Guitar bridges

[syr2012]

I'm considering assembling a Warmoth guitar (if I ever get the money and time) and loading it with Nailbombs. The guitar body would be string-through, and probably swamp ash. What kind of bridge should I look for if I want to thicken the sound a bit?

[James C]

I think that schaller have a new bridge out which is meant to be the dogs b*ll*cks, check out their website, a luthier friend of mine is going to be fitting them to his first line of production guitars.

[dheim]

I think that schaller have a new bridge out which is meant to be the dogs b*ll*cks, check out their website, a luthier friend of mine is going to be fitting them to his first line of production guitars.

in a couple of days i'll let you know how it's like...

[Philly Q]

I'm not convinced the Hannes bridge (if that's the one) is necessarily going to "thicken" the sound any more than a Strat hardtail or a tune-o-matic with strings-through, but it does look a nice piece of kit.

[Copperhead]

I shopped around a bit for a hardtail bridge for my USACG hardtail project, and came up with this, Yajima String Works.... Very heavy brass and chrome a mile deep, SS saddle pieces. I'll let you know how it sounds, but the quality appears to be excellent. I have it in hand but the guitar is not built yet.

http://www.yajimastringworks.com/02hardtail.asp

[Twinfan]

If you want a thicker sound, go for thicker sounding woods - mahogany etc.  Not swamp ash and maple!

The bridge alone will make little difference.

[James C]

+1 to the mahogany suggestion

[JDC]

since there are so many different bridges out there that need different neck angles, does warmoth sort out the neck angle for you or do you have to do it yourself?

personally I like no angle so the strings are parallel to the body, easier to shred, for me anyway

[WezV]

i would go for one warmoth offer just because you know its going to fit well

[mikey5]

I have heard that roman rist or something like that makes a bridge that is supposed to increace sustain. There is a post about that around here somewhere. I dont know how it actually worked out for the dude who purchased the item but the guy said it was supposed to increase sustain by 3 seconds or something like that.

[Philly Q]

since there are so many different bridges out there that need different neck angles, does warmoth sort out the neck angle for you or do you have to do it yourself?

personally I like no angle so the strings are parallel to the body, easier to shred, for me anyway

The Warmoth standard is no angle, but they do angled pockets as well - mainly for LP bodies but you could get it on other shapes if you asked.

[syr2012]

If you want a thicker sound, go for thicker sounding woods - mahogany etc.  Not swamp ash and maple!

The bridge alone will make little difference.

I'm most likely working with a tele body, either that or an HH strat, and after all the alder in my life, I want to try a slight contrast, hence the swamp ash. Plus, I'm saving mahogany for another project in the future, one involving p-90s (I'm especially anxious to give that one a try, but it'll definitely cost way more than this one, plus the wiring will be an absolute nightmare).

I know that the bridge isn't as critical as the actual woods chosen, but they do have an effect on the sound. I read in a post somewhere that floyds thicken the sound of pickups, but given that it's a huge hunk of steel, it's to be expected. Since the guitar will be hardtail, I also know that the bridge won't affect the sound as much (since there's less bridge than with a trem), but every little bit counts!

[Keven]

huh? i've always read that floyds thin out the tone because there's not much string contact with wood...

[Roobubba]

I have heard that roman rist or something like that makes a bridge that is supposed to increace sustain. There is a post about that around here somewhere. I dont know how it actually worked out for the dude who purchased the item but the guy said it was supposed to increase sustain by 3 seconds or something like that.

I would be exceedingly wary of anyone telling me some quantified value for an increase in sustain.
How do they know how it will be in any specific guitar? You might have a total plank that will kill sustain dead, and no bridge will change that!!
Then again, I am skeptical that anything will increase the sustain on my axe... It already sustains for days!! :)

Roo