Difference between String Thru and Hairdtail

[Chromatic]

Is there a difference besides the looks?

[Spivonious]

With the string-thru the strings are inserted into holes in the back of the body. A hardtail is a metal piece attached to the body. The strings are run through the metal, not through the body.

As far as sound differences, that's up to the listener. Personally, I think string-thru gives a much "meatier" sound with a bit more sustain. ymmv

[toejam]

With the string-thru the strings are inserted into holes in the back of the body. A hardtail is a metal piece attached to the body. The strings are run through the metal, not through the body.

They're both strung through the body. At least a true hardtail is. I've seen a few bridges through the years from other manufacturers that run through the back of the bridge and not the body, though, like you're speaking of.

[emperor_black]

Never mind...

[toejam]

Here's my USA Fender Double Fat Strat Hardtail...

[Archtop]

This is a 'hardtail', like on Toejam's Strat above-




This is a 'stop tailpiece', NOT a 'hardtail' -




This is a 'string-thru' -




Technically, the 'hardtail' bridge IS a string-thru, but it is commonly referred to as a 'hardtail'. Guitars with a Tunematic (or Tune-O-Matic) bridge and have the strings fed through the body (like the Archtop above) are commonly referred to as 'string-thrus'.

[Chromatic]

sorry for the mixup...

stop tailpiece & string thru sound difference

[Axewielder]

I often hear both top-loader fixed bridges as well as string-thrus referred to as "hardtails", to differentiate from tremolos. Wrong?

[toejam]

I often hear both top-loader fixed bridges as well as string-thrus referred to as "hardtails", to differentiate from tremolos. Wrong?

Technically, it is wrong. Fixed bridge would be better to use instead of saying hardtail. Like the Strats that Archtop and I posted, those are hardtail bridges.
Though, it seems a lot of people like to use the word hardtail for any type of fixed bridge, especially Dean with its Hardtail model that technically has a tun-o-matic bridge with a stop tailpiece.

[DonP]

Differences in sound can be huge.

On the LesPaulForum, there is a huge debate of lightweight Aluminum tailpieces vs. heavy Zinc tailpieces, steel studs vs. brass, topwrap vs. normal, the difference in tone if the stop tailpiece is flush with the body vs. up in the air, and on and on.

The point is, that even with a stop tailpiece setup alone there is a huge debate on how different setups affect the tone. A string thru setup throws in a whole new set of parameters that could impact the tone.

I have 4 Les Pauls , 2 SGs for the tailpiece team, and a Charvel 750XL for the string thru team. I prefer the stop tailpiece for the feel and the flexibility it gives you.

[secks]

Top wrapping a tail piece will smooth the tone if the guitar is too bright or too bassy and will increase the sustain as the bridge will be further buried to the body. The light weight one will also give a smoother tone and decrease the weight of the guitar. A well constructed string thru instrument will not have these issues to overcome in the first place.

IMHO a string thru instrument will be more efficiently transmitting the vibrations to the body thus providing more sustain and the true sound of the instrument.