Question JP6 Tremolo Use....

[OverKill]

Hey,Guys
At years end I'm gonna get the John Petrucci 6 Electric Guitar with Piezo Bridge .
My question is how well does the tremolo stay in tune?
I currently use the Floyds,and am used to using it pretty heavily.
In your opinion,how would you rate them on usage before they start to get knocked out of tune. I mean,like,are they made to use in moderation or can you do Van Halen kind of use.
Also,
Why Musiciansfriend.com and Guitarcenter.com only gonna offer one color,and not have them till 11/14/2008 .
Is new to these places or are a newer model?

Thanks in advance....

 

[eegor]

First off, I would recommend you don't buy from MF or GC.

Secondly, the tremolo stays in tune very well. I was a bit skeptic at first, but once I actually got one to play with, it wouldn't go out of tune no matter how much I tried. I'm certain that if I can avoid Floyd Rose in the future, I will.

 

[Headstock]

First off, I would recommend you don't buy from MF or GC.

I'd disagree with that. They often run financing and discount offers in tandem, this in addition to a very buyer friendly return program can make them a great place to look.

 

[TNT]

The "trem" stays in tune as well or better than any similar trem on the mkt. If it didn't JP wouldn't use it!!

As far as purchasing from MF or GC, they are two of my personal favorites - as mentioned above they are customer friendly and great prices.

Also, they typically offer just a couple colors, I believe it is to streamline availability and cost.

 

[eegor]

Ok, maybe I should rephrase:

I personally wouldn't order highly expensive items from them. I have purchase many things from them before and I love their service, however guitars like this one have extremely limited options from them and I just don't trust them with handling precious cargo such as this. I'd go through one of the dealers here, such as Pete Dubaldo, Bass Central, etc.

 

[MN246]

I have had my JP for about a year now and I love the trem. Specifically, I love the accuracy going up or down and if feels like a dream with respect to comfort while playing. I, like John Petrucci and Paul Gilbert, use the trem sparingly. In fact, Gilbert's current Ibanez signature model is a hard tail.

If I were doing a lot of Van Halen, Vai, or Satriani covers, I'd still opt for a Floyd Rose. Locking the trem is the only way that any guitar is going to stay perfectly in tune when you dive that much. Think of it this way, all three of those players have or have had their own signature models and all of them had Floyd Rose trems.

 

[Brand X]

OK - I hope this helps.....I had a JP6 and I totally regret getting rid of it as it was without doubt the most comfortable guitar I've ever owned......

However - I am a semi-pro/pro player (depending on the time of year!) and being retentive to the point of obsession - our sets are extremely fast moving with pretty much something going on at all times.......

After being a Floyd player since forever (although certainly not like Vai in terms of whammy abuse....more of a phrasing effect with occasional divebombs etc), I have to say that the tuning stability became a real concern to me as when playing live I have next to no time to ensure tuning is in etc.......I guess for Mr Petrucci it's different as he has a rack of them and a tech who constantly tunes them.....

Don't get me wrong - it is good at staying in tune.....but like all single locking trems - it needs constant checking. I got to the point whereas if I couldn't check I would almost be convincing myself that it wasn't in tune - even if it was......coupled with the point that it's floating so takes a little while longer to tune exactly.........

I really miss my Petrucci and I will be getting one as soon as my wallet says it's OK - however I will probably keep for pleasure rather than business with the current stuff I'm involved in as I just don't get the opportunity to check and tune after each song.........

 

[MusicManJP6]

mine stays in tune no matter what. it's one of the nicest bridges i've ever played. i despise the bulky, ugly, pain to restring Floyd Rose on my Peavey now.

 

[Brand X]

.....I know what you mean - the actual feel of the trem on a JP is awesome, I really liked not having a huge cast of steel lodged there and for vibrato and subtle effects it was really nice.........and I'm certain that the fact that as I've used a Floyd for so long mean that the bands I'm in can really fly from song to song without ever worrying about tuning.......

....I couldn't rely on the JP to deliver that........one of my mates said 'Why don't you just install a Floyd?' but I can't bastardise guitars like that!!

I'll deffo get another though - I really miss the comfort of the JP..........

 

[magnoliafan]

Grrrrrr....

I have played Floyds for 20 years and was satisfied with their performance. After hearing people rave about the JP trem, I got a JP-6 fully loaded. And while it is a supremely crafter guitar, The trem does not stay in tune at all. Now, as a noob, I may not have it set up right. Tonight when I get home I am going to make sure the strings are in the locking tuners like the web site said, check the string channels on the nut, and add some graphite to the nut. Hopefully that will help, because what I think is happening is that the strings are binding up in the nut and getting stuck. This has even happened when bending the B string, so I'm pretty sure that's what the problem is. However, I think I would have been much happier with a Floyd on this guitar. I was really torn between a JP-6 and a Luke, and I went with the JP-6 because I hated the trem on the Luke (wish I could find a used one with a Floyd from back when!). This is the last time I buy a guitar with a trem that is not a Floyd.

 

[Spudmurphy]

^
Hi magnoliafan.
Shame you seem to be having some issues there.

I wish I could find a video clip which someone once posted showing how the EB stays in tune - I'll do some digging about and see if I can find it.

Make sure that you have no wraps around the string tuner post - because you don't need them with the locking tuners (but I'm sure you knew that). I use a bit of pencil "dust" in the nut and don't have any issues with the trem on my AL which I know is different.

I haven't seen any posts in the few years I've been hanging about here saying that the trem is a problem.

Let us know how you get on - or maybe contact the EB customer service who I'm sure will talk you throgh the "do's" and "dont's".
Spud

 

[Spudmurphy]

Here is the the clip
demo.flv - Video - Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting

Note - you might need to have an FLV player to see the vid.

PS Norrin - where are ya????

 

[morsecode]

On one of my JP's, the trem has been "less stable" since I had adjusted it a month ago to it tune down a half step. I don't think I have the trem floating correctly. I'm going to have to take that into the local shop and get it set up properly.

The trems on my three other JP's are exceptionally stable. I haven't tinkered with either of these. I can yank on the bar all day long, showing no mercy, and they never go out of tune.

 

[Random Hero]

Best trem I've ever used. Feels really responsive and solid, stays in tune beautifully and is very comfortable.

 

[glockaxis]

I like the JP trem and the Luke II trem, but my they don't compare to my newly acquired Luke I w/ the floyd rose floating system. I so wish they still made them like that.

 

[D.K.]

Welcome aboard, Overkill!

I can only agree with the guys here - it's the best trem I've ever had on a guitar (let's put it the other way - it was the best trem guitar I've ever had). The petrucci tremolo is extremely easy and comfortable to use, it has a wide enough range to do everything You want and You have no PITA every time when changing the strings. This trem really does it even on Vai's songs, and that says a lot. Mind You, none of my Petruccis was bought new, and still they were all great.

I see the Petrucci trem as a perfect weapon for all the trem effects there are, but if you primarily want to do wide, deep dive bombs, and do them pretty often, You need to pay more attention to the nut (nut sauce or something alike always comes in handy) and the string flow in the bridge - You don't need unnecessary tention there.

I always remember that many great trem players (Blackmore, Gilmour, Beck ...) have used just the standard vintage trem - and it has always sounded killer and very rarely out of tune. On the other hand, I've heard Steve Vai beeing pretty flat in the end of one song or the other live.

BTW, if You've seen a "Live in Astoria" DVD of Vai's, there is an interview with his then-tech Thomas Nordegg where he says he wishes Steve had no Floyd Rose, because all the things he does can be done without a locking nut.

Pet is the way to go.

 

[73h Nils]

My JP6 NEVER goes out of tune, even after practicing divebombs and Mattias Eklundh-type stuff for hours.

My JP7 seems to have slight tuning issues, but I think they're mainly due to one or two of the locking tuners requiring a tightening somewhere. I don't really use the trem on the JP7, anyway.

 

[Warg Master]

Petrucci uses it plenty.

My JP stays in tune just fine after loads of trem abuse. If the floyd were never a locking trem, this is what it would be. It's an awesome trem!