The worst thing you can do to a Les Paul is coat the strings and fretboard with marshmallow cream. It will really slow you down because it’s really sticky.

@birchh1

3 жыл бұрын

Bwaaa...haaaa!!!! OH man...

@gaboxd4407

3 жыл бұрын

Gotta try this on my bigsby 1959 sg

@jed02

3 жыл бұрын

can confirm

@chinaski6979

3 жыл бұрын

Be gone Satan

@jeffreym4273

3 жыл бұрын

LOL!!

I beg to differ. The absolute worst thing to do with a LP is let me play it.

@markknight6445

3 жыл бұрын

I feel that pain too🤣🙉🥺

@danieldean9989

3 жыл бұрын

I finally had to sell mine for that same reason. 😂

@therover4141

3 жыл бұрын

Damn fellas play it even more until its not the worst thing. I guess if your gonna give up just get a Tele they sound like shit no matter who is playing. Except page he is always the exception. When asked why Hendrix didn't play a tele. He said they got 2 sounds good and bad.

@j_freed

3 жыл бұрын

The Rover - Hendrix used a Tele on some solos in the studio. Purple Haze is one. See, no whammy right?

@virgilrw

3 жыл бұрын

#STOP IT! 🤣😂🤣😂🤣

The worst is leaving it in an unlocked car. They tend to evaporate...

@everettlethem6747

3 жыл бұрын

Ah yes, man made evaporation is a big problem these days.

@annunacky4463

3 жыл бұрын

@@everettlethem6747 Now thats funny.

@russellszabadosaka5-pindin849

3 жыл бұрын

LOL

@oskarileikos

3 жыл бұрын

Even worse is to leave it in a locked car when it's hot outside. You wouldn't want to do that with little children or dogs either

@everettlethem6747

3 жыл бұрын

@@oskarileikos well that got dark.

The worst thing you can do to a Les Paul? - Fit it with a Floyd Rose.

@salatieljyrustumanan4929

3 жыл бұрын

came here from sammy g?

@patrickrosington1174

3 жыл бұрын

LMAO now this man speaks truth. Whos cares if someone top wraps or not. I top wrap all my Gibsons. Les pauls, sg and my es 335td. The best thing to do to a LP is a bigsby

@hotrodjones74

3 жыл бұрын

@@patrickrosington1174 No, the best thing to do is play your Les Paul everyday ;)

@patrickrosington1174

3 жыл бұрын

@@hotrodjones74 that is true!

@nosleep637

3 жыл бұрын

Single cuts and floyd rose do not mix well

The worst thing one could do to a Les Paul is to equip it with a Floyd Rose and EMG active pickups :-D

@Max_94

3 жыл бұрын

James Hetfield and many legends won't agree with you guitar hero ;)

@sid35gb

3 жыл бұрын

Yeah take my money 💰😎😂

I don't think I've ever heard anyone so effortlessly melodic in their playing. Fantastic as ever, Chris.

@Glicksman1

3 жыл бұрын

Amen to that.

@chipgaasche4933

3 жыл бұрын

Keep listening, mike.

@briandillon8041

3 жыл бұрын

Michael Hudson except maybe George Harrison and Phil Keggi. But Chris is top notch!!

@SuperJiggawhat

3 жыл бұрын

I couldn't agree more.

@foogazer9458

3 жыл бұрын

Enter Johnny marr

“Who knows...who cares” excellent point

@richsackett3423

3 жыл бұрын

Just people who care about playing music.

@LennyJohnson5

3 жыл бұрын

@@richsackett3423 I don't think true musicians give it that much thought to be honest; Chris summed it up with "who knows, who cares"... life's too short. I guess it never kept Hendrix, Lennon or Peter Green awake at night. It's something you think about when you've got too much time on your hands. Maybe players stress over it when they're learning...

@richsackett3423

3 жыл бұрын

@@LennyJohnson5 Funny, no other areas of art or expertise think ignorance concerning their tools is desirable, or indeed preferable. I've seen none of the three players you mention playing just any old shit instruments. Guess they must have cared. It's something I think about because I build guitars.

@juanfichtl2011

3 жыл бұрын

Wankers will argue forever. Players will shut up n play yer guitars.

@richsackett3423

3 жыл бұрын

@@juanfichtl2011 Idiots on the internet will pontificate and bloviate, ultimately failing to have any interesting, useful or original ideas.

Jimmy Page’s tele is probably the guitar that has sold the single most les pauls in history.

@patricksommer3971

3 жыл бұрын

?

@jacobpullen6949

3 жыл бұрын

@@patricksommer3971 He used his telecaster on most of the early zep albums, notably on the stairway solo and all of Zep 1. He only used his Les Paul live, but people heard the recordings, and went out and bought Les Pauls because they thought he used his Les Paul on the recordings

@patricksommer3971

3 жыл бұрын

@@jacobpullen6949 he used les paul in tons of recordings. Sure there was also a lot of tele, but from like 71 on most is LP

@jacobpullen6949

3 жыл бұрын

@@patricksommer3971 Yeah but all the early most famous stuff is tele

@patricksommer3971

3 жыл бұрын

@@jacobpullen6949 ok, you've probably got a point

Chris, you deserve more recognition than you get for turning out such excellent content each week. Thanks, and keep it up 👏

I wouldn't beat a 1959 LP with a violin bow night after night, but, hey, Page....

@PaulMcCaffreyfmac

3 жыл бұрын

A Les Paul will always win that fight.

@PaulMcCaffreyfmac

3 жыл бұрын

@Spike Elwood I saw Led Zep 3 times in 1969/70. The volin bow appeared every time and it was ALL Les Paul.

@jonahhoward5109

3 жыл бұрын

@@PaulMcCaffreyfmac I watched the Dazed And Confused live video from The Song Remains The Same, it definitely won that fight. Within two minutes the strings on the bow were hanging off everywhere. Those things aren't cheap.

@theboofin

3 жыл бұрын

@Spike Elwood In the Yardbirds maybe...

@Alex-ve3it

3 жыл бұрын

@Spike Elwood he only used telecaster with Led Zeppelin from September ‘68 to May ‘69

I find that everything that is done with feeling or by feel is a very personal thing. Guitars, musical instruments, bicycles, hot rods, motorcycles, and LIVING YOUR LIFE. If it feels good to YOU If it sounds good to YOU If that makes YOU play more Then that is what YOU should do. YOU! Great players do a bunch of different things but they are NOT you. What they do may not FEEL good to you try it then make it your own or not. At the end of it all WE all find OUR own way. Do YOU!

@mobydick3895

Жыл бұрын

No. You can test for which way gives you maximum sustain, and Gibson should have done that already and issued a statement about it (but I doubt they ever have)

@dwaynemcallister7231

4 ай бұрын

I remember in a interview from the mid 1970's with Bob Glidden the drag racer, he said "This how I do it but don't do it because I say so, learn to think for yourself"

I remember the first time I top wrapped... I was so enthused to have found a better sound and feel out of my guitar, and at no cost whatsoever. Glorious.

@greenfly1264

3 жыл бұрын

Same I did it yesterday on my SG 61. Lovely metallic harmonics also I went from 9s to 11s a combination of the two things is indeed Glorious.

@cechichan

2 жыл бұрын

@@greenfly1264 so it does make thicker strings more playable my friend ? id love to form 9s to 10s on my lp

Superb episode of Friday Fretworks Chris. Eloquent and well researched.

Chris, your explanation is as artful and articulate as your playing. I’m a Page, Beck, Gibbons, Green (you didn’t cite him, but RIP) fan, and had never heard of top-wrapping. Thanks.

@alejandromoro

3 жыл бұрын

you might have been in lockdown your whole life my friend...

I'm truly AMAZED. I've never thought that this could make such a great impact, the tone is SO much better with top loaded strigs, at least for me. Thanks for the insight!!

That intro jam was sensational! Again.

@brandonrook9062

3 жыл бұрын

Indeed...luscious

Dude your playing is just amazing!! Your feel is divine!!

Glad to see the channel subscribers growing quickly. Well done Chris!

Epic ending. Brilliant conclusion and melody right after.

I’ve never really heard too much of a sonic difference between sting through or top wrapping but where I’ve noticed a difference is in its playability. Top wrapping for me feels better in string tension making it feel more comfortable to play and by that changes the sound for me. Anyways, that where I come from

@GerardWaysHun20

3 жыл бұрын

Absolutely agree. To my ear, acoustically, strings seem to ring slightly more with a bit more open sound, topwrapped - but plugged in I don't think there's any difference. The most important thing is the slinkier feel which makes it easier to play and in turn I play better with more control. My opinion.

@benallmark9671

2 жыл бұрын

Top wrapping meaning ? I ask because I recently got a 2019 SG jr but after reading all kinds of comments ordered in the 2020 that has this lightning bar bridge. I’m I making a mistake ?

@giulioluzzardi7632

2 жыл бұрын

@@benallmark9671 Personally speakung Ben, the type of metal used to make the bridge actually makes the biggest difference . Go for alumunium only because I have noticed Gibson using heavy-weight metal for bridges.

@macauley70

Жыл бұрын

and if dont have more sustain and is only playability, why you dont rise the tailpiece for looking less tension with the same angle of top wraping?

@silvanorocha3

Жыл бұрын

@@macauley70 i did it

Amazing to get the view out of that window - I had always imagined you were in a cottage deep in the Welsh countryside gazing out at the mountains. Magic playing as always! Pob hywl!

@ChrisBuckGuitar

3 жыл бұрын

Haha. That was in France a few months back. My everyday view isn't quite as...French as that unfortunately!

Being that I’m a touch older - here’s what happened at Gibson - the person they hired to do the illustrations in the catalog simply looked at the previous year and because it was a wraparound tailpiece, they simply assumed that that’s how you would do it for the next year - it was actually 100% a mistake and was corrected the year after - as soon as they put out the next catalog - so the whole thing about wraparound being affirmed in the Gibson catalog is simply the mistake of an illustrator

@RandyFricke

3 жыл бұрын

Interesting.

@charleshoernemann8661

3 жыл бұрын

Wow! You live and learn!

@therover4141

3 жыл бұрын

Also before the tune o matic bridge the stop tails were always wraparound so when old school wrap arounders strung up the new tune o mattic the naturally wrapped it over thinking its how it should be done. I top wrap because it puts direct downward force on the bridge and no chance of the string touching the bridge itself before it breaks over the actual saddle. Strings feel somewhat slinkier to me and it looks cooler. You can slam the stop tail as well no matter how high or low the bridge is. Put old string balls on your strings before you go through the stoptail if your gonna top wrap though.

@keithadams812

3 жыл бұрын

That's an awesome piece of information.... I have more info about Les Paul him self and the SG..... Les Paul loved and designed the SG but Gibson made the mistake of releasing it weeks before his divorce to mary ford... It was cheaper for him to disavow all knowledge and collaboration than it was to pay Mary Ford royalties on the design of the sg... Mary didn't settle for less at all she took him for all he was worth

@therover4141

3 жыл бұрын

@@keithadams812 also he wanted a neck through design like the firebird. The original Sg was the double cut special in late 58 59. Called the SG. Its why the call the SG the sg after 63

Great post, Chris. A clear distinction. Top Wrapping has both cleaner tone and balanced EQ. I'll do the change on my LP.

independently of this video inwant to say: you have an amazing style of playing. You are now one of five YT-Guitarists i admire the most. Thanks!

“Who knows, who cares” 🙌 sounds great man

I loved the version of Bistro Fada at the end of the video. Nice sound.

I really look forward to Friday Fretworks 👍👍 thanks Chris..

Love the unbiased point of view and good info 👌

That bit at 6:00 ish was pretty clever. I always knew the length of the string behind the nut/bridge made a difference, but never really thought to prove it the way you have.

Loved this one buddy. I personally top wrap both my LP’s. Why? Its basically because i use heavy 11/52’ strings and top wrapping definitely makes it easier for me to play and bend these chunkier strings. It 100% works for me. Plus it looks cooler and more rocknroll ha ha

As always, Chris, your guitar videos are fantastic to listen to and learn from. Thanks! :)

Beautiful playing nice chops Chris!

Gonna give a shoutout to Johan Segborn's channel as it was his video that made me decide to top-wrap my Epi LP. His test videos are always done with a real sense of scientific rigour, with all possible variables removed to really just look at the differences in sound from what he's testing. His top-wrap video had the same R8 through the same amp (a dimed Marshall) mic'd the same way and completely left untouched for both tests, and with a new set of strings for both tests too. There's still clearly a difference in sound. It's not that I think one was better than the other, but I could definitely hear a difference and I preferred the top-wrap sound so that's what I've done ever since!

@mattgilbert7347

3 жыл бұрын

Johan is based. Coolest head in the guitar YT community.

@cechichan

2 жыл бұрын

Would it make the difference between 010 and 09 ;-? id love to put 010s but they are too stiff for me, would top wrapping make that difference in playability so i can play 010 ?

If top wrapping makes me play like that intro, count me in! 😆

Always informative. Thanks, Chris.

That intro jam was amazing can't stop listening to it

Love the Django-esque outro!!

@roughcutguitars

3 жыл бұрын

"Bistro Fada" by Stephane Wrembel

I think the effect is to lengthen the string under tension. That means the strings bend easier, because you have a string willing to stretch the same percentage, which is a larger distance since the string is "longer".

@dragonpundit.6443

2 жыл бұрын

The scale is the exact same. It's the angle.

@philberry1981

2 жыл бұрын

​@@dragonpundit.6443 But the total string length is longer by the width of tail piece - so say another 12mm. When a string is bent it will stretch across its entire length from end to end. The angle will reduce friction and downward pressure on the bridge which will help with bends and prevent long term damage to the bridge and reduce string breakages.

@dragonpundit.6443

2 жыл бұрын

@@philberry1981 That assumes the strings actually move across the bridge and nut under normal string bending. I believe there is more contact and less angle so it effects something, mostly fewer breaks but the idea your strings are always moving across the connection points after leaving the tuners or tailpiece, is suspect.

@philberry1981

2 жыл бұрын

@@dragonpundit.6443 It’s not a lot of movement granted but that’s why they make nut juice etc to help stabilise tuning. Try plucking the string between the nut and tuner peg then bend the string and do the same - the pitch goes up - hence that section of string is now tighter and will have therefore moved fractionally.

@markhill9275

4 ай бұрын

​@@philberry1981Nut juice is for girls!😂😂😂

Chris, you're the best man. Keep being a great person. I just recently started top wrapping my LP and SG and I, personally, like it. It feels better to play on. To me. Probably psychosomatic, but whatever makes you play is worth it in my book.

in love with the jam intro bro! it just got you a sub. first time watching your content

I thought for sure Chris was going to say “put in a pair of single coils”.

@Glicksman1

3 жыл бұрын

Um, that would be an improvement if they were good ones.

@Daverotherham

3 жыл бұрын

The first four years did have single coils, and they didn’t put humbuckers on the budget models when they did get them.

@Glicksman1

3 жыл бұрын

@@Daverotherham Of course they did. I have a '54 Goldtop with the sweetest P-90s in it. I should have been more specific, I was referring to "Bursts".

@big_bicep_bill7594

3 жыл бұрын

P90s?

@Glicksman1

3 жыл бұрын

@@big_bicep_bill7594After having some success with the 1935 single-coil "bar" pickup and later the modified single-coil "Charlie Christian" pickup, in 1946, an improved and much simpler, smaller and lighter design designated P-90 became Gibson's flagsihp pickup. Like the bar and Charlie Chritian pickups, they, too, are single-coil and were installed in virtually every Gibson electric guitar until 1957 when they were joined by the dual-coil PAF (patent appied for) "Humbucker" (which sucessfuly "bucked the hum" of a single-coil) pickup which was the "preferred" (but not by me) deluxe pickup and was installed in all of the higher-end Gibson electrics. The original Juniors, Specials and ES-330s retained P-90s, but all others now had Humbuckers.

Nice breakdown. Either configuration does not appear to affect sustain considerably. I could see where tension could feel a bit lower. However, the one thing that people ALWAYS neglect to mention is that if your tension is lower when you bend, it just means that you have to bend FURTHER. Don't believe me? Try Silk & Steel strings on an acoustic. Those things are so slinky that you can bend the strings right off the fret board, but you'll only get about a half step bend when you do. What does this mean? Well as Joe B. put it, you get a little bit of buffering when you dig in. You won't bend your strings out of pitch too far if you hit them hard enough to deflect them. Also, you should see less sensitivity to detuning when it comes to the pressure that you apply to hold down the sting. On the other hand, your vibratos will require larger movements, which could be difficult if you like very fast vibratos. Finally, your bends will have to bend farther to hit the same note.

@macauley70

Жыл бұрын

if you want less tension and bend better rise the tailpiece. problem solved

I wondered if you were gona get to the extra ball end, to me that is the only way to do it. I switched back to just going trough because I didn't want to mark up my stop bar. after just a year it was marked pretty badly. I couldn't feel a real difference anyway so I just went back to through the stop bar. I think even if it is a mental thing, it still helps because thats all any of it really is. My feelings on tone and guitars and music is always evolving. I can look back even a year ago and see mistakes and misconceptions I had about everything. That is what I love about music, it never gets old and every time you think you know what's what, something comes along and smacks you right in the face and shows you that there is still plenty to learn at any level. I will never stop being a student of music, I love it. Great video and awesome playing like always.

Beautiful playing right at the end, Chris.

That kid is SIIIIKKKK! What a talent...his technique, flawless

When I read the title and then saw Jimmy Page in the thumbnail I thought this would be about sanding the back of the neck to make it thinner!

@brown22sugar25

3 жыл бұрын

Exactly what I thought

@MrKimMarkus

3 жыл бұрын

Don't think he sanded it. Believe Joe Walsh had it sanded before selling it to Page

@Noseheros

3 жыл бұрын

Jimmy had it done by some company in cali on the first US tour

@jltrem

3 жыл бұрын

@@MrKimMarkus You are correct, good father. It was done here. www.laysguitar.com/

@therover4141

3 жыл бұрын

@@Noseheros no Walsh did

I caught your solo in Paul David's video a couple of weeks back. I've now seen a couple of your videos. I'll just say, every solo you do is not just easy on the ears, but it's cool, swaggy even, it has boldness and character, and damn it, I'm going to try and replicate some of that.

Before the internet, there was a lotta staying up all night testing these theories with different string sets, spring tensions on floating bridges, etc. Thanks to channels like these where the info can come to light in a faster and more credible level with actual footage of what the greats do with their guitars.

I top-wrapped my Epiphone LP and it made a big difference. The tension of the strings is much more comfortable for my fingers and the resonance of the body is completely different and much better. I didn’t top-wrapped my Gibson LP because it is already very comfortable. The success of the change probably depends of each guitar

It makes more sense to me that resonance would be transferred to the body from the bridge not the tailpiece. I go through and raise the tailpiece just enough to prevent the strings leaning on the back of the bridge (nowhere near as high as in your picture) and hastening its ultimate sagging. Preventing bridge collapse seems the only good reason to do it.

Wow, I never thought there would be such a difference in the clarity to the tone. Top wrapped wins in my book.

Hi Chris, thanks so much for this video. I have a 1950 Gibson SG prototype with P90's that I has never played 'Right' to me. Almost sold it a few time, but by trying the Wrap Around, it's a different guitar . It all seems to be coming into place with this change, so thanks and stay safe.

I used to think I absolutely needed to screw down my stop tail until I started to experiment. My findings were, each guitar is different. As of now none of my LP’s are screwed down. I hate the tight feel. I top wrap and bring the tail up until I find the feel and tone that works best for me and the guitar. I prefer a shallow angle between the bridge and tail. Feels like playing a wrap around bridge. Like a jr. Coupling is important, but you have plenty of it from the string tension alone. Experiment, you may find something you like in between much better.

7:30 The fact that top-wrapped strings produce more tension when bent to the same position also means that you don't NEED to bend the strings as much in order to produce the desired higher pitches, hence making it easier overall to play. All makes sense. A great video and playing, please keep it up!

@flakey414

3 жыл бұрын

No. In the video mentioned, Dylan compares how far you have to bend a string to reach a full step up. The top wrapped strings needed to be bent further with greater force to reach the same pitch. That were the findings of his video, i'd love for someone to repeat the test to see if it can be corroborated as the testing methodology could probably be improved. Certainly a fascinating question though, makes you wonder if there is also a difference between string through and top loader Tele's and stuff.

@andrewgarcia3136

2 жыл бұрын

@@flakey414 yes. this is true. i top wrapped my les paul again and it's actually a bitch to play and i regret it. turns out it adds a lot more tension than i remembered.

@davidfellows6250

10 ай бұрын

yes that also applies to heavier strings.

I thought it would be about treble bleed-mods (which I have on all my humbucker neck pickups and love). Great video and playing again. You're a 'I would drink a beer with that guy'-kinda guy 👍

Lot of research done . I always enjoy your content.

This is why I watch Chris. Nuclear proliferation, climate change, human rights......top wrapping. Beautiful

@ChrisBuckGuitar

3 жыл бұрын

Haha! All the important issues covered...

@plaga9_ioc954

3 жыл бұрын

Yea but why does he have Reagan wobble-head on the shelf..?

@therover4141

3 жыл бұрын

Well as long as he isnt pushing climate change is man's fault then im ok cause Our sun has way more to do with it than the UNs and liberal lefts bullshit agenda lies. I agree there is climate change I've seen the reports and who and how all the "facts " That get pushed are far from facts manipulated data manipulated surveys to say 97% of scientist agree is bullshit. Canada's climate guru woman is a lying fraud that uses her own false data and research as proof. It was proven wrong she even got in hot water over it yet still using it as if its valid. All lies. The truth mainly the sun. The berkland currents the ocean itself. Its normal earth cycles. Will it be good for us meh maybe not maybe nothing much at all. Depends on our sun our weaking magnetic fields. So stop buying MSM climate bullshit they are trying to make money.

@therover4141

3 жыл бұрын

@@plaga9_ioc954 cause he was a great president like Trump is now. Why would you allow that to bother you. Get your leftist mental disorder under control.

@jamespollock11

3 жыл бұрын

Wow you're stupid.

I've always preferred the feel of top wrapping 🤷🏻‍♂️

Loved that little bit at the end. Great tone.

Fantastic playing man.. Informative video, thanks..

I tried it out of curiosity. There was definitely an increase in resonance throughout the guitar, just like a one piece wraparound bridge. Bends were a little easier too.

The scientific breakdown of how top rapping actually increases string tension just goes to show how your brain can really trick you into believing something that isn't correct, even the most skilled guitarists. Our brains are really amazing at tricking us with things like this.

Thanks for educating me on something I knew nothing about. I see no reason for me to try top wrapping, but I appreciate knowing something about it.

Thanks mate, awesome vid.... bought a Yamaha SL500 that had been top-wrapped by the previous owner and had wondered about the pros and cons. Love your work. 👍

@dwaynemcallister7231

4 ай бұрын

I ordered a SL500 from Japan the other day, I don't know what to expect, how do like yours?

I m lucky to have 2 Les Paul’s, and from the factory the 2016 58’ True Historic was not top wrapped, but the Collectors Choice No8 “The Beast” was. So I continue stringing both exactly as Gibson intended and with the same gauge strings on both I cannot tell any discernible difference in string tension.

I thought this might involve a Floyd Rose. 😅

I love your videos and your playing is inspirational Chris. 👍🏽

Great explanation and demos. Also appreciate the history and references. Like the Yamaha THR desktop amp. I have the smaller version and really like it. (It’s one of few practice amps that sound good on headphones.)

In the early nineties I somewhere read an interview with a guitar tech, who said that players like Jimmy Page, Jeff Beck and Billy Gibbons originally did topwrap as a way to reduce chance of string breakage at the bridge. So maybe nothing about tone or playability, just about reliability...

Another KZreadr, Robert Baker, did a video on this where he discovered that when he top wrapped his les paul the strings actually had more tension, which corroborates Dylan Talks Tone's results. Baker tried to figure out why and through speaking with a friend of his he may have discovered that it simply doesn't work the same on every les paul. I believe it was the angle at which the neck joins the body that determines whether or not it increases or decreases string tension when you top wrap.

Yep. Best guitarist on KZread. Friday fretworks is amazing!

Some really nice playing in this video!

More contact and more resonance would mean LESS sustain. Energy goes into the guitar, and some of it and very slightly heats up the wood. If you look at Les Paul's original experiments, he got the most sustain with least resonance, as you'd expect.

I am surprised that Slash never used the top wrapping and his tailpiece is kept really hight to avoid an extreme angle.But still amazing sustain and tone.And he uses 11 48 half step down

@RockNRollBrewers

Жыл бұрын

The geniuses of adam day😂

great stuff!

that opening musical segment of yours was great,lovely tone and feel..

I wonder how many of those early Les Paul players top wrapped simply because that's how the guitar was setup when they bought it and never thought about stringing up differently.

I'd played Les Paul's for around twenty years before I tried top wrapping for the first time this year (first week of 2020), and I can say it definitely does make a difference. I'd say it makes the guitar feel a little slinkier, and to my ears, gives it a slightly fuller tone. I was a little concerned that the stings could pop out of the saddles when I'm going for those Gilmouresque bends but, so far so good. Haven't done it on all my LP's yet but I think I probably will. Haven't tried the double ball end thing yet.

@hubbsllc

3 жыл бұрын

Before I replaced my Dean's arrangement with a Babicz Full Contact bridge, I was top-wrapping with the string run through a loose ball end and it was just fine that way. Now with the Babicz I run with the tailpiece elevated to produce a modest breakover angle at the saddles; I don't see any reason to just crush the bridge into the top of the guitar (the point of the Babicz is that it rests directly on the body).

@therover4141

3 жыл бұрын

@@hubbsllc yes I always cut the ball ends off an old set and run my strings through the ball end then the stopbar to top wrap. It keeps your string end backed off the break over the tail peice cause if you dont that break over the back can cut into or break the string where its wound around the ball and over itself. That's w weak place the bend the string so use a loose ball on the string to back that ballend up away from the breakover of the tail peice. Hope that makes sense.

@hubbsllc

3 жыл бұрын

@@stevegardiner8473 I wasn't talking about the Gibson Tune-O-Matic; I was talking about the Babicz bridge on my guitar.

Thank you for your nice guitar playing and your KZread episodes :) If we want to set the tailpiece down to the wood without spacers, the strings sometimes hit the back edge of the ABR bridge as the Gibson neck angle is "big" on some of the Les Paul's. May be the main reason "top wrapping" was done in the old days.

Love your playing!

Longer strings require more tension to bring up to tune. Strats, with 25-1/2" scale feel different than Les Pauls with 24-3/4" scale length because of the difference in string tension. Short Scale bass guitars is were you really notice the lighter tension of 30" or 28-1/2" scale length compared to standard 34" length.

@j_freed

3 жыл бұрын

That is so. But here's the truth: the longer the length behind the nut or the bridge, the less tension there seems to be on the fretboard. So if you get a Fender Strat vibrato block that is longer than usual and holds a greater length of string, the instrument tuned at pitch has a less tight feel than if the length of the strings in the block were very short.

"The BEST thing you can do to a Les Paul?" Is to play 'Bistro Fada' like Chris Buck 😊

Wow it’s acc amazing how much your videos cover. I was thinking the whole video, about that guy who tested the top wrap with a scale.

GREAT demonstration

This intro jam here deserves a YT guitar channel award

The fact there is more tension on strings when top wrapped makes sense to me because you would then need less bend to increase by a tone. This would then give the impression that it is easier to play as you would need to bend the string less to reach the desired pitch. I have a 57 historic gold top and 10 - 46 strings, and for me it is almost too easy to play especially compared to my Strat and Telecasters. No top wrap needed.

Brilliant that Chris - really enjoyable and interesting. Not sure if you spent much time listening to the sound recordings of your wrapped versus standard configurations, but the one thing that jumped out at me (listening on headphones) was that whilst I could barely hear any difference in sustain, there was a difference in tone and, to my surprise I found the wrapped bridge sound more pleasing FWIW. Might give this a go on my CS 336.

Excellent and compelling. I have to admit I'd never heard of this before, tho a luthier did recommend raising the tailpiece a bit, for the same reason. And you address that as well. Interesting that there's so much controversy, especially considering the caliber of players who do it.

I'm deformed from years of playing a LP Custom three times week and most weekend nights. The thing was so heavy, my left shoulder is lower than the other AND my left arm is longer than the right. And I won't even talk about guitar nipple.

@j_freed

3 жыл бұрын

Class action!! Those heavy Norlins were designed to kill people. But I'm sure you looked cool while you were up there maiming yourself.

@captaincrash9286

3 жыл бұрын

John Martyn famously blamed the loss of his leg on years of wearing a Les Paul...

@AFaceintheCrowd01

3 жыл бұрын

Chryptopher It’s like strapping a small piano to your body. That’s why I bought a Strat.

@MisterTMH

2 жыл бұрын

@@AFaceintheCrowd01 The Les Paul studio I have from 2008 has a chambered body. It weighs the same as my 1991 strat.. :-).

Now that this is solved let's talk about tone wood. /s

@therover4141

3 жыл бұрын

It matters on electrics but accoustics more. Hard wood gonna be brighter softer wood darker. Use all the fancy names for the woods you want but it boils down to hard and soft dry and wet.

Great video!!! I tried it for the first time because I just bought a used R8 that was top wrapped. I think it does make the strings feel a bit looser. I could not tell any difference in the sustain. As you said, no harm in trying it and if you don't care for it then switch it back. Cheers!!

Fantastic Django reinhardt ending. I didn't expect a rock player do that. Thumbs up!

I swore I could hear a difference in your examples. Then I converted your video to an audio file, chopped the examples out of it and have a friend play those to me at random, then we swithed. If our life depended on ot we could not hear a difference. It became nothing but simple guessing.

I thought this was going to be about Jimmy Page and Joe Walsh shaving their guitar necks

@markusfinkler9625

3 жыл бұрын

😂😂😂👍👍👍🎸 unbeleavable issn't.

@TempoDrift1480

3 жыл бұрын

No Bueno.

@alec7364

3 жыл бұрын

Thomas Jefferson true, he did buy his #1 from joe already shaved down, but when he bought his #2 1959 les Paul he had that one shaved down to match his #1

@TempoDrift1480

3 жыл бұрын

Doesn't that null and void the entire idea of buying a million dollar guitar?

@alec7364

3 жыл бұрын

Wizzle well, this was all taking place in the late 60s and early 70s when bursts were just considered “used guitars” I guess

Thanks Chris for helping me understand my new “ Standard” !

An old guitarist told me to just raise the tail piece to lessen the take off angle - that's what the adjustments are for. I find that 10s feel like 9s when I raise the tail piece. Nice video.

I think the term "tension" is misused here. The term "flexibility" is more appropriate. To have a particular gauge of string reach a particular pitch at a particular scale length - it MUST BE at a particular tension between the nut and bridge. Reducing the grip in the bridge peak and the nut frees up more length of string to be affected by stretching of notes. This gives more flex which SEEMS like less tension. Regarding increased sustain with more post contact: the less downward force on a bridge the less it transfers energy to the body, so the sustain benefit is a wash. Of course in the fog of war on stage none of this makes a nickel's difference! LOL!

@mijorchard6206

3 жыл бұрын

Totally. Just posted something similar (but more long-winded!).

Is lend it to Pete Townsend when he was in his 20's

@malupaural1494

3 жыл бұрын

yes

I’ve top wrapped for years. I personally prefer it. Seemed to help tuning stability as Bonamassa said. I also use gage 12 but don’t feel hard to play but I wasn’t aware that top wrapping makes it easier to play.

Your guitar tone is so satisfying, man.