so I'm buying a new rickenbacker solid-body on friday (fingers crossed) and the model I want comes with either no-trem, standard or also factory fitted with a vibrato arm that can bend both up and down.

some asking around to a good friend has me weighing which one I want more, and the pros and cons of each. I'm almost set on the no trem version, as that's the one I've been eyeing for three years (almost to the date), but the availabiliity of the trem arm has me curious.

any advice on things to look for/listen for or any other input would be greatly appreciated.

I've never had a nice gguitar with a trem arm, and would love some input. It's the same manufacturer and scale as my current main guitar, but it has humbuckers instead of single coils and a full through maple-neck instead of a bolt-on, so it should sound different enough to begin with.


there's also a $170 price difference between the two (which isn't really that much).


fire away.


thnks!

Hardtail.

The only trems that work well enough not to be a pain are Steinberger, Kahler, Floyd-Rose and their ilk, and I'm guessing you don't want one of those adorning your shiny new guitar?

Buy a vintage-style trem and in no time you'll find yourself engaging in lengthy, heated debates relating to which brand of pencil reduces string-stickage most significantly...

Also, and I could be very very wrong here, but after a certain age, doesn't one know, deep down inside, whether one is a trem person or a non-trem person, like knowing if you prefer gentlemen or ladies, or cats or dogs. It's important to experiment, sure, but after a while, you just know. Some may like both equally, but I think most of us are either/or. I'm not saying it's right, but...

Saying that, I have a Strat copy with a trem. I rarely play it, and I never use the trem, but I've never taken the arm off or tightened it up - in case my mid-life crisis strikes and I need to go trem-crazy.

i think that the best thing is to ask somebody to give you a strat or a jaguar, or a bigsby equipped guitar for like, a week. if you never really used a trem you never know. personally i love them and i really miss the trem in my squier strat (i play a tele).

Which, the Dakota? That is a bad azz geetar.

Trems are like guns. Better to have and not need than need it and not have it. I have a guitar with a Floyd Rose; I took the bar off but keep the trem, and use the heel of my hand to jiggle it when needs be, so it's always available to me but not in my way. I don't think the Rics come with that type of trem though.

Good luck in your decision and rock the fuck out faiz!

Can you get a Dakota with a trem now? I have a hardtail, I didnt think it was an option.

Side Bar:
does anyone know what size the pickup "holes" on the Dakota are? I want to replace them, but don't want to route the body. I emailed Ric and the pickup co (tv jones) and actually got no response from either.

Don't get a trem, especially if it costs more. Adam CR pretty much said it all.

I used to thing trems were the shit back when I was 16. I ended up trying out just about every kind of trem extensively after pushing my luck at guitar stores pretending I was seriously gonna buy something.

Basically, the jazzmaster trem is probably the best non-fugly trem.

I also though Mosrites have a nice trem, but it's real subtle. Maximum 1/2 step bending.

Of the fugly locking trems, the Kramer is definitely the best, since it can be installed without fucking your guitar all to hell.


Anyway, I took the arm off my jazzmaster-style guitar when I was about 18 and never missed it since.

In retrospect, I think the best thing to have is just a hard tail string-through body bridge.

Adam CR wrote:Hardtail.

this is my gut, too.

Dudley wrote:Also, and I could be very very wrong here, but after a certain age, doesn't one know, deep down inside, whether one is a trem person or a non-trem person, like knowing if you prefer gentlemen or ladies, or cats or dogs. It's important to experiment, sure, but after a while, you just know. Some may like both equally, but I think most of us are either/or. I'm not saying it's right, but...

I'm pretty sure this is true. I don't think I'm a trem guy, but I haven't bought a guitar in six years, but I do own two piece of shit guitars with trems (neither was more than $100). I guess my main concern is that I really enjoy how my current rickenbacker stays in tune like a champ, and is pretty no-frills in build. I guess tuning and detuning with the trem bar seems like something I don't want to think about, but since it is a rick, I think it might have a nice trem.

Boombats wrote:Which, the Dakota? That is a bad azz geetar.

yup. long time coming to me, this fucking guitar.


I put a hold on the tremless dakota right now, and will be able to buy it when I head to get it tomorrow. so it's mine. it's finally mine, but unless someone comes in and buys the one w/trem arm today, I'll still be able to play it and know for sure.

Boombats wrote:Trems are like guns. Better to have and not need than need it and not have it. I have a guitar with a Floyd Rose; I took the bar off but keep the trem, and use the heel of my hand to jiggle it when needs be, so it's always available to me but not in my way. I don't think the Rics come with that type of trem though.

this is the swinging vote in the equation. I think the bar may be removable, and could just be a cool little palm bender without the arm getting in the way. this is the only closeup I've seen:


according to my friend Orion (who has given me much info to chew on this topic) the vibrato arm works on bearings (you can see them in the profile) instead of two screws, but is basically it's similar to a strat trem, I guess.

but that arm looks like it could come off.

kerble wrote:but that arm looks like it could come off.

All vibrato arms can come off

although the Bigsbys don't come off so easy.

Boombats wrote:Which, the Dakota? That is a bad azz geetar.

Trems are like guns. Better to have and not need than need it and not have it. I have a guitar with a Floyd Rose; I took the bar off but keep the trem, and use the heel of my hand to jiggle it when needs be, so it's always available to me but not in my way. I don't think the Rics come with that type of trem though.

does the short palm bending give you tuning problems?