Does a cheap bridge matter?

Longywales

Hi,

I have revisited my strat project and have been toying with the idea of upgrading the bridge to an "expensive" bridge such as GOTOH for example.. But are the expensive bridges really that much better than say cheap bridges? i honestly cant see why there is such a price divide.

Even if there is a difference, is this the last thing you should be looking at when going for a nice sound? IMO I think that PUPS, POTS, CAPS, Body wood, Neck wood should take priority?

EDUCATE ME PLEASE! I Cant find any information out there, so over to you guys

Chris

robertoriginal

there is a slight explanation. a no name cheapo may have shotty screws or some pieces may just not fit right.

a gotoh, or something thats a bit more for example will have a better fit.

SOME people believe that a thicker, bigger trem block produces more sustain. I THINK ITS A LOAD OF .......

but its just an opinion.

as far as a strat bridge.

well, in reality, the saddles are what matter. just as long as the screws for the saddles are tip top and not bored out, rusted out whatever then the rest is just preference. i do howevver prefer the feel of a 2 point trem to a traditional 5 screw knife style. but thats just me.

Longywales

Thanks, helped a lot. I can't justify dropping good money on an expensive bridge, so my eBay bridge will have to do. upon inspection, the saddles seem fine and the screws fit nicely.

I'm guessing that if the bridge does make a difference, it won't be as much as the components I listed above. So the bridge will be my last upgrade.

robertoriginal

indeed, the caps, n pots make more of a tonal difference than the bridge does. but then again the type of bridge will bring out different characteristics, like a top loading tele bridge will sound different and feel different than a jaguar bridge.

Longywales

Just a quick update on this:

So i was using my cheap eBay bridge for a while, but was never happy with the tone of the guitar even though i have invested lots on electronics, nut etc. So i decided i would replace the only cheap part left....The bridge.

I bought a GOTOH strat bridge from Warmoth, i had to plug the old holes and make new ones, but as soon as i plugged it in and started playing, i noticed the tone improved by 100%. This has been by far the best mod iv made to my affintiy strat, the sound is on par with any of my Dean/Fender/Warmoth guitars. I was beginning to think it was the wood quality that was making the tone crap but its either the bridge block or the gotoh saddles.

So in summart for this thread....YES A CHEAP BRIDGE DOES MATTER!

Doug

Longywales said:

Just a quick update on this: So i was using my cheap eBay bridge for a while, but was never happy with the tone of the guitar even though i have invested lots on electronics, nut etc. So i decided i would replace the only cheap part left....The bridge...I bought a GOTOH strat bridge from Warmoth...as soon as i plugged it in and started playing, i noticed the tone improved by 100%. This has been by far the best mod i've made...I was beginning to think it was the wood quality that was making the tone crap but its either the bridge block or the gotoh saddles.

Great success. Thanks for helping us all learn. This is especially valuable for a reason you implied, and which can be highlighted here for everyone's benefit if you don't mind...

You eliminated wood as the weak spot in your tone. Your experience busts the wood myth, again, as more of us have been experiencing the same reality check. That is, wood is a minor variable in the tone of an electric guitar (not so for acoustic guitars). So minor, in fact, that wood's contribution is virtually inaudible to the human ear...it takes a controlled experiment using precise electronic measurements to isolate the amount of tone contributed by different wood in the same make & model electric guitar.

Enjoy your improved *audible *tone, Longy!

Cheers,