The Jazz Guitar Chord Dictionary
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  1. #1

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    Hello all -

    Any one have experience with a wooden floating bridge on a semi-hollowbody? How is the response such as sustain, attack on those bridges compared to a fixed bridge? Do they ring/louder out more acoustically vs fixed bridge? I was looking into those PT Berger Metropolitan guitars which are a semi-holowbody archtop. Any benefits to a floating bridge like that on a semi hollowbody vs. semi-hollow body telecaster with a regular tele bridge?
    PT Custom Electric Guitars - DYN Metro VSB

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  3. #2

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    When I'm grabbing a guitar to play, a major advantage of semi-hollow is the fixed bridge which allows string bending. However, my Gretsch Tennessean has a floating bridge and I had even glued sandpaper under the feet of the bridge at one point. Now I have un-done that modification and just use another guitar instead.

    Floating bridge on a semi hollowbody.-gretsch-jpg

  4. #3

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    Gretsch guitars as well as Guild guitars use this method.Kind of like a Gibson ES-175 .Sometimes people pin them to the top. Even Kenny Burrell pins the bridges on his Super 400 CES solid top.
    Personally on a Laminate guitar I don't see the point of a floating bridge. A fixed bridge seems way more practical and probably a bit better sustain.But just an opinion on my part.

  5. #4

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    the very purpose of a center block semi hollow is to cut sustain and hence -dreaded feedback....the typical semi hollowbody has a bridge that is attached to the block...to remove that and replace with a floating archtop type bridge...will not really work..

    firstly the neck angle will pro/inhibit it's use...center blocked attached bridges require a different neck angle than floating bridges...also even if you reached an angled compromise..the average semi hollow is not meant to have a top that vibrates..they use laminates...so the floating bridge won't truly be reacting with the vibrations of a solid wood guitar top anyway

    ie. not worth the trouble

    cheers

  6. #5

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    Quote Originally Posted by neatomic
    the very purpose of a center block semi hollow is to cut sustain and hence -dreaded feedback....the typical semi hollowbody has a bridge that is attached to the block...to remove that and replace with a floating archtop type bridge...will not really work..

    firstly the neck angle will pro/inhibit it's use...center blocked attached bridges require a different neck angle than floating bridges...also even if you reached an angled compromise..the average semi hollow is not meant to have a top that vibrates..they use laminates...so the floating bridge won't truly be reacting with the vibrations of a solid wood guitar top anyway

    ie. not worth the trouble

    cheers
    Point taken. I am intrigued by the design of the PT Berger Metropolitan which incorporates the floating bridge, see here PT Custom Electric Guitars - DYN Metro VSB , though another design from PT Berber, Olde Stockdale PT Custom Electric Guitars - OLDE STOCKDALE
    has a fixed bridge with a string through body style set up.

  7. #6

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    A floating bridge modifies the attack and decay envelope of a note. It is structurally less rigid than brass bridge posts screwed into a block of wood. A floating bridge allows you to adjust the intonation and use a wooden saddle for different string sets. The semi-hollow will certainly sound different with a floating bridge but the thing is this: will you like it and can you make it work for you?

    Some folk take long brass posts and screw those deeper than the manufacturer intended into their solid-bodies and semi-hollows to "help the sustain, maaaaan". A floating bridge on a semi-hollow, especially with a wood saddle, is the opposite of that. You want a short sustain to approximate an archtop. But it won't have any acoustic resonance. But you may want that as Mr. Pat Martino did with his L5. Mr Pat Martino stuffed his L5 rock hard with wool. Well, his erstwhile student, Mr Jack Zucker, said that and I take it as true.

    Talk to the luthier whom you linked to and ask him what the resulting guitar sounds like. He may have a better idea than I do. Edit: I don't think PT Berger is a luthier. Seem like OEMed MiC, I guess, products. The website has all the sophistication of a fairground barker.

    The fixed brass bridge posts came about with the invention of the TOM and mainly because players didn't back then and don't want today to have to deal with the intonation of a floating bridge. I guess it was a lightbulb moment that brass rods could be screwed into solid bodies. Any tonal characteristics and benefits that accrued from that are strictly ancillary and serendipitous.
    Last edited by Jabberwocky; 07-20-2019 at 05:40 AM.

  8. #7

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    I have been thinking more in the manner of converting a thicker body with a trapeze to a small block mostly hollow OR just having it built that way.



    With a Humbucker in the Neck position - could have been even better, IMO.
    I like his Tones and Playing - in between a 335 and a 175 to my ears - what do you think ?


    The sustain block is too long in a 335 AND the body is too thin - I am recalling all of them lol.

    "What about Adam Rogers and Larry Carlton " ?
    Yeah they sound great on their 335's so ...forget about the Recall just saying it can go further toward 'Jazz ' or 175 .

    335's are already great - I am talking about a hybrid -

    Forum Member - Barry Greznick - Grez Guitars is doing some cool things for deeper resonance Semi Hollows too ...



    So the top and back vibrate less but no problem IF the extra air column lowers the resonant frequency and or mellows out the high end , adding warmth and complexity not present in a 335 .
    Last edited by Robertkoa; 07-20-2019 at 01:43 PM.

  9. #8

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    The PRS JA-15 is pretty much what you are looking for, Robert Koa.

  10. #9

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    Quote Originally Posted by Jabberwocky
    Edit: I don't think PT Berger is a luthier. Seem like OEMed MiC, I guess, products. The website has all the sophistication of a fairground barker.
    I think you're right. He uses the same fan tale piece as the Samick Greg Bennett guitar:

    https://www.amazon.ca/Samick-Bennett...ruments&sr=1-4

    Samick as we know is a huge producer of guitars for anyone with the money: "You want 100,000 guitars with the Jabberwocky name on them-no problem" (I think they are or were Korean guitars)

    I have never seen that tailpiece anywhere else but on these two guitars. He may be a good salesman, but I don't think he's a luthier.

    Doug

  11. #10

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    Quote Originally Posted by neatomic
    the very purpose of a center block semi hollow is to cut sustain and hence -dreaded feedback...
    nope the block will increase sustain

    .the typical semi hollowbody has a bridge that is attached to the block...to remove that and replace with a floating archtop type bridge...will not really work..
    firstly the neck angle will pro/inhibit it's use...center blocked attached bridges require a different neck angle than floating bridges...
    Nope .... both bridge types are height adjustable

    .also even if you reached an angled compromise..the average semi hollow is not meant to have a top that vibrates..
    Sorry i think that wrong too

  12. #11

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    Quote Originally Posted by jads57
    Gretsch guitars as well as Guild guitars use this method.Kind of like a Gibson ES-175 .Sometimes people pin them to the top. Even Kenny Burrell pins the bridges on his Super 400 CES solid top.
    Personally on a Laminate guitar I don't see the point of a floating bridge. A fixed bridge seems way more practical and probably a bit better sustain.But just an opinion on my part.
    Wow I have found a bone to pick with Pope of Jazz guitar Kenny Burrell......................Kenny...........pleas e do not pin your bridge on the Super 400 it does not make sense and there are easier ways to deal with it..................

  13. #12

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    Quote Originally Posted by pingu
    nope the block will increase sustain


    Nope .... both bridge types are height adjustable



    Sorry i think that wrong too
    1st nope-
    nope, the block will deaden the ability of the arch top to vibrate...thats true natural sustain...not the sustain of the pickups and bridge screwed into the centerblock...two different sustains! a microphonic pickup will cause feedback too, but thats another issue as well...

    2nd nope-
    not quite..you can lower an inbody bridge way down...a floating bridge has the base, which prevents lowering it beyond a certain point..most semis with block bridge will not be able to get the action low enough with a floating bridge

    3rd nope-

    so the average laminate top center block semi hollow rings as clearly as a true hollow solid spruce top?? NOPE

    back to op...if you have ever worked with guitars with centerblock bridges, you will realize that the neck angle does not make it easy for replacing with a floating bridge...not just in theory, but in practical terms

    cheers

    ps- even just changing out the tom on a center block bridge to a wooden saddle will cause neck angle woes..sometimes so that sanding down the wood saddle is needed
    Last edited by neatomic; 07-21-2019 at 05:16 PM.

  14. #13

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    Quote Originally Posted by neatomic
    1st nope-
    nope, the block will deaden the ability of the arch top to vibrate...thats true natural sustain...not the sustain of the pickups and bridge screwed into the centerblock...two different sustains! a microphonic pickup will cause feedback too, but thats another issue as well...

    2nd nope-
    not quite..you can lower an inbody bridge way down...a floating bridge has the base, which prevents lowering it beyond a certain point..most semis with block bridge will not be able to get the action low enough with a floating bridge

    3rd nope-

    so the average laminate top center block semi hollow rings as clearly as a true hollow solid spruce top?? NOPE

    back to op...if you have ever worked with guitars with centerblock bridges, you will realize that the neck angle does not make it easy for replacing with a floating bridge...not just in theory, but in practical terms

    cheers

    ps- even just changing out the tom on a center block bridge to a wooden saddle will cause neck angle woes..sometimes so that sanding down the wood saddle is needed
    thanks for the clarifications Neat
    I think we should just agree to differ ....
    hope that's cool with you !

  15. #14

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    p- it's cool...all about bridge building!


    cheers

  16. #15
    I could be wrong but I believe that the electronics are sometimes grounded to a fixed bridge which is obviously not possible with a floating bridge.

    I think my hollowbody with floating bridge has the ground to the tailpiece.

  17. #16

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    I've only done couple and it's been a while so I can't articulate in great detail, but I have put a floating bridge on a semi-hollow guitar. It's hard to judge sustain with slide playing but this guitar has an aluminum floating bridge. Bigsby top and a base I made. It was certainly a good sounding successful guitar. I do remember being surprised that it didn't change things as much as I had anticipated. Not night and day. Certainly there was a different flavor to the sound. Sorry I can't describe what that was at this point. I'll try to make a little video swapping out bridges when I get a chance.


  18. #17

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    I never noticed a lack of sustain on my Gretsches with their (sanded to the top curve) rosewood bridge bases. I never experienced a moving base while bending strings. But I always found screwed-down rods tone sucking. Even the Guild Aristocrat‘s got a floating bridge:
    The two cups look like they’re screwed into the body but they aren‘t. Floating bridge on a semi hollowbody.-853f8163-f61e-4956-bfb5-fbe75087fc8d-jpgHere you have two direct defined points to transmit the string vibration. Great sustain.

  19. #18

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    Quote Originally Posted by DisgracefulR
    I could be wrong but I believe that the electronics are sometimes grounded to a fixed bridge which is obviously not possible with a floating bridge.

    I think my hollowbody with floating bridge has the ground to the tailpiece.

  20. #19

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    Quote Originally Posted by citizenk74
    ...absolutely true.