Cool guitar? No, cool OFR.

[Rick S]

Just got an email from Musicians Friend. Seems they are selling Floyd Rose guitars with the OFR for $299. I'm sure they are probably the foriegn made guitars but with an OFR for 3 bills ain't to bad. Just though I'd pass it on folks.

[Everdying]

just hope they're the OFR and not the Ping version.

[Rick S]

Whoa there! The Ping Floyd is just as high quality as the OFR in every way.:thumbsup The only difference is the brass block as opposed to the steel block in the OFR. I put a Ping on my LK2 and could not be happier. The brass block makes a good deal of diffrence in the tone. Much more rich and full. I hope to soon find the time to try the Ping in one of my '84s. If I like it I will put it on. That way I will have two '84s with two different tones.:drool The only person who wouldnt like the Ping IMO are the collectors. And for good reason. But for the real player who likes to dig in and find that sound the Ping is long over due.:headbang

[69 Z-28]

Just wondering, is the Ping version made by the golf club manufacturer or is it called that for another reason? I'm not familiar with it.

Thanks,

Trey

[Offrampmotel]

AFAIK, it's the golf club manufacturer (kinda like Kahler)

[amerturk]

Just looked...it's the real deal, not a ping. Looks like were going to see a lot of these guitars on ebay without trems.

[dr. robert]

here's a pic from the musicians-friend site:
http://img3.musiciansfriend.com/dbase/pics/products/2/7/5/502275.jpg

it would appear to be the real deal.
When we were at the Musikmesse this year we stumbled upon a Korean hardware manufacturer (mindech/booheung) that had OFR's on display, he claimed he made them for the Floyd Rose company.
I wonder if they are using those Korean made OFR's for this line of guitars. I can't imagine that it's the Schaller version for that price.

[amerturk]

Is it just me, or do the fine tuners look to have a more shine to them then a standard OFR? Also, look at the long screws in the back....(can't remember the damn name)

[69 Z-28]

AFAIK, it's the golf club manufacturer (kinda like Kahler)

Ok, I see. I would think that it would be a well made Floyd. Ping is one of the better club makers and as far as I know, still make everything metal wise in the US. Pretty sure the shafts aren't though.

Thanks

[Everdying]

i have always thought the ping guitar hardware were made in mexico.
also, basically only the mexican guitars are found with ping tuners.
im guessing fender has some kinda share in ping :P

oh yea, Ping golf shafts are also MIM.
apparently the Ping heads are now MIC.
now only assembly is done in the US.

[KramerUK]

apparently the Ping heads are now MIC.
now only assembly is done in the US.

Sounds a bit like Kramer ethics to me :D

[Rick S]

Well, wherever the Picg Floyd is made it is top quality. I wish it were made here in the USA but its not. But its still great!:thumbsup

[_xxx_]

That pic above looks perfectly legit. I wonder what the wood is like.

[Shwayman11]

I'm pretty sure its basswood

[flyingvfreak]

AS Far as I know the Pings are made in China!!Tawain, they are the only licensed Floyd to have "Floyd Rose" stamped on the bridge plate and are just as good if not better then the New Originals!:thumbsup

[_xxx_]

I'm pretty sure its basswood

I meant it as "good" or "bad", not which sort :)

[Everdying]

I meant it as "good" or "bad", not which sort :)

im on the side that puts basswood as not being good :P

[cc85]

I just bought one of these and received it yesterday. It is the white one. I had to make some adjustments to lower the action and adjust the spring tension but once I did this guitar played great. It stays in tune no matter how hard I push or pull on the bar. It is the real deal. The first thing I do when I buy a cheaper guitar is to replace the pickups with SD's or Bill lawrence pickups. I dont need to do this to this guitar it sounds great. I was told by musicians friend that these guitars are selling like mad and once their gone they are done. They dont make them anymore. So if you want one better get it now.

[dr. robert]

Cool!:thumbsup
could you check the bottom of the Floyd to see if there's a 'made in Germany' label?

[warrenp099]

I like these much better than the speedloader guitars because I like the fact that it has tuners on it. Just looks better IMO. Not to mention it'll be easier to find strings for it. I haven't seen any speedloader strings where I live.

[_xxx_]

im on the side that puts basswood as not being good :P

No, there is just very bad and very good basswood out there, that's all. Like any other wood.

Glad to hear they're nice, unfortunately I can't order them from here, they won't deliver outside NA. Maybe someone could fetch one and send it to me? I'd transfer the money in advance via PayPal.

[cc85]

I just looked at the back of the tremolo and it does not say made in germany. It says us pat-and some numbers.

[dr. robert]

thanks for checking, must be the Korean made OFR then.
It appeared to be a quality trem, but I only had it in my hands for a couple of seconds. I haven't tried it on a guitar yet.

[_xxx_]

Guys, could anyone in the US get one of those for me? That'd be really cool.

[unchained1984]

Robert can you confirm if that picture is representative of those floyd units in person, it does indeed seem overly shiny. As for the pings yes they are very well made, so far the only issue I'd point to on a black one I have is that it does't seem to have quite the same degree of lattitude when fine tuning.

[dr. robert]

Sandy, I only looked at it for a couple of seconds, and that was 4 months ago.
What I do remember is that overall the finish appeared to be a little thicker in comparison to the Schaller version. The edges weren't quite as sharp and the surfaces weren't quite as flat.
In addition to chrome and black they also had a black chrome OFR on display, I want to get my hands on one of those for a project.

cc85 should be able to give you his first hand impression

[_xxx_]

Rik is getting me one of them, so I'll let you know how it feels/plays when I get it :)

[cc85]

I have been playing this guitar for a couple days now and divebombing the hell out of it and just checked the tuning and it is still spot on. I'm extremely impressed. You will probably have to make some adjustments so dont expect it to be ready out of the box.

[cc85]

I'm thinking about putting one of my bill lawrence humbuckers (L500L) to see how it sounds. Right now it is in my jackson dinky but I might swap them to see what happens.

[Pacerimperial]

FYI- Musicians Friend has now dropped the price on these to $149 just like the Speedloader versions.

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/Floyd-Rose-Original-Series-DSOT3-Electric-Guitar?sku=514381

Craig

[cc85]

Thanks for the info Craig.