wats the diffy Gotoh/Wilkinson vs100 and the vs401

[Kain VKail]

so im just confused on these in general. can someone give me some insight as to what makes each one unique?

my objective in buying one of these is to have  a recessed trem that i can still tune when i want, but must also have the option of fluttering.
so ive seen the vs100 do those things but i havent really done much of a search for the vs401. i figured you guys would give me a quick and precise answer. :dontknow:

 

[AutoBat]

I found a comparison thread on fender's forum: http://www.fender.com/community/forums/viewtopic.php?p=499418&sid=6299b1670299b0e389030c452495e0f8

there are more pics & descriptions there, but here's a pic of a VS50 & VS401 (they say vs50 is very similar to vs100)

 

[Kain VKail]

thanks that helps a lot. but basically the 2 trems are essentially the same just ones sort of an upgrade? i just want to make sure that if im able to get the vs401 into a warmoth body that ill still be able to do all the same things as the vs100.

basically i just want a trem that i can float and it still flutters along with being able to tune it. i know i said that already but its just that the vs401 is marked as a vintage type trem where as the vs100 is marked as a plain trem. and im not familiar with anything but a floyd rose because most of my guitars have them.

 

[TBurst Std]

If you have the Wilky recessed mount, the 401 will not fit in it. The W recessed route is for the 100.

 

[Kain VKail]

well no i knew that. i was saying i could get it routed for a 401. it is a slight bit bigger than the 100. i just want to know if its functionality is the same and anywhere i go i cant find any answers.

 

[pabloman]

The 401 is an upgrade to the 100. It's supposed to give you smoother feel under the playing hand. It also has staggered string holes in the plate and block. This is supposed to provide more tuning stability.

 

[Kain VKail]

so essentially the bridges ARE the same but its like getting tuners and comparing them to locking tuners, now they have an upgrade.

now i have another question. if i were to get something like a brass sustain block for the 401 would it fit the same way as a fender style one because it is marketed as a vintage trem with a vintage style sustain block. i just like to upgrade all of my floyd sustain blocks to thicker peices of brass from floydupgrades.com. it gives the bridge a TON more sustain.

 

[Cagey]

The 401 already has a machined steel block as opposed to a die-cast part, so wasting money on a brass block would probably not be as satisfying as it is usually imagined to be.

 

[Kain VKail]

The 401 already has a machined steel block as opposed to a die-cast part, so wasting money on a brass block would probably not be as satisfying as it is usually imagined to be.

well its not really imagined satisfaction. its completly transforms your sustain and gives your highs a very large boost in quality. BUT also the staggering would be useless in terms of having a right handed block for my guitar because i play with my strings in reverse and for clarification i can send a picture, i think i have one somewhere. so therefore my strings go eBGDAE as opposed to EADGBe. so all of that mess about it helping with tuning stability and such is basically useless for me because itd have a revese effect. but having the saddles the way they are i wont have ANY intonation issue as long as i intonate it right.

 

[animal control]

The 401 already has a machined steel block as opposed to a die-cast part, so wasting money on a brass block would probably not be as satisfying as it is usually imagined to be.

well its not really imagined satisfaction. its completly transforms your sustain and gives your highs a very large boost in quality. BUT also the staggering would be useless in terms of having a right handed block for my guitar because i play with my strings in reverse and for clarification i can send a picture, i think i have one somewhere. so therefore my strings go eBGDAE as opposed to EADGBe. so all of that mess about it helping with tuning stability and such is basically useless for me because itd have a revese effect. but having the saddles the way they are i wont have ANY intonation issue as long as i intonate it right.

You might want to check out this thread re a brass block on a vs100 - unexpected problem encountered:

http://www.unofficialwarmoth.com/index.php?topic=12590.0

 

[Super Turbo Deluxe Custom]

You mention recess.  Are the footprints the same?  Is the recess only for the 100?

 

[Kain VKail]

The 401 already has a machined steel block as opposed to a die-cast part, so wasting money on a brass block would probably not be as satisfying as it is usually imagined to be.

well its not really imagined satisfaction. its completly transforms your sustain and gives your highs a very large boost in quality. BUT also the staggering would be useless in terms of having a right handed block for my guitar because i play with my strings in reverse and for clarification i can send a picture, i think i have one somewhere. so therefore my strings go eBGDAE as opposed to EADGBe. so all of that mess about it helping with tuning stability and such is basically useless for me because itd have a revese effect. but having the saddles the way they are i wont have ANY intonation issue as long as i intonate it right.

You might want to check out this thread re a brass block on a vs100 - unexpected problem encountered:

http://www.unofficialwarmoth.com/index.php?topic=12590.0

well the thing is i wouldnt be buying the same Brass block as that person the block isnt so much as longer its just fatter and its fatter in the opposite direction so its not impeding the trem wall. i had the same problem with a 42mm floyd rose block extention and that was FROM floyd rose but this Floydupgrades place has the right idea. making it the same length and just fattening the block away from the trem wall towards the springs. the only thing this really messes up is the sping claw and springs which can be fixed easly with light adjustments.

i just want to make sure that the trem block for both ARE vintage type so that i know what im going to buy when i buy it.

You mention recess.  Are the footprints the same?  Is the recess only for the 100?

and im not quite sure i understand what your asking. do you mean is the trem since its an upgrade really going to recess differently. and if thats the question then no i dont think so. ive already asked Warmoth yesterday about that and im just waiting for a response at this point.

 

[Super Turbo Deluxe Custom]

I mean the outlines of the 2 are different. 

 

[Kain VKail]

no i know they are different. im asking warmoth if i send them one would they be kind enough to route it for a small difference in fee for the route.

 

[Justinginn]

It seems to me that the main benefit of going brass is the extra density for more tone (whatever that actually means  :laughing8: ) and sustain (that one's actually measurable so it's more legit). A die-cast block would be pretty wimpy in terms of density while a machined steel block should get you a lot closer to brass territory. I think the difference from die-cast to brass might be worth it but like Cagey said I'd expect the change from machined steel to brass to be less drastic and thus less worth the investment.

 

[Kain VKail]

It seems to me that the main benefit of going brass is the extra density for more tone (whatever that actually means  :laughing8: ) and sustain (that one's actually measurable so it's more legit). A die-cast block would be pretty wimpy in terms of density while a machined steel block should get you a lot closer to brass territory. I think the difference from die-cast to brass might be worth it but like Cagey said I'd expect the change from machined steel to brass to be less drastic and thus less worth the investment.

true true, i could see what your saying here. im glad i came on. because that comment alone may just say me a good $45. but getting back to the part of whether itll fit or not. warmoth said if i send them the trem its self, for $45 (darn, there goes that) they could route, and stud the body for the trem. which isnt a bad price personally. technically its only 35 because id be getting the stud install in the package deal at that point.