Thanks for this video. You’ve just saved me about £35-£40 as it’s obvious to me that the differences are negligible. Even if there is a difference, the slightest tweak on a tone knob would tune it out. Good video - very thorough.
Agreed mate, the difference through an amp is there, but it is quite small. As I've said in other comments, I do like the physical weight the brass block added to the instrument, so it stayed in it but other than that, eq tweaking is the cheapest option!
Oh man, don't get me started! Like acoustically, maybe, but I don't think an electrical signal cares about what sort of paint is used on the guitars body.
Thank you very much! Obvious differences! Brass is warmer a bit, steel has some pronounced highs. So actually, one can adjust the guitar timbre sufficiently. 👍
I have owned a Squier II Strat forever and it had a brass bridge on it when I got it... My Fender "partscaster" Strat has the thin zinc block which is exactly how it sounds!
I've got an early 70's Japanese Rokkoman-strat with the thickest tremblock I've ever seen; it's a 17-millimeter thick steel block! Normal ones measure approx 12mm. Unfortunately, it won't fit in the cavity of my newer strat-alikes.
THANK YOU IMMENSELY FOR THIS WELL MADE VIDEO. Sincerely, because reading about what something may or may not sound like is akin to describing what color someone is to a from birth blind person- Good luck 👍🏼 Thank you, much appreciated
I'm actually going to share this on my personal Facebook page and encourage other musicians to subscribe to your page and then follow you- that's how much of a good job you did on this video. You saved a lot of time for a lot of people. Do you have any idea what revenue that would have to be spent if each one of us would go buy a tungsten block, go buy a brass block, go buy all these different blocks and install them and listen... take it completely apart all over again and put it back together all over again and listen again... and then take it completely apart again piece by piece and painstakingly put it back together again for the third time and listen- and mind you, that's not just cockin the old head for a listen- NO. That's a whole other self-generating octopus arm nightmare aspect of this whole scenario is you get the video all this.. that means, you got to set up the tripod, get it all focused, make sure your frame it all, theres lighting, and then.. there's More!...now you got to edit all the audio, make sure it's right.. that morphsv into video editor/Directing.. which turns into Produce it.. it just keeps regenerating and turns into this Hydra- that's just one aspect of what it took to make this video. This Man is a Saint. Joe Listener and the horde of disease minded "Have- never- produced-anyfuckingthing" beraters/haters/idiots are completely clueless and don't see what you have to go through, the odyssey you went through so others wouldn't have to.. you have any idea how much time you've saved humanity and future generations!@?? You're a Saint way cool, thank you Time is really the only commodity that we don't really get back and I appreciate that you've helped humanity
Thanks for the kind words man, the reason I wanted to do this originally was because i wanted to see if there was anything to the whole 'tone block' thing rather than just reading peoples opinions. They make a difference but it is only a small amount and more acoustically, once you're playing with lots of gain it is none existent. I do like the brass myself purely because it adds a bit of weight to the guitar!
Man, great thanks for this short but extremely informative video! It makes me to complete my own desicion what i am searching this moment! Cool vid! Best wishes!
i think the zinc sounds the most flat or dull, the steel sounds colder and snappier, whereas the brass has an extended low end as well as more attack (similar to the steel, just rolled off zing). I have found changing blocks makes a difference to me. the note or response feels stronger and the clarity feels better too. i can't complain at all. The guitars are at least more satisfying and easier to play.
The feel is a big part of it tbh. I like the weight the brass adds to the instrument as a whole, and, in turn, i like the way the instrument feels with that extra weight, so I enjoy playing it more.
To be honest, I like the zinc. Sure it's slightly brittle compared to the other two but seems to sound a fair amount cleaner. The other two sound warmer, but In a mix, the bass guitar with any distortion would probably mask that extra slight low end you get anyway.
"Zinc" is just a misleading industry term for pot metal. It's tin with ground scrap metal added. It's soft and weak, but somewhat dense. The reason it may sound brittle is because it absorbs more lows and highs than the others, leaving the harsh 3-3.5kHz to stick out more. The Stainless Steel has the most high end extension because it's the hardest alloy; usually containing Chromium and/or Silicon (glass). It should have as much bass as the Brass, but it might be the way the stronger high-end compresses the guitar amp sound as well as the psychoacoustic effect on the brain. It sounds a bit "stiff" compared to the Brass. The Brass does seem to have the strongest bass, but it could just be less high-end. It has better highs than the Zinc, but just more of a rounded high-end than the Steel. I also like it best.
Appreciate the vid, I've seen WOOD tremolo blocks out there, too, and there were many exotics like ebony, zebrawood, padauk, purple heart, etc. 😄 Seemed a bit silly but at the same time would be fun to play around with.
There are differences between the the sound samples, and the zinc sustain block may sound more brittle, but the brittleness that's a concern is the brittleness of the material. The zinc sustain block that's currently in my 90's vintage Squier Strat looks very much like the one in the video and it is cracking where the thin section meets the base. Not good!
the all.sound similar but the brass seems to ne touch more warm sounding. Steel has a little more top end. Very suble differences either way. Cool video!
Thanks, mate, I agree. There's a small difference, but realistically, tiny eq tweaks will achieve the same thing. I've said it in other replies, but I like the brass for the weight it added to the guitar, just it weighing a bit more makes it feel nice in my hands lol.
I find it contradictory that most fender players claim a lightweight body has more resonance & better tone, then claim that the heavy trem block creates more resonance & better tone?? Maybe we should be asking a physicist, or an ENT Dr. after all if we're going to micromanage this correctly, no two sets of ears hear exactly the same either
The whole thing is completely subjective imo. When it comes to 'tone', one man's trash is another man's treasure. I've spent way too much time and money on things to 'enhance my tone', and at first, i thought my purchases made a huge difference, but then after a while, I realised that a lot of it is just marketing bullshit and I've been duped. Obvious things like changing a single coil to a humbucker, sure, but changing blocks or saddle material, etc. I personally don't see much point other than for function and aesthetic. I love the electric guitar and still enjoy reading about all the new pickups, gizmos, and gadgets, but I take everything with a tablespoon of salt now.
@@DaveViner Agreed except for the saddles part. In sound difference, little to none, in that vein I agree. "Life" of strings though, yes significant difference. As you stated though "tone". Most of the rest IS all marketing ploy!
Thanks for sharing the experiment! The differences in attack and EQ seem quite audible but very gentle. I wouldn't have a preference which is better though. If, say, Gotoh charges $30 extra for stainless (compared to zinc), I'd much rather spend that on a couple coffees downtown or whatever and have a great day. 😉
Thanks for watching and commenting! Yes, I would say it's an 'upgrade' if you can afford it and want to opposed to a 'life changing, must-have tone enhancer' .
@@DaveViner don't get me wrong, callaham are great blocks, well designed, especially the arm hole design and they're made very well but they aren't going to massively change your tone. They're just a very well designed block. Anyone who says it significantly changed their tone are suffering from confirmation bias.
Oh i agree 100%, they look like really well designed parts! I believe a guitar is a sum of it's parts and once it's all run through an amp, effects, speakers etc etc the differences in parts are negligible. It's part of the reason I bought a brass block and did my original video (brass vs zinc), I wanted to hear for myself if there was something to or not, completely unbiased and with nothing to gain except knowledge.
I recently replaced a stock Fender Strat vibrato with a Wilkinson. I can't say that I've noticed a difference between steel and zinc. But the construction is different anyway as the Wilkinson has block locking saddles and an independent whammy bar, both of which are supposed to transfer more energy form the strings into guitar. I guess that may compensate for not having a steel or brass block. It would be interesting to change the block to brass but Wilkinson is non standard so don't know where to get a compatible brass block from. :/ Ideas?
Thanks for the video, a good comparission. One question, I don't think you mentioned in the video, and I haven't seen in the comments (if I've missed the same question, I appologise); how did you have your bridge set for the tests please - locked hard to the body, touching the body, or floating?
in terms of sound engineering , the zinc gives a dynamic sound , so you are free in creating the sound desired , therefore if someone into experimentalism or finger picking and they want to have the free well to shape the sound , the zinc will do the job , the other two , the steel and brass are two kind of compression , despite they look fancy its not about quality but about type of sound achievement , so anyone not satisfied from the compression in pedals and need a mechanic compression , the steel and brass are the way to go.
The Steel should actually damp the least. "Zinc" alloy (pot metal) is made by adding zinc powder and scrape metals to tin. All the additives don't neccessaily melt to bond together at the low liquid tin temperature, but are just held together by the tin. It weighs less and is weaker and softer than Steel, thereby acting more as sprung mass to damp more string energy.
The steel and brass made a difference, even on the hi gain there is a difference. I'd love to hear some pinch harmonic, open string harmonics, even some sustained note comparison.
Thank you for making this video. I have a Question. I want to get more sustain when I do harmonics playing. so, Which do you recommend between Steel and Brass?
Think its more the cheap blocks after a few years degrade and break, a titanium, steel and brass will last longer than your self, if there is change (only slightly) its more in the sustain and harmonics I think, im of the school of Glenn Fricker if you want to change tone on an electric guitar then change your cab speakers....but thats just my opinion, if i do change the block on some of my guitars i use the brass and i tend to use brass saddles too
Steel has more pronounced highs, over other two. Brass is in the middle. I don't like the pot metal as much. So it's between the steel and brass for me. Not 100% sure which though.
I've got a brass Musiclily block coming for a PRS S2. The guitar is lightweight has that 'hollow' sound you describe. I think the extra mass will help a little bit. I'll probably put a fixed resistor across the vol pot too and lower the load on the pickups a smidge. Not that it is bad sounding at all, just not quite what I want from it rn
This is why I did my initial comparison video (see zinc vs. brass) as I wanted to hear with my own ears. Off the 'success' of that initial video, I was sent 2 blocks to demo for Musiclily who didn't give me a script to follow they just wanted me to make a video showing off the blocks and packaging and to do a demo. For the most part, the tonal changes are minimal at best and will be negligible in any kind of real-world situation. I like the extra weight the blocks provided to the instrument, which I why I personally like the brass. Do the trem blocks change the tone? In this users experience, no, not really. ✌️
@@chriswilson8062yes, i sgree! Its more of a feel thing (the added mass literally adding weight to the instrument). The tone shift is very minor. In a mix or live no one will notice!
I would say it's the EQ that makes the biggest difference. All the parts have some tiny effect on the sound, but you could just make little eq tweaks to get the same result. The thing I liked most about the block change was the weight difference the brass one made to the guitar. Regarding pickups, unless you're changing from a single coil to a humbucker or want Actives over passives, etc, just tweak the EQ. That's the best money saver.
Even with great headphones the difference is minor! Acoustically the Brass has more harmonic overtones, the steel is a bit brighter but not harsg and the zinc is a brighter but harsher.
People are downright dumb I've said in groups on fb that the block isn't most important thing jn the world and get laughed at, if you have a quality steel one already and simply replace the SADDLES THO Yes you'll find difference between let's say prs with steel vs brass saddles but the block? NOOOO
Both the steel and the brass gave it a more full sound clean and unplugged. With gain the difference wasn’t as apparent. My tone for Strats is mostly clean, edge of breakup, or a little overdrive. I can tell a difference when using steel or brass blocks then. If I really fry the signal with distortion or fuzz they are close to even. I like the way the full steel/brass blocks sound. The difference matters to me, but I doubt highly that anyone else notices. I know the audience neither knows nor cares.
