Eternally in tune

It's an emotional 2012 for me as an ESP fan. Come 2013, there will be some major changes in the offerings that might dichotomize followers. I'll leave the manufacturer to unveil their grand presentation come Winter NAMM but you can read crumbs here as we go along.

Moving on, I was invited by Davis GMC to check out the new bridge that will debut in ESP's catalogues come the new year & it's causing quite a buzz in planet guitar. It's unclear as to which range of instruments will be equipped with this hardware but judging by its price implications (it's more expensive than the Original Floys Rose model), it won't be standard fittings in the lower tier instruments. I'm talking about the Evertune bridge seen here.

Some stuff that you should know:

• It's heavy. It was fitted in an ESP Horizon NT model (which I own) & the overall weight of the instrument was on the negative register, it won't win fans who would want to play the instrument extensively, strapped on.
• It renders your tuners useless. You need to know that the Evertune bridge was conceived to overcome tuning anomalies once it's set. The bridge accommodates your preferred tuning thereafter, virtually making it tamper proof no matter the type of tuning/tension-related abuses that come its way. This is the reason why the tuners over at the machine head have no effect once the bridge is set, ditto all your bends & wide vibrato techniques; the Evertune is immune to all that. If you wish to employ a different tuning subsequently, then the Evertune needs to be set up, it's not about turning the tuners over at the headstock.
• It's space consuming. I have no idea why I didn't capture the cavity at the flip-side of the body- there was a huge hole there accommodating the mechanics of the bridge, extending all the way to the neck-body heel area. I could see springs & tension flaps overwhelming the cavity. If you wish to retro-fit this in your current instrument, it would necessitate a re-think on your part because should you change your mind & would want to revert to your guitar's original bridge, it would be a massive renovation work at the very least.

To be continued...

PS: Thanks Janet & all at Davis GMC for making this happen!