Wait, you can't do double bends on floyd's?!

[DalyTek]

I use 3mm V-Picks, and play with an overly hand sometimes, and no...I don't find my notes flattening from the force at all.
Could just be that your ear is much more intensely focused and sensitive than mine though.
I still think it sounds like you might want to go with the Tremol-No in your situation.

Also, I have a '98 USA SLS Soloist coming that combines all the features you mentioned above that make the RR1 king:

Clarity of a 25.5" scale, playability of a Jackson with a traditional TOM bridge for rock solid, hard pick aggressive performance.:

[Twitch]

I agree with everything VitaminG said

Seriously, was he talking again?? Didnt even notice....

[Trem]

I use 12mm picks made of Iron, cut out with acyletene torch from old RSJ's!

Seriously though, you hit the strings and don't find that, for a moment the string goes flat as the floyd dips with the energy you've just put into that note?

No, in fact it tends to go sharp, and it can tend to go sharp on a hard tail too unless maybe you pick with a paper thin pick or pick extremely light.

I use a 2mm pick and pick hard, i mean not sensitive at all. I do use heavier strings, well at least 10's or above and have my floyds pretty taught. I play my ibanez with a hard tail most of the time as a practice guitar and switching to my floyded guitars i notice nothing except that the floyd feels better under my hand. Never had to do anything special or mentally non automatic or tip toe around anything while playing on one.
I would say i probably prefer a floyd for various reasons, tuning stability one, the feel of the bridge under my hand - nice and smooth and flat, fine tuners rule, and maybe just because for the most part i've almost always had one on my guitars.
Since it's been used by thousands and thousands of pro musicians for decades without any major i'll effect i'd say it's a non issue.
Weather someone prefers it or not is their preference.

[TKEblue]

If you don't have the technique right it wont matter that much while playing live. And if you don't have it while recording, use a tom bridge guitar on all the parts you aren't using a trem for. I don't see the fuss tho, its not even like you have to think about it. Your hand will just do after you get used to the trem.

And my guitars have great sustain..

[charvel750]

Let me settle and clean the bull shit on this thread. A Floyd equipped guitar DOES NOT need to be played more delicately than other systems. A Floyd equipped guitar DOES NOT sound thinner than other systems. You think EVH has a thin tone? Or Brad Gillis?

Floyds are for men who get rock guitar and can actually play their instruments with a sense of technicality and finesse. Love it or leave it I say.

[toejam]

I don't overly love the way double locking trems sit lower in the body as it strains my pick hand and they do go out of tune if you rest your hand on the bridge to play.

How much pressure are you putting on the bridge? You need to work on your technique. Your palm should rest mainly on the trem post area, and with not much pressure at all.

[3reach]

A Floyd equipped guitar DOES NOT sound thinner than other systems.

Yes, they do. Its just pure physics. Less wood = less energy being created = therefore less sustain and thinner, than the hardtail equivalent. Technically they will sound thinner and have less sustain going by physics, there is just no way around it. BUT, is it enough to where its a noticeable difference? Maybe. Under heavy gain? Doubt it

You think EVH has a thin tone? Or Brad Gillis?

No, but they do a lot of EQing, and I know for a fact Eddie went on record saying the floyd thinned his guitars sound.

[Cliff]

Er, the wood doesn't create the energy - the energy comes from the vibration of the strings. Vibrational energy will be introduced into the wood at the bridge and the neck where the string is fretted. How the waves then travel through the wood will be governed by many complex factors. I'm not sure you can make the simple equation that less wood means less sustain or fewer high frequencies.

[tonemonster]

Awesome! a physics debate!!!!!!!!

[Chad]

Yes, they do. Its just pure physics. Less wood = less energy being created = therefore less sustain and thinner, than the hardtail equivalent. Technically they will sound thinner and have less sustain going by physics, there is just no way around it. BUT, is it enough to where its a noticeable difference? Maybe. Under heavy gain? Doubt it

I've owned a lot of guitars and some of the "hugest" sounding ones have been Floyd equipped. And that's just plugged directly into an amp with no processing or outboard EQ enhancements. A couple examples are an Iceman (ICJ100WZ) and an EBMM Axis. Ironically, the Axis has both a small-ish body AND a Floyd, yet it sounded huge.

Less wood/more wood, blah, blah, blah. It all depends on the particular wood specimen's characteristics (density and so forth) and not merely its size. Along with all of the other parts of a particular guitar and how they interact. Basically what Cliff said.

[Chad]

Awesome! a physics debate!!!!!!!!

Okay, I've been on too many forums today, but everywhere I go it's comments like "it's just physics", "it's just physics 101", etc., then they go on to say stuff that implies they know almost nothing about physics. I engage in some tech discussions, but I am not a physicist, nor do I pretend to be one. But apparently lots of other people do. Just a rant. I think I need to take a break from the internetz.

[tonemonster]

Okay, I've been on too many forums today, but everywhere I go it's comments like "it's just physics", "it's just physics 101", etc., then they go on to say stuff that implies they know almost nothing about physics. I engage in some tech discussions, but I am not a physicist, nor do I pretend to be one. But apparently lots of other people do. Just a rant. I think I need to take a break from the internetz.

OH hell no! dont leave now! watching these guys argue physics is going to be like watching a bunch of old geezers from the nursing home race go carts.

[SixstringKing]

Oh this looks like it might get good!

[straycat]

I have a light touch and use a 2.75mm Vpick plus palm mute and never have a problem with a floyd even if I do get a bit heavy with the palm mute.

[VitaminG]

I've owned a lot of guitars and some of the "hugest" sounding ones have been Floyd equipped. And that's just plugged directly into an amp with no processing or outboard EQ enhancements. A couple examples are an Iceman (ICJ100WZ) and an EBMM Axis. Ironically, the Axis has both a small-ish body AND a Floyd, yet it sounded huge.

My number one is my US Fusion with Tone Zone, Evolution & a Schaller Floyd. Sounds AWESOME straight into my amp. The touch of chorus, OD, boost or wah that I occasionally employ is about adding colour - it's not required to thicken up my sound to counter for any inherent "thinness" caused by the Floyd. Of course, the naysayers will say it would sound even more awesome if it wasn't for the Floyd...

Most of the time, all effects are turned off. And note: no EQ on my pedalboard.

OH hell no! dont leave now! watching these guys argue physics is going to be like watching a bunch of old geezers from the nursing home race go carts.

Don't get me started!! I KNOW physics - I took the subject in high school and have watched several episodes of the Big Bang Theory.

oh, hang on a sec... I just noticed that this is PURE physics. I'm out