Floyd Rose FRX on a Gibson SG | Review
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- Опубликовано: 24 июл 2024
- The Floyd Rose FRX fits Gibson-style guitars without modification. It's a great bridge with a few quarks you should know about.
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0:00 Intro
1:08 FRX Explained
1:50 bridges and locking nuts
2:22 Test
3:04 Conclusion. just kidding.
3:40 FRX vs original Floyd rose
4:15 New Feature 1
4:55 New Feature 2
5:14 Consideration 3
5:50 New Feature 3
6:45 Why It’s not for me 1
9:43 Flutter
10:15 Why It’s not for me 2
10:46 conclusion 
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The stabilizing ball is an option… It doesn't have to be installed, and that way it completely eliminates that which you dislike about the trem system.
But does taking it off not mean the trem is too sensitive and harder to keep in tune?
No
@@BootyCollins-gf5er Yes. It's optional.
It's beginning to feel like you've kidnapped a Gibson SG, brought it home, abused it, chastised it, and tortued it with crazy metal devices and drill bits, all the while expecting it to keep performing perfectly under the humiliating watchful eye of the online public. It's hilarious! I eagerly anticipate every episode. What that says about me is another story haha!
Thank you, Dr. Fludd, another honest, in-depth review. I feel we are all indebted to you for these reviews - your thoroughness, attention-to-detail and delving into every aspect of the product are just not available from others. I pray you always stay true to your (very) high standards of honesty and ethical behavior. Thank you, again.
Thank you!
If anyone on earth deserves the real deal custom shop LP.. it’s you brother..
So... I'm convinced . "Kinda" is "woke" for half ass .
Thank you very much for the detailed review!
I would have really loved to hear the guitar without the optional stabilizer ball post installed.
Thanks for your donation it's so very appreciated and it helps so much to make this all sustainable. thought about including that as well, but really, the tuning stability is nonexistent without the stabilizer post. It makes the trem completely useless even for very light use.
Yeah, the “snap to pitch” feature would be a deal-breaker for me too. Bigsby FTW: kind of a very graduated gravity-to-pitch feel.
I personally love the feature. You dont have to worry about the guitar changing pitch with gravity and it returns to tune after pull ups. It's the only floyd I actually float because of it haha
Andre, you might want to try something. You will have to take the floyd off the guitar. Where the ball screw goes. Look underneath that area. You will see a metal clip that is held in by 1 or 2 small screws. That clip might be bent. Either straighten it or take it out. I took mine out. When I purchased my FRX it was assembled. The long pin with the spring was putting pressure on the base.
It caused the floyd to come off the low E side post new in the box. Which in turn I believe causes that metal clip to get bent because it's getting twisted. That clip was causing all kinds of tuning stability because the 2 base pieces were rubbing together. I can't knock it out of tune now. If you take the clip out you can't use the ball screw. I use my FRX fully floating. The clip being bent and using the ball screw could also not make it feel smooth. When you mentioned in the video that the FRX was unstable without the ball screw. I figured the metal clip has to be rubbing on the base.
You might be able to bend that clip back in position without taking out the FRX. Here is a video below of a guy that had this problem. It starts at 3 :15 and explains he first thought it was the long pin causing the issue because it didn't sit straight in the hole. It turned out to be the clip. ruclips.net/video/krMgYD-8CkE/видео.html&ab_channel=TristanRiversMusic
Really musical playing in the beginning ;)
I think the frx looks a little silly but is an awesome concept. That snapping at the 0 point is a deal breaker. You lose the ability to do vibrato and get stuck with dive bombs. Really limits musicality
I agree...it is a bit overkill. Feels like a mad max guitar.
@@andrefludd I've seen other reviews of this bridge and it seems that all it needs is to take the screw out and you have your floating bridge without any stabilizer. But I have not personally tried it.
This series has been nice to watch. Perhaps a Gibson style guitar just isn’t meant to wiggle stick.
Frank Marino has shown otherwise
the Joe Perry signature gold rush can! but at that price point no thanks hehe
Thanks for the first real honest review! I can actually flutter on my Bigsby. I swear it can be done with a couple of mods, but there’s no real pulling up on the bar without the possibility of losing the spring. Locking tuners, a roller bridge and Briggs Bigs Fixx make it a killer trem & bring it into the modern age.
A little bit of low strength thread locker could help fix the rattle if you have the pull up stop set where you want it.
Andre, great review as always. Suggestion: given that you (and probably a lot of your viewers) are interested in guitars with floating bridges, is it possible to get your hands on a Strat that can be used as a baseline for the other guitars that you review? It would be really cool to see how the other guitars improve (or fail to improve!) on Leo's design. I know Strats aren't perfect, but I'm regularly amazed by how much Leo got right with the Strat (and Tele). Having this baseline would help us viewers appreciate how the other S-types or Super Strats compare.
e.g. a 6-point trem, no locking nut MIM SSS Strat or something like that. So any guitar that comes with a locking nut, 2-point floating bridge, floyd-rose style bridge, noiseless pickups, etc gets put through the "Well, has it actually improved over the basic Strat formula that Leo introduced years ago?" test :-)
I’ll def consider it!
As someone who has two Floyd Rose equipped guitars. I can attest to how well that stayed in tune. I also never understood the thing about the fine tuners and palm muting. I've played most bridge types at this point. And the Floyd is my favorite bridge to palm mute on. Easily the most comfortable imo. For context my main guitar for the last 15 or so years has had a FR.
Definitely wanna get this for the SG i have.
Glad to see someone else's take on the frx. I put one on my 2016 les paul traditional and I actually love it. All of my Floyd's are blocked and are for dive bombs only. Except this one because the return to zero feature makes it super easy to float. Honestly my favorite feature is how easy the term is to use. You can get effortless slight warble. But that's just my experience and everyone is different. I personally think it's a piece of kit that's worth trying out
Thanks for doing such thorough and uncompromising tests on guitars and gear. The Set-screw performance is also unacceptable to me. I have a Super-Vee Bladerunner on my Strat. It is a slight improvement over the stock Tremolo, but still has the common problem of the 6th and 3rd string not returning to pitch, unless I do a quick pull up on the bar. Do you have any insights on why those 2 strings are so problematic? My guess is a combination of having the longest string lengths, and how that impacts the "break angle" from tbe saddles into the Trem Block. Have you tried the "Virtual Jeff" Trem System?
Awesome review. As a floyd rose user, I enjoyed each of your words. Good job, as usual !
I’ve been interested in checking this out for a while in hopes of turning my Edwards Les Paul into a Dimebag Darrell tribute guitar. I’ve wanted to try out the Sophia Tune O Magic conversion trem as well, but I really wanted to stay true to what Dime used without drilling a hole right through my Les Paul for installation.
You can remove most of that rattle from the set screw situation by wrapping the threads with Teflon (plumber’s) tape.
It’s also how I made my original Jazzmaster bridge perfectly stable (ymmv)
I’d really love to see you spend some time with the maestro vibrola that you seemed to like initially. Also, selfishly I’d like one myself and I’m curious how they are over time.
I bought one of these for one of my Flying V's.... but after I got it, I realized "oops".... it top mounts using the TAILPIECE studs, not the bridge studs. My V has the metal arrow shaped through body tailpiece. I'll probably go ahead and install stud posts and the FRX... it will take a little bit more work, but it will be worth it to keep it in tune since the huge flared headstock makes that challenging. ☮❤🎶
Get a String Butler for tuning stability.
What are your thoughts on Khaler trems? I know they have a negative reputation amongst most guitar players, but from what I understand they actually extremely smooth and high quality nowadays.
such a great video i had exact the same pro and cons when i tried it
Good to see everything it's fine now. For me , the project turned out well . The FRX it's working as it's supposed to, it holds running with the FRX locking nut , it sounds great. However, I think the bridge should come with the option to bend up standard . That is the only complaint I would find.
Thank you for your most insightful review. I was really considering putting one of these on my guitars. I use the TREMOLO bar for subtle guitar effects, not for divebombing. After your review, I realize this trem is not for me. Thank you and keep up the great work..
I saw a guy review a Sire S-3 and he worked the trem like also. It stayed in tune. No locking nut and no locking tuners. He is a luthier though so I'm sure the nut was cut properly and lubed as well as the bridge.
thank goodness ive been looking for a good review ong he grx to see if i need it for my guitar. havent seen it yet but i saw it in the background of the epiphone video and got excited
Great honest, truthful review, thank you!
Hey Andre, have you looked at the Stetsbar Tremolo System ? Thanks for the great videos :)
Mon I haven’t yet!
I have yet to check the measurements. I plan on having this on an Ibanez Fireman. I think I saw some already install this on an Iceman so Iam not entirelt sure.
Thank you, Top review !!!
Yo dude I have the same SG 2007 with these hot Lyndy Fraylins I just love this guitar I'm afraid to upgrade it anymore its so perfect you are braver than me
They have a product you can buy , called the guitar nut buster. It’s a 🔒 my nut but it goes on any Gibson with no mounting holes. It is only on the strings it won’t be mounted to the guitar body , it also has its own fine tuners as well ,
Wow Dr. Andre, your sg is turning out excellent. Where can I get a Dr. Andre Fludd signature SG!!! Speaking of which, have you had a chance to check out the "captain" Kirk Douglas demo video? His SG is really extreme... outstanding video video Dr Andre, stay cool... PEACE...
The intro cut killed me :)
Back to watching the rest of the vid.
Hey man what's the name of that little bracket in the undercut of the guitar at 2:00? I want to get one for my bass but I dont know the name
Performaxe
What's weird to me is your parker stays in tune way better than mine.
I actually wonder if the frx nut or a kahler stringlock would help.
Or just get a new nut, I mean my guitar is from like 97..
Thank you for these reviews,, it was very helpful for me, Hey can you please review a SKERVESEN guitar, I really wanted to know what You think about those guitars, it will be very helpful for me... Again thanks
If you get rattle on a screw put teflon tape on the threads and that will usually resolve the rattle.
I’ve wrestled with this bridge for over 2 years to get it to work efficiently, I hope I can give some useful advice.
you can smooth out the floating mode by removing the plastic ball and the soft metal flap it comes in contact with, I initially just removed the ball because I was annoyed at the levelling and this caused scratching from that metal piece rubbing on the tremolo frame. Then I’d set the screw to be about half way up which helps stability…which is where it gets worse,
the screw can become loose from your palm resting on that part of the bridge, I found that tuning would constantly fluctuate because the trem would go way beyond the maximum I though I set. I tried to fix this by setting up in dive only and resting the screw flush on the bottom of the trem, it would still go sharp because the screw kept coming loose and increasing the rest angle slightly, I suggest wedging something in between the screw head and the frame or a small nut/nylon washer can work well.
I hope that helps anyone who’s struggling with this bridge, hope you enjoyed the essay though no one will read this…
Imo' Set it where is best and 'use lock tight blue' likely solved😶🖖
I put a Wilkerson Rolling nut on my SQ Squier Strat. It does not go out of tune
I've had a Bigsby on a early 60s DC Melody Maker Special which was a monster guitar.
I had a Gretsch Corvette with a Gretsch Whammy
and I had an early 60 Jaguar which the Jaguar Tremolo (It wasn't mine, but had it for about a year)
I had a Khaler whammy on a Peavey Tracer that I detested.
So I'm looking for options for an ES 347 and a Les Paul Standard
I'm thinking Bigsby with a roller nut and a roller bridge.
I only had issues with older gibsons and epiphones. Those doesn't come stock with properly cut nuts.
Probably not compatible with the LP Junior or SG Specials with the classic wraparound bridge. I’ve been looking for a bridge for that kind of guitar and the only thing I’ve found is the Stetsbar.
Hi, is it an ambidextrous tremolo?
Because i"m a lefty player.
Thanks.
Thanks man. I was curious about trying one of these but now I know for sure it is definitely not for my because of how aggressive it returns to zero, plus it's fugly.
it sounds vapid but looks are very important for how you feel about an instrument or gear. ive turned down good pedals because the art was too goofy
Great video. It's awesome that it fixes these 2 issues. But I'm superficial, I just don't like the way it looks lol
I have never used the thing, but what about the bigsby pedal with the hardtail? (I get it if it's just not the feeling you're looking for).
I actually bought one and returned it before even doing a review. lol not a fan
Man I wish I had this guitar
This looks like steinberger tremolo reimagined :)
Another great video! I'm one of those who has an issue with how far it sticks out from the body, but I do think it looks very striking on an SG. May have to give it another look.
If the stabilizer bolt doesn't feel good, just take it out. It was placed there as a trem stabilizer to allow for double-stops and the such, but not necessary to the functionality of the system.
I discuss this in the video. The tuning stability isn’t good without the ball
can you recommend a different surface mount trem system? youve been a big help. unfortunately im back to square one.
To my knowledge, there’s really only 3 tried and tested choices: bigsby, Floyd rose FRX, and Les Trem. Of the 3, I like the Les Trem most, but of course it’s all personal preference.
@@andrefludd well thank you very much. im actually now thinking of purchasing what would be my first headless guitar. ive seen several with trem systems. if you are looking to sell i have enough for an frx, thats about as much as i can aford at the moment. keep doing what your doing your input and knowledge are greatly appreciated. thanx
What a fantastic video have a good weekend
Man, I like your reviews. They are honest and straight to the point. And at the same time, it's only your point of view considering your approach and preferences. But as someone who doesn't play as you do, you sold me on this vibrato system for the guitar I want to use it for. Anyway, keep up the good work.
Absolutely man! I’m really glad at least one person is getting it because of me. I think it’s an awesome awesome bridge. (Just not for me)
I think it is, but to each his own.
Yep didn't like that trem either. One thing I am curious about is what the stability would be like with a string butler instead of the locking nut. I would prefer not to drill holes myself.
As for the future of this guitar. My prediction is you'll eventually bring it to a Luthier for a full route and a traditional Floyd rose or you are going to sell this one off.
Have you ever had the chance to play a Jeff Beck Strat? I haven´t (no way I could find that or afford it here in Mexico), but I think it has a fat neck and, of course, it must have a good tremolo setup.
How’s the Stets Bar?
I heard you can fix the zero point problem by removing the little black screw. Supposedly it makes it operate more like a true floating Floyd rose bridge
Also, while it’s just a hypothesis I wonder if the loss in tuning stability after you take the black screw out of the trem has anything to do with the locking nut. Kahler tremolos have gotten a bad reputation for the exact same reason, even though with a Floyd-style nut tuning stability is dramatically improved with the Kahler system.
This bridge is just meant to work with the screw
Put some Teflon tape around the thread of the set screw and you’re goo👍🏻
Do you have tabs for this? 2:29
Can you palm-mute on it?
when is the Kaizen review coming?
There's one on Patreon right now. Not sure when I'll be making one for youtube but it will happen eventually.
Hey Andre, I know that you love Parker Fly guitars and so do I. I've been wanting one ever since they came out. I'm curious if an FRX can be installed on a Parker Fly? I understand that the Fly has a unique tremolo but no parts are available because they are no longer manufactured. I wish that they would make Parker Fly guitars available again.
Any thoughts on if the FRX can be used on a Fly guitar ??? Thanks, James
Thanks for the support! That type of mod would basically be impossible.
@@andrefludd I'm having doubts about the FRX. You pointed out something that I didn't like, the subtle trem bar movements. I'd have to test one out in person. I was also thinking of putting an FRX on a Tele. Thanks man.
the ball is optional according to the installation instructions.
Why not put a Bigsby B3 on your SG. I have one on my epi SG.
Check episode 3
I put one of the Bad boy's on a 2011 Les Paul Traditional, I replaced the Bigsby, finally a Gibson that now actually stays in tune...!!!😂
Great review...Thanks....Yeah, I like the smooth Jeff Beck type tremolo approach, so it's also a pass for me.
Jeez, what a hassle. So glad I prefer fixed bridges. My Charvel Guthrie Govan trem works perfectly without a locking nut or fine tuners, and the two-point trem with the LSR roller nut on my American Deluxe Strat always stays in tune, as well. Despite the fact that they can handle anything someone would throw at them, all I ever do with these trems is the occasional chord vibrato. Often as not with the Guthrie Govan, I use the Tremol-No to lock it into fixed-bridge mode. I simply have very little need for trems, which makes owning Gibsons and Teles and the like so much easier for me.
I know it's not an important point to many, and definitely not to you, but, man, does that FRX with the locking nut absolutely annihilate the classic good looks of your basic brown SG. That bridge looks truly awful on that guitar, which, I'm sure, you think of as a point of pride, a badge of honor, since you couldn't care less about how an instrument looks. This is certainly a very admirable (and useful) trait of yours, but I simply couldn't bring myself to ruin a classic Gibson's aesthetics with that monstrosity.
I pray to the Six-String gods that one day you will find it within yourself to let a fixed-bridge Gibson remain a fixed-bridge Gibson, and even to enjoy it that way.
Dude are we gonna get Klein "sTele" demo experiment?
Thanks!
I really appreciate the donation. Thank you. Mutual generosity is really the only way this can keep going.
I don't get people's dislike of it visually, it looks better than a Bigsby. Looks good on the SG, not sure it would look that good on a Les Paul.
interesting. I think bigsbys looks really cool on sgs. im glad people have different tastes so we get to see many different kinds of guitars around
@@RugsterClaps I have always felt that people like the look of the Bigsby because it is old so they are used to it. My opinion of course.
@@Kali-Yuga-Peace-Corp there absolutely is an appeal to the classic look. like an old muscle car. I love those too so its probably influencing my tastes. I only use tune o matic so its primarily an optic thing though they are really nice when used subtly I find
gibson sg that stays in tune? That's crazy tralk!
Methinks you might like a Bigsby on that guitar. I believe you've stated that you don't like them (?), but seems to me that a Bigsby might suit your style.
Really disappointed that you can't flutter the bar like a regular Floyd. That would be the deal breaker for me since that's probably 1/3rd of my whammy bar usage.
You can, just take out the stabilizing bolt.
Will the system not function without that set screw ? A weird decision to make from floyd rose in my opinion
I discuss it in the video!
🤘🖤
I've yet to see an aftermarket retrofit trem of this type that I actually like. They all just look like gimmicks.
It def works, but yea…it appears there’s no way to get around routing the guitar
FRX doesn't quite cut it? Bring on the router!
Can’t you avoid that by removing the screw
aw where you said you got a lot of negative comments about this guitar. Was it because you modified it?
Probably lol. I don’t remember at this point, you know how people are!
I feel like gibsons main advantage is that they are straight forward work horse instruments. they are durable and can sound very good. adding components that require finesse seems to work against the strengths that gibson has and cant compete with instruments that are designed to be more versatile or subtle. I love my gibsons but I play heavy music and dont require my guitars to do anything other than stay in tune, sound great, play well and look cool. Thanks for the review Andre. New fan and love how nerdy you get with guitars. Im the same way and torture my girlfriend with my technical ramblings on tone and guitars lol
Thanks for your comment! I wouldn't really consider Gibon's durable. From what I can tell, they have the most fragile headstock ever invented. I'm glad your instruments have held up!
@@andrefludd I agree with the headstock issue but if you're careful about that everything else is built like a tank. ive played tons of gigs and been really hard on my sg and it wont quit!
If Gibson used properly quarter-sawn mahogany, or maple for necks they wouldn't break.
@@vorpalblades or add that extra bit of material that many others do. My dunable does that
@@RugsterClaps It's called a volute, and some Gibsons have it, most don't though and the ones that don't are the ones that happen to experience alot of the headstock cracking
The real question is can you actually find a tremolo bridge that actually works for you in a Gibson guitar?
I know you kinda answered at the beginning, but 5k is still well...5k. It's a lot of money for something that shouldn't be so much more if you could just get an ESP with a Floyd Rose installed and then just install Gibson pick ups on it if you really want to get closer to the Gibson sound vs just paying them really high end money which given all we've heard about their quality control issues and such is probably not something I'd be comfortable: I'd question how much of that is actually going to craftmanship and design that's worth it and how much is just the brand recognition they want to greatly mark up.
you have to be willing to rout for a kahler or floyd system, theres really no way around it if you want a flexible trem system
@@maxmustardman298 Yep and honestly I wouldn't: I admit that I'll probably never be in the market for a Gibson or an Epiphone but if I was I would just keep it unmodified for the resell value: I'd just buy a cheaper instrument with an original Floyd and use that instead of routing what's clearly not *just* an instrument but a collector's item and henceforth a bit of an investment.
Just remembered that epiphone came out with the alex lifeson axcess models that would probably the closest you can get to a factory gibson with a floyd. I wish they would go back to Kahler systems tho, much more interesting systems and less invasive.
I am not a fan of tremolos. They are more of an annoyance than useful for me personally
You can buy a whole other guitar for the price of that trem. They are hella expensive!
From an aesthetic perspective, i think that trem looks kind of fugly. And the functionality on top of the meh looks would make me want to revert it back to the tune-o-matic bridge and tailpiece. Then I'd get bored with it and list it 😅
I sure do love muting proms
Man that thing is the dream of everyone that wants a floyd rose without cutting A hole in their Gibson.
But idk if the Price tag makes it worth to throw it on my 300 Dollar Epiphone :D
Yes daddy
I would find that clunking during use annoying and it's a no from me
I think prom muting is something my parents did to me in high school
Put a string butler on it!
It’s not needed!
Just put a Kahler on an LP, literally so much less of a hassle than a Floyd
My honest opinion, Gibson guitars are not made for trems. I have 2 Gibson and I would never put a trem on them. My 2 cents
The FRX does flutter, you just don't have your bar tight enough, dude
I didn't say it doesn't flutter. I said it doesn't flutter as much as some bridges.
@@andrefludd what I mean to say is that the flutter effect mostly comes from having a tight trem arm, which yours was considerably loose in the video, therefor your judgment of how well it flutters was based on a setting that doesn't facilitate a flutter effect. I watch your videos and respect your passion, as I am very passionate about guitars myself, and especially the mechanical aspect of them
They're called vibratos. Tremolo is volume change, vibrato changes pitch. Sorry for coming here as a know-it-all smartass😅
I’m aware, the terms are often used interchangeably in the guitar community.
Isn't the locking nut being behind the original nut defeating the whole thing? Sorry I didn't watch the whole video yet....
I can see why you might think that. But there's like 1/10 of an inch between the nut and the lock, and the lock is holding the string snugly in place. That just isn't enough area for anything to bind in any meaningful way.
@@andrefludd ok thanks for responding :), I have a Kahler on an old Hamer from the 80's and they did it that way. I think there were other reasons why that didn't stay in tune as good as a Floyd though. The feel of a Kahler was always so much better to me.
If you have a good regular nut, Locking tuners would also be stable enough, in my opinion.
@@Kali-Yuga-Peace-Corp they don't lock the tuning, only the string end to the post.
@@Kali-Yuga-Peace-Corp That would be true on most guitars. But not gibsons lol.
Floyd’s blow I’ll take a hard take any day of the week screwing around with a bridge is ridiculous in my mind
this guy just dont understand that every type of trem system has its purpose...a floys is not meant to play subtle its made for dive bombing, exageated flutters and an abusive use of it... thats how its designed, i saw the les trem vid and my god...just made me mad
An original Floyd rose can 1000% be used for subtle playing. Just because most guitarists don’t use it that way doesn’t mean you cant or shouldn’t. The FRX I show in this video behaves totally differently from the original Floyd rose.
@@andrefludd k but is not the way is was intended to be used or designed, u can dive bomb with a bigsby... wont do it well cuz is not desigmed for that purpose, sure u can use a floyd for subtle touches but as u complain i will snap to 0 position cuz
that guitar is like a cute girl with braces
You have no respect for the people that invented the electric guitar. Play a Parker. I'm happy with my original Gibsons and Fenders.
yea...I dedicated my life to playing guitar and learning about guitar design because I don't respect the people who invented the guitar. That's like saying if you like electric cars and critique gasoline engines you don't respect Henry Ford.