Should You Get A Guitar With A FLOYD ROSE Bridge??

When I was in the market to pick out a guitar for my 16th birthday, I knew for sure I wanted something with a Floyd Rose bridge. The one who fueled this desire was Synyster Gates of Avenged Sevenfold. Seeing all the tricks he did live during Critical Acclaim and watching him make that last note scream in the Afterlife solo really did it for me. Seeing that impressive metal contraption at the body of the guitar with slick matching hardware near the headstock became the gold standard to me. 

In my mind, no guitar was complete without a Floyd Rose. So, I was blessed to get a PRS SE Torero fully equipped with a Floyd Rose bridge. I sat down with it the day I got it and played it endlessly. I had so much fun with it… 

...until the fun stopped. 

Little did I know of the pains that come with a Floyd Rose that everyone must endure. In this review, I’m going to tell you about the bridge’s perks and issue some warnings about the challenges you'll face when dealing with a Floyd Rose style bridge.

Floyd Rose Overview

The Floyd Rose is a tremolo system with a floating bridge, which means you can press the whammy bar down or pull it back.  Springs built into a back panel inside the body of the guitar help maintain appropriate tension to ensure the bridge is level.  

More specifically, the Floyd Rose is a locking tremolo system.  Other tremolo systems tend to go out of tune when a whammy bar is used excessively.  However, with a locking tremolo system, like the Floyd Rose, you also get a locking nut where the fretboard meets the headstock of your guitar.  The locking nut requires an Allen wrench to adjust.  Because of this feature, you are able to lock the guitar's tuning in place by tightening the nut.   Furthermore, once the tremolo system is locked in place, additional micro-tuning can occur by adjusting the smaller tuners built into the bridge portion of a Floyd Rose.

Benefits Of Having A Floyd Rose Bridge

With all the complexity that comes with having this substantial piece of hardware on your guitar, you better believe there are at least some perks that come with it.  Due to the ability to lock the tuning in place, the Floyd Rose provides impeccable tuning stability.  This setup also allows you to add expression and vibrato to your playing by manipulating the whammy bar.  It also allows you to achieve all sorts of fun tricks and effects, such as dive-bombs and flutters.  Furthermore, the Floyd Rose can be used as a creative tool when writing songs, riffs, and solos as it can inspire ideas that one might not think of otherwise.  

The Downside

In my experience, the following are what I consider to be the biggest challenges I've faced when dealing with the Floyd Rose tremolo system:

Restringing: Changing your guitar strings can be a much more meticulous process compared to restringing a regular electric guitar. This task can take a lot longer to complete--especially if you are new to it.

Changing string gauges: A Floyd Rose bridge requires your guitar to have balanced tension to maintain a level floating bridge. If you decide you want to change the gauge of your strings, that would require opening up the back of your guitar, adjusting the spring tension, and hoping you do it right.

Changing tunings. The biggest issue I’ve faced with a Floyd Rose is changing tunings. I grew up listening to a lot of different types of rock and metal, and all the songs I wanted to learn were in different tunings. You run into the same type of problem as you do with changing string gauges because changing the tuning messes with the tension of the bridge.  Unless you are using some sort of pitch shift effect, changing tunings is not an easy task at all with this type of tremolo system.

Conclusion

Now that you know some of the challenges that come with a Floyd Rose, you won't be in for such rude awakenings if you decide you still want one. To me, despite the laborious maintenance, the Floyd Rose is the greatest bridge out there, and I have a ton of fun using it. It adds many exciting expression options to your playing. To me, the greatest aspect of this bridge is that it can be used as a creative tool.

If you're someone who can rely on the guitar without a whammy bar to get all the expression you want, you may want to pass on a Floyd Rose. You may not find the maintenance hassle to be worth your while.

However, if you're someone who can live with the challenges, you've already got a guitar without a whammy bar, and you've got the extra money to throw down, I don't think you'll regret getting a guitar with a Floyd Rose.

Watch the full discussion here: Should You Get A Guitar With A FLOYD ROSE Bridge??