Replacing a block on a strat make a difference sonically?

swiller · June 2023

Think squire (thin) block to musically full brass thick block.
Lots of web answers seem to end up with unfinished reports on the sonic difference, or whatever floats your boat, every guitar will react differently.
But the bigger blocks in some of my owned strats always have a thicker, meatier characteristic to the sound. SImply not experienced enough to know whether thats the missing link, or whether its worth the hassle.
Want to thicken up a tinny classic vibe 60s (tried with various good quality pups, new pots etc) and at a dead end on it apart from replacing the thin weedy block.
TIA
S

Funkfingers · June 2023

The bane of many budget S Type guitars is the Sung-il six-screw fulcrum vibrato bridge with its skinny, tapered zinc sustain block.

First thing to establish is the block height and guitar body thickness. Second thing is where all the drilled holes lie relative to the baseplate.

In your position, I would simply measure the string and pivot screw spacings, then, order the appropriate variant of the Wilkinson WVS with the cold-rolled steel sustain block.

swiller · June 2023

Cheers FF. I have done the measurements and bought a an appropriate correct block, musically brass. I guess what im asking is whether its worth just getting a refund on it sealed, or will it actually make a difference to the sound. Its tricky to find any concrete conclusions.

Funkfingers · June 2023

If you can see the top edge of the new brass block through its packaging, measure the spacing of the pivot screw holes, the stringing holes and the block fastening screw holes.

More critically, measure the position of the vibrato arm hole relative to the rest of the baseplate. Alignment of this hole is the aspect most likely to scupper your plans.

ICBM · June 2023

It will make a very noticeable difference to the sound. Alloy, brass and steel all sound different - as big a difference as changing pickups. It’s to do with both the mass and the hardness of the block material, because it’s directly in the vibration path that affects the resonance of the guitar. Not a small difference that you will struggle to decide if it really changed anything.

FelineGuitars · June 2023

I have found that the change of block (i usually favour steel) makes THE BIGGEST difference to a strat.

Once the block is changedyou can fully assess what if anything else you want to change, as it is such a gamechanger that you have to rethink everything once the block is changed .

I write about it here in one of my recent write-ups for one of the guys on here - work was done a good while back but found the time to detail it recently

https://felineguitars.com/pages/spotlight-spending-money-and-upgrading-a-guitar-youd-never-sell

stickyfiddle · June 2023

Yep definitely makes a difference. My Squier went through a bunch of cheapie bridges of varying quality and weight. When I finally fitted a Callaham it was a night/day improvement

theatreanchor · June 2023

Yep. Massive.

swiller · June 2023

cheers v much gents. Ill proceed to slap the muvva in soon.
Appreciated and some quality info here.
S

CasperCaster · June 2023

I'd say changing the block definitely improves the sound, and I'm inclined to ensure any new Strat I have has a decent block installed before making other changes. It's not just tone either, it's also a dynamics thing too, like the note is delivered with more authority. I have had some brass blocks from Kev Hurley, but generally prefer cold rolled steel.

Svartmetall · June 2023

Interesting...to those of you who've used replacement blocks (I'm looking at trying one on a MiM-based sort-of-SRV-tribute project I'm working on ATM, and it has one of the half-width skinny blocks), what is the tonal difference between steel and brass that you've noticed?

Also, are there any particular ones you'd recommend or - figuring that solid brass is, after all, solid brass no matter who - are the cheap Musiclily types decent enough? I'm sure the Callahan stuff is excellent but I can't stretch to that kind of mega-cash for a bridge block...

roberty · June 2023

I've had good mileage out of a Musiclily block, they are reasonably priced. My a PRS S2 Standard was way too light, a brass block made the guitar much more enjoyable for me, it seems to have more authority

I have a steel Musiclily block ready to install in a Wilkinson 6 point but I probably won't have time to do that for a little while

I got a partscaster off the forum with a pressed steel Callaghan trem and proper steel block, and that thing sings like a mother. I strongly suspect the block is playing part in this

edit: @swiller could this be the answer to your question? https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/393746416689

Svartmetall · June 2023

Thanks for that - I'll try a Musiclily brass one for now on this project to see how much difference it makes and what kind, and take it from there:)

EDIT: block yoinked from Ebay, should be interesting....

swiller · June 2023

roberty said:

edit: @swiller could this be the answer to your question? https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/393746416689

i grabbed a brass one, mine is a cv2011 model so needed a diff size and went for brass to try and tame its shrill. but yeah thats pretty much what i went for. cheers roberty

roberty · June 2023

swiller said:

roberty said:

edit: @swiller could this be the answer to your question? https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/393746416689

i grabbed a brass one, mine is a cv2011 model so needed a diff size and went for brass to try and tame its shrill. but yeah thats pretty much what i went for. cheers roberty

Ah sorry I misread your OP

Might be easier to replace the whole bridge at this point but that is another rabbit hole

Funkfingers · June 2023

Svartmetall said:

what is the tonal difference between steel and brass that you've noticed?

Steel blocks contribute to the bright, wiry sound associated with vintage Fender electric guitars.

Brass smooths out some of the high treble overtones. It may also fill out the midrange a little but this could be an illusion caused by attenuating the highest frequencies.

Occasionally, in spite of itself, cast zinc sounds right. I find that the zinc with steel pivot insert vibrato bridges on some Eighties MIJ guitars sound fine - even when, in theory, they should not.

timmypix · June 2023

I've experimented with a Wudtone bridge on my Highway 1 Strat.
Stock it was a bit thin, large zinc/alloy block.
Replacing the entire unit killed all "Strattiness"; it was too bassy and "HD".
Putting the stock baseplate back but using the steel block and saddles from the Wudtone was the best happy medium - Stratty, but bigger and ballsier. I now find my American Deluxe Strat annoyingly thin and twangy, so I might go for a Callaham block for that in due course.

CasperCaster · June 2023

As with all things you tend to get what you pay for, and I decided that the blocks from Kev Hurley were decent quality at a fair price, but that was just my personal decision.

There are different grades of steel and different manufacturing processes, and the same goes for brass. Brass is an alloy of copper and zinc, and cheaper brass, particularly if it is a cast brass object may well have a higher proportion of zinc plus added lead, in order to make it easier to cast. It's not as easy to cast small items in steel, so some steel blocks are made with sintered steel which is essentially fused to create the block. Again, other materials like lead are added to facilitate that process.

impmann · June 2023

Yes it will make a difference to the sound - you may like it, you may not.

I've had blocks made by Kev Hurley and they were fantastic - my reason fir fitting them was to get rid of the shitty floppy trem arm syndrome that Fenders suffer from. Kev fits a nylon bush a la Callaham - which genuinely fixes the problem permanently without soppy springs that fall out, squeaking as the increased friction on the thread causes wear and theres just no slack.

In terms of trying to put it into words as to what the change may be - that depends on the guitar. However, the steel blocks I've had made have given the guitars better articulation and just 'more' of everything. Not tried brass because I'm old enough to remember brass nuts and heavy brass tat being sold in guitar shops to 'improve' tone - that didn't and therefore I tend to avoid brass 'extras'. Although that said, one of my fave Teles has brass saddles...

swiller · June 2023

So update. This musicly has installed v well. A great thread on the trem with some good resistance after a couple of winds.
Not amped it yet, but will report later. I think just read carefully what blocks these fit in the description. Gives the guitar a nice weight and acoustically louder and i notice increased resonance on the neck.
Pics of install. and the old block, which free for anyone if they want it if they cover postage.
Will test later through the amp for the all important question. Guitar has 57/62 custom shop pups in it and a local handwound neck pup with a 10 way switch installed, sheilded etc.

swiller · June 2023

So sonically tbh hasnt made a great deal of difference.
More sustain and perhaps some more clarity in the mid range.
has it solved some of the tinny sound? perhaps but not completely sold if im honest.
Worth doing for the 20 quid block? yes i think so , not least for a really good trem arm fit and sustain, better feel to the strings.
Would not call it a big difference though. Maybe a more expensive one would help as others have said.
Over and out.

Keefy · June 2023

Oh bugger, this is another TOAN thing for me to fret about.

ICBM · June 2023

swiller said:

So sonically tbh hasnt made a great deal of difference.
More sustain and perhaps some more clarity in the mid range.
has it solved some of the tinny sound? perhaps but not completely sold if im honest.
Worth doing for the 20 quid block? yes i think so , not least for a really good trem arm fit and sustain, better feel to the strings.
Would not call it a big difference though. Maybe a more expensive one would help as others have said.

I would say that if you haven't noticed a huge difference changing from that thin alloy block to a full-size brass one, there's no point in spending more on a different one... with the caveat that steel doesn't sound quite the same as brass so that's the only other option. It's nothing to do with cost or quality, any block of the same material and mass will sound the same.

Funkfingers · June 2023

swiller said:

… the old block …

Could prove a handy spare part for anyone trying to extract a snapped arm from an "import" vibrato block.

•

The brass versus steel versus zinc debate could rage on forever.

If an electric guitar sounds good DESPITE the sum of its parts including a shitty cast zinc sustain block, that is all that matters.

Case in point: Ibanez RG550 with mk1 Edge double locking vibrato bridge.

SteveRobinson · June 2023

swiller said:

You've put the springs on all wonky

ICBM · June 2023

SteveRobinson said:

You've put the springs on all wonky

Only two of them

. I was going to say that too, but it doesn’t affect the tone, fortunately

.

Cirrus · June 2023

Funkfingers said:

swiller said:

… the old block …

Do what I did when I made the same upgrade to my 2002 Mexican Strat: Keep it in a box for 20 years, then try to use it as a heat sink in a pointless modding experiment on your amp.

swiller · June 2023

ICBM said:

SteveRobinson said:

You've put the springs on all wonky

Only two of them . I was going to say that too, but it doesn’t affect the tone, fortunately .

it was the only way i could get the bstads on.

SteveRobinson · June 2023

swiller said:

ICBM said:

SteveRobinson said:

You've put the springs on all wonky

Only two of them . I was going to say that too, but it doesn’t affect the tone, fortunately .

it was the only way i could get the bstads on.

I had a Wilkinson guitar here this week, I was going to straighten the outer springs but when I did the bass side spring rubbed against the cavity so had to refit them skewed.

ICBM · June 2023

swiller said:

it was the only way i could get the bstads on.

If you can't pull them over the hooks because your fingers get trapped, use a small flat screwdriver as a lever to do it - through the loop on the spring, and behind the claw hook.

I'm pretty sure this is the reason that 'fan' fitting method was invented in the first place, nothing to do with tuning stability which it actually makes worse in some cases.

FelineGuitars · June 2023

I find that I like the fanned spring fitting - especially as it sometimes allows me to et a little more spring stretch in a confined space if running short of adjustment range

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Replacing a block on a strat make a difference sonically?

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