Best Guitar w/ Tremolo

GW100628

I've been playing guitar for a few years now on a variety of guitars; Fender Strat, Tele and SG. I would really like to expand my horizons by getting a guitar with a good tremolo system. Although the Strat has a tremolo it is not very good and very limited as to what it can do. Can anyone recommend a guitar with a good tremolo? Price range anywhere from $1,500 to $2k. I've heard the Ibanez zero bridge system is good, as is the Floyd Rose. Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks.

Lee M

I think you're looking at this a little awkwardly. It's not really the best guitar, it's the tremolo. There are good Strat trems to be had, like the Wilkinson VS-200. That's about the best you can find for that style. I haven't played an Edge Zero yet because it's fairly new, but the original Edge (which was on their guitars from the late 80's up until around 2000 or so) is be best of the Floyd-style Ibanez trems. The Edge III is far more common and newer, but it's not up to par with the original.

Give me a little more direction on what kind of guitar you want and I'll be glad to give you some suggestions.

GW100628

You know Lee, you're right; I'm looking at it backwards. Let's start with the guitar; I'd prefer a guitar that's more geared to metal. Given that two of the three guitars I own have fairly chunky necks, I'd like a thin neck. For diversity of tones I would prefer a guitar with three pick-ups. Regarding the tremolo, in addition to something that I can bang the heck out of, I would like a system where you don't screw in the tremolo bar, which is one thing I dislike about the tremolo on my strat. As I said before, any recommendations would be appreciated.

Also - after submitting my post yesterday, I checked out a few online guitar shops and guitar reviews, and may have found a good, albeit expensive, option; a Suhr Modern or Standard. If you've ever played one, please let me know what you think.

Thanks for the help.

Lee M

How thin do you want to go with the neck? The Warmoth Partscaster I built has a thin profile but it still has a little chunk to it, and for me that's perfect. The Ibanez I had had an original Wizard neck profile, and my hand would cramp after about one song. Like I said though, that's just me. By all means go play one and see what you think of the profile.

If you're going more metal then you'll almost certainly want humbuckers.You could get a massive variety of tones from different combinations whether it be coil-tapping or what have you even with the normal two pickups. Three humbuckers in one guitar starts to look cramped (to me at least). My only bit of advice would be if you want a workable clean tone, stay away from EMG's. Sure, they sound pretty good distorted, but the clean tone is "meh" at best. There again, it's just my opinion, so if you can get your hands one one then by all means play it and get your own opinion.

Since you're looking at Suhrs are you going for more of that Strat/SuperStrat body style?

You may not like the screw-in trem bars, but trust me, they're kind of nice. Don't hold me to this, but I think the Gotoh on the Suhrs are the same style as the Wilkinson. You push the bar down and then twirl it around a couple times to lock it/set how much you want it to move.

Okay, that's enough to digest, so I'll shut up

Edit: I need to add one more thing. If you're going to be doing a fair amount of trem use, for the sake of your sanity get locking tuners.

mccreadyisgod

I would definitely tell you to try out a Music Man Axis or a Peavey EVH. Those Van Halen designs were some of the best guitars out there, great trem systems (basically just a Floyd) and good pickups. I don't think Peavey made any 3-pup designs, but I thought MM did.

You could always get a nice Ibanez with a single-coil sandwiched between two humbuckers and a Floyd. The Suhr would be an awesome choice, assuming you've got that kind of money.

It sounds like a Floyd Rose is the best trem option for you, I don't think a standard Strat trem or a Bigsby will do what you want.

GW100628

Thanks Lee and mccreadyisgod (which I totally agree with) for the advice; I'm going to check out the Ibanez and Music Man, along with any other guitars with a Floyd Rose. I can't find any Suhrs in my area, which would mean I would have to buy it without playing it - something I just can't bring myself to do. I'll let you know how I make out.

mccreadyisgod

Don't forget those Peavey Wolfgang's. The more expensive models ($800+ used) were really good guitars, and the folks who own them now still sing their praises. Peavey hasn't been known for great instruments, but those were the diamonds in the rough.

That said, if you REALLY wanted a Suhr, I don't think you would be disappointed. He's got one of the best reputations for customer satisfaction in the business. You would need to do your homework on EXACTLY what you wanted, so you could get the right guitar without playing it first (pickups, color/figure/wood, neck profile, fretboard radius, fretboard material, etc). I still think you'd be best-served with a single-coil set between two humbuckers for the fullest range of tones.

Snoopy Died For Our Sins

Gibson Es-335

WORKS WELL FOR HEAVIER ROCK IF YOU KNOW WHAT YOU'RE DOING...I have one and it's my best trem geetar

TinyFists

I have a lovely Colorsound tremelo that was bought for me as a present by a friend, who gets amazing sounds out of his various pedals and guitars, and thought I would love it. I do when he uses it but sadly, I am not equally skilled, and just can't seem to figure out how to play well with it. It just throws me and it sounds like the notes are all tripping over each other. So it's been sitting in its box for the past few years and I feel it is waste but I just can't get a handle on it. Not a helpful response, I'm afraid. Just...a response.

Good luck with your purchase!