Vibrato systems for guitar
A tremolo arm, tremolo bar, vibrato bar or whammy bar is a lever attached to the bridge and/or the tailpiece of an electric guitar or archtop guitar to enable the player to quickly vary the tension and sometimes the length of the strings temporarily, changing the pitch to create a vibrato, portamento or pitch bend effect. Instruments without this device are called hard-tail.
The tremolo arm is the most common type of vibrola unit. The term vibrola is also used by some guitar makers to describe their particular tremolo arm designs; see vibrola.
The tremolo arm began as a mechanical device for more easily producing the vibrato effects that blues and jazz guitarists had long produced on arch top guitars by manipulating the tailpiece with their right hand. However it has also made possible many sounds not available by this technique.
Since the appearance of mechanical tremolo arms in the 1950s, artists such as Jimi Hendrix, Steve Lukather, Joe Satriani, Eddie Van Halen, David Gilmour and many surf music bands have used the tremolo to great effect, and the effects they created using it have become a recognised part of many styles of electric guitar.
Naming controversy
Traditionally, electric guitarists have reversed the normal meanings of the terms vibrato and tremolo when referring to hardware devices and the effects they produce. While the tremolo arm can produce variations of pitch including what is normally termed vibrato, it can never produce the effect normally known as tremolo. Tremolo, on the other hand, is exactly the effect produced by the vibrato units built in to many classic guitar amplifiers.
This reversal of terminology is generally attributed to Leo Fender. See vibrato unit for details of the history of these terms in relation to electric guitar, and related issues.
Notable mechanism designs
Almost all tremolo arms are based on one or more of three basic designs:
- The Bigsby vibrato tailpiece.
- The Fender synchronized tremolo.
- The Fender floating tremolo.
Origin Of the Vibrato Tailpiece
One of the first mechanical tremolo/vibrato units (although not hand-operated) was the Kauffman Vibrato as used on Rickenbacker Vibrola spanish guitars. They were not operated by hand, but rather moved with an electrical mechanism. It was developed by Doc Kauffman to simulate the pitch manipulation available with steel guitars. A hand operated unit was later created and used on the company's capri line of guitars in the '50's, such as John Lennon's '58 325. It was a side-to-side action vibrato unit (rather than the up-down action of later units) that was notorious for throwing the guitar out of tune, hence John's replacing it with a Bigsby B5. Thankfully, it was replaced by the Ac'cent Vibrola, which used no coiled springs to change tension, giving it a less likely chance to throw the guitar out of tune.
Bigsby
The first commercially successful tremolo arm was the Bigsby vibrato tailpiece, most often just called a Bigsby, and invented by Paul Bigsby. The exact date of its first availability is uncertain, as Bigsby kept few records, but it was on Bigsby-built guitars photographed in 1952, in what became its standard form. The design uses a spring-loaded arm that rotates a cylindrical bar in the tailpiece, varying the string tension to create vibrato and other pitch variations. The string tension is balanced against a single, short hellical compression spring, positioned under the arm pivot.
To this day, the Bigsby enjoys some popularity, especially on hollow body guitars, and is available as a factory-fitted option on top-line models both hollow and solid bodied from many makers, and as an aftermarket addition (requiring some skill to fit however). It remains the only widely used design whose mechanism is entirely above the belly of the guitar body, making it the only design particularly suitable for acoustic and semi-acoustic guitars.
Fender synchronized tremolo
After the Bigsby, the next major development was Leo Fender's synchronized tremolo, the device which introduced the term tremolo arm. First released in 1954 on Fender's first legendary Stratocaster, the simple but effective design offers a greater range of pitch change than the Bigsby, and particularly a better capability for upbends.
The basis of the synchronized tremolo is a rigid assembly incorporating both the bridge and tailpiece which is pivoted on the guitar belly. In the original design, this pivot was formed by a row of six round-headed woodscrews. These emerged from the belly of the guitar in a line parallel to the bridge and between the bridge and the bridge pickup, and their unthreaded shanks passed through slightly oversize holes in the chromed steel plate that supported both the bridge and tailpiece block, with a small clearance between the screw heads and the plate. This allowed some movement of the plate.
The bridge is formed by six bridge saddles held against this plate by string tension, and individually adjustable both for height and intonation. The tailpiece consists of a solid block of metal, mounted behind the tremolo plate and secured to it by three machine screws, and passing right through the guitar body. In a chamber routed into the back of the guitar are up to five (normally three) long coil springs which connect to the back of the tailpiece block, and whose tension balances that of the strings. The tremolo arm also passes through the tremolo plate and tailpiece block, providing direct and rigid connection.
Ignoring the bridge adjustments, this mechanism has only two moving parts, one of them the arm itself, the same as the Bigsby. But unlike the Bigsby, the synchronized tremolo moves the bridge as well as the tailpiece, varying both the length and tension of the strings.
The strings pass through the body of the guitar, in similar fashion to the Fender Telecaster. When changing strings the new string is threaded through the body from the back. However, in the Telecaster the ferrule end is held by a collar firmly anchored to the guitar body; In the Stratocaster, it is held by the moving metal block through which the strings pass.
The Stratocaster tremolo, often just called the Strat trem, or also called the whammy bar, is the most copied tremolo unit. Similar pattern units appear on many solid-body guitars by various makers. Its design has been the basis of the premium Fender tremolo known as the two-point synchronised tremolo, and also of the Floyd Rose locking tremolo, see below. Both the original Stratocaster tremolo, sometimes called the synchronous tremolo and sometimes the vintage synchronized tremolo, and derived designs such as the two-point and Floyd Rose appear on current models as of 2006.
This preeminence of the synchronised tremolo was finally established by the use of Stratocaster guitars by Jimi Hendrix, Pete Townshend and others towards the end of the 1960s. Throughout the 1960s, the premium Fender guitars were the Jaguar range, equipped with the floating tremolo. By the early 1970s, it was obvious that most guitarists preferred the cheaper Stratocaster, regardless of price and supposed quality and prestige, and particularly liked its tremolo arm design. The Jaguar and indeed all other Fender guitars using any tremolo design other than the synchronised tremolo were for a time withdrawn, to return to the catalog as classic or retro models in the 1990s.
Fender floating bridge
The floating bridge featured on two Fender tremolo arm designs, both developed by Leo Fender subsequently to the original synchronised tremolo but overshadowed by it.
Floating tremolo
The floating tremolo was designed by Fender for the Fender Jazzmaster, and first appeared with the release of the Jazzmaster in 1958. A larger, heavier and more complex mechanism than the synchronised tremolo, and promoted over it by Fender as their premium tremolo arm mechanism, it never achieved the same popularity.
The main superficial difference is that, while much of the mechanism of the synchronised tremolo including the springs is accessed by removing a rectangular plate in the back of the guitar body, and is mounted on the guitar body in a routed bay extending behind the pickups, the entire mechanism of the floating tremolo is mounted on a roughly triangular chromed plate in the front of the guitar body, on the opposite side of the bridge to the pickups. The string tension is balanced against a single short hellical spring, in compression rather than tension, mounted on the back of the tremolo mounting plate. The spring is adjustable by turning a screw located towards the centre of this plate.
The ferrule ends of the strings are held on the top of the guitar in a tailpiece plate called the knife plate which emerges from the mechanism, rather than the strings vanishing into the mechanism as with the synchronized tremolo. It is the knife plate that is moved when the tremolo arm is operated. Unlike on the synchronized tremolo, the bridge is not moved directly by the mechanism, but only by the movement of the strings, and is allowed to tilt to accommodate this movement. This is called a floating bridge.
The Fender floating tremolo also features a knob that enables the player to lock and thus disable the tremolo mechanism, allowing quick recovery of tuning in the event of breaking one string, and providing tuning stability with the mechanism locked that was intended to be similar to that of a fixed bridge guitar. In practice, this stability was not generally achieved, leading some players to replace the mechanism with a fixed bridge and tailpiece to produce a high quality "hard-tail" solid body guitar not otherwise available at the time.
The floating tremolo was greatly favoured by some surf music bands, particularly for its ability to produce a pronounced and distinctive vibrato on a sustained chord without disturbing the tuning of the guitar. To fully achieve this benefit, however, a fairly elaborate setup of the guitar was required after every string change.
As well as on the Jazzmaster, the floating tremolo was used on the then top of the line Fender Jaguar guitars, released in 1962, and also on the early Fender Bass VI, released in 1961. Bridges are not interchangeable between these three models, the Jaguar bridge having longer 'legs' to cater for its higher pickups, and the Bass VI saddles being cut for larger diameter strings. There have also been a small number of not very notable imitations by other makers, generally without the locking knob.
Fender discontinued all floating tremolo models in the 1970s, but reintroduced both the Jazzmaster and Jaguar in 1999, and the tremolo-equipped Bass VI in 2006.
Dynamic Vibrato
The Fender Dynamic Vibrato, also known as the Mustang tremolo or Mustang trem, was introduced in 1964 on the Fender Mustang, intended as a student model. It was also notably used on the Jagstang, a custom design by Kurt Cobain combining features of the Jaguar and the Mustang. Some late 1960s Mustangs were fitted instead with the floating tremolo, which was promoted by Fender as their premium unit, but later Mustangs returned to the Dynamic Vibrato.
The Dynamic Vibrato is still preferred by some lead guitarists above all other designs. It features a floating bridge similar to that of the floating tremolo, but the bridge is integral with the tremolo unit, unlike that of the floating tremolo which is mounted separately. The strings are controlled by a tailpiece bar to which the tremolo arm is visibly connected, similar to the Bigsby, and the mechanism is installed from the top of the instrument, similar to the floating tremolo. It combines some features of all three basic designs.
The Dynamic Vibrato is often confused with the Fender floating tremolo, to which it bears some resemblance. The original production runs of the two overlap by more than a decade, but the mechanisms are quite different. The existence of a few 1960s Mustangs factory fitted with the floating tremolo has probably added to the confusion. The concealed mechanism is in a chamber of a completely different shape and position, requiring an impractical amount of woodwork to convert from one to the other, and the mounting plate is of a different shape with different mounting holes.
The string tension is balanced against two medium length hellical springs under tension, mounted on the underside of the tremolo mounting plate, one attached to each of the two feet of the tailpiece bar.
Dynamic Vibrato units may be recognised by the integrated floating bridge and the stamps "Fender" and "DYNAMIC VIBRATO". Many but not all units also have the words "PAT PEND" or "PAT. NO. 3,241,418" stamped under the word "Fender".
The Dynamic Vibrato was the last of the floating bridge designs to be discontinued by Fender, with the Mustang in 1982, and the first to be reintroduced, again with the Mustang, in 1990.
Gibson Vibrola
Gibson have marketed a number of tremolo arm designs under the name Vibrola.
Vibrola tailpieces include a licensed version of the Bigsby and several in-house Gibson designs. The Gibson designs did not have the impact of the Bigsby and Fender designs, and have inspired few if any copies, but they competed reasonably successfully and continue to sell, with artists such as Jimi Hendrix and Eric Clapton using them from time to time during the 1960s, and many working musicians using them to this day.
Gibson designs tend to have the mechanism above the belly of the guitar, similar to the Bigsby, and are therefore equally suitable for use on acoustic guitars and especially archtops. This reflects the Gibson company's history as the developer of the archtop and their continued strength and focus in this market, but carries over even to designs used only on solid body guitars, such as the Short Lyre Vibrola used on some Flying V and SG models. While these do require some woodwork to install them, some more so than others, there is nothing like the extensive body routing required for all of the Fender trems.
The earliest of the Gibson-designed tremolo arms was a distinctive long tailpiece released as the Gibson Vibrato in 1962 on some SG models. This mechanism later became known as the side vibrato because of the position of the lever which emerged from the side of the long tailpiece. This lever had only restricted movement up and down in a plane close to that of the strings, so its action was unlike that of the Bigsby and Fender units, and remains unique. It was also described as the Gibson Vibrola Tailpiece in Gibson documents, but this name can be applied to any of the Gibson tremolo mechanisms. It was not a success and is of interest mainly to historians and collectors.
The Deluxe Gibson Vibrato, released in 1963, was another long tailpiece mechanism, and replaced the Gibson Vibrato. Its tremolo arm and all subsequent designs used the action adopted by Bigsby and Fender. As the Deluxe Gibson Vibrola a short version of it was fitted as standard to the 1967 reissue Gibson Flying V. Two other long tailpiece designs, superficially similar to the Deluxe Gibson Vibrato, are the Lyre Vibrola which was being fitted to Gibson ES-335s as an option by 1964 and is engraved with a lyre motif, and the Maestro Vibrola which was an option on the ES-335 by 1967.
Most Vibrola tailpieces, including the Bigsby, Lyre and Maestro, exist in both long and short versions. The long version replaces a trapeze-style tailpiece, such as found on most archtop guitars, and transmits the string tension to the guitar side. The short version replaces a string stop style tailpiece, such as found on the original Gibson Les Paul, and transmits the string tension to the guitar belly, so short versions are generally used only on solid body guitars. Long tailpieces can be used on almost any guitar (an exception being the Gibson Flying V where there is no room for one), and both long and short versions have been used on various models of Gibson SG and Gibson Les Paul guitars.
None of the Gibson designs were suitable for creating the more extreme sounds that the Strat trem and its derivatives made possible. They have almost always been offered as extra cost options on guitars which sold better in non-tremolo versions. As a result, some versions are rare and command high prices from restorers and collectors. Gibson encourages this trend by refusing to sell reissue units as parts, offering them only on complete guitars (a policy similar to most guitar manufacturers).
As of 2006 Gibson was continuing to offer Vibrola units as options on many models, but also offered a few Fender-inspired tremolo arms such as the Floyd Rose on some Gibson branded guitars, and a wider variety through their Kramer and Epiphone brands. Kramer have always fitted Floyd Rose trems as standard and this association continues. See also rivalry between Fender and Gibson.
Fender two-point synchronized tremolo
The synchronized tremolo has been further developed by Fender to produce the two-point synchronized tremolo. This is not a locking tremolo, but is often confused with the similarly-named Floyd Rose two-point locking tremolo. The two systems are both developments of the original Stratocaster tremolo mechanism, but use the words two point to describe entirely different concepts.
The Fender two-point system uses two pivot points, one at each end of the pivot, rather than a row of six as in the original strat trem. Conceptually, such a mechanism can be achieved by removing four of the six pivot screws from a traditional strat trem, leaving only the two at the ends of the row, and there have been magazine articles suggesting this but it is risky. In practice, both for strength and for satisfactory performance, the pivots need to be carefully engineered. In some designs the pivots are also moved further apart than the 2.2" spacing of the outermost two screws in the original, in others they are just strengthened and more carefully shaped.
As of 2006, the Fender two-point system is their standard and most popular design, but they also offer models with the original classic design, as well as a few models with factory-fitted licensed Bigsby units, others with licensed locking tremolo, and still others with floating bridge designs, see below.
Other Fender designs
Still another design was used on the student model Fender Bronco, released mid 1967. This was simply known as the Fender vibrato tailpiece, or sometimes the Fender steel vibrato. It was again designed by Leo Fender although he had sold the company by the time it appeared. Basically a synchronized tremolo simplified to reduce cost, it had little popularity, and as of 2005 was the only Leo Fender tremolo arm design not available on any current Fender model.
Locking tremolo
Floyd Rose
Around 1979, the locking tremolo was invented by Floyd D. Rose. The locking trem became highly popular among 1980s heavy metal guitarists due to its extremely wide range of variation and tuning stability.
The original Floyd Rose system was similar to the Fender synchronized tremolo, but with a number of extra mechanisms. The first to be added and most obvious is a locking plate on the head nut, tightened with an allen key to fix the strings at this point after tuning. This provides extra tuning stability, particularly during use of the tremolo arm, but as an unwanted side effect it also prevents further adjustment of the pitch using the machine heads.
Fine tuners have been provided as part of the bridge mechanism on all but the earliest units to allow minor retuning without unlocking the nut. Some guitarists claim that the fine tuners add an instability to tuning, and that the original non-fine-tuning Floyd Rose bridges are far superior in this respect. It is rumored, but has never been confirmed that Edward Van Halen had a part in the inclusion of the fine tuning unit. Still more stability was provided by the addition of a second lock on the bridge nut, making a double locking tremolo system which was still more complex to set up. The double locking design is sometimes called a two-point locking tremolo, inviting confusion with the Fender two-point synchronized tremolo which is a different concept and not a locking tremolo at all. Most locking tremolo systems currently in production are "floating" bridges, a concept first popularized by Steve Vai. Vai, wanting the ability to both lower and raise the pitch (by pulling on the bar) carved out a "lion's claw" cavity behind the bridge. Guitar manufacturers prefer this type of configuration because mounting the bridge in this way is both easier for builders (because the neck does not need to be mounted on an angle when mounted within the body of the guitar) and because it increases functionality. See Floyd Rose for details.
Floyd Rose or Floyd Rose licensed locking tremolo units are available factory fitted on many high and low end guitars, as well as complete aftermarket retrofit kits in many different designs. Fitting the correct kit to a guitar already fitted with a compatible tremolo may be quite straightforward; On others a high level of woodworking skill may be required, or it may not be possible at all.
Floyd Rose also produces complete guitars featuring their tremolo systems, most notably using the Speedloader system in which the head-end tuners are eliminated entirely, and all tuning is done from the bridge end of the strings. This is accomplished without sacrificing stability by employing strings that are produced to extremely fine length tolerances, essentially having two ferrule ends and no tail. As of 2006 the Speedloader system is the latest Floyd Rose design, but has yet to catch on to the degree Floyd Rose's original tremolo did.
Other locking trems
There have been several other "locking" type tremolo systems which have been developed, but none of these have obtained the popularity that the Floyd Rose or vintage Fender tremolo systems have achieved.
The most notable of these systems is the cam-operated Kahler Double locking tremolo, which is similar in practical use, but not in design, to the Floyd Rose.
Yet another system that emerged in the 1980s was the Steinberger TransTrem system (standing for Transposing Tremolo). The transtrem, like the Floyd Rose Speedloader, requires special strings that can only be used on the TransTrem unit. However, the TransTrem had the novel design that the bar could be pushed in to "transpose" the tuning of the entire unit to various other keys. The system saw limited use (mainly due to its exorbitant price and limited string availability), although Edward Van Halen has continued to experiment with the system. Notable Van Halen songs where the TransTrem can be heard include "Get Up" and "Summer Nights", from the album 5150.
Examples
Notable tracks
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Many rock bands of all types have used the tremolo for all sorts of effects, especially as a vibrato over chords. One guitarist especially known for his use of the bar is David Gilmour of the rock band Pink Floyd. This can be heard on countless songs. The last chord of the Rush song '2112' (Grand Finale) is a common reference.
One of the best examples of the effects produced by a tremolo bar is on the track 'Machine Gun' by Jimi Hendrix on the Band of Gypsys album. It can be heard and seen on the Band of Gypsys DVD where Hendrix uses the tremolo bar to produce distinctive sounds.
One of the most innovative uses of the tremolo bar is that of Kevin Shields, guitarist for My Bloody Valentine. The bar itself is held on very loosely with copious amounts of tape, and is held in his picking hand at all times, creating a slight detuning effect that is central to his distinctive guitar sound.
Another, more extreme use of the tremolo bar, is the effect created by grabbing and shaking the bar violently. This style of playing is often used in the lead guitar breaks of death and thrash metal bands such as Slayer and Cannibal Corpse. This is often combined with natural and artificial harmonics, to make a 'screaming' or 'squealing' sound. The Floyd rose or Kahler systems are synonymous with this playing style.
On live versions of the song "In The Evening" ( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WjuXmgFhdLo ) by the band Led Zeppelin, guitarist Jimmy Page used a Fender Strat with a trem to create an effect where he made the pitch change with every chord, producing a wah wah sort of sound.
Sound files
External links
General
- 1967 Fender Service Manual giving instructions for adjusting the then current Jaguar/Jazzmaster (floating), Stratocaster (synchronized), and Mustang (dynamic vibrato) tremolos, with diagrams of each.
Bigsby
- 1952 Bigsby twin neck, with Bigsby vibrato tailpiece clearly visible.
Synchronized tremolo
- Bridge routing patterns including several strat trem options, and showing the associated pivot screws, at Warmoth Guitars.
Floating tremolo
- Buildup of a 1963 Fender Jaguar showing the installation of the tremolo unit.
- Exploded view of a Fender Jazzmaster showing the tremolo unit components.
Dynamic Vibrato
- Mustang trem installation giving a routing template.
Vibrola and other Gibson trems
- Gibson Vibrola Tailpiece setup instructions for a side vibrato unit, with a diagram showing its operation.
- Jimi Hendrix's 1967 Gibson Flying V.
Locking tremolo
- Floyd Rose website.
- History of the Floyd Rose locking trem at the Kramer website.