Anybody Used One of These? Have We Discussed These Before? String Butler

Hackmaster said:
Beware of imitations, ol' Gibbo had the string butler years ago as standard equipment.
Image result for picture of gibson moderne headstock
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The Moderne has an odd delayed tuning response because of the pulleys. When you adjust one of the middle strings it's a second or so before the pitch settles. On a meter you can actually watch the needle keep moving after you turn the button. Kind of freaky. Tuning my Moderne used to drive our stage tech nuts - a short trip for him.

I wonder whether the String Butler exhibits similar behavior?
 
syscokid said:
Two very good video reviews on the current String Butler. I'm actually surprised by the results:



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All kidding aside, the reason I purchased the Wilkinson product in my earlier post was not because of any general tuning stability issues. I purchased it for my 1974 SG, which has the Bigsby-style vibrato on it. I was attempting to improve pitch return when using the vibrato. I kept it on the guitar for quite some time, but eventually removed it, as it didn't seem to help much with that - though it didn't seem to hurt anything, either. Replacing the plastic nut with a Delrin nut actually helped more. Plus, I prefer the cleaner look of just a truss rod cover.

However, like I said, the Wilkinson product merely replaces the truss rod cover, and is only held in place with very small screws. The String Butler does seem to attach much more firmly to the headstock. So, that's a plus.

The frustrating thing about the second video posted is that the guitar being used actually has a Bigsby on it and he never demonstrated the String Butler's performance with the Bigsby! Arrgh! That's what I wanted to see.
 
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Looking at the vids, it seems the String Butler is intended as a fix for people whose G string goes flat. That isn't a problem I've ever had on Gibsons. I originally thought the SB should help with sharp problems too, but there's nothing in the vids to show that.

I kept wishing they'd do some big bends on the low E & A and then check the tuning on the G string; that would've been proof for me that it was doing its job. Or work the Bigsby a bit like Smitty suggested and then check that G.

I still believe most tuning problems on Gibson/Epi types are typicall due to poorly cut nuts. Perhaps I could be convinced, but first I'd need to have a guitar that doesn't hold its tune well to test the Butler on. My only problem guitars are Strats, and most of mine have no real trouble either.
 
eclecticsynergy said:
Looking at the vids, it seems the String Butler is intended as a fix for people whose G string goes flat. That isn't a problem I've ever had on Gibsons. I originally thought the SB should help with sharp problems too, but there's nothing in the vids to show that.

I kept wishing they'd do some big bends on the low E & A and then check the tuning on the G string; that would've been proof for me that it was doing its job. Or work the Bigsby a bit like Smitty suggested and then check that G.

I still believe most tuning problems on Gibson/Epi types are typicall due to poorly cut nuts. Perhaps I could be convinced, but first I'd need to have a guitar that doesn't hold its tune well to test the Butler on. My only problem guitars are Strats, and most of mine have no real trouble either.
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Good points!!!
 
eclecticsynergy said:
Looking at the vids, it seems the String Butler is intended as a fix for people whose G string goes flat. That isn't a problem I've ever had on Gibsons. I originally thought the SB should help with sharp problems too, but there's nothing in the vids to show that.

I kept wishing they'd do some big bends on the low E & A and then check the tuning on the G string; that would've been proof for me that it was doing its job. Or work the Bigsby a bit like Smitty suggested and then check that G.

I still believe most tuning problems on Gibson/Epi types are typicall due to poorly cut nuts. Perhaps I could be convinced, but first I'd need to have a guitar that doesn't hold its tune well to test the Butler on. My only problem guitars are Strats, and most of mine have no real trouble either.
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Most of my G string issues were nearly eliminated by switching to a wound G string. I say ”nearly” because it now acts like the other strings, with no unique oddities of its own.

I even use a wound G on my Jackson with a Floyd Rose. A wound G also removed a lot of the spikiness on my Strat, as well as performing better with the vibrato.
 
smitty_p said:
Most of my G string issues were nearly eliminated by switching to a wound G string. I say ”nearly” because it now acts like the other strings, with no unique oddities of its own.

I even use a wound G on my Jackson with a Floyd Rose. A wound G also removed a lot of the spikiness on my Strat, as well as performing better with the vibrato.
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I tried the D'Addario .017" wound 'G' but couldn't bend it enough to play some of our solos....
 
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