The Floyd bridge is a very particular bridge that must be treated and set with attention and care, as a counterpart to this amount of work, however, you get an incredible leverage and sounds otherwise unreproducible with a "Normal" bridge
We asked the best in the Italian boot sector, Michael Migi, one of the best technicians we can have, the best possible guitars that belong to great guitarists of the local scene passed to the Emilian spa (this is how his laboratory is known).
Now let's see what Michele has to say for us.
A. Cangiano: How a bridge is structured Floyd Rose?
M. Migi: The Floyd Rose it's basically a Fender-like tremolo on steroids. The base plate is made of steel (we are talking about the Original Floyd Rose) and the action has only two pins, also made of steel.
The inertial lock is steel or brass, the strings are locked both on the saddles and at the nut.
Furthermore, the saddles themselves are fixed to the plate, and for each there is a fine tuner, for possible tweaks without having to unlock the strings at the nut.
AC What advantages and disadvantages can such a bridge bring?
MM: The main advantage is the extreme tuning stability after using the lever, which often the Fender type tremolo does not guarantee.
Main disadvantage: the complication as regards the adjustment of the trim and octaves, especially on suspended floyds, that is 90% of the systems present on the guitars on the market.
The Floyd set "flat", ie resting on the body, is instead drastically easier to adjust and maintain.
AC Can a user make small adjustments on such a bridge?
MM: Sure, but, as I said in the previous answer, if the bridge is suspended, the procedure can turn into a nightmare, sometimes even for those who are used to it.
This is why I always recommend locking the bridge in "pull", that is, placing it on the body, so that it has no way to "dive" backwards. I recommend it at least to those who do not have pull-up needs (lever pulled up).
With the bridge supported, at least the 90 % problems and headaches, as well as guaranteeing, in the event of a string breaking during a live, to be able to finish the piece with the remaining strings tuned.
On the suspension bridge, on the other hand, in addition to all the other problems, if a string breaks, all the others are forgotten, and one is forced to change the guitar during the piece.
AC How can a user understand that his Floyd Rose is well made or not?
MM: I don't think there is a method to estimate the quality of a Floyd Rose just by looking at it.
Sure, sound and tuning stability are two great clues, but they don't necessarily put the credit on the bridge itself.
There are cheap bridges that sound good all in all (or at least respond well on certain guitars) or have excellent tuning stability.
So the only one is to rely on the brand, but not on the price, since there are, inexplicably, low quality bridges that cost as, and sometimes more, than an original Floyd.
In any case, if the materials are of quality (see steel) it is difficult to go wrong.
AC What are the ways to understand that a Floyd Rose is starting to have problems?
MM: When the stability of the tuning after using the lever begins to yield, it is likely that something is happening between the blades and the grooves in which they swing.
This happens at least on the Floyd Licensed, which for patent reasons are not made of steel, but of more or less noble metal alloys, but always subject to wear.
At the moment, the only Floyd without this problem are the Original Floyd Rose and the Schaller Lockmeister.
The springs, if of decent quality, remain operational for years, sometimes decades.
In my opinion the best are the sounder, the Gotoh and Fender black. For the rest, they are mostly aesthetic problems due to oxidation, discoloration, etc.
AC What are your favorite Floyd and Floyd Rose bridges over the years?
MM: For tuning stability and overall durability, surely the best remain the Original Floyd Rose and the Schaller Lockmeister.
However, my favorites are the Ibanez Edge and LoPro Edge, more difficult to maintain and operate well, but so soft and precise that they look like an extension of your arm. Immediately below (in terms of purely personal preferences), the Gotoh GE1996T, with steel saddles, followed by the Ibanez EdgeZero (including the smaller EdgeZero II version), less soft than the Edge but on average more stable.
Although my absolute favorite is theIbanez SynchroniZR, although it's not exactly a Floyd, since it runs on ball bearings. Let's say that, for emotional reasons, if I had to take just one to a desert island, I would take the good old Ibanez Edge.
