GUITAR MYTH BUSTING | Expensive Gibson Bridges Sound Any Different? | Guitar Tweakz
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- čas přidán 22. 07. 2024
- #gibson #guitarmods
Vintage Gibson enthusiasts say the tune-o-matic bridge has to be brass and the tail piece has to be aluminium (USA: aluminum) to sound right. Some others will go crazy when they hear a statement like this and say only the pickups matter.
So... which is it now?
The parts I used (Thomann affiliate links):
Gibson ABR-1 bridge: bit.ly/3A2gU9a
ABM full brass ABR bridge: bit.ly/3WQG7gj
ABM Aluminium tail piece: bit.ly/3WNjzND
Backing track by @SashaIvantic
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Is this actually a paid review? No it isn't but I have affiliate links in the description box. (I update this line for every video).
Timestamps:
0:00 Introduction
0:44 Intro Song
1:49 The bridges I compare
3:53 The rest of the rig
4:55 Round 1 | Bridge comparison | Clean
7:19 Round 2 | Bridge comparison | Overdriven
8:27 The Tail pieces I compare
9:08 Round 3 | Tail piece comparison | Clean
10:00 Round 4 | Tail piece comparison | Overdriven
11:12 My impressions
Gear used in this video:
(the Bitly links are Thomann affiliate links)
-Gibson Les Paul CS '58 reissue bit.ly/3FN08OR
-Kasleder Toxic Twins: bit.ly/2VJRDiO
-REVV Dynamis 7/40 head: bit.ly/3C8MfbE
-Universal Audio OX BOX bit.ly/2IyOeuj
-One Control Agamidae switcher: bit.ly/2YZgiib
-Evidence Lyric cables: bit.ly/3QJHQ40
-Evidence Audio patch cables: bit.ly/2Ixylo1
-DR Strings: bit.ly/3QcKUon
Other gear I use in my videos:
-Harley Benton Fusion-II Roasted SSP bit.ly/31FVawf
-Gibson Les Paul CM 2015 - heavily modified "Junior"
-Barocsi Troublecaster - Custom built T-style
-Barocsi "Frankenstrat"
-Fender Telecaster CS '53 reissue bit.ly/2KFVJld
-Kasleder Vintage King: bit.ly/3bPU0sN
-REVV Tilt overdrive: bit.ly/3PtrWdv
-VS Audio Royal Flush bit.ly/3CYRtFK
-VS Audio Pandora Fuzz bit.ly/3twBaN2
-UAFX Golden Reverb: bit.ly/3vS36JN
-UAFX Astra Modulation: bit.ly/3ycxXFu
-Xotic Super Clean: bit.ly/36fsHka
-J Rockett Uni-Verb: bit.ly/3OglswM
-Soldano SLO pedal: bit.ly/3FyRcwj
-Honey Bee Double Trouble: honeybeeamps.com
-Kasleder Time Trap delay: bit.ly/3jQkha6
-Walrus Audio D1 Delay: bit.ly/3G228iP
-Empress Effects Compressor bit.ly/3BAubVe
-Analogman King of Tone analogman.com
-Tate FX Raise the Dead Ge: tatefx.co.uk
-J Rockett Archer overdrive: bit.ly/2Ges1z8
-Two Notes Captor X: bit.ly/33FPfcW
-Morgan 1x12 cab Twilight: bit.ly/2KFihDq
The speech mic:
-SENNHEISER MKH 416: bit.ly/2w1EAMP
Audio Interface:
-Audient iD44: bit.ly/2Jo73zN
Check out the Thomann Music channel for some wicked guitar videos:
/ musikhausthomann
Cheers,
Kris - Hudba
Kris…I have to say the one thing that made THE most difference in my guitars was using steel threaded inserts on my bolt-on neck guitars…they resonate more, they sound louder and there is more sustain because the inserts pull the neck down into the pocket way tighter than wood screws could ever do…kinda off topic, but worth mentioning!!!
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Well, a Steel insert won't resonate more than the Maple. The reason there's more sustain is the increased down force and that the inserts absorb less vibration than Maple. I do a simpler mod to bolt-ons with similar results. I chisel out the center of the neck pocket so the surfaces don't touch to ~1cm around the edges. That increases downforce around the edges and reduces neck vibration damping. I think it actually holds the neck in place better. I do notice an increase in sustain.
@@GCKelloch the threaded inserts are worth making the mod anyway. The force you can apply to threaded screws is much stronger and you can hear the difference immediately!
Hey Kris,
super interesting video and so much fun to watch!
I can clearly hear differences between the bridges and tailpieces.
Would be happy to see more videos like this from you.
For example also swapping pots, electronics and pickups and what
difference it really makes.
It's super interesting for me but I don't have the luthier skills and money
to experiment and find out with my own guitars.
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this is the best bridge comparison video I've seen. You can really hear the differences between them. helped me
Much appreciated! Glad you liked it. 🙏
No doubt Kris, they are all different sounding. If I was going to pick one based on sound, I would choose the zinc alloy aftermarket bridge, because its the brightest sounding, and you can turn down the brightness with your tone pot or on your amp. However, you cannot add brightness that is not there.
I know for a fact that original 59 Les Paul saddles not only the bridge was brass but the saddles themselves when they came to a point was flat and much broader than modern saddles. Meaning the surface area in which the string arrested without grooves was probably two three times is wide! Yes original 59 saddles had no grooves from the factory.
Great playing in so many different styles. Well done!
Thank you 🙏
I preferred the Custom shop. To me it had a balance between the three. The tail piece I couldn't tell.
Im with you on that one
Really appreciate your work on you videos mate 🫡👌 glad I found this channel .. if you have any advice or suggestions on a replacement compensated wrap around bridge for lp jr I’d be great full 👍
You should do the flame maple mod, where you buy longer abr1 threaded bridge posts and drop them all the way down onto the mahogany. Many on the posts are not very far into the maple. No drilling involved. I found it made a huge difference
Very interesting, i was not expecting so much difference with the bridge! Great video 👍
Hi, Kris! It's always refreshing to see you with your trusty LP and I just love your riffs and attitude! Great that you came up with this comparison for us to be able to draw own conclusions without having to do the testing ourselves. Here I must say I prefer the brighter sounding cheap zinc alloy to the custom shop brass bridge, although I can't feel your player's experience. But it may be completely different with a brighter rig or when playing mostly clean of course... The bridge sonical difference seemed almost negligible to me as well as the weight reduction in such a mass... Cheers
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Chris wat a great video. Was just thinking about swapping the bridge on my guitar. I noticed you have your neck pickup really flat to the body is that something you prefer for all neck humbuckers or just this one?
I totally agree with your assessment of the brass sounding mellower. It's clear.
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Hey Kris, really interesting video/ topic. I wonder of what other qualities you look for in a bridge, besides translating the vibrations of the strings to the body and pickups? Isnt total stiffness of the bridge really the only quality that matters, so a diamond bridge theoretically should be about the best option you get? Or is there something thats just too much stiffness?
I liked the custom shop bridge and couldn't hear the tailpiece difference. I have a 79 Les Paul made in Kalamazoo. One piece body, T tops, etc. It weighs 5 kilos (11 lbs 3 oz)! But it sounds amazing, and even though it no doubt has zinc parts... I would never change it it, because I already love it.
I have an 78’ Custom and it sounds amazing, but the bridge is a bit collapsed. I will change the bridge to an ABM Nashville one.
It quite sonic in the combo of brass and aluminum that mitigates the most prominent of treble and most wide of bass. The midrange seems to hang relatively tight regardless.
In order to compare components you need to hear the raw guitar no overdrive or effects
Some really tasteful playing there Kris. Nice
Aftermarket Gibson bridge sounded the most open, had the chirp/sparkle up top but had some nice width/bounce in the mids. The brass was the most 'focused' but also rolled off in the highs.
I play an ES335 copy which came with a really cheap bridge. The 100% brass bridge made quite the difference, perhaps a semi-hollow is more sensitive to the change. As has been said elsewhere, it will hardly be noticeable in a band context, but it sure sounds better at home.
The all zamac(zinc alloy) bridge and tailpiece had the harshest transients but the least harmonic content. The Gibson Historic ABR-1 has more balanced tone with both tailpieces, although more pleasing with the aluminum than the zinc. The winner: The machined brass ABM with the aluminum tail[piece has the smoothest tone with more harmonic overtones, that combination really lets your guitar sing!! Great video, as always, Rock on Brother!
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i have a full aluminum tailpiece and a full aluminum bridge with brass saddles on my most played les paul customs and the sustain, clarity, and richness of the tone jumped out immediately. the note almost becomes bell like. when playing with crunch, it sounds super layered and dynamic. massive difference from the typical pot metal gibson bridge and tailpiece. plus the weight savings is also noticeable.
Nice intro song! Real classy lead playing, like those double stop slurs.
I really enjoyed this video. Thank you for taking the time to do this. But I am wondering if the test is inconclusive, due to the fact that the materials are not the only differences in these bridges. The fitting tolerances of the parts are definitely going to vary from manufacturer to manufacturer. And if parts are fitted more loosely on one bridge, than the other, I think it would make a difference. Just my thoughts.
I think there are differences in every swap Kris made but it's more of a preference thing rather than better or worse. I'm not sure if I could hear the differences in a band situation though.
I agree and not only that but I found myself preferring different ones depending on what he was playing and where on the neck lol. I think I’d be happy with the after market brass saddles
Thank you so much for this comparison, Kris. Great. Maybe I can contribute a bit to this topc. I own a 2001 Gibson Les Paul R8 and I have tried just about every ABR1 bridge which are on the market (Faber, Callaham, different Gibson biridges, ABM, Kissmystrings) and may different soptailpieces. I agree with themitsos' opinion that in a band situation you might not hear much of a difference. But this has never been the point to me. What I would lieke to achieve is to get the best (I know his is very subjective) possible sound out of my guitar. Sound differences can be clearly heard. If you decide to change the ABR you have to be aware that they differ not only in materials and of course soundwise but also in dimensions ever so slightly. This means that you have to readjust intonation, stringheight, pickup height etc. Most of the new bridges differ from old, "vintage" ones to a considerable extent. Materials are different as are the shapes of the individual saddles. Old ones are more massive and have a flatter top. The new ones have "sharper" tops. Faber and Kissmystrings ABR1 are the ones that get closest to the vintage ones. Anyway, I think it's worthwhile experimenting with different bridges and stoptailpieces and it's a lot of fun.
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What are the weights of the two? I have a les paul that is balanced weird, i need more weight in the back. came with a lightweight aluminum.
Kris, out of curiosity what pickups are you using in your Les Paul? The neck is very clear and defined. Much of this is your technique but I think the pickup sounds better than most in the neck. Thanks
Why are the E and A string saddles flipped. Should the angle side be at the back for string break?
I have a 2001 standard. I started getting this weird buzz on the b string and I was suspecting it was the bridge. I swapped my Gibson Nashville style bridge with an aluminum one with titanium saddles and it fixed the issue but to my surprise I think it really brightened the guitar up. Acoustically and through the amp. But I was really surprised how the tailpiece made such a difference in your vid. I may have actually heard more of a difference than with the bridge. Damn……. About to shop tailpieces now?! Thanks. Lol
Haha, yeah this is a deep rabbit hole. But don’t lose yourself in it. Key is, if you really like how your guitar sounds like now, you’re fine. 😅
On the other hand, if you enjoy experimenting with different parts, definitely try a proper light weight aluminum stop tail piece. 👌
I love heavy les Paul’s. I don’t see enough difference to justify changing the original part imo. To each his own. Great compare video thanks for sharing it.
Over wrapping causes a "looser" feel to the string breakpoint, not a big deal, but you notice the strings sound louder (a high pitched harp sound) when you strum them behind the saddles.
I think these frequencies come through to the the overall sound slightly.
Hey Kris: quite an effort you made to record this video with all those changes. Your beautiful LP sounds gorgeous ! Regarding the swaps, here is my feeling:
The zinc alloy is the weakest of them all. Definitely not at the level of the 2 others.
The regular CS with brass saddles: you start to hear vibrating the overtones and better sustain, a little mellower sound.
The ABM all brass: rings the most and best sustain. Like it better for the chords, but to me the CS is the best compromise when played lead.
The Aluminium tailpiece vs the alloy: very subtle difference, but still maybe a fuller tone... So I would go for CS bridge and Aluminium Tailpiece.
Personally, I have tried several: Standard, CS, TonePros and Faber (German made). This last one has brass saddles, Aluminium lightweight tailpiece and the parts are anchored to the posts for stability and more sustain. Superior quality, like TonePros. My 2¢...
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Great episode. I have love hate relationship with one of my guitars and Im hunting that one thing, that makes the hate part. And from this video, its clearly the bridge. There is inhertent zing, that every bridge changed and it was the same thing thru all the clips. With your guitar, I liked the Gibosn Customshop bridge the best. Can you please make similar video about Strat saddles? Like pretty please
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I’ve always thought a lot of this stuff was smoke & mirrors, however on one of my Gibson SG’s when I strummed it unplugged, it sounded sorta dead… not very resonant. I installed one of the Lightning Bar tailpieces which have the string come out of the tailpiece at an angle so it avoids hitting the edge of the bridge which happens a lot on guitars not set up properly.
Secondly I swapped the bridge itself on over to a Schaller roller style bridge which you may see more frequently on a Bigsby set up. Well the guitar came right to life and is extremely resonant now, that being said it made me a believer.
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Stock Gibson ABR1's are made for Gibson by Kluson. same ABR1 bridge as Kluson sells.
I think it's a super interesting topic, and something I love geeking out about. With of course the dream being that someone could get a non-custom "cheap" Les Paul, and swap all the hardware and electronics to get something better than a custom shop because the hardware is more "vintage correct".
A question to your specific test: Did you also swap the studs / thumb wheel / tail piece studs + bushings ? I have heard mention that it's actually an as big contributor as the tailpiece and bridge themselves - which kinda makes sense since that's what connects the strings to the body wood - but I haven't seen any testing done where those tiny little invisible parts are included. From what I can tell, the original is brass for bridge studs+thumb wheel, and steel for tailpiece studs and bushings - but Gibson uses whatever Zinc alloy for both.
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While hearing the samples I was thinking the high end ABM brass bridge sounded more "subdued" indeed - the word you used at the end, "mellow", may be more accurate. But... I'm not sure if this "mellow" also means "better" though, and thus if the cost of the upgrade is justified - it's just "different". Interesting video nonetheless, having done a similar upgrade in the past I was wondering if this is indeed worth it or not.
Killer scientific comparison! The aluminum tailpiece is a must-have. All original bursts had the lightweight aluminum tailpieces, so there's that. The brass rolls off some of the brightness of the stock non-brass ABR. Could be a good thing, unless you have a dark sounding guitar that needs all the highs you can get. Super cool job!
Thanks Andy!
expensive bridges and tailpieces do sound slightly different. Do they sound better? Well, if you just paid a good chunk of money, of course they do!!! 😅
Haha, I can agree with them sounding different. Better? Depends on what you’re looking for.
Yeah I payed quite some money on the ABM parts and I really wanted to like them more. 😂
Luckily Thomann offers the money back service so if I wanted to send them back, it wouldn’t have been an issue at all.
Long story short, I like them a little more than the others so they stay where they are. 😅
@@KrisBarocsi Well, it never hurts to have spare parts for a guitar 😄or an amp for that matter
@@ilmisxx2 Talking of which, the original bridge of my LP is now on my ES-330L 😅 And it sounds amazing!
@@KrisBarocsi awesome!! There are two things a guitarist can't have too many of - spare parts and overdrive pedals... Well... And guitars... And amps... Speakers come to mid too... You catch the drift 🤣🤭😅
It's a fairly cheap upgrade. I was able to tame ringing in the highs by simply replacing steel bridge post with brass ones. $20. Videos like these are helpful. Comments like these, not so much.
I liked the Gibson aftermarket bridge and the Gibson standard tailpiece the best! They were the clearest and fullest sounding for me.
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I can see you top wrapping all your guitars, even your Hb ja kit. Does it make some difference to you? I have a ja-60, maybe I should try...
Thank you for your videos!! Lots of info and fun!
If you top wrap then the influence of the bridge is decreased for the pressure onto the bridge is lower. The real truth comes out if you do not top wrap.
I agree with your assessment. Brass was darker and warmer sounding, Zinc bridge and Saddles had the most top end to my ears, while the zinc with brass saddles was somewhere in the middle. I personally like more top end on a guitar and think it helps cut a bit better, but maybe the playing experience would change my mind. That said I like the Zinc saddles. As for the Stop Tail piece I heard no audible difference. I would go with aluminum as its lighter weight also. In fact if you could find an aluminum ABR-1 I'd go with that too. I put an aluminum bridge block on a stratocaster, the guitar was a half pound lighter if felt like. Also I think aluminum will sound better than brass or zinc, again I like brighter sound. Lastly try 480 cold rolled steel. Callaham guitar components are machined from 480 cold rolled steel and they sound fantastic for brighter sounds, and sustain for much longer.
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I'll bet you would like titanium. I'm not so much into bright, but I like a balance of it.
Didn't Calaham make those inferior brake pads in Tommy Boy ? How dare you support them.
What about the difference between a Gibson tune o matic bridge to a Gibson ABR 1 ? Any real difference or is it just an aesthetic thing ?
Kris craft, useful and informative ✌🏻🎸🎶
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I have two questions.
What is up with the metric stuff?
What is up with the top rap stuff?
Great Video! (as Always honestly) My experience on this specific 'tone Tweaking' is about two guitars: a LP '04 Std GT (nashville TOM) where I've installed a Faber ABR-1N and lightweight stop tail. It reduced the top end, the High freq. and added a lil bit of mids, and rolled just a bit basses. Plus it added a lil of resonance and sustain.
The second experiecne is on a CS LP R9 '16 where I've replaced the original saddles (just saddles) with the AMB brass ones. In this case it heped to Add high freq. and to let the guitar ring ''more natural' ..I mean, with the originals it sounded a bit too dark. So Yes, .. defnetly a Test everybody should have to do on his own guitar, Not a Huge difference but just enought to tweak the general tone.
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I didn't quite understand, sorry. You wrote that you replaced the saddles on the LP R9 with brass ones. But the R9 comes with brass saddles by default.
@@MrEpic-lf4gn yes, saddles in Soft Brass by ABM 1510n. The guitar opened up on high freq.
@@Sollazzon I still don't understand, sorry ) So you're saying that Gibson brass and ABM brass are different?
@@MrEpic-lf4gn yes, sure, brass is not always the same and Gibson do not have just 1 supplier. It may differ depending on the period or batch of production.
Very subtle differences, nothing I could hear in a mix tbh, that Les Paul sounds awesome though ^^.
I'm curious about that "changing the electronics makes a big difference" I'm in the team thinking it makes no difference wether I put alpha pots or CBS pots except I have to select the CBS pots so it's not too "loose".
I like the alphas for that very reason, there's a bit of resistance when I turn the knob, it feels better imo.
Maybe there's a video about this on your channel?
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Hi Chris , I like your playing very much, especially the phrasing and the feel. I think you are a very experienced guitar instructor. What would you recommend to improve the mentioned skills. I am almost in despair because I am not able to achieve this kind of abilities. Greetings, Gerald
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I'm pretty sure original TOM bridge saddles were Stainless Steel. I think that's what Gibson upgrade replacement bridges are. Brass saddle replacements came around for Fenders in the 70s, but Gibsons had stock nylon saddles then. I like the Steel saddles for the lower strings, and Brass for the top two plain strings. I'm surprised that the Al tailpiece sounds different. Sounds less aggressive and with more bass sustain. I like it. Wrapping the strings over the tailpiece reduces the break angle. It does slightly affect tone and sustain.
Actually the original ABR -1 saddles were nickle plated machined brass. Nylon came along in the 60's on many models and chrome plated zinc (pot metal) came in the 70's.
From you purchased bridge abm and tail pieces.
We need some kind of guitar seismograph to gauge reverberations and sustain for such comparisons
Gibson Stop Bar tail pieces are made of lightweight aluminum, not a zinc alloy. At least the Custom Shop/Murphy Lab ones are.
I like that duel overdrive pedal Toxic Twins.. nice little nod to Aerosmith there. But if that’s all you’re using then what is going on with the phantom tremolo here 10:45 ? The other tail piece wouldn’t do that
It’s an awesome overdrive! The only thing that caused the tremolo at 10:45 is my index finger. That‘s called a violin vibrato.
I swapped the bridge of a friends ltd 1000 series guitar, the new one was a ABM brass rollerbridge. Even with highgain sounds and the Emg81, the difference was from another world. Endless sustain, and the EMG81-honk was eliminated. Many people don't like rollerbridges, they think it will kill your sustain. But today, the manufacturing tolerances are almost zero, so there is nothing that kills your sound with the rollersaddles. The whole bridge was made of brass, not only the rollersaddles.
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Anything you change on a guitar will change the feel, tone and sound of the instrument, even if it’s just fractions; are the words of the Tech I frequent. Thanks Kris.
Thanks buddy! Very true! And how much those fractions matter to you is up to you. 👍
In the comparisons I've heard it's the saddles that make the real difference Old 50's saddles had more mass...flatter tops with less angle The pointy tops are how most repros are made Need wider tops for more warmer sound IMO...wider base where the strings connect
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Anybody got a clue if the all brass bridge would fit a 90s les paul classic? posts the same?
I prefer brighter sounds. Therefore, I do not like any zinc alloyed parts. However, to change things up I do have guitar with a brass nut. Wish you would have added Titanium to your testing. Stainless steel, Cold Rolled steel, Aluminum, and Titanium is what I like.
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NGL I think the most expensive bridge sounded the "worst", with the gibson brass saddle one being the "best" middle. It's very much in the details though and none make or break the tone of the guitar. I've also seen someone replace the TOM bridge on his flying V for a roller saddle one, that increased the sustain a lot.
It’s interesting. I preferred the ABM stuff but each of the bridges had riffs that they handled better. I’d join the all brass bridge with the aluminium tailpiece to get the best of both worlds myself
I agree 100%. I‘ll keep the ABM parts on the guitar but I liked something different about all of these parts. For example for purely hi gain I‘d stick to the zinc alloy parts.
Wouldn’t a different brand of strings make a bigger difference?
Hi Kris, ich finde die Les Paul klingt mit der ABM runder, mit einer ganz leichten Kompression . Und vielleicht ist es Voodoo oder Einbildung, aber ich finde das die Obertöne irgendwie harmonischer klingen mit der ABM im Vergleich zu den Gibson Bridges. Beim Tailpiece war es für mich so, dass das Aluminium den Anschlag schneller macht. Die Paula wirkt direkter und klingt auch irgendwie holziger. Ich hab den Tausch auf meiner alten Korea Epiphone Riviera gemacht, da war es ein Riesenunterschied zu vorher. Ich habe allerdings auch zusätzlich noch die Einlassgewinde getauscht.
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Funny I'm actually looking for a full Brass bridge and tail peice for my Epiphone. I sold my Les Paul because the Epiphone was all around better and I didn't worry about it as much, the Les paul was a Case Queen lol
You should watch Johan Segeborn’s ABR1 vs Nashville style comparison video. I almost fell off my chair. I couldn’t believe the difference. There’s a huge difference. The bridges on this video are pretty close imo.
Hey, I have a question…why is the lighter tail piece “better” but if we are talking Floyd Rose the heavier brass or steel block is “better” seems contradictory..
Obviously amp settings were the same.
It would interesting to hear what happens with each of the bridges when you turn up the treble on the amp and really expose the upper frequencies.
I suspect the ABM bridge might have a more usable top end over all. The others were brighter but not necessarily in a way that is desirable, I felt, particularly if you were mixing a track and eq-ing the guitars to poke out.
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Some tasteful playing in the intro!
Thanks so much! 🙏
Great comparison man, hope you’re well. It seems the 100% brass has less of those whistling frequencies & more of the frequencies we want, very cool, thanks!
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No love for TonePros? They make some pretty high quality after market parts for Gibson's and come with locking set screws. I upgraded the bridge and tailpiece on my Les Paul and noticed quite an increase in volume acoustically and more sustain overall.
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IMO, The more brass the bridge contained, the more "mellow" the sound became. I would say you lose a significant amount of high end "sparkle". Any difference in sustain is moot because no one holds out a note or notes to the point where it would make a difference. I experienced way less difference in the sound of the tail piece changes, but will admit that the light weight tail piece was slightly brighter. That being said, anyone would be hard pressed to hear any changes at all if not compared almost immediately. Great video!
Is the Gibson Custom Shop ABR bridge this one: Gibson PBBR-059 ? I hope you can reply.
Hi, that bridge has the same measurement as the custom shop bridge I have. I'm not sure about the metals they use for the PBBR-059 though, I couldn't find that anywhere.
@@KrisBarocsi Thank you sir, you are so kind. You're guitar sounds great and looks awesome. Have a great life.
I prefer the ABM bridge and ABM tailpiece combo. And the Kasleder OD really kicks A$$.
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I've got very cheap headphones. It really suprised me, how much difference can be heard. It's all a matter of taste from that point but there was a warmer, less sparkly sound coming from the ABM. I liked that one the most.
Really appreciate the effort you make to create those videos. Great comparison in my opinion.
Thanks so much! Yeah it’s surprising how you can hear the differences here even with cell phone speakers. 😅 I wasn’t expecting that.
Hi Kris - how about the Four Uncles ABR?
Hey, sorry but I never tried that one. I'll check it out. Cheers!
The ABM brass bridge rings out more to me, with more high-end harmonic content. I like it.
Callaham ABR1…best TOM out there.
It’s actually milled tool grade steel.
No Mazak, no brass,no sloppy saddles…just true tonality…!!!
I believe that you would find a bigger difference between an abr1 and a Nashville style bridge than from the bridge and tailpiece alone!
I didint hear much of a difference between brass and zinc saddles. The brass saddles mightve been slightly more dynamic but I dont know if worth changing. Those two were probably the least different from one another. The full brass bridge was the biggest difference. But I felt it sounded dark and really mushy. Brass works good as saddles and maybe bridge posts working with other metals. But big parts made of brass dont sound good . Thats why Telecasters dont use a brass bridge just brass saddles on a steel bridge. The tailpieces was the next smallest difference. I feel the Zinc might have more sustain and bottom end response. Whereas the aluminum has more upper end response. I feel the tailpiece material would make a lot bigger difference when the setup is a wraparound bridge not a tuneomatic setup.
Something not mentioned hear but worth testing is the bridge post and tailpiece post material. In my experience switching the bridge posts to brass posts and/or brass wheels made the biggest difference for me more so than brass saddles or a different tailpiece. I love the aluminum or zinc tailpieces either way. But I settled down on Steel Tailpiece studs (for strength and sound) and Brass studs and or wheels for the tuneomatic bridge. Brass tailpiece studs sounded muddy. I think the original vintage setup was that....that is Steel tailpiece studs with brass tuneomatic bridge mounting studs and or wheels.
Id be curious to see what a stainless steel or steel bridge would sound like....dunno if they make them. But Fender uses a lot of steel for bridges yet Gibson dosent. Zinc dosent sound good on Fenders in my experience but yet is fine on Gibsons. Dunno why. And some zinc components are actually vintage accurate in some cases going back.
Bill Callaham was making THE BEST TunOtomic bridge anywhere ... out of a solid block of cold rolled steel ... but appears to no longer offer that.
I can only tell some very slight difference using the bridge pickup. Not worth the time and effort. The ONLY reason I would consider a bridge upgrade is for tuning stability.
If you dont put brass posts and inserts the zinc or steel ones will cancel out a lot of the natural frequencies of that brass bridge. Example: drop a bare brass saddle on the ground... then thread a steel screw or set screw into it and drop it again. The brass ring is now dead and you get a thud
I’ve switched any Gibsons I have with Nashville bridges to ABR-1’s, cut the saddles and I think the sound is better, tone. Even did my Gibson double neck and ten or eleven for friends. Don’t care for the Nashvilles.
Thanks for this video, finally someone who gets it!
✌️😎🎸🎶🎵🎶🎵🎶
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Man! I could hear the difference out in my back yard!
It’s surprising, isn’t it? Cheers man!
I’ve found Gibson should use bigger bridge posts my 2020 epi studio sounds light years better than my 2016 Gibson studio
There was definitely a subtle difference. I would like to hear that Les Paul with nylon saddles.
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The Old Bridge on my Les Paul Custom had collapsed. I tried Faber, Tonepros and ABM Bridges. Faber and TP was disappointing. The Guitar sounded dead and dull. Also the Material felt very cheap, espacially the TP Bridge. The ABM Bridge was an epiphany. Great sound, great material. But also the most expensive one. I tried to contact the Faber Service in Germany. I wanted to know what Material their Products are. There was no reasonable answer. ABM is produced in Germany and milled out the full material. You can think for yourself now, where the Price difference comes about. If you want a decent replacement part, there is only ABM.
There are differences for sure but they are subtle to me at least. The all brass certainly sounded warmer or not as bright.
I wonder how the cheapest bridge you could possible buy online would compare.......an Ebay or Amazon no name pot metal or whatever.
The guitar sounds killer anyway Kris.
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Minor differences on high frequencies and sustain, I would spend the money on pickups instead.
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I've been wondering if over wrapping the strings on the tailpiece gives better tuning stability🤷♂️
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Love you and your videos, but there was an insignificant difference with the fully bell brass saddles. That was all I heard. Nothing would come through a mix as far as I heard.
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The ABR is not spoused to be made out of brass. just the saddles
Huge difference between the bridges. I liked the ABM the least for every application. For some sounds I liked the cheaper Gibson one and for some other sounds preferred the more expensive Gibson bridge. The cheaper one seemed to have more top end and bite, but the historic one was warmer and more vintage sounding. Really depended on the individual guitar part, which one seemed to suit that particular sound better. But the all brass bridge didn´t appeal to my taste at all. It seemed muffled and dark, lacking the sort of bite you want from a Les Paul. I didn´t notice too much of a difference between the tailpieces. Maybe nothing. Now I would like to know, how much of a difference would changing the bridge posts and studs make.
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The zinc tailpiece has more of an edge than the aluminum-which sounded cleaner.
There is certainly a difference. And theese differences also requires a slightly different set up on the guitar. For example: Brass produces a stronger acoustic tone -compared to aluminium. This changes things. With a brass or a steel bridge; You do not have to have the pickups as close to strings as You need to with aluminium. Magneteics 1-0-1: A lower pick up height = Less magnetic string pull from pick ups = strings alowed to resonate longer = more sustain.
As You hear Kris play on this video; You can hear the sound punch through/distort a little more -when he is playing on the brass stuff. This is beacause he uses the same set up here. With stronger acoustic tone; the optimal pickup height is different.
Too bad he didn't include the ABM-steel bridge on this test. Because that is the absolute KILLER choice. In my opinion it is superior to the brass bridge. You accually also get TWANG on a Les Paul.
Habe gerade letzte Woche auch bei meiner Les Paul das Tailpiece gewechselt.. Hatte ein leichtes Aluminium von Düsenberg, bin aber wieder zurück zum Tonepros mit Locking (wahrscheinlich aus Zink..) klingt bei meiner Paula besser... Ich denke es ist ein wenig abhängig von der Git bzw. den verschiedenen Komponenten wie Pickups, Poetik ect. Für mich klang im Video die ABM Bridge am besten...;-)
Du hast voll recht! Es ist ne Geschmacksfrage und stark von der Gitarre abhängig. 👍
It's so suttle as long as the bridge and tailpiece is not pot metal upgrade is not woth it the least bit. The only one that actually makes a hearable difference wihtout an A B comparison on clean is the bell brass, but again in the mix, forget hearing any difference at all.
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Thanks!
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Yep!
The only thing I know after this Video, is that I need the Kasleder 😀
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I agree with your comment. I heard the same thing