Need Opinions on High Mass Bridges

[Gianni "Orlandez" Orlati]

I won an Fender American Vintage Hot Rod P/J bass that came with a high mass bridge, I could never really get the action low enough so I finally took it off last year put a vintage bent plate on it and the action's where I want it now and it sounds the same, feels the same, still just one barely discernible dead spot and sustain is the same. The volume is the same unamplified and if anything it feels more resonant than it did before.

The only thing I would change in a bent-plate bridge is to provide it with holes for extracting the strings without the need of passing them back through it for their whole length.
It happens to me to frequently move expensive strings from a bass to another just to check how they sound on different models.
Doing this with a bent-plate bridge requires rectifying the strings’ profile at the headstock, otherwise the strings will remain entangled in the bridge saddles during the extraction process.
Rectifying them more than one time may generate dangerous crimped areas that may break !
Tone and sustain-wise I didn’t find any difference whatsoever between hi-mass and bent-plate bridges.
I had actually a bad experience with a BabicZ on a P bass because I couldn’t adjust the action to the same setting I was using when the original bent-plate bridge was installed, so I had to remove it.

 

[Thegrandwazoo]

the whole "more sustain thing"

I mean...how many measures do you need a single note to last?
I'm sure there are songs I play that have whole notes in them, but I don't feel like longer than that is any kind of common in what I do.
ymmv etc.

That's always been my thoughts on the sustain thing. I can't imagine needing more than even the most shoddy bolt-on neck, top-loading bent-plate bridge super lightweight bargain Fender copy provides. I guess some people need, or at least perceive that they need, more sustain than that, but I don't know who they are.

 

[amphlett7]

The only thing I would change in a bent-plate bridge is to provide it with holes for extracting the strings without the need of passing them back through it for their whole length.

So a Hipshot Vintage bridge, then?

 

[eastcoasteddie]

So a Hipshot Vintage bridge, then?
View attachment 3847653

The bridges that MTD uses on Kingston models has a better top-load design, similar to the Hipshot A-style. Are these available for consumer purchase?

I don’t hear too much difference between high- and low- mass bridges, but I just like the heft, solidity, and refinement of some high-mass bridges over the classic bent plate bridges. As mentioned earlier, I found some of the classic bridges to be quite loose where saddles can shift laterally, some of them rattle and make noise with instrument vibration, and if you set the saddles low, there is the chance that the adjustment screws stick up above the saddles and “don’t feel good” with certain playing techniques, like palm-muting. A good high-mass bridge design alleviates all these problems.
All my basses that I have ever used or owned when I started playing had well-designed bridges (Music Man, G&L, Peavey Dyna-bass with Schaller bridge), so I don’t feel right using anything less.
Right now, my favorite aftermarket bridge is the Hipshot Kickass. If they could incorporate the top-load string notches like the A-style, it would be perfect.

 

[bobyoung53]

The only thing I would change in a bent-plate bridge is to provide it with holes for extracting the strings without the need of passing them back through it for their whole length.
It happens to me to frequently move expensive strings from a bass to another just to check how they sound on different models.
Doing this with a bent-plate bridge requires rectifying the strings’ profile at the headstock, otherwise the strings will remain entangled in the bridge saddles during the extraction process.
Rectifying them more than one time may generate dangerous crimped areas that may break !
Tone and sustain-wise I didn’t find any difference whatsoever between hi-mass and bent-plate bridges.
I had actually a bad experience with a BabicZ on a P bass because I couldn’t adjust the action to the same setting I was using when the original bent-plate bridge was installed, so I had to remove it.

100%, I'm also a Gibson player and love that you can just loosen the strings and lift the ball end end without having to run the whole string through a hole. I have a Babicz bridge that came stock on a T-bird and it's nice, not as simple as the ol' bent plate on the Fenders but easier than a three point. I usually don't throw my strings away and do the same thing, I probably have 50 sets laying around.

 

[Bufalo]

I like high-mass bridges on my Fenders. The Hipshot Kickass is my current favorite. I've gotten plenty of use out of Gotoh 201's also. My first bass is a Peavey Unity that had a big fat bridge in '91, and it's just what I learned on and got used to. The slotted base plate feels more stable to me. Keywords: "to me."

 

[Hundred proof]

Can’t say if it makes a difference or not ... it came this way.

 

[Ian Lewis]

A lot of major brands don’t seem to know that the vibration of your string enters your bass Only at the bridge and the nut. So if you can justify 10 seconds discussing tone wood or neck construction then why disregard the bridge with cheap bent sheet metal? I’m talking to you Fender. I love Fender basses. Step 1, I buy a bass. Step 2, if it’s a Fender I replace the bass with something purpose built to transfer the string vibration to the body.

May I suggest - the vibration of your string also enters your bass through the (fretted) fret and neck, unless you only play open strings

 

[Killing Floor]

That's correct. The string physical energy transfers through the fret/nut or fingerboard and the bridge.

 

[chris_b]

Buy the bass you like the sound of. That's the only thing that should be on your mind when you are buying a bass.

I like the look of big bridges and my opinion is that they enhance tone and sustain, but it wouldn't stop me buying a bass with a BBOT if it sounded good enough.The type of bridge it has is irrelevant if you like the sound.

If you want sustain and don't have it, that's bad. Your bass is letting you down. If you don't want sustain and have lots of it, who cares, don't use it. IME a bass that sustains well sounds better on all notes.

 

[Stan_da_man]

Undecided on whether to replace the stock OEM bridge on my Jazz with a hi mass version.

It's a BBOT but has an extra two screws at the front along with the usual five at the back for extra stability.

 

[zortation]

I'm not sure what effect the mass of a bridge has on sound. I tend to think if there's a difference it has more to do with the bridge's contact area with the body. Most high mass bridges are larger and have a larger contact area.

I disagree. A lot of modern designs use smaller set screws for their saddles...whereas a 70s Fender bent plate bridge has the widest screws I've ever seen.

 

[JoeWPgh]

I disagree. A lot of modern designs use smaller set screws for their saddles...whereas a 70s Fender bent plate bridge has the widest screws I've ever seen.

Set screws? Huh? I was talking about the plate

 

[zortation]

Set screws? Huh? I was talking about the plate

I don't think the base plate size matters too much, unless you factor in thickness. But for me the set screws are where the string vibrations transfer to the body, and if they're puny, your tone will be too.

 

[Richardnbm]

A Hi mass bridge has a tighter more focused sound. Get a Hipshot type A style bridge and you can't go wrong.
A new set of strings will be cheaper. A high mass bridge will make your old strings sound better. Don't rush in.