"Floyd Rose Special" Tuning Instability
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- Опубликовано: 25 июл 2019
- My Floyd Rose Special tremolo returns flat after arm down. This is my video trouble shooting the problem. Basically, my problem was that the studs that came with the Special had too loose of a tolerance allowing the studs to move around.
See my second video on this using a Chinese "licensed by Floyd Rose" trem unit: • "Licensed by Floyd Ros...
Visit my website: www.FenderMustangStory.com
Great video. If anyone is replacing a low quality bridge with a upgraded (better quality) bridge, replace the studs and anchors as well. Don't be lazy about it. The hardness of the metal (bridge plate and studs) is important for long term tuning stability.
I'm going trought this right now mate,searching tip and information about how important quality studs are for a good intonation on a tremolo system.Thanks for your top comment,helped me a lot.
The Flyod Rose Special is a real Floyd Rose I have had one since 2015 and not one single issue with it the string stability is incredible
@King Brilliant I haven’t had a problem with mine? I think people just call them shit cause they’re lazy and don’t set them up properly or just don’t like them cause they’re cheaper
After what must be hundreds of stories out there on the Floyd Rose Special, let's all just come out and say it- the thing should be taken off the market. Low tolerances and inferior metals defeat the entire purpose of the bridge to stay in tune and function correctly with even light use. Good video, and sorry to see that you had to go through all that. Beautiful looking guitar, on a positive note.
The problem is people adjusting the bridge height with full tension on the bridge. Don't be lazy, de tune the strings and take the springs out of the back and take the bridge out and then adjust the studs..
@@kpgpwi64 couldn’t agree more 95% of the time it’s just user error
I wish they would not make such a high percentage of guitars with trems with low quality soft metal parts.
I would also like to mention:
Adjusting/turning the posts is A BIG 'No, No' -ON ALL knife egde bridges; regardless of bridge quality. It dulls up the baseplate knife edge -as well as scars the posts; like shown in this video.
@SA this guy destroyed the floyd rose special by putting those two extra springs in the back causing all of the damage the only reason the 1000series floyd played way closer to in tune is because he had to re drill the post holes fixing the problem but that wont last very long if he doessame bs again
Got the same problem, i upgraded my edge 3 for a floyd recently. I make a bit fail, put glue on the anchor and cant pull out the old ones, fortunately the bridges work with the old studs. Still the same problem, so ruling out everything the only thing left is the studs, maybe they are worn out. And maybe applying lube will do the job. Glad yours work
I use the teflon tape. I also use the PTFE spray to lubricate the threads when adjusting the posts so they turn smooth.
THANK YOU THANK YOU !!!!!! I have an old ESP that from day1 I could never used the tremolo bar...I got so frustrated that I filled the entire cavity where the springs go with fiberglass!!😂 The I successfully bought a cheap Floyd Rose fender and it’s awesome BUT, My esp sounds great and have the double pickups for a fatter sound...I replaced the Floyd Rose tremolo on that and dremeled out the fiberglass (what a mess) I do not replace the pegs because I didn’t know they unscrewed ..duh?!? So it still kept sticking I would use the whammy lightly and grrrr out of tune. The slam it down back in tune!!🤔 hmmm remember seeing you video and thinking nahhhh can’t be it...WELL I WAS INCREDIBLY WRONG!!! Now it never goes out of tune!!! Shows ya learn something new every day!!!
how is it better now what did you do to yours
Damn son you got 5 springs in that thing
Is a must when you put heavy gauge strings
Yes, 5 springs will destroy even an OFR.
10:35 the moment of truth ! Awesome video man it give and idea for the possible problem of my guitar
You can also try rubbing some Chapstix (Lip Balm) on the two pivot posts, where the knife edges of the bridge fit, it will act as a lubricant and help the bridge return to it's neutral position, I happen to have a chrome Floyd Rose Special trem installed in my Jackson JS32M guitar, and with some Chapstix in the knife-edge v-grooves, I've managed to get it to perform pretty well, return-to-pitch isn't 100% perfect, but none of the strings are going wildly sharp or flat.
I am just going to point out... the hardness of the metal is the most important thing on a floating trem, steel studs, base plate (knife edges) and also saddles.. And last, the sustain block.
Any cheaper floating trem will use zinc alloy in place of steel, And thus fail before long or simply never work well in the first place.
Sometimes they will have a steel plate, but still use zinc alloy studs... which is terrible for the longevity of the studs.
Some will use zinc alloy saddles, which can be fine, but wear out quicker, and tend to darken or dull your overall tone.
But mainly the hardness of the plate and studs must match for proper function, and steel will last decades if taken care of properly.
Then it is a question of spring tension vs string tension. A good bridge with proper setup will return to pitch.
A original Floyd, Schaller Floyd, or original Ibanez Edge, should last you for years. I still have the original edge on a 1987 Ibanez for example and it functions perfectly fine.
I only mention those 3 because of my long experience with them (all great floating trems).
There are other bridges that others would recommend beyond those three. Just stay away from cheap zinc alloy.
fu tone aswell
Thanks Man! Very helpful. I have a floyd rose special and I have the exact same problem.
@@Gever_Gracio it didn't do much for me changing the studs. What really helped was to glue the nut at the top of the neck and adding that little bar piece after the nut that keeps the strings down and flat against the nut
I have been having a huge problem with mine staying in tune. Going to have to check this out
Very helpful thank you
hay man got to say I had this problem with my guitar I put a Floyd rose special and saw that it moved a bit so thanks for this vid big help.
so... how is the floyd rose special doing?
@@comehick1421 um ya I tried it and I found a different problem with it I had accidentally routed to deep LOL but I kinda have it sorted now the guitar I did it on is an Ibanez GSA60 and ya I just use it for slide
I've had this problem on my Jackson warrior with a Jackson licensed FR, and now with my ltd with a special FR on it. I'm gonna try this.
big thank you
THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!
Moral of the story: change the studs first.
But great video - I have had tuning stability issues with my FR equipped Strat. The posts are the likely culprit, as the guitar is over 30 years old and has been well played. It has the FR Original tremolo.
I find incredible that this manufacturing lack of precision and materials is what makes the difference from a cheap floyd from an expensive one. As a mechanical engineer this is for me stuff that should be even considered when fabricating these pieces of equipment....i mean the material costs how much could be for a small amount of metal.... 2 bucks? these are not titanium, we talk of not so fancy alloys. Manufacturing could be a different story tough. Thanks for posting!
dude thats a Floyd thing for years its a simple fix reduce the tension on the springs and it will raise the tail of the Floyd...then tune it ....after a dive always tap the bar again it will return to Tune
Watch the video until the end!
Thanks bro, i'll try to immobilize the studs with teflon tape.
Personally, I’ve never had issues with the Floyd special, I do understand the tuning issues that occur with using the Floyd while dive bombing which I’ve had issues with maybe a dozen times but I feel as long as you take care of your bridge and have it set up close to perfect issues shouldn’t persist, about maybe a year ago I’ve done what he has and made a custom strat, I bought a special just for it as I was just wanting a licensed Floyd cause Amazon ain’t it, and this is where I think it may be how people take care of it or set it up, to set the idea I have no router tools or anything, just a drill and a LITERAL chisel that I used to shave away the wood for my guitar to make the Floyd sit right and flush, and even with no prior experience to making my own guitar or making a Floyd route/cavity and it stays in tune perfectly, all of my Floyd parts are stock besides the trek arm which I replaced for a slightly higher one for complete string slack when dive bombing, so like I said, it’s either people not setting it up right or no care for the parts such as cleaning and whatnot. The only thing I could really think is that some are better made than others, im not gonna say it’s the best as fu-tone’s parts are good, and the original is great but it makes it seem like some of the hate is unnecessary to it.
Back the spring plate screws out 1/4 turn and that should level the tail side of your bridge plate. It may behoove you to pull the stud nuts and replace them with new ones as well. Any movement with the plate studs and tuning will suffer.
Thank you🙂
In my guitar the studs actually have a flat type piece of metal that is pre made with the threaded insert for the stud in other words it's a piece of metal that have both inserts the stud screws into anyway you cant get it out without ripping the guitar up I have floyd rose special on my guitar I dont what they call that piece i have but it not only prevents the front being lose it pretty much makes a very strong connection it's a pre made part where you drill the holes on your guitar for the threaded insert however the 2 inserts are connected then you screw the stud in and install the floyd I've never had a tuning issue or loose studs like that
I have the same special in my dean and there should be only three springs also make sure you use 0.9 strings and adjust spring claw to float bridge parallel to body
It looks to me like you need to loosen the tension on the springs to get the bridge sitting so it's parallel with the front of the guitar's body, if you're using 42-09 gauge strings you should only have three springs installed, and they should all be parallel, not splayed-out, a good way to get the bridge sitting parallel with the front of the body is to cut a small piece of wood thick enough to fit in between the sustain block and the back of the routing where the sustain block fits, it needs to be just thick enough so that the bridge sits parallel when the strings are tuned up to pitch, make sure the fine-tuners are set to half their adjustment range, once the strings are tuned up to pitch, gradually tighten the spring-tension till the wood block falls out, then do fine adjustments to the spring tension so that both of the E-strings are in tune, then lock the strings, give the trem arm a good work-out, unlock the strings, re-tune the strings using the tuning-machines, leave the fine-tuners as they are, repeat the string-lock/trem arm work-out/un-lock/re-tune procedure till the tuning stabilizes, then use the fine-tuners to only make minor tuning-adjustments.
You might also need to replace the locking-nut if it has grooves worn in it and the three string-locks.
The issue here is having to retap the bridge bushing holes and have the correct bushings for the upgraded 1000 series Screw posts and bushings.A lot of the tuning stability comes to how well the bushings are anchored with the body.finding myself in this position on a $400 guitar so the Floyd rose action be lowered for maximum playability.
nifes edge helps I had to file my 1983 and now it bounces again.Make sure the posts are not dug in as well.Had the same issue.
Take out two of those springs, move the claw forward and bring the outside springs in one space at the claw. You have them extremely close to the body. Then wrap the mounting studs with teflon tape so they dont wobble. Use lubricant like nut sauce on any move pieces.
Got one. But the posts will be replaced when i assemble the guitar.
I have yet to drill the holes.
Just ordered the wood screw posts.
Floyd rose originals
I hated mine til i blocked it. Used piece of oak and block front side. Now stays in tune very well but you dont have the backwards bend.
I have a FR 1000 on my Jackson RR24, and I have this tuning issue as well. My other Jackson RR guitar has a FR Special, and it stays in tune perfectly. Lol
Throw a super vee mag-lok and it will keep you tremolo in tune after you replace the studs and tremolo!
Maybe take out 2 springs? The tention on the springs will be low on each individual string so you should take out 2 so it tightens the tension between your strings and springs it makes it more even I haven’t had a problem with my FRS and I’ve had it for 3 years
I have two guitars having that problem
Im sure its been saod, but you have to take the tension off of the strings when adjusting up and down as this is exactly what happens. Good vid tho.
use a ibanez edge... has a piece of hardness stell in the pivot
you only need 2 springs each on the outside hole on the trem block angled to 2 middle claws on the claw and screw the claw screws in deeper for more spring tension to bring it up to pitch or your preferred tuning and make sure base is parrallel with guitar body. the springs wont be catching the wood anymore with this configuration. you can send the baseplate back and save your money. should be fixed now. sorry i just saw the knife edges. better keep and install the new baseplate. sorry i didnt watch it all the way when i wrote this.
Hello, it looks that you have too many springs on the back. It might be that the springs are in very low tension each, so whenever you move the tremolo arm the springs find a tiny different equilibrium position. Have you tried taking off at least one of the springs and tightening the back plate screws in order to increase individual spring tension? Best regards
He put the extra springs to see if that was the problem.[ie one of the springs catching]..It wasn't..
Hi, I started with three springs, then swapped it with three brand new springs, and added two more brand new springs to make it five springs and none of this made any difference. It would have been the cheapest fix if the springs made any difference. I haven’t bothered going back to three springs.
JTM Creations Ohh I see. Thank you!
Tim's Witan thank you!
I think I have the same problem on my cheap licensed FR from LTD. Looks like it's basically a FR Special with their brand name. In any case, it definitely has the same amount of play your studs had. Did you buy the new studs directly from Floyd Rose's web store or are they available anywhere?
I think I bought it off eBay. Guy had it as genuine Floyd Rose stud and it listed it as an upgrade to Floyd Rose Special. So I thought, “what the heck, I’ll give it a try” and bought it.
@@jtmcreations2960did you extra drill the holes that studs fit?
@@Metalhead980 No, just replaced the screw-in studs. As long as it is a “genuine” or “for Floyd Rose” studs, it should screw right in. I just upgraded the studs from a cheaper version to a more expensive version. Having said that, there are many versions of the studs-Schaller, Gotoh, Ibanez, etc so if you are using a different brand, it may not fit. Even if the screw are the same size, some may have coarse threads and other fine threads which are not compatible.
@@jtmcreations2960 the bridge i have is a jackson licensed by floyd rose would floyd 1000 studs fit in well
Hi I am Aldous Jasper, new subssriber...We have the same problem.
I hate to say this but your first mistake was buying the Special. The saddles and block are zinc. That is soft as hell and shouldn't even be in a Floyd type of trem. I addressed the one on my Jackson Warrior in two ways. 1: I paid 90.00 for hardened steel original Floyd saddles. 2: I bought an FU brass block at 40.00. 130.00 to upgrade it to a minimum standard. It works fine and is much better overall. The main plate of the Special is also a problem. In time mine will degrade to the point where it is no longer viable and I'll have to buy a hardened one. At that point I'll dump the Special but keep the saddles and transfer the block to the new trem. I'll probably go with an Original Floyd and that will end the entire issue.
thank you.
same problem with cort x 300. in general, for the price,a bad guitar...
when i pull the bar its sharp when i depress it its flat whats causing that can someone help
i havent had many issues with the Floyd special besides the first time i changed the strings. i couldnt get it to stay level with the rest of the guitar 💀
the saddles are very shitty too i upgrade mine with new saddles and new screws i changed the locking nut too :) from original spacial left only trem arm and the plate... 2 years without a tuning problems :)
damn i have the issue in that video
man i could have saved you a couple bucks there on that new plate so always un tension to raise or lwer you figured that out but how i fix this was to use a rat tail file for chainsaw sharpening and re cut t5he worn knife edge and i worked ! problem solved also always give th bar a tap or jerk itll go back to zero
i'm losing my mind on my Edge 3.
sharpened blades like butterknive, nothing. stud where moving, used teflon, not moving at all, still unstable.
sharpened the Vgroove on the stud, no change. neck is firm, no problme there. i don't know what to do, no way to find replacement studs for the edge 3 in my country, ordered a pair of LO-pro stud and anchor point, gonna try with that..
Aslo check ur nut that's a.common issue that alot of.people tend to not think about.
@@ghyslainouellet8841 nut is solid :/ mow moving at all. i ended up swaping studs and anchor point. helped a little. now i have my edge 3 blocked for dive only, with a spring loaded stopper. also help a little
Springs hitting the cover, you're welcome.😁
this problem i hate on floydrose...but i like use this tremolo...
I had this issue with a used guitar i got on reverb once. Luckily at the time i worked at PRS guitars and one of their techs sharpened the knife edge to what it was supposed to be. Worked perfectly after that. And frankly i havent had many issues with the floyd special. I think its a fantastic thing for people who cant afford the ore expensive floyds. And you can upgrade them overtime. Stainless steel screws, titanium saddle blocks, push in bar, etc etc. After i upgraded my special it became my go to floyd. Until i upgraded the others so now theyre all equal 🤣
Maybe it would be enough to change the studs only.
I'll list the reasons why in my opinion this other poster is right about taking them off the market.
Springs
Arm attach point
Cheap materials
What's that leave ?
Ohh yeah where the string rides, and the little junk string posts and the weak bolts and the weak saddles that can cracknin half way too easily.
i have the same issue on a NEW Guitar with an FR series 1000 how the hell is that possible?
Which guitar??
@@neonology_officials B. c. rich Mockingbird legacy st
@@ignisflames469 what is your spring position?? Triangle or parallel??
@@neonology_officials came pararel outta stock now i got it on triangle
@@ignisflames469 parallel is best... U should try this instead of triangle
The Specials are junk. Cheap metal. I'm getting rid of it eventually.
yeah @Forget Myname my Floyd rose specials lasted longer than two floyd rose original and had better tuning stability
Yes it probably was the knife edges however you didn’t need to replace the bridge if that was true all you need is some metal filters ,a drill (to put Trem post in and file) some sand paper to tidy the job up and that’s it. So instead of paying for a new Floy rose bridge save yourself 70 quid plus and just get some guitarists files off of eBay for about 12 quid including players 🇬🇧
Did you adjust the bridge height with the strings tuned to pitch?
Yes. But got the post height to the roughly correct height first with no string tension but made fine adjustments later with strings in tune. Some posts says you are not supposed to adjust height at full tension, but that’s just impractical-although may explain the chrome flaking at the knife edge on my first trem plate.
One more clarification. When I went from the old trem plate to the new trem plate, I just replaced the trem plate and didn’t make any other adjustments-even to the bridge height.
If you are having tuning problems, I’d say check the play in the studs first and replace them if it moves around as that is the cheaper and easier fix.
@@MrMaxima no i usually dont have any major problems with anything Floyd Rose
hi i have a cort guitar with their branded floydrose rose..mine goes flat and sharp while pushing the bar down and up simultaneously...but not as flat as ur guitar...mystuds don't move at all this guitar is new so why is this happening please let me know
I don’t know. Contact Floyd Rose and have them help you at support@floydrose.com
@@jtmcreations2960 hi I have checked even studs on my guitar move the same as yours does... I don't know why this shouldn't be because the guitar is new if it came from the factory it shouldn't be moving did your guitar have this issue from the day you bought it? or does it happens due to usage itself?....now I don't know what size I should get for my studs as my studs are not as thick as yours.
edit: it seems that you built this guitar then why did you put the loose stud screws in it?
@@johnpole9334 It sounds like we have the same bridge, a cort branded (floyd rose special) most likely. Mine is on a cort VX-4V model. For me the bridge has no issues at all. As far as I know, the bridge plate and the studs are made of stainless steel, not the lesser quality zinc-alloy. Try and wrap the studs in plumbers tape and see if that makes a difference. Otherwise, replace the studs with the FRT100 FRBMMSICP (german) or FRT01000 FR1BMMSC (korean) versions, (maybe anchors too). Both available on Floyd Rose web site.
Give it a tiny jerk back when ur done using the trem to return to zero gravity.
Man I got a 2009 esp ltd mh - 327 with FRS and when I pulled or pushed on trem bar it never returned to - 0 - and it was 3 - 5 cents off so I watched a ton of videos until I found one that remedied my problem and my problem was I only had 2 springs and I needed to add a 3rd spring to get it yo return to almost
- 0 - near perfectio on … Most you fellas are over thinking things Yes FRS soft zink and can wear out quicker that steel …
But FRS can last for just as long if you keep it clean and use proper number of springs and correct tension … As I found 3 springs if need be are ok on a FRS without causing damage to the soft zink but I think 4 springs may but 5 springs for sure will just lean on everything made of monkey metal and wear it out … But then again I’m just a long haired fella that touches my ding - o - ling just as much if not more than my guitars so What do I know … thanks … GOD BLESS !!!
Why you keep buying the special?
1: Your not supposed to tune your FR when it lying on its "back". You are supposed to tune it in the position you are going to play it. Gravity pulls the trem backwards when lay the guitar down.
2: You are supposed to tune the guitar after it returns to "neutral" from a dive. You can read about it here:www.ibanezrules.com/tech/setup/lockdown.htm
3: You could have just wrapped some plumber's tape or Teflon® tape around the threads on the stud and screwed it back in. That probably would have done the trick.
3. You can see on the video that I already had Teflon tape on the studs to make the thread a better fit. But a Teflon tape is elastic (it stretches) so it will make the thread tighter, but really can’t resist any force applied to it. You need a mechanically tight tolerance to resist movement of the studs.
Watch video at the 6:44 mark
oh boy....did you watch the video?
Thank you for that link
Floyd Rose got thread all over the plac, from finetuner look and feel like shit till the pivot studs.
Unfortunately, this isn’t accurate. The mounting studs and screws are actually the same exact hardened steel that come with the Original Floyd Rose. The only parts that are different on the Special are the bridge plate and saddles, that’s it.
Ussr error man. The way your post are worn out all over the place suggest you adjusted the post with pressure from the bridge. You should haVe relieve the pressure and yank the bridge knives so it doesnt make contact on the post when turning it.
believe or not, loosening the strings before adjusting the trem's post hight is unnecessary and I'd advise against it. I've been FR player and own fixer upper for decades and slight deviation from the pitch when using the bar is normal although the proper stuff works better of course . Hardness of posts and solid seating of bushings is no1 priority. The FR specials and 1000's have thicker plating that needs worn off to get onto the hard edge. I found when loosening the strings and tightening them back up it causes the trem to pop/click into natural centred position and although the sound of it sounds ominous it never damaged my many floyds either (when changing strings). To prevent the hard pop, the springs would need loosening as well, and after adjusting the post's hight then do gradual tightening of strings and springs and that just takes for ever as you may need to do this several times before you get it where you want and really this extend of carefulness is not necessary at all.
@@1000BrokenKeysgood points.
Have been a floyd user for more than 25 years now.
None of them have failed me yet. Though one black german floyd from mid 80s showed sign of slight wear so i sharpened it a bit and changed to new german post.
My floyd 1000 also showed a bit but not much. Could have been just the finish but i sharpned it nonetheless.
Another chrome german floyd i bought in 2008 and yet when i inspected it 4 years ago, beleive it or not, the knife was sharp i didnt have to do anything other than the usual finish chip on the knife point. That same floyd still comes back to perfect tune after 15 yea of abuse.
Thanks to my method of always loosen flopp the strings and leaving only 1 spring on the back so i can yank the bridge while adjusting the post.
It takes a bit of time but it save you from having tuning issues along the line.
Rhen again i have lots of time so i have time to be patient.
Why the hell are you tuning with the guitar laid flat? Its called gravity. Makes about as much sense as turning the trim post with full tension on it.. Gotta do that shit up right in the playing position. Even Herman Li's guitars went about 25cents flat or sharp when he turned them face up/down....
Ok , so with getting new studs you solved the problem? that sounds crazy.
If so, maybe you probably didn't even need to buy new ones, only finding a way to tighten yours would have been enough.
No, the threads in the original studs were way too loose--probably out of tolerance. The replacement studs had threads that fit tight.
Thats completely normal... they ALL do that. Inherent quirk with all floating bridges
No, I have an Ibanez Zero II that returns PERFECTLY to pitch every time. My buddies original Floyd on his Charvel is perfect too.... it's something else causing it. But my 1987 ESP M-1 with an original ESP - Sinclair double locking SUCKS A BUTT just like this video...there's something wrong.
Everything has to be tight at , else it’ll go out.
Is it intonated?
Yes.
You know its hilarious how some of you are still blowing smoke up people's Asses with this Flyod Rose Special Sucks...no they dont not at All the Flyod Rose Special are on $1,000 plus guitars and no one has any issues with the Flyod Rose Special including Me...oh by they way they are real Flyod Rose..
you cannot tune a guitar with a floyd rose while its on its back..... it can throw it 10 to 30 cents out of tune. Hold the guitar as if you were to play it..... then tune. Otherwise it won't stay in tune when you play it.
People who omplain about instability just don't know how to set up and maintain the specials which require a little more maintenance than the 1000 and OG versions. Learn to work on your equipment people instead of running off the mouth at how bad thery are
You went to all that trouble to put a flamed "drop top" on a strat... then installed a Floyd Rose Special?!
You have bigger issues than your bridge not staying in tune. 🤣
Bad adjustment an bad intonation.
How can you say it’s bad intonation when I only show the tuning with open strings?
The problem shown in this video has nothing to do with intonation.