NDD (New D-Tuna Day)

[sam_in_cali]

Just installed a d-tuna on my Charvel and figured I'd do a quick demo/review (apologies in advance for filming vertical...my wife was helping and I didn't want to make her do a second take!). Basically, if you have a Floyd Rose and want to change to drop D tunings, you know it can be tricky. This little device makes changing tunings on the fly pretty simple. Also, came up with a nifty way to stabilize the bridge by using some rubber bumbers to soften the impact of the sustain block against the body...way cheaper and easier to use than some other methods out there!

 

[Rastus]

Great video Sam !!!

Very well thought-out, explained, & awesome playing demonstration too-boot !!!

Showing the tuner display will help convince folks that it's a good thing IMO.

Cheers,

Rastus

 

[Guitarheel]

Great video brother. Thanks for the info.

 

[Believer7713]

I have the D-Tuna on two of my guitars. The first is Elvis, my sparkly silver strat with the MIJ neck. This one is a top mount like it was intended for.

The second one is on mt Jackson Rhoads with a fully floating Floyd and with the use of a Hipshot Tremsrtter.

The bridge stays stable by cranking the tension down on the T/S spring. I had to route the body to fit the D-Tuna so I could pull up.

 

[Raiders757]

Thanks for making and sharing the video with us. Might have to check into getting one.

 

[Believer7713]

@sam_in_cali not trying to hijack your thread but if you don't mind, I'll do a demo of the floating Floyd with the D-Tuna and tremsrtter working together.

 

[sam_in_cali]

@sam_in_cali not trying to hijack your thread but if you don't mind, I'll do a demo of the floating Floyd with the D-Tuna and tremsrtter working together.

Go for it, I’d actually like to see that!

 

[Believer7713]

Go for it, I’d actually like to see that!

No problem, thank you for allowing it. I'll try to get it done by the end of the weekend.

 

[strat_strummer]

Interesting video. Thanks for sharing Sam....

 

[Believer7713]

@Sam-in-cali here's how I have mine set up in my Jackson the way you were interested in seeing

 

[sam_in_cali]

@Believer7713 , thanks for taking the time to post that! I just noticed your trem claw too to work around the tremsetter device...crazy! I've never seen a floating bridge set up like yours. I've also never tried the tremsetter method but am intrigued. I rarely, if ever, pull/pitch up on on my bar but knowing the option is not there anymore is messing with my mind already and having me 2nd guess the d-tuna again, ha! Curious, are you able to flutter with the tremsetter?

 

[Believer7713]

@Believer7713 , thanks for taking the time to post that! I just noticed your trem claw too to work around the tremsetter device...crazy! I've never seen a floating bridge set up like yours. I've also never tried the tremsetter method but am intrigued. I rarely, if ever, pull/pitch up on on my bar but knowing the option is not there anymore is messing with my mind already and having me 2nd guess the d-tuna again, ha! Curious, are you able to flutter with the tremsetter?

Fluttering really isn't an option when it's as tight as that one is. You can set it looser in other applications without the Tremsetter and get more effects from your bridge. The whole idea behind Hipshot's Tremsetter is to always bring the bridge back to "zero center" every time. I like mine to be set a little on the heavier side because I tend to be a little heavy handed when I palm mute or I rest my hand directly on the bridge (technique issue, I know) and end up fluttering when I don't want to. I found a couple extra turns on the spring will allow you to be a little more sloppy but you can still flutter with them but will need to get a feel for it.

 

[Believer7713]

@Believer7713 , thanks for taking the time to post that! I just noticed your trem claw too to work around the tremsetter device...crazy! I've never seen a floating bridge set up like yours. I've also never tried the tremsetter method but am intrigued. I rarely, if ever, pull/pitch up on on my bar but knowing the option is not there anymore is messing with my mind already and having me 2nd guess the d-tuna again, ha! Curious, are you able to flutter with the tremsetter?

Did you also notice the block on the trem that's custom made out of copper instead of brass? For the longest I always kept those hidden then one day earlier this year a friend of mine caught a glimpse inside of Olic and then it just didn't seem that much fun to keep it to myself. I know it's just a piece of metal but I haven't ever seen another one like them.

 

[sam_in_cali]

Did you also notice the block on the trem that's custom made out of copper instead of brass? For the longest I always kept those hidden then one day earlier this year a friend of mine caught a glimpse inside of Olic and then it just didn't seem that much fun to keep it to myself. I know it's just a piece of metal but I haven't ever seen another one like them.

Now that you point it out I can see it but my eyes went straight to the dual/mini trem claws! Do you notice any difference with the copper block vs the stock block? I figured it was about mass more than material but who knows..FU-tone sells those along with a few other types of metals but they are too pricey for me to be curious enough to want to check them out.

 

[Believer7713]

Now that you point it out I can see it but my eyes went straight to the dual/mini trem claws! Do you notice any difference with the copper block vs the stock block? I figured it was about mass more than material but who knows..FU-tone sells those along with a few other types of metals but they are too pricey for me to be curious enough to want to check them out.

I noticed a little difference. If I'm not mistaking, the stock blocks on the OFR and the JT-6 (the Charvel and Jackson bridge from the 80s) both had bread blocks but were thinner. I tried a big brass block and had a friend that had a steel block and there was a little difference where the brass was warmer and the steel was brighter. We even had the same pickups in our guitars at the time. Then I came across this big chunk of copper that my dad had in his basement and he left me cut a few blocks out of it. He was an electrician in a steel foundry and when they changed out wiring and such they would toss it so he would collect it and recycle. Those blocks became from one of the bus bars that powered the 480 volt three phase cranes that I drove when I worked there too.
The difference between copper and brass is pretty much negligible though. Maybe Bill Finnigan could hear a difference since he can, supposedly, hear the difference between 1n34 and 1n34a clipping diodes. [emoji23]

 

[Believer7713]

I also had to mount the springs differently in Olic because the screws would have gone into the pickup cavity. So different it was.