Help -- tremolo

Discussion in 'Beginner's Q&A Forum' started by sixstringsin, Mar 22, 2006.

  1. sixstringsin

    sixstringsin ||||||

    could not understand some guitar jargon ...so it will be great if someone could explain /translate it in simple words.

    Came across the following line while reading tabulature for a song (played with acoustic-only):-

    "then grab headstock and wobble it for tremolo " :annoyed:

    now headstok is the portion where we tune the guitar rite? ..so whats wobbling the headstock for tremolo ?
     
  2. ronnieanand

    ronnieanand n00bier th@n th0u

    It's a common method of doing a vibrato.. It could be played in Acoustic or Electric.. Basically when you play a chord, you hold the headstock (yes.. it's the same thing which holds the keys to tune your guitar) and shake it slightly.. Be careful as not to break the neck.. By shaking it to and fro, you can get a vibrato happening but it's not a good practise as it screws up the stability of your neck.. An artist can do, 'cos he's got plenty of guitars. I wouldn't do that on my guitar.. Another way is to hold the neck with your fretting hand and with the other hand, hold the top horn of the body and shake it. This too is not a friendly treatment to your guitar.
     
  3. sachoo

    sachoo drenched in my pain again

    do u mean tht it is the way of streching the voice of a note, i.e for wat pedals r made. watch "like a stone" frm audio slave, tht's the best done there.
     
  4. sixstringsin

    sixstringsin ||||||

    forgive my ignorance ronnie ...but i didnt really get you on the 1st way ... when you say you hold the headstock ...headstock is the part on the opposite side of the frets or the part that holds the tuning keys? Im confused with 'when you play a chord, you hold the headstock' if i hold the headstock at a place where the keys are there then i cant grip the chord at all..
    can u explain where exactly to hold the left hand to shake the guitar ?
    is the vibrato intended after playing the chord or while playing the chord?
     
  5. ronnieanand

    ronnieanand n00bier th@n th0u

    No. It's for producing pitch modulations or Gamaka on the note being played...
     
  6. jocelyn

    jocelyn New Member

    Just as Ronnieanand put it.. Just move it push the neck gently towards you VERY VERY VERY gently ... or u can even push it again VERY VERY VERY GENTLY the Idea is to get subtle trmelo effect..U can try it out on a CHeap guitar.. If u alredy have a \tremelo on ur guitar dont try this out cause it would weaken ur neck joint
     
  7. sachoo

    sachoo drenched in my pain again


    very very very confused again. how can we push the neck towards us? i dunno, may be i m bad to get it. can u give an example of a song? or is it wat is played in mexican/spanish music?
     
  8. jocelyn

    jocelyn New Member

    ok let me explain it step by step... But again PLSEASE PLAES DO THIS VERY GENTLY ok.. play a note on u guitar now as the note rings place ur hand at the back of the headstock ( the place where ur tuning keys are located).and GENTLY push it, away from ur body, u will hear a tremelo effect of the pitch being lowed .. if u want a tone of the pitch being raised do the opposite place ur and on the head stock and pull it gently towards your body ... I hjope ur getting it.
     
  9. sachoo

    sachoo drenched in my pain again

    gotcha now dude.. thnx .. :beer: .. will try this..luks kool
     
  10. ronnieanand

    ronnieanand n00bier th@n th0u

    @jocelyn... Shaking the neck doesn't produce tremelo effect. It produces vibrato effect.. These two terms are interchangeably used but technically wrong. Tremelo means volume modulation and vibrato means pitch modulation. If you take a tremelo pedal, it doesn't do any kind of vibrato thing. It does volume modulation which might sound like a vibrato to some ears but in reality they are different.

    @sachoo. Hold the body of the guitar, hold the neck of the guitar and try bending it as if you are trying to break the guitar into two. But do it soft like try breaking and release it. Do this continuously. If you dont understand this, then forget it. It's not worth knowing it..
     
  11. sachoo

    sachoo drenched in my pain again

    :annoyed: :annoyed: :mad: .

    from wat i got, steps to follow:

    1. play a chord/note
    2. pull the neck towards u slowly but dont break it.

    i think wat he wanna say was to pull/push it from headstok but got it now, so will forget ;) . much thnx :beer: n tht wat i meant earlier bout pedal effect.
     
  12. sixstringsin

    sixstringsin ||||||

    thnx ronnie & jocelyn (& sachoo for diggin down ..it also helped me)
    :) wow ... i get some kindda vibration effect by shaking the neck of my acoustic ...
    the doubt remains is that for tremolo:
    i) where exactly do i grip the headstock with my left hand (im right handed :p:) --the region before the tuning keys begin or over the keys?

    ii) if i understood it well, the vibrato can be done *while* you are playing a chord -- now to get a tremolo effect your left hand goes 'somewhere beyond the frets' onto the headstock, so what is the sequence here for: playing a chord, releasing a chord, gripping the headstock, pulling it for tremolo?
     
  13. ronnieanand

    ronnieanand n00bier th@n th0u

    Nope. Tremelo effect can't be done at all. If at all it could be done, only a volume knob would help.. You need a pedal to get the tremelo effect.. I am not talking about the wrong used work tremelo, which actually meant vibrato..
     
    sixstringsin likes this.
  14. sixstringsin

    sixstringsin ||||||

    got it ronnie! --thanx a bunch ... I tried it (doing vibrato) yesterday and now I realize y u guys were warning so much .... i always felt the next time I try it the neck will break for sure!
     
  15. jocelyn

    jocelyn New Member


    Ronnie I know what you are talking abouth and agrre with you 100% ..... The thing is the more you tell people what a Tremelo is a nd what a Vibrato is the more confused they get. Actualy Vibratos bridges were first marketed as a Tremelos by LEO FENDER.. when he first lauched the Stratocaster I realy dont know why he did that.. and that tremelo bridge ( or Vibrtao bridge using the correct technincal term) was so popular, and was the best selling tremelo (vibrato) unit at that time .. That all Vibrato bridge units made after that were called Tremelos.. Like ur Wilkinson , floyds ext... To get a real trmelo effect u would ned to use a pedal or have the effect built in ur amp. Actualy even in amps the term is mislleading for example the Popular FENDER VIBRO KING one of My fav amps .. The term Vibro is misleading as the Vibro in the amp is actualy "TREMELO" and The Fender non fixed bridge whihc is know as tremelo is actualy a " VIBRATO"...
     
    sixstringsin likes this.
  16. ronnieanand

    ronnieanand n00bier th@n th0u

    :beer: :beer: :beer: :beer: :beer:
     
  17. alpha1

    alpha1 I BLUES!

    ^^^ good jocelyn/ronnie.

    I feel happy when ppl use the right terms instead of just following the parlance.
     
  18. jocelyn

    jocelyn New Member

    Hey Ronnie you listen TO JANIS JOPLIN..? She is one of mY Fav.. She could REALY SING MAN
     
  19. ronnieanand

    ronnieanand n00bier th@n th0u

    :beer: :beer: :beer: :beer:

    Dude. I am a big fan of Janis Joplin.....WOW... Are you on yahoo messenger. Add me if you are on. My IGT user name at yahoo dot com. Lets talk about Janis :beer:
     
  20. alpha1

    alpha1 I BLUES!

    :NoNo:
    No Cryptic methods allowed.
     

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