A few months back I got an Eggle Berlin Pro - one with the Wilkinson VS100 (I think) locking bridge.
Something I've just noticed is that when I play a particular note - C natural / 522 Hz - on any of the top position on any of the 1st three strings fretboard (1st string 8th fret / 2nd string 13th fret etc) I get a lovely ranging resonance from the guitar. Happens to a much lesser degree on the 4th string/same note - but you can hear it trying.
Problem is when I damp the vibration on the stings, it keep ringing. Turns out the whole bridge is resonating just at this particular frequency.
I kind of like it, but realise it's not an ideal situation.
Question I suppose is - is it normal for this particular model of guitar, or is there something I should/need to do in terms of setup or tremolo management to kill the resonance ?
Comments
Even without that it's just a weirdly thin-sounding and slightly buzzy bridge, in my opinion - I know a lot of people like them though. I eventually gave up on mine and the one belonging to the friend whose rotary switch you now have . I replaced his one with a Fender USA Standard bridge, which fits on the same posts.
"Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski
"Only two things are infinite - the universe, and human stupidity. And I'm not sure about the universe." - Albert Einstein
I actually like the bridge so I've set mine up to float and replaced the arms with Floyd Rose arms with the screw collar. The barrel that the arm screws into will lock to the top plate with a nylon washer to narrow the diameter. It means you don't get the fixed bridge effect when you release the arm but you lose all the faff and the arm stays where you put it.
By way of experimentation - I put the tremolo bar back in to see what happens. Interestingly when it hangs down in the so called 'locked' position, the bridge resonates, but when I raise it up to horizontal, the resonance is damped, and things perform as you would expect.
The resonance isn't a buzz, but a clear ringing note that is indistinguishable from that coming from the string alone. A not unpleasant sound at all, but it only happens with that particular note. When you palm-mute the string, the note still rings and sustains - you have to put your hand on the bridge to mute it. To be honest if I got that level of sustain everywhere else (without having to palm mute the bridge constantly - I'd be chuffed
Thanks for the input. Should have talked to you before I wrote off to Wilkinson spares and bought the new arm and replacement bits
No - I just checked, with the trim arm in and down in the 'locked position', the bridge is actually locked, but the resonance continues, same as with the term floating/no arm inserted.
The only time it doesn't resonate is when I have the term arm in, and rotate up to the playing position.
Gut feel is when the arm is in the supposedly locked position it is stopping the tremolo moving enough to change the string tension - but is leaving enough play somewhere in the system for the resonance to occur. That play possibly disappearing when the arm is brought up to the full working position.
Could well be the case that I haven't assembled/bolted up the arm and assorted gubbins in below it properly perhaps with my innate cack-handedness trying to set it up.
Means I'll have to go back (once more..) and wreck my head again trying to decode again what that VS100 setup sheet is trying to tell me
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