- Learn the difference between brass and steel tremolo blocks.
- Understand how tremolo blocks can affect your guitar tone.
- Learn about the different materials used to make tremolo blocks.
For decades, guitar players have been on a vendetta to find ways to better their guitar sound on stage and in the studio. Swapping pickups, amplifiers, speakers, string gauges, and electronic components are all par for the course, but a fundamental guitar component is often overlooked–the humble tremolo block.
The tremolo block is located on the back of your tremolo and serves as an anchor point for your tremolo springs, enabling this piece of hardware to function as intended.
This anchor point can also play an important role in your guitar’s tone, influencing factors such as sustain, presence, and depth.
On guitars such as Fender Stratocasters, the tremolo block is where you thread the guitar strings when stringing the guitar. The tremolo block even contributes to how vibrations resonate through your guitar’s body!
Unfortunately, many stock tremolo blocks are made of cheap pot metal. This material works to keep costs down for manufacturers but comes at the expense of your guitar’s sustain and tonality.
These cheap stock blocks have caused an upsurge in aftermarket blocks by companies such as FU-Tone, Killer Guitar Components, and Floyd Rose.
Let’s look at aftermarket tremolo blocks to determine if they could benefit your guitar rig!
| Stock Block | Brass Block | Steel Block |
| Cheap pot metal/Zinc | Bell Brass | Stainless Steel/Other |
| Thinner Tone / Less Sustain | Warmer tone / Increased Sustain | Brighter tone / Increased Sustain |
| Less mass / Less Resonance | More mass / Increased Resonance | More mass / Less Resonance |
| Soft prone to metal fatigue | Increased mass increases strength | Hardened steel is not prone to metal fatigue |
| Inexpensive | More expensive | Generally similar price to brass |
Tremolo Blocks: Types
Now that we have established what a tremolo block is and how it can affect your tone, let’s analyze the three most popular tremolo block materials:
- Stock block (Zinc)
- Brass Sustain Block (Brass)
- Steel Block (Stainless Steel)
We will pay close attention to the tonal differences between these three materials and their durability and cost.
Stock Block (Zinc)
- Common on low-mid price instruments
- Cheap to produce
- Less sustain/resonance
The stock blocks on many production guitars tend to be made of softer metals such as Zinc. These materials provide a cost-effective solution for manufacturers who need to produce these parts in high quantities daily.
They also prove to be easy to work with, making the production process for such materials more efficient. Though these two factors benefit the manufacturer, the positive aspects of this type of block, unfortunately, end here.
This is due to a variety of factors. As mentioned, these materials are softer–resulting in less resonance or ability to transfer vibrations. When purposed for producing a tremolo block, you can see how this lack of density could only be detrimental to the guitar’s tonality.
This detriment is accentuated because many stock blocks are manufactured to be thinner than their higher-end counterparts. This tactic is again utilized to cut costs during the manufacturing process, as fewer materials means less money spent on acquiring them.
It is also worth mentioning that on Fender Stratocaster style blocks, the ball ends of the strings are generally anchored at a shallower point of the block. Many players feel that this is another way cheaper blocks can limit the sustain of an instrument, as higher-end blocks tend to provide deeper ferrules and more contact.
These factors promote decreased sustain, less bottom end and treble, and less overall presence when the guitar is played unplugged and through an amplifier.
Considering this, it is no wonder that many players are seeking aftermarket alternatives to replace their inferior stock tremolo blocks.
Brass Block
- Increased Sustain
- Warmer Tone
- Not expensive to manufacture
Brass sustain blocks are by no means a new invention, having been utilized in various guitar components since the 1960s.
Companies like Floyd Rose, Kahler, ESP, and Kramer utilized high-quality brass sustain blocks on their stock instruments during the 1980s. However, as electric guitar production ramped up throughout the 1980s into the 1990s, many manufacturers opted to invest in cheaper materials.
This resulted in fewer production guitars leaving the factory with substantially sized and well-made sustain blocks. As players began noticing this, the demand for quality sustain blocks surged, and direct replacements became available as an aftermarket upgrade for many models.
Bell brass is a common material for aftermarket sustain blocks as it promotes resonance and is inexpensive to purchase.
Many players who have installed brass sustain blocks in their instruments report increased sustain, a warmer tone, and added depth compared to the stock tremolo blocks that their guitars shipped with.
These changes can be attributed to the increased mass of these tremolo blocks, “often marketed as fat blocks.” The improvements in tonality can also be felt acoustically, as some guitarists report increased resonance and vibration when striking chords.
Brass sustain blocks provide results that players can hear and feel.
The video below shows the differences between Zinc, Brass, and Steel tremolo blocks.
Steel Block
- Brighter tone
- Denser material
- Popular with Strat players!
Steel tremolo blocks have become an increasingly popular modification for Fender Stratocaster players. These blocks are generally manufactured from stainless steel, a considerably denser and more durable material than Zinc.
Steel sustain blocks provide a brighter, more present tone that helps any guitar cut through the mix. This contrasts the brass blocks that tend to chop some high-end, providing a warmer tonality.
Like brass, stainless steel blocks tend to add some weight to the guitar’s tremolo, which aids in increasing resonance and sustain. However, this added weight can also result in a different tremolo action. This means that you may need to set up your guitar after installing an after-market block.
Many guitar technicians recommend installing an extra spring after swapping your tremolo block. This works to counteract the added weight that will be added to your guitar’s trem unit.
While brass blocks are often associated with a mellow tonality, a steel block is the right choice for anyone looking to brighten their tone. When you factor in that these blocks also tend to increase sustain, it’s not hard to see why so many players are making this upgrade.
Tremolo Blocks: Other Materials
Brass and steel are considered to be the most common materials when it comes to trem block upgrades. However, there has since been a variety of other materials utilized to construct sustain blocks.
These materials include titanium, stone, tungsten, and aluminum.
| Titanium Block | Stone Block / Granite | Tungsten Block | Aluminium Block |
| Very Expensive | Expensive | Expensive | Inexpensive |
| Clear tone | Enhanced response across entire frequency spectrum | Harder than brass or steel blocks, increases sustain | Bright tone similar to steel tremolo blocks |
| Enhanced response across the entire frequency spectrum | Heavier than other tremolo blocks | Increased mass | Lightweight |
| Very strong | Very Strong | Very strong | Strong |
With all the benefits of upgrading your tremolo block, it is only natural that such a change could present some drawbacks. Most notable is that a larger sustain block may restrict the travel of your tremolo. This is especially notable in floating bridges such as Floyd Rose Tremolos.
This means that your tremolo will have less range than it did with the original block. You will no longer be able to push or pull the note as sharp or flat as before. This compromise can be remedied by purchasing a block the same size as your original block.
However, as increased mass increases sustain, most players will opt for a larger block and deal with the compromise.
Another factor worth mentioning is that after undergoing such an upgrade, some players feel that there needs to be more of a change in tonality to warrant the effort.
On the other hand, other players feel as if there is a night and day difference before and after the upgrade, mainly when the guitar is on a clean channel or unplugged.
Wrapping Up
Hopefully, our dive into the world of tremolo blocks has enlightened you and given you some ideas on how this sort of upgrade could potentially benefit your setup.
If you are looking for a new way to alter the tone of your guitar or have an instrument that could use a little something, an upgraded tremolo block may be the ticket!
Before you head off, why not check out our guide to hardtail vs tremolo bridges to round up your bridge knowledge?
And if you need a further brushing up on guitar parts, check our full guide to the anatomy of an electric guitar.
