Easiest way to block a PRS trem?
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You will not hear any tonal differences really just blocking it.The easiest way and what i think you should do is to use a woodblock ala Clapton strat.I started out with the tremol-no that works great.Then i went crazy and screwed down the tremolo so its flush to the body(not something i recommend for people not used to tinker with guitars) and that made a little difference in tone,gave it a little more body and soul 
.When doing this i also changed height adjustment screws because saddles have to be set higher.Works great for me and oblique bends sounds in tune .
.When doing this i also changed height adjustment screws because saddles have to be set higher.Works great for me and oblique bends sounds in tune .
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justmund
Plank Spanker
It you could get a block of wood that was the perfect size and shape to fit in the cavity it might be a cool thing. If it's a slight interference fit and is shaped so it "holds" the trem block in place (between the block and the bottom side of the cavity, and also the sides and top edges of the block, like a "C") it would be easy to install/remove (no removing of springs etc). It would be really interesting to try and maximise (or minimise!) the contact between the trem and the block, and the block and the body, plus different kinds of woods, so see if there's any effect on tone/sustain.
If I wasn't leaving my work in 2 weeks I'd knock out something on the CNC router and try it.
Maybe patendcad can help you out with a CAD drawing, which can easily be routed out by CNC?
If I wasn't leaving my work in 2 weeks I'd knock out something on the CNC router and try it.
Maybe patendcad can help you out with a CAD drawing, which can easily be routed out by CNC?
DISTORT6
NJ Devil
Tape a pile of picks together and stuff 'em in.
Quick and easy.
If you like that, then go with a nice wood wedgie.
Quick and easy.
If you like that, then go with a nice wood wedgie.
Sage
Guitarchaeologist
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- May 23, 2012
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Easiest way would be to just screw it down like swede71 suggests. However, I don't recommend doing it that way because it changes string tension and messes with the ergonomics of the guitar. Sticking a wood block between the trem block and the rear of the cavity would probably make the most tonal difference.
If you just want to lock the tremolo and prefer to keep the tone as-is, I think the best way to do it is with a Tremol-no. I've got one installed on my Cu24 and I love it.
If you just want to lock the tremolo and prefer to keep the tone as-is, I think the best way to do it is with a Tremol-no. I've got one installed on my Cu24 and I love it.
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Just an experiment. i always wondered if the reason I prefer semi hollow with trems was the extra routing, the sound of the springs, or both. I like the pick idea. I think that will take the springs out of the picture, and if it sounds the same, I expect it is mainly the routing, although the trem block/tailpiece is obviously part of it as well.
Tag,if you like how it sounds as it is with springs,routing,block and saddles DONT take things out of the picture.If you like to experiment thats cool of course but keep in mind the springs are not easy to remove.To qoute Zappa...Shut up and play yer guitar! ...The ones ive heard all sounds great My reason for blocking was the oblique bends and Sage is right when he says it changes string tension and messes with the ergonomics if you do it my way.Hence the reason i put new height adjustments screws in.Contrary to what many says,blocking the trem with a woodblock will not make any tonal changes really.I see on your YT channel you also play strats.Having the tremolo flush with the body with 5 springs or blocked with a woodblock ala Clapton strat makes a difference in tone as many stratplayer knows.On the PRS guitar,even if you block the tremolo it will still only have contact with the pivotscrews and the springs.
...The ones ive heard all sounds great My reason for blocking was the oblique bends and Sage is right when he says it changes string tension and messes with the ergonomics if you do it my way.Hence the reason i put new height adjustments screws in.Contrary to what many says,blocking the trem with a woodblock will not make any tonal changes really.I see on your YT channel you also play strats.Having the tremolo flush with the body with 5 springs or blocked with a woodblock ala Clapton strat makes a difference in tone as many stratplayer knows.On the PRS guitar,even if you block the tremolo it will still only have contact with the pivotscrews and the springs.
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cjmwrx
Wheels
I was gonna suggest this, but knowing Tag's tendencies a bit, I figured there would ulterior motives. :biggrin: That's why I asked.
Ok, that's what I thought. I would think the pick thing would have less tonal affect than a block of wood. I mean we're talking about something touching the trem and the body around it(directly connecting to the strings)...you would think that the material would have an effect as well. Maybe that's being a little too anal and any difference would be negligible. Only one way to find out.
rschleicher
New Member
Another product that may be of interest is the Mag-Lok from Super-Vee tremelos. It's not really a trem lock like the Tremol-No, but more of a "trem resistance" device.
Basically it has a small, strong magnet that resists the trem moving forward (down-bend direction), but has no effect on up-bend movement. The idea is that the magnet adds enough firmness so that string bends (supposedly even double-stop bends) won't move the trem. But when you WANT to do a down-bend, you can easily overcome the magnet.
The mounting piece is designed so that it has no effect at all on up-bend movement of the trem. (Hard to describe in words, but if you google around you can find videos of how it works.)
It mounts in the rear trem cavity, somewhat similarly to how a Tremol-No mounts. The main difference is that there is no locking mechanism to lock or unlock, so the trem remains fully usable at all times. You can view it as a uni-directional stiffener....
Basically it has a small, strong magnet that resists the trem moving forward (down-bend direction), but has no effect on up-bend movement. The idea is that the magnet adds enough firmness so that string bends (supposedly even double-stop bends) won't move the trem. But when you WANT to do a down-bend, you can easily overcome the magnet.
The mounting piece is designed so that it has no effect at all on up-bend movement of the trem. (Hard to describe in words, but if you google around you can find videos of how it works.)
It mounts in the rear trem cavity, somewhat similarly to how a Tremol-No mounts. The main difference is that there is no locking mechanism to lock or unlock, so the trem remains fully usable at all times. You can view it as a uni-directional stiffener....
this is an interesting and super-low-cost way of blocking the trem, but only for those who's willing to take a drill to your axe though :/
1. go to your nearest household supplies store and get yourself a door latch (shortest one, i think it's 50mm or shorter)
2. you need to adjust your trem to balance on 2 springs only, so expect to swap the springs out for high tension springs if you're using heavy gauge strings.
3. (optional) the latch bar should have a rounded tip, so you need to sand it until it's relatively flat so that it makes a better contact with the trem block.
4. place the latch in the trem cavity with the latch bar in "locked" position. let the bar touch the trem block and push it towards the bar firmly and make sure it's tight.
5. mark the screw holes with sharpie. make sure you mark it accurately as even miniscule error will cause the latch to not function properly and probably screw up your guitar permanently.
6. use a (preferably) hand drill, though power drills are fine but you have to be extra careful when drilling. drill only deep enough for the latch's screws to fit, if you drill too deep, it'll come out through your pickup cavity. (learnt it the hard way) though it's inevitable if you're doing this on thin-bodied guitars.
7. after drilling, just screw the latch down nice and tight.
8. done!
the latch won't block the trem completely, as it only blocks bar-ups, you can still do divebombs with it. But it works like a tremol-no/d-tuna when you break strings or detune to lower tunings (drop tuning etc). the bridge stays put and you wont go out of tune. But make sure you set up your guitar properly and make sure the tremolo is not slanting forward or backward when you're doing this.
1. go to your nearest household supplies store and get yourself a door latch (shortest one, i think it's 50mm or shorter)
2. you need to adjust your trem to balance on 2 springs only, so expect to swap the springs out for high tension springs if you're using heavy gauge strings.
3. (optional) the latch bar should have a rounded tip, so you need to sand it until it's relatively flat so that it makes a better contact with the trem block.
4. place the latch in the trem cavity with the latch bar in "locked" position. let the bar touch the trem block and push it towards the bar firmly and make sure it's tight.
5. mark the screw holes with sharpie. make sure you mark it accurately as even miniscule error will cause the latch to not function properly and probably screw up your guitar permanently.
6. use a (preferably) hand drill, though power drills are fine but you have to be extra careful when drilling. drill only deep enough for the latch's screws to fit, if you drill too deep, it'll come out through your pickup cavity. (learnt it the hard way) though it's inevitable if you're doing this on thin-bodied guitars.
7. after drilling, just screw the latch down nice and tight.
8. done!
the latch won't block the trem completely, as it only blocks bar-ups, you can still do divebombs with it. But it works like a tremol-no/d-tuna when you break strings or detune to lower tunings (drop tuning etc). the bridge stays put and you wont go out of tune. But make sure you set up your guitar properly and make sure the tremolo is not slanting forward or backward when you're doing this.
I've done it a few times, with either a piece of maple or mahogany both behind/in front of the trem block to make it super solid. Works great & is easily removable. I did notice a slight increase in sustain in some instances.
Here's a pic of pieces of wood I currently use. The smaller block on the left is almost 2" long, placed under the springs & in front of the trem block (towards the neck). I put this piece in first. The larger block on the right is the main piece (about 2.5" long), that goes behind the trem block. This is mahogany, with a tiny shim of plywood glued on to make a perfect fit. Note the small, drilled hole in this piece, which is helpful to remove the block with a screwdriver etc if desired (easier to remove). I use the trem bar to wiggle a bit/make a perfectly tight fit. Hope this helps!
Here's a pic of pieces of wood I currently use. The smaller block on the left is almost 2" long, placed under the springs & in front of the trem block (towards the neck). I put this piece in first. The larger block on the right is the main piece (about 2.5" long), that goes behind the trem block. This is mahogany, with a tiny shim of plywood glued on to make a perfect fit. Note the small, drilled hole in this piece, which is helpful to remove the block with a screwdriver etc if desired (easier to remove). I use the trem bar to wiggle a bit/make a perfectly tight fit. Hope this helps!
John Beef
Opaque
+1 for Tremol-no. I've been running one for 6 years.
WeFixFlats
Respect The Clave
Here's what I just did yesterday on my CU22. Block size: 2 3/4"(L) X 1 1/2"(D) X 5/8"(W) from hard rock maple.(There's a cabinet making shop down the street from me and they were kind enough to cut a piece right then and there(brought the guitar so they could see what I wanted) To snug it up, turn claw screws counter-clockwise. Retune. Could I hear a difference? Yes. Is there any string sag when double stop bending? No.
Look up a recent thread here about the Wudtone bridge. I did as direct an A/B comparison as I could and posted sound clips. To my ear, their design gets you closer to a fixed-bridge tone but you still have the tremolo. Plus, you could actually set it up so it was a "down only" trem, and virtually locked in place when at rest with a lot of direct contact between the bridge and the body.
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