The Austerity Thread

[Philly Q]

Here's a wacky - but definitely cheap! - idea I read about on a forum somewhere:

If your guitar has an ABR-1 style tune-o-matic bridge with threaded posts screwed directly into the wood, get some long stainless steel machine screws (#6-32 imperial, or M4 for metric) and make some longer posts which screw much deeper into the body.  It improves stability of course, but is also alleged to add sustain and brightness.  I haven't tried it yet (naturally!) but it's a very interesting idea - and totally reversible if you're not too ham-fisted.

[gwEm]

I've often thought some of those TOM posts didn't go in very far and were a bit wobbly. Nice idea Philly.

[Philly Q]

Yeah, the standard posts are only about an inch long and on an LP, with a steep-ish neck angle, they barely go through the maple top.  Whereas a longer post would go right through the maple and into the mahogany.

From what I read it's probably not worth making them too long, it gets increasingly hard to screw them in and they might snap.  The ideal seems to be about 1.5", with 0.5" of that above the surface, and the key is supposedly to screw the post in until it touches the bottom of the hole (although I doubt the holes are all drilled to a uniform depth!)
 

[Alex]

My thoughts:

I've fitted an ABM aluminium bridge to my ESP and it made a really amazing impact; there was definitely a wow effect there. It might be only 3-4% tonal difference, but with every single attack??? For me definitely worth the 70-something Euros.


My thoughts on your other points:

These three are the ones I think are the best cheap thrills:
* Different type of strings, or even just a new set
* Wiring pickup in-between position in/out of phase
* Coil tap / series / parallel wiring for humbucker

I had a nice coil tap on a guitar for a long time and like the in-between sounds a lot. Unfortunately, most Push-pull pots are really fiddly.

I also had a guitar where the middle switch position of the 3-way switch was out-of-phase. That was the most flexible way I felt to have such a feature and I enjoyed it a lot.

[Alex]

Yeah, the standard posts are only about an inch long and on an LP, with a steep-ish neck angle, they barely go through the maple top.  Whereas a longer post would go right through the maple and into the mahogany.

From what I read it's probably not worth making them too long, it gets increasingly hard to screw them in and they might snap.  The ideal seems to be about 1.5", with 0.5" of that above the surface, and the key is supposedly to screw the post in until it touches the bottom of the hole (although I doubt the holes are all drilled to a uniform depth!)

Have you every looked at the ABM bridges? Their website is a bit weak, but their stuff is really good. I have one of their stop tail pieces.

[Philly Q]

Yeah, ABM stuff is good.  I have a couple of their wraparound bridges for Juniors.

[HTH AMPS]

* Try different plectrums
* New guitar lead (make your own)
* Swap pickups around that you already have - they sound different in another guitar
* Wiring mods (lots of mileage to be had)

[JDC]

Hit the string harder... or softer... in different places

[Philly Q]

Hit the strings with the rounded corners of the pick, rather than the pointy bit.

[_tom_]

Still interested to try an aluminium tailpiece after reading about em here, what difference are they meant to make again?

[FELINEGUITARS]

the ali tailpiece has a really nice effect on the top end - less muted and more defined
I prefer to hav mine locked down via TonePros split studs too for a bit more resonance (in my experience)

[gwEm]

I've never really gone down this route, but people say different tunings can give a dose of inspiration.

Already got a capo, but a slide could be cool - and there seems to be quite a wide range available.

[gwEm]

also: removing/fitting pickup covers.

[Philly Q]

the ali tailpiece has a really nice effect on the top end - less muted and more defined
I prefer to hav mine locked down via TonePros split studs too for a bit more resonance (in my experience)

My enthusiasm for the TonePros studs is wavering a little bit - I sometimes wonder if it's better for the hardware to be held in place by string tension and for everything to "find its own resonance", as it were.

I've used them for ages and never noticed much, if any, difference soundwise (although it's nice that the tailpieces don't fall off).  But then I recently put some on a Junior and I'm pretty sure it seemed less resonant in that particular case, even with a new set of strings.  Hence my current doubts....

[bucketshred]

Set fire to your guitar