less upper midrange and treble.

 

My 1973 L6-S had a chrome-plated one, and my CS LP Std F still has a nickel-plated. When I replaced that of the 1973 L6-S with a TP-6 fine tuning tailpiece, the strings had a whopping reaction to attack, the guitar sounded significantly brighter, and I had to severely increase string action. The strings set was reused here, too, and restrung without creating any torsion. There was no such effect when I replaced brass stopbars with TP-6 units on three Les Paul, two SG, and two 2011 L6S guitars.

 

For study in the laboratory, sure, significant differences I'm sure can be noted in the logs. But in real life, when DrummerBoy puts down his Bud and starts hitting them things like one of Vicks dogs, nobody, not even you, can hear transversal vibration.

 

Sorry bro, I'm not arguing with you for the sake of argument. There are limits to things, and guitars have natural limits and human ears have natural limits.

 

rct

[capmaster]

Sure, intonation, I know. The original poster wants to change the tone of his guitar by changing the bridge. I don't buy it.

 

 

 

For study in the laboratory, sure, significant differences I'm sure can be noted in the logs. But in real life, when DrummerBoy puts down his Bud and starts hitting them things like one of Vicks dogs, nobody, not even you, can hear transversal vibration.

 

Sorry bro, I'm not arguing with you for the sake of argument. There are limits to things, and guitars have natural limits and human ears have natural limits.

 

rct

Transversal vibration is what a magnetic pickup transduces since it can only do that, and longitudinal vibrations are what makes sound any hollowbody and is transduced by bridge/saddle piezos.