How much sound improvement do non-plastic bridge pins do?

[LeDave]

I'm planning on replacing plastic bridge pins to bone ones. Is the upgrade that much better?

[YamahaGuy]

Negligible, marginal at best. String changes will be easier, as the aftermarket pins typically pop out much easier. I change them for aesthetic appeal and to facilitate easier string changes.

[LeDave]

Originally Posted by YamahaGuy

Negligible, marginal at best. String changes will be easier, as the aftermarket pins typically pop out much easier. I change them for aesthetic appeal and to facilitate easier string changes.

Thanks a bunch! Just canceled the bone bridge pins order before it shipped.

[YamahaGuy]

Originally Posted by LeDave

Thanks a bunch! Just canceled the bone bridge pins order before it shipped.

No problem. I've tried brass bridge pins, titanium bridge pins, ebony, rosewood, and boxwood. None have yielded a sonic difference that made me say, "oh my gosh!"

Others swear that a Buffalo horn pin on the bass string E with others elsewhere really make a guitar sound lots better. The pins hold the ball end to the bridge plate on the underside of the guitar top. The sound of the guitar comes mainly from the vibrations of the top, with the energy generated from two key points: the nut, and the saddle, with the saddle being more dominant with respect to what affects the tone. Once a string is fretted, nut material is a moot point.

Also, most people put new strings on when changing bridge pins, and new strings always sound better, so often it's a false sense of what made the improvement in tone.
I hope that helps.

[LeDave]

Thanks again! I read a review on a bone bridge pins somewhere at Amazon. He stated that the bridge pins made is cheap guitar sound like a expensive one, so I was skeptical and had to ask this question. Thanks for saving me money.

[Brucebubs]

You should have tried them.
I've swapped pins around on all my guitars.
Some made virtually no difference at all - especially on my more expensive guitars - but an upgrade to bone saddle and pins together with DR Sunbeam light round-core strings totally transformed my Epiphone EJ-200 - it plays and sounds way better than I ever imagined.

Here it is next to my Huss & Dalton - both bought used in 2018 - the H&D cost 10 times more than the Epiphone.

[David Eastwood]

Originally Posted by YamahaGuy

Negligible, marginal at best. String changes will be easier, as the aftermarket pins typically pop out much easier. I change them for aesthetic appeal and to facilitate easier string changes.

Agreed. Given that you're pretty new to this, I'd suggest that learning how to change strings properly, and then experimenting with different types, would be much more beneficial than futzing around with bridge pins.

As I said in an earlier post, if you like the way your guitar sounds and plays, right now, get on with the business of learning to play, and enjoying it.

Don't get sucked up into the minutiae here.

[mirwa]

You should have ordered them to try out, they add mass to the bridge, any mass changes equal tonal changes

[Larpy]

As I understand it, it's the weight of bridge pins that make a difference, regardless of what they are made of. The heavier the pins, the more the tonal balance shifts to the bass. So if you have a bright or thin-sounding guitar, using heavier pins might sound better.

Plastic and most wood pins are the lightest. Bone is heavier. Titanium is heavier still.

[Wellington]

I'm in the camp that the difference isn't very noticeable usually, the saddle is a lot more noticeable.

Also, for what it's worth and it looks like it's been touched on, you're new to guitar and its super exciting and by all means enjoy the tweaking of your instrument, but it might be beneficial to not worry about all the small details and just enjoy the guitar as you practice and get better, because honestly it will take years for your ears to become attuned to minute differences, not that you couldn't notice it now, but over time you will discover what YOU think sounds better, instead of a million other peoples opinions on what sounds better which is what you're subjected to now on this site and by being a young person in the age of internet.

I'm glad I only discovered this site and the differences in tone woods etc a few years ago, up until then I just played and enjoyed what I have, not I'm always on a endless journey for the right sound/right guitar, which can be fun but also takes away a lot of the careless fun. Ignorance is bliss, haha.

[phavriluk]

I agree with the advice above to concentrate on playing skills and leave tinkering with hardware to an undefined future. When how one's chair position has a greater influence on perceived sound than all the swapping of bridge pins will ever have... And besides, nobody's brought up the acoustic effects of a pinless bridge...

[Howard Klepper]

There are two things about bridge pins that affect the sound of a guitar: the color, and the price. White pins make a guitar sound brighter, while black pins make it sound darker. And the more you spend on pins, the better the guitar will sound.

[fregly]

I would avoid the weighty brass pins. All the rest are likely equivalent. I usually get wood pins to match bridge color closely cause that is the look I like.

[Frank Ford]

Originally Posted by Howard Klepper

There are two things about bridge pins that affect the sound of a guitar: the color, and the price. White pins make a guitar sound brighter, while black pins make it sound darker. And the more you spend on pins, the better the guitar will sound.

WELL SAID!