!!!!!Mick_Mars!!!!!

Any opinions would be grateful thanxs and any advice form those who own one would be appreciated!

mr dave

i'm not a shredder but jackson's have a reputation for being solid. all i know about floyd rose bridges is that they're a giant hassle to restring and setup if you don't know what you're doing. even when you do know what you're doing they're a pain compared to the simplicity of a stop tail bridge.

guitar bizarre will be able to tell you more about floyd roses than everyone else here put together hehe.

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GuitarBizarre

You rang?


In a nutshell, Dave is right, although I must add the opinion that the slight extra hassle of a floyd becomes negligible once you inform yourself about how everything works, and is TOTALLY worth the effort if you make sure your guitar is equipped with a good unit. Jacksons have one advantage over everything else on the market though. They're the only major manufacturer offering compound radius fretboards. Don't know what that is? Check this out:

Warmoth Direct - Replacement Guitar Necks, Custom Guitar Necks, Guitar Conversion Necks


Now, before you get all hyped up on warmoths blurb about these things, be aware, a lot of people really don't like compound radius. I'm in the middle. On some guitars its been great for me, on others I've hated it. Make sure you know what you're getting yourself into.

Don't know if you like it? Play a guitar with, then a guitar without. (Note: Anything non-jackson and non-custom is almost guaranteed to be 'without') Make sure to compare action between low and high frets, and try just sliding a bar chord from fret to fret to check how they feel on flat and curved areas of the neck. For something that feels really freaky and will help test this out, try these chords:

e -2----2----2
b -2----2----2
g -4----4----2
d -2----2----6
a -5----5----4
e -x----3----2

Those are all barred so you can move them anywhere on the neck, although with that last one you might find yourself accidentally choking the higher strings. I know I certainly do if i'm not concentrating.

Jacksons website will list on the specsheet for each guitar the radius of the fretboard. Standard seems to be 12" to 14", but others are available.

As for 'pro series' can you elaborate on which exact model you're looking at? Because according to the jackson website you could be talking about either of the following guitars:

Jackson® Guitars : The Bloodline
Jackson® Guitars : The Bloodline

They also have a lot of interest in the old 'pro series' models that pop up on ebay every now and again. a Silver KV Pro on the'bay is a 90's guitar that fetches at least a few hundred no matter who sells it or where it is. I've seen them go for $1000 sometimes, and a little more than that for the silver.


Its hard to say exactly whats gonna be a good choice and what isn't without a proper model to go on. The RR3 I linked there for example is definitely NOT one to go for because the Floyd is licensed, and its not a schaller or Gotoh licensed either, so the likelihood is it will be much less reliable and far inferior to either and OFR, Schaller, or Gotoh Floyd rose.

I did a big ol' post on the different floating bridge types out there. If you check my post history, you can see them all compared and detailed. The ibanez ones are only available on ibanez guitars, obviously.

If its not on the list, then its 99% likely a cheap licensed copy tremolo and not worth looking at. THe exception is the Graphtech LB63, which isn't on the list because it came out after I wrote it. Those are fine tremolos from all appearances, but you won't be finding them on production model guitars for at least a while, if ever, they're strictly custom shop and modification only right now.

Heres the thread where I posted the list: http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...o-lessons.html

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!!!!!Mick_Mars!!!!!

hey thanks for all the information and advice, so would you suggest that if i was looking for a guitar with a floyd rose style tremolo systemo in it that i should have it fitted seperately? and is it possible to fit a floyd rose to a guitar that has an ordinary tremolo system such as a fender strat?
the only reason i am after a guitar with a floyd rose becasue in play music such as van halen extreme and motley crue, so in order to sound the same am i right in saying i do indeed require a floyd rose trem?

GuitarBizarre

Buying a guitar with a floyd rose already in it is perfectly fine, just be careful to make sure its a good unit. Licensed floyd roses other than the ones I mentioned tend to be of inferior quality, and will give you nightmares once the knife edges wear a little.

You can retrofit a floyd to any guitar whatsoever (Even acoustics, although its not reccomended by any stretch), although to do so is more cost than its worth on most mid level instruments like that one, and you will need to get a luthier to do the work for you.

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GuitarBizarre

Oh, by the way. Unless you're really, REALLY into the rhoads shape, I would caution you to buy something more ergonomic rather than going straight for the V shapes and stuff. Those are great for stage work, where you're stood up and the visual appeal of the guitar can really boost an audience.

BUT.

They're a pain in the hole for everything that isn't a gig. You can't sit in a normal position with them, and god help you if you try. Some people will swear blind that you can play them in classical position with no difficulty, but in my experience you need legs like chickenwire and a low seat just to stop it from sliding down your legs, and classical position doesn't agree with me.

You'll also be forever banging the rear wing into things, because it sticks out much further than you'd think. The first time I tried out a rhoads style guitar in a shop, almost the first thing I did was knock the wing into something because I was used to strat stye guitars, where almost the whole body is to the left of your abdomen.

Theres also a practical and performance advantage to a strat shape, since the Ibanez S series for example, will come with a ZR tremolo system, which is my personal favourite (yes, even above floyd rose designs), and at the pricepoint the S series ranges through, you're not going to find a better tremolo system equipped for less, at least not on a new, stock guitar.

I would say also, buying a guitar on ebay can seem like a great idea, but unless you're experienced with guitar hardware and ebay auction checking, you're as likely to get ripped as you are to find a bargain. Its a mixed bag of stuff on there, not all of it good.



Like I said though, these are my experiences. Your mileage may vary, but the majority of these opinions are echoed far and wide by opinions other than my own, since they're more common complaints than you'd think.

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mr dave

just the idea hurts my brain hahaha. google images is denying my curiosity as well hehe

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GuitarBizarre

YouTube - Gypsy Guitar With Floyd Rose Tremolo by Carlos Vamos

its a ghetto job, and I just noticed he's actually using an Ibanez edge tremolo, not stricly a floyd rose, but it exists and it worked!

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mr dave

that was awesome and surprisingly not as gaudy as i originally expected hehe the kid has some serious dance moves too hahaha

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