14 Oct Wudtone PRS DD Tremolo Upgrade
Wudtone PRS DD (Dynamic De-compression), upgrade now available in our online shop here.
“loving the new bridge…you’ve managed to turn my PRS into an absolute shred machine” Alex Penfold, PRS CU24
“I love the tremolo, very easy to use and it stays in tune…I can now have sounds very near a Les Paul 1959 reissue on my Deluxe Reverb II” Marc France CU22
PRS make some world class set neck guitars and discerning customers expect the very best tone.
“I have been a firm believer that PRS ‘got it right’ when it comes to hardware on each transition of models as they evolve, and have left my guitars stock as a rule honestly feeling they are the best they could be ‘as is’. I have never had any interest in ‘bettering’ the components in any way, until now …
I became aware of Wudtone via a few conversations with Andy Preston .. Although I was a little sceptical at first, he popped over my house for a chat, and the concept looked & sounded very interesting. 15 minutes later he had whipped one of his tremolo units out of a Custom 22 he had brought along & installed it in my ugly plain topped but tried & tested ’95 CE22 which has been a bit of a benchmark sound wise for me for many years …
… when we plugged it in, the difference in tone was well, quite simply remarkable … more grunt, guts, definition, acoustic volume and attack that it had before, and it already sounded really good before the swap … I was intrigued & excited with the result.
Andy kindly offered to lend me the tremolo unit to gig with for a while as a ‘test pilot’, and I am happy to report that this clever piece of engineering has given my CE22 a new lease of life! So much more ‘sound’ is generated by the new bridge that I have found I need to turn down the gain a bit on my amp! My usually non-complimentary band mates (only joking guys!) commented ‘what’s different with that guitar? It sounds HUGE!’ … notes seemed to jump out the harder I ‘dig in’, sustain has increased dramatically with more ‘body’ to individually picked notes especially half way up the neck (between frets 5 and 15 where most of my solo’s seems to occur!) than I ever had before, all good news to be honest, I am flabbergasted at the results!” STEVE MAYO guitarist, Pipedream South Wales
“my guitar positively came alive with improved sustain and thick full tone..retaining the sparkly highs ” Tommy Platt, PRS player
“it remained as in tune as I’d expect a Floyd Rose to” Tim Morgan “Fantastic…bigger tone/ sustain…the dynamic, harmonic differences were instantly noticeable” Mark Overfield 97 CE22
The Wudtone PRS DD upgrade achieves dynamic efficiency because of the way it is connected to the body of the guitar. The trem upgrade delivers a maximised connection between the underside of the plate and the body of the guitar, (this is very different to a stock PRS trem which is essentially similar in operation to a fender two post, albeit floating whilst pivoting on the six small grooved mounting screws).
The Wudtone PRS DD trem upgrade delivers a proven set of tone, dynamic, feel and tuning stability, benefits.
Technical note on the invention. 1st gen plates,( as per the original Leo Fender patent) with a flat top surface only pivot by loosening the fixings (this allows the plate to slide up and down the fixings). This type of plate provides a desirable tone but causes tuning to be unstable. 2nd gen plates ( e.g. Fender 2 post, PRS grooved screw, and Ernie Ball Luke) use indentations in the fixings ( 2 or 6) so ‘float’ above the guitar body. Stable but the tone generated by guitars using these bridge plates is considered to be inferior to the vintage plates. The Wudtone CP technology (Patent GB1314545.3) overcomes the problems of the two types of plate described above. It provides stable operation and a desirable tone through the use of: recesses formed around the fixings on the top side of the bridge plate; an arc on the underside of the bridge plate to ensure constant contact with the guitar body.This represents a very exciting opportunity for PRS guitar owners to finally discover the full capabilities of these awesome guitars. The Wudtone PRS DD upgrade fits any PRS trem based, core line, private stock or SE, without any modifications to the guitar. It is an easy retro fit without the need for any specialist tools or skills. Fitting instructions can be downloaded here.
It can be used with your existing brass PRS saddles or any suitable sized (10.5mm) alternatives. Wudtone also offer vintage steel nickel or comfy ergo stainless steel saddles if required.
It is fantastic to hear of an increasing number of PRS owners delight in experiencing the unique combination of PRS build quality with the enhanced dynamic performance of Wudtone’s trem technology.
“well impressed…can’t quite believe the difference it has made to tone and especially sustain..plus its staying in tune ALL the time no matter how hard I use it” John Fairley , 2009 McCarty
“I love the tremolo, very easy to use and it stays in tune…I can now have sounds very near a Les Paul 1959 reissue on my Deluxe Reverb II” Marc France CU22
As with all our hardware products, it comes with a total delightation guarantee or your money back!
The Wudtone PRS DD Tremolo upgrade includes :
- Wudtone PRS DD plate, .5mm shim, bearing screws
- Wudtone 1018 Cold steel block with nylon bush
- Wudtone 5mm stainless trem arm (choice of lengths, tips)
- optional Wudtone, steel nickel or ergo stainless steel saddles
Now available in our online shop here.
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