To Tremelo, or not to Tremelo?

[ProgCorey]

So i'll start off with saying, i have been anticipating on getting a seven string for a long time. I have been playing six string for 6-8 years now, and i've got a few now for my collection, but i think the time has come for a seven string guitar to join my family.

I play my mates seven quite a bit, and i really like the feel of them, and being a big progressive metal and death metal fan, i've decided to start saving for one now. I've decided to order a custom Agile next year when the custom form is released. I've decided on getting a Reaper 7 string with an Interceptor neck, as well as a little bit more of a cutaway towards the end of the fretboard, but i have no idea if i should order a tremelo or not! I love my floyd rose tremelos on my Ibanez, Kramer, and LTD, but they are all different tunings.

So the question comes down to, should i;

A) Get it in string thru and have my various tunings, but not my loved floyd rose. Or..

B) Get it with the floyd rose and stick to one tuning, but be very happy with my trem.

I can't make up my mind

 

[JJ Rodriguez]

If you actually like your trem, could always get a Tremol-No. You can always block a trem, but you can't trem a fixed bridge

 

[kmanick]

^ this.
I have a Temol-no on my curretn 7620 and I use it all to the so I can change tunings.

 

[ProgCorey]

^ this.
I have a Temol-no on my curretn 7620 and I use it all to the so I can change tunings.

If you actually like your trem, could always get a Tremol-No. You can always block a trem, but you can't trem a fixed bridge

Wow, they sound pretty sweet, are they easy to install/take off?
I know a friend who had them on an old Hurricane V, but never realised what it was until now.

 

[hairychris]

Tremol-nos are wicked. Highly recommended for sexytime.

 

[JJ Rodriguez]

Easy as pie if you do any sort of tech work at all. The inventor of them Kevan posts here too. He has installation videos on his website I believe. Also, it's a well known fact you can use it to open a beer.

 

[Sang-Drax]

For what it's worth, any trem supposedly alters the tone of your guitar. I'm a fixed bridge guy myself, but mostly because I never really had much use for a trem when I was in a metal band, let alone now that I'm exclusively a rock guy.

I've never A/B'd a tremolo vs hardtail myself (with otherwise similar specs), so I can't state whether if there's any actual discernible difference between the two or not.

 

[ProgCorey]

Haha sweet, sounds like i'm going with my loved floyd rose on my custom!

Hearing about these Tremol-no's has made my day

 

[vampiregenocide]

I had a Tremol-No on my old ibanez xiphos. Its great, gives you the solidness and stability of a hardtail with the feel and fine tuning abilities of an FR. Highly recommend them.

 

[Issor]

Keep in mind even that, even with a tremol-no, you can't wildly change tunings and expect to keep your tremolo flat.

 

[JJ Rodriguez]

You can if you get the set screws. You can take all the strings off and those things will keep the trem level, at least according to Kevan.

 

[thesimo]

I'd deffo go with the trem over a hard tail. I need to install my tremel-no just to get it done, cant be bothered re-soldering the claw though... But i will.

 

[JJ Rodriguez]

The tremol-no has a little screw on it so you can just wrap the bridge ground wire around it and tighten it.

 

[Issor]

You can if you get the set screws. You can take all the strings off and those things will keep the trem level, at least according to Kevan.

eh, no. It's not THAT tight a hold. Any tighter than I have mine now and I might strip them - and if I change my tuning from drop B to, say, C# or D standard, it WILL come up a bit. It's not much, but it's certainly not still dead level.

 

[JJ Rodriguez]

Are you using the set screws like I said or the thumb locks?

Kevan has said himself that the thumb screws are made to slip so people don't fuck their guitars up. He said if you put the set screws in you should be able to take all the strings off.

 

[splinter8451]

I tune my Tremol-no'd Jem from standard down to drop C with no movement of the trem.

I recently changed the strings (one at a time) from standard 10's to light bottom heavy top 10's without any movement from the trem. Sure if I unlock the Tremol-no then the trem will probably fly forward but right now I do not plan on using it anyways.

I think you should definitely go for the Floyd and Tremol-no.

 

[Issor]

Are you using the set screws like I said or the thumb locks?

Kevan has said himself that the thumb screws are made to slip so people don't fuck their guitars up. He said if you put the set screws in you should be able to take all the strings off.

Are there other screws meant for keeping it immobile? The only set screws I see are the ones for the claw itself. If there's a way to keep this thing totally immobile I definitely need to hear about it!

 

[JJ Rodriguez]

Yes. The set screws need to be locked down with an allen wrench if I'm not mistaken. Contact Kevan and he should be able to hook you up.

Of course, I could be completely wrong, I remember having this discussion with him a long fucking time ago so I could be misremembering something Any Tremol-no related questions are best left to him, he'll tell you pretty quick what's possible with it and what's not.

 

[Issor]

Will do, thanks.

 

[hairychris]

My PRS is set up to dive only an I've got the claw significantly more screwed in then I could if the bridge was floating for much higher spring tension. This means that I can drop tune, 3 stop bend, etc, etc without the tuning going flat and am still able to dive/flutter. Using the allen screw so I can restring completely but I tend to wedge something (wad of card or paper usually) between the bridge & body just to make sure.

I fitted it myself in about 20 minutes - remove old claw, crimp earth cable, add T-no claw, yadda yadda. Great little device. Kevan's the fucking man.