tonymckenziecom | 2 years ago
This VT1 Ultra Trem tremolo for a Fender Strat from VegaTrem has all the features of a world class unit. Let's take a close look to see what it's really like...
Visit Vega-Trem Website: https://vegatrem.com/
Visit Fender UK: https://www.fender.com/en-GB/start
Contents:
0:00 Start
0:28 Intro & Preamble
1:24 What's in the box?
4:37 The VT1 Ultra Trem Close up
9:04 The guitar I used
10:16 About the old tremolo
11:54 Changing the tremolo
13:34 Fitting the VT1
19:27 The fitted VT1
20:16 Things I like
22:23 Things I like less
23:31 Other info
24:08 Warranty
24:42 The review score
26:56 Conclusions
28:26 Playing - tremolo abuse!
30:36 Another short example
Recently Vega-Trem contacted me and asked if I would review their VT1 Ultra Trem and I agreed to take a look. There are no mods to do to your guitar for this tremolo and that fact swayed me to check it out. This is a fully floating tremolo and as such will go up and down a very long way indeed, more than what you might be used to. The build quality seems very high too as you will see in this close up review of the VT1 UltraTrem.
I'll show what's in the box, mention my old bridge which is now in the trash can. The old tremolo is a perfect reason to justify an upgrade; I show exactly how to fit the VT1 from start to finish. It's not difficult at all and if you have the slightest clue, you could probably complete it in about an hour!
Because the VT1 is fully floating the depth of the unit is narrower than a Fender tremolo and while that might look strange at first, you will soon understand that the unit can be 'pulled up' further than you might dare to imagine. In fact, this VT1 tremolo from Vega-Trem has a massive up-down range and for guys that use tremolos in that way it is a great unit without the aggravation of something like a Floyd Rose and its setup. The VT1 Ultra Trem can change your Strat from an 'old design' to a world class electric guitar that you can at last pull up and divebomb without going out of tune all the time and this one stayed pretty much in tune even after only a short time of playing with new strings.
I used locking tuners (replaced during the review) and a Fender roller nut (as per the Jeff Beck Stratocaster).
The playing really is simply a backing track, but the aim of the playing was never the music - it's more a way of showing how I abused the tremolo extensively; at one stage I really tried to 'unhinge' the tremolo from its grooves but honestly, I never came even close to that! It would have been very hard to try harder.
This VT1 tremolo from Vega-Trem was so easy to pull up or push down. I have only ever seen one other trem with a similar feel to this one and that was a very expensive tremolo that is far less common than the Vega-Trem and that used 'spring steel' as a fulcrum point. This Strat trem when fitted with that feel you will immediately see why they sell many of them - it does not have any of those noises associated with most trem units and springs either.
Vega-Trem make the VT1 in a number of colors like steel, gold, black etc. and of course there are left-handed units available right from stock on their site; here's what they say about the quality: "The quality of a VT1 UltraTrem bridge is born not only of a particularly reliable and robust design, but also of the exceptionally reliable manufacturing process. All of its components are made of high-quality stainless steel, even the block is made of galvanized steel. We manufacture in Europe with the same materials, quality, process and precision control used in the manufacturing of surgical materials. This is the only way to offer you an unbeatable 2-year warranty (we double the guarantee period of the best sold vibratos all over the world until now)". That's their words of course, but I can't disagree with that statement at all!
Note that while this tremolo was gifted to me, this review is EXACTLY my opinion and what you see on camera really is what I felt about the unit... it's up there at the top of the tree. I do share my thoughts about what I liked and what I liked less, and the maker did not impose ANY precursors to this review in any way - if they had I would not have reviewed the device.
I hope you like this closeup review of the VT1 VegaTrem and honestly it has been a pleasure actually doing the work on the guitar; and remember if I can do it so can you!
I have spent considerable time creating this video. The video is a reflection of my exact experience with the VT1.
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