I was thinking of getting a Floyd Rose guitar for some of the songs I like to play that use dive bombs in the solos and such (Avenged Sevenfold being a prime example), but I want to be able to tune to Drop D without using a Tremol-No or a D-Tuna (as I want to be able to still use the tremolo both ways).

 

I've been researching it a bit, but I can't find a straight answer on how to do it - Some people say that I can do it with the fine tuners alone, while others say I can just undo the locking nut, tune down, screw the locking nut, and fine tune, while OTHERS say that I'll have to change the spring tension once it's tuned.

 

So basically, I just want a straight answer on kinda how to do it, or if I should just take it to a shop to get it done.

 

Thanks in advance!

I usually retune all of my strings, for a drop D the other strings won't move much if everything is correctly setup so it won't take that much time.

 

My advice here is to buy a good guitar, because a cheap one will have some detuning issue when you'll use the Floyd and that is really unwanted.

I use a Tremol-no on my Jackson JS32R w FR copy.

 

I tried for a while to do it without but the tremol-no makes it cake. I leave it in dive. For me it works and I can always unlock if I want to pull.

Best way is to tune it from the back if you don't have a Tremol-No:

 

 

I would recommend you get a Tremol-No though, makes changing strings A LOT easier if you change them in Hardtail Mode. It's an essential gadget for anyone with a Floyd Rose guitar imo. B)

 

Edit: And you can still use the Floyd Rose trem both ways with a Tremol-No too. You have 3 modes available - Full Floating Mode (which allows you to use the trem both ways as if the Tremol-No isn't connected), Dive Only Mode (which only allows you to push the trem down) and Hardtail Mode (which basically turns your Strat/Superstrat into a hardtail guitar like a Les Paul or SG).

Thinking about a guitar with trem too..

Current leader is a PRS, though not sure on exact type (se 245, tremonti or custom 24 maybe).

The PRS custom trem is apparently pretty damn good, though doesn't have the full range that the FR has (or the limitations).

Any experience with PRS??

I have a lot of FR guitars and none of them could be tuned to Drop D with the fine tuners, might be possible if the fine tuner is fully at the "in" position for E standard.

Prepare for major re-tuning the other strings. Unlock the nut and tune away...

Anyways tuning to Drop D shouldn't require to change the spring tension. I guess that starts to be a problem with Eb or D standard.

I use multiple guitars each with its own tuning (and one with fixed bridge for non-standard tunings), problem solved.

I don't know why some seem to have a problem with this... I have a Floyd Rose with locking nut, and I never had any difficulty changing the tuning for Rocksmith using normal tuners. The trick that works for me is to tune it twice. First from thinnest string to thickest string, then from thickest to thinnest. It sounds right and Rocksmith has no difficulty recognizing the notes. And I never really lock the nut, I screw it with my fingers.