Whammy bar how does it work

On a Ibanez Edge which use a pop-in arm that is similar to many other designs the correct approach is to use either some plumbers tape, or put a bit of tissue in the bottom of the arm holder. I would never put my arm in potting soil. That would be ineffective and it would also fill my guitar with potting soil. Seriously, how did you come up with that? Strats have had tremolos since the 50s, but nice try. It was designed as an update of the original stratocaster trem.

The action of the strings, and their place in saddle is supposed to remain the same. That is why the bit that moves and what the strings are hook into are located behind and below the the bridge with the saddles fixed in place. The Kahler uses this same principle only modernized. All this incompetent display does is reinforce the notion that women are bad at guitar.

Your drawings are too crude to make much sense and would have been better supplemented with some actual photos. I looked it up. It sure as hell was not to use Locktite. It is the tailpiece that moves. The bridge and the point of intonation are set in place. On fulcrum style trems synchronized tremolo, two-point, Floyd Rose, et cetera the whole bridge does indeed move and the point of intonation is not fixed.

Your categorization makes no sense. This article is focused on the mainline models, which are directly relevant today. So, here is a brief history of the whammy bar, an idea that revolutionized the guitar world. You may have heard whammy bars referred to as vibrato bars and tremolo bars interchangeably.

Technically, tremolo is an oscillation of volume, and vibrato is an oscillation of the pitch itself. But more generally it is a blanket term to describe any kind of vibrato bar. At the time, it was not uncommon to see it featured on archtop and lap steel guitars.

These early iterations were touchy and could create severe tuning issues if they were used with any amount of passion. As legend would have it, Merle Travis — one of the most famous country guitarists in history — was tired of his Vibrola constantly forcing his guitar out of tune.

He asked his friend, luthier and tech Paul Bigsby to fix it. Bigsby ran with the idea and wound up inventing the first tried-and-true guitar vibrato system, one that is still used today - the Bigsby. This new design finally created a system that was useful and brought the concept of whammy bars into the mainstream. Fender would go on to perfect the early versions of whammy bars as we know them today.

Companies like Floyd Rose and Kahler were not far behind. These devices working a metal arm that is attached to the bridge or tailpiece of the guitar. Via this mechanism, the player is able to quickly vary the tension, and thus pitch, of the strings. This creates the pitch bend effect. This is because the strings on a floating bridge are balanced together. These types of tremolos were found mostly on old Jazzmasters, as well as Jaguars, Mustangs, and a few vintage Fender Bass VI guitars as well.

However, depending on what type of guitar you have, your tuning will be affected by heavy use of the whammy bar. The other downside of adding a whammy bar is the added abuse or tension on your strings will still cause them to stretch and weaken faster than a fixed bridge. Fitting a new bar on the guitar can be a little tricky and we highly recommend you seek out and have this kind of work done by a professional.

I say this because you may need to cut a new hole, with some precision in your guitar, in order to make room for the mechanism. A key issue in using the whammy bar occurs when strings become slack and therefore change position in the nut. When the whammy bar is returned to neutral, friction at the nut can prevent the strings from returning to their original, natural state, and this can be a large cause of tuning issues.

Start by replacing the nut, or if that is not an option, attach a rubber band from the whammy bar to the bottom strap button. For a more permanent option, superglue is always a choice. If you really want to learn how to use a whammy bar you should really just spend some time experimenting around with it first. Dropping the bar at different rates will give you altered sounds so you will have to practice and get a good feel for what sound you are looking for. Understanding the different varieties of whammy bars can help you to know how to make your guitar function in your own way.

As always, please feel free to let us know if you have questions or share your thoughts of how you use a whammy bar. Your email address will not be published. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Skip to content. Because of its lacking system, the pitch can be raised and lowered without much wok. This is the most loved style of the Whammy bar because of its design that manipulates the pitch up or down easier.

Its only main issue is that if one string bends or breaks because its floating bridge is balanced together. To conclude, with this device called Whammy Bar, many musicians have enjoyed playing their string instruments more. They have been given more opportunities to explore more in a different genre of music. There are lots of terms and things to understand and learn when playing the guitar, but in the end, you will find it essential.

Remember that when you do what you love to do, it is considered an opportunity and the best way to relax. Your email address will not be published. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Fri, Nov 12,