I'm guessing that having a big ass hole through the body of an electric guitar isn't exactly favorable for it's tone right? I definately hear a difference strumming the strings without being plugged into an amp compared to my other fixed bridge guitar... Do fixed bridge instruments have better tonal qualities and sustain than ones routed for a tremolo(ignoring the type of wood the body is)?

I'm starting to reconsider if I should go active or passive in terms of pickups on my Floyd-equipped guitar. Right now it sounds quite bad but it's very likely due to the shitty BCR pickups. I know tons use passives in Floyd guitars, and there are passives specifically for use with tremolo guitars, but really: do fixed bridge instruments sound better?

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Good question... Im curious as well.

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Well definately in terms of tone, sustain and all that, non-trems are better, cuz there's no big hole cut out, and the strings are more in contact w/ the body of the guitar. Passives and actives being better have nothing to do w/ the bridge style of the guitar, so it's not like one is better over the other on a tremolo guitar. But even if tremolo guitars have less sustain and all that, in no way does it mean that it's a bad or worse guitar.

I'm mainly talking about the tone, not if it's a better guitar or not. In fact I like my Floyd-equipped Ironbird more than my fixed bridge Jackson Kelly. The sound/tone is the only drawback. The Kelly has a more full, complete sound, while the other sounds sort of hollow and stuff. Which makes me rethink if I want a passive in it or not. Floyd guitars with passives sounded great for Van Halen, Dimebag, Vai, etc. but I can't help but think about this.

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I agree that non trem guitars do have the very best tone and sustain as long as the guitar is built good.

As for trem systems, I like Kahler trems better then floyds, or any other type of trem, because there is no big hole thought the guitar, the guitar retains most of its normal tone and sustain with nearly the same amount of flexability and less wear . They mount right on top of the body with about the same amount of routing as a puckup. The big draw back is the price of Kahler bridges.

Let me plug you up with the Kahler site.

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I think its because on floyd rose's(and other trems), the springs in the back absorb alot of the string vibrations, but like a les paul with no trem transmits all that string vibration to the pickups. I still cant do without my floyd though, even if they have a little less tone cause I always do those dimebag squeals and divebombs that you cant do on a fixed bridge.

Yes, there's less tone and all, but it won't even matter if the guitar is built very nicely. The pickups won't really matter, it's not like passives would respond better to a floyd or some shit like that.

If it's a good guitar, trem or not, it will sound good. If not, it will sound like shit.

That's what I mean, of course it's gonna sound like shit if it's a crap guitar. So I'm saying that it doesn't matter trem or string thru, it's gonna sound like shit either ways if it's a junk guitar.

I'll argue my opinion here

I don't like the tones created by solid guitars, such as Les Pauls etc. The tonal difference is clear even when the guitar is unplugged. I don't like the lack of freedom in both the string's 'rigidity' and the tone. For some reason, the trem systems seems togive a more full tone to me, as oppose an over-the-top mass of crunch that solid bodied guitars haunt me with. A hole in the guitar nearthe pickups will create resonance and it does alter the tone, though to me it feels comfortable with this as well as the physical factors such as hand placement etc (remember that tone is also expressed as a result of the location the string is played; fixed bridges are just too rigid and stale for my liking, with the pick often falling too close to the bridge to form a nice tone. This concept is better expressed within bass guitar: you'll notice how pick-bassists, especially in metal, pick as close to the bridge as possible to attain the tone.

A big ass hole DOES aid to the tone, in my opinion it improves the tone and I seriosuly doubt I could ever own a guitar that didn't have this.

A hard thought to express but maybe someone knows how I mean. Play an open, unplugged string on say a Les Paul (or for some strange reason, all BCRiches seem to show this tonal style too... the main reason I never felt comfortable playing them, even an NJ flying V) and compare it to an open note of a typical ibanez etc.

Tone comes from three main areas: firstly your fingers and plectrum (where you play, how you depress the strings, fluency etc), secondly your guitar and its properties (such as strings, pickups etc) and thirdly the amp. If you can't find a guitar that feels comfortable to play (and that includes the basic and general tone of the guitar) then the other two stages won't compensate for this. It's like trying to get stoned from smoking ciggarettes and your mind. On this analogy, get bud and make a nice fat and warm spliff with a nice hollow roach, as oppose to a rigid tightly packed one with resin in it.

(Not name dropping marijuana here for cool points... just sprang to mind and I'm sure it'll have relevance to some of you)