Has anyone tried one of these on a PRS or other makers? What's your opinion? http://www.musiciansfriend.com/accessories/fender-fatfinger-guitar-sustain-enhancer Just curious...
These work. I know a couple of guys who used homemade versions of the same thing to varying success. The premise is you are adding mass to the headstock (density), in return this increases the sustain. D'Angelico put a brass rod with a brass acorn nut through many of his head stocks for this same purpose. These were hollow bodys of course so the results are most likely more dramatic than a solid body. Adding mass to the headstock will increase sustain. How much is another story.
It will also move the dead spots around if you have any. That may end up as a good thing or a bad thing depending on where they move to.
I used one for a while, long ago, when I played out with a Parker Fly Deluxe. I do not recall it having any dead spots, but thought the sound was a bit thin. The FFF made it sound better, to my ear. I should dig it out and try it on a guitar I am actually using these days. I suppose I have not done so because I do not feel they are lacking. But I did suggest it to our bass player who had a few funky notes on his neck. He says it is an improvement.
Don't tell Paul you're trying it..! He's been telling us for years he's been trying to remove mass from the headstock. I'm not saying it couldn't work, but the irony here should be savored properly...
What's odd to me is that 'usually' little gadgets like these have 'before' and 'after' videos posted somewhere using 'other maker' guitars. My search got no results. One comment I did get on another forum stated that they found a slight difference 'acoustically'. Yeah, these gadgets may just be a gimmick.
Guitar players live in a world of VIRTUAL SOUND. That's the sound they HEAR in their HEAD. They spend their musical lives chasing that sound by purchasing every musical TOY known to man. In the end, they never capture it ...If they are really LUCKY, they might HARNESS it for a SHORT time. Before it inevitably slips away again.
Looks like a worthless gadget to me, sustain in overdrive can be controlled by gain and proximity, a lot of sustain in clean?.........is it really needed? Why mess around trying to get your notes to hold for a long time when chops, tone, & songwriting is so much more important.
I remember Billy Sheehan said once that he'd clamp a couple sets of vice grip pliers to the headstock of his bass. That would look cool on stage.... maybe.
These have been on the market for a long time, many years, in one form or another. I don't feel the need for more sustain with my guitars; they all seem about right to me as-is, but whatever floats one's boat sonically and works for them is fine by me.
