Parker Flys?

[wkcchampion]

You have the skill to modify and adjust your guitars, which is great, if you are starting above stock to begin with you may find it turns into a top guitar for you.
Most people have to make adjustments until they are happy, I think Marco did a few things to Eldy and now she plays very well by all accounts.

The necks do feel nice don't they?
Resonance is fantastic, I have a Les Paul... a solid Custom job at 9.5 lbs... more resonant than many light or hollowed ones I tried... but the Fly is more resonant at next to no weight... it makes me laugh when I now see LP fans seek heavy guitars for resonance... it is not the weight! It is the design that makes the difference

As for the trem... I do not know of alternatives that have been used. Mine even with Marcos set up guide, does not consistently stay in tune, is better but not perfect. This may be because I tune down by one step and I tune in perfect fourths (that is a direct change on my playing due to the Fly!). However, the unit itself... I like and wuld not change it but will spend time to set it up so it is perfect for me.

Before something as drastic as a trem change, perhaps go to the boys at Parker Guitars Forum
With your guitar knowledge, you are bound to find others at your level that will be a good sound board.

ehm really I ddin't do much to Eldy. The Parker Customer Service did, I had soem frets to be fixed. I'm still waiting for the allen wrench to come, as the trem bar is stiff... but it's a minor problem, Eldy plays and sounds great.

Yup it's the design that makes Parkers resonating. The carbon exoskeleton. I've never played a guitar with more natural sustain than a Fly. In fact, I use incredibly low gain/distortion values simply because these guitars resonate and don't need much distortion. And less gain means a rawer and more definite sound

The trem? Strange, both my guitars return to perfect pitch even after the craziest dive bomb. And my tuner has a sensitivity of +-0.5 cents.
They go sharp a bit if u pull up, but it's normal and it's intended to be. If u pull up the bar, just give a quick dive, and u should go back to tune.
I suggest checking the nut and the saddles, if it the strings hang there. If they do, file a little bit. Also, use some lubricant in those points. I use Big Bends Nut Sauce.
Another thing to do is the following: if the guitar comes back sharp after a dive bomb, try to loosen the balance wheel a bit (without putting the Step stop back to Fixed) until the guitar comes back to tune. Sometimes the floating point is a bit hidden.
As a remote possibility, the two trem ball bearings may be either rusty or worn out. They can be replaced, there's a great thread by 908ssp on Parker Forum.
Or the flat spring may be worn out too. My Mojo came with 2 defective 9-springs... auch! After buying a new one from Thomann, the tuning problems disappeared.

 

[craigny]

Parkers are nice i almost bought one...may still down the road...its on my list....If your thinking about changing the pu's just be mindful there are only certian replacements that will fit without messing with the guitar or pu's...at least for the older ones...not sure about the post Washburn ones

 

[wkcchampion]

Parkers are nice i almost bought one...may still down the road...its on my list....If your thinking about changing the pu's just be mindful there are only certian replacements that will fit without messing with the guitar or pu's...at least for the older ones...not sure about the post Washburn ones

True. Flys use a patented pickup mounting system.
PROS: the pickups are in direct contact with the body = better tone and resonance
CONS: most pickups don't fit in the stock form, but need rewinding.
ALERT: pickp changing in a Fly is not suggested. The pickup will sound dramatically different from a conventional guitar, due to the particular Fly design.
I'd never change the pickups on mine as thy both have great voicing on their own.

The new DragonFly employs the traditional mounting method.

 

[j2112c]

ehm really I ddin't do much to Eldy. The Parker Customer Service did, I had soem frets to be fixed. I'm still waiting for the allen wrench to come, as the trem bar is stiff... but it's a minor problem, Eldy plays and sounds great.

Yup it's the design that makes Parkers resonating. The carbon exoskeleton. I've never played a guitar with more natural sustain than a Fly. In fact, I use incredibly low gain/distortion values simply because these guitars resonate and don't need much distortion. And less gain means a rawer and more definite sound

The trem? Strange, both my guitars return to perfect pitch even after the craziest dive bomb. And my tuner has a sensitivity of +-0.5 cents.
They go sharp a bit if u pull up, but it's normal and it's intended to be. If u pull up the bar, just give a quick dive, and u should go back to tune.
I suggest checking the nut and the saddles, if it the strings hang there. If they do, file a little bit. Also, use some lubricant in those points. I use Big Bends Nut Sauce.
Another thing to do is the following: if the guitar comes back sharp after a dive bomb, try to loosen the balance wheel a bit (without putting the Step stop back to Fixed) until the guitar comes back to tune. Sometimes the floating point is a bit hidden.
As a remote possibility, the two trem ball bearings may be either rusty or worn out. They can be replaced, there's a great thread by 908ssp on Parker Forum.
Or the flat spring may be worn out too. My Mojo came with 2 defective 9-springs... auch! After buying a new one from Thomann, the tuning problems disappeared.

Many thanks, Marco, I suspect it is binding a little at the nut I will try a little lubricant... pencil shavings or nut sauce, then I suppose it would be a file job.

If it needs a file it will go to a luthier and I will get them opened up for a set of 10's.

I have the balance point spot on and the bearings will not have worn on this one yet... so once more unto the nut we go!

 

[wkcchampion]

Many thanks, Marco, I suspect it is binding a little at the nut I will try a little lubricant... pencil shavings or nut sauce, then I suppose it would be a file job.

If it needs a file it will go to a luthier and I will get them opened up for a set of 10's.

I have the balance point spot on and the bearings will not have worn on this one yet... so once more unto the nut we go!

No, if the nut is tight, the luber won't help much anyway, as it will wear out fast.
Do the following test:

- Tune the guitar to pitch and leave the step-stop in the Fixed position.
- Press each string behind the nut, I mean... in the area betwen the nut and the machine heads. Press/bend a bit hard, but not too much of course
- Check back the tuning: any string which has gone off tune has the nut slot too tight! and therefore it needs to be filed with the proper file.

Remember that, would u like to move onto the 10-46 gauge, a 10-spring needs to be fitted.

 

[j2112c]

No, if the nut is tight, the luber won't help much anyway, as it will wear out fast.
Do the following test:

- Tune the guitar to pitch and leave the step-stop in the Fixed position.
- Press each string behind the nut, I mean... in the area betwen the nut and the machine heads. Press/bend a bit hard, but not too much of course
- Check back the tuning: any string which has gone off tune has the nut slot too tight! and therefore it needs to be filed with the proper file.

Remember that, would u like to move onto the 10-46 gauge, a 10-spring needs to be fitted.

I will play with it in the next few days.

I put a set of 10's on with the 10 spring, but the nut seems to have been precut for 9's from the factory. I am happy to stay wth 9's now... but if the nut needs cutting I will get it opened up to take 10's so I have an option...
... they are lovely though are they not? I was in a band practice yesterday and I had a moment when I thought '...this is such a nice guitar!'

 

[jcmjmp]

Jcmjmp, why for hell would u need that sh*t named Tremsetter?
I had one on my old Cort and it was crap.

The trem itself can be pu into Fixed or Floating mode. And if u take your time it'll stay in perfect tune. Read my guides on Parker Forum. They are made for Flys, but I've been told that they work for Niteflys too.

Uh? I've used tremsetters on all my guitars and they've always worked flawlessly. Do you what what a tremsetter does? It "sets" the bridge in its resting position so that when you bend strings, the other ones don't go out of tune, which is useful when you're playing double stops.

Your Parker players are really close minded it seems (judging from this post and the parker forum)

 

[jcmjmp]

I will play with it in the next few days.

I put a set of 10's on with the 10 spring, but the nut seems to have been precut for 9's from the factory. I am happy to stay wth 9's now... but if the nut needs cutting I will get it opened up to take 10's so I have an option...
... they are lovely though are they not? I was in a band practice yesterday and I had a moment when I thought '...this is such a nice guitar!'

If your trem isn't staying in tune, your strings are most probably binding in the nut. Make sure that you don't wrap the strings around the tuners posts either. With locking tuners, you need no more that a 1/4 turn.

The trem has very smooth action and will return to pitch. I noticed that my Parker could use a better nut setup. I should post some pics of a properly cut nut.

 

[wkcchampion]

Uh? I've used tremsetters on all my guitars and they've always worked flawlessly. Do you what what a tremsetter does? It "sets" the bridge in its resting position so that when you bend strings, the other ones don't go out of tune, which is useful when you're playing double stops.

Your Parker players are really close minded it seems (judging from this post and the parker forum)

It won't work with a Fly. And it makes the trem so stiff.
You can do that by leaving the bridge in Bend down only and tight the Balance wheel more.
There's really no need for that clumsy device

 

[jcmjmp]

It won't work with a Fly. And it makes the trem so stiff.
You can do that by leaving the bridge in Bend down only and tight the Balance wheel more.
There's really no need for that clumsy device

The tremsetter's stiffness can be totally adjusted for a loose or tight feel and you can still bend up/down with the trem. Maybe if you didn't discard it so fast, you would have learned to set it up properly. Not clumsy at all.

As for the nitefly's trem, I do like it. Its very smooth and slick. Feels nice under the palm but I'll have to find a solution. Ibanez has a similar device tat might work with the Parker trem route.

 

[wkcchampion]

The tremsetter's stiffness can be totally adjusted for a loose or tight feel and you can still bend up/down with the trem. Maybe if you didn't discard it so fast, you would have learned to set it up properly. Not clumsy at all.

As for the nitefly's trem, I do like it. Its very smooth and slick. Feels nice under the palm but I'll have to find a solution. Ibanez has a similar device tat might work with the Parker trem route.

With the tremsetter you can't do any Brian May tricks. It won't oscillate, it'll come back to place instantly. Try playing We Will Rock you or It's Late with that and you'll see what I'm talking about.
And who cares if the open strings go out of tune when bending... haha

 

[j2112c]

If your trem isn't staying in tune, your strings are most probably binding in the nut.

Yes, it is quite possible on this guitar, I will see if it is just a bit sticky or if it needs cutting in the near future I think, thanks.

I should post some pics of a properly cut nut.

That would be useful, thanks.


As for Parker bods, I would say if not close minded... a little more fanatical about their guitars than most ha ha! I love mine and I am on a Parker crusade trying to convert as many of my mates as possible!

 

[wkcchampion]

Yes, it is quite possible on this guitar, I will see if it is just a bit sticky or if it needs cutting in the near future I think, thanks.



That would be useful, thanks.


As for Parker bods, I would say if not close minded... a little more fanatical about their guitars than most ha ha! I love mine and I am on a Parker crusade trying to convert as many of my mates as possible!

I'm not close minded at all. I just stay away from crazy modding which is close to useless and requires drilling and other things like that. Too risky to damage such an expensive guitar for a feature I don't care about at all.

 

[jcmjmp]

With the tremsetter you can't do any Brian May tricks. It won't oscillate, it'll come back to place instantly. Try playing We Will Rock you or It's Late with that and you'll see what I'm talking about.
And who cares if the open strings go out of tune when bending... haha

I'm not into Brian May tricks, so I guess its not an issue for me.

For the out of tune strings when bending, I stated that its a problem with double stops (bend one string while holding another and both get played at the same time).

Anyways... Doesn't really matter. I know what I like and I'll find a solution.

 

[j2112c]

I'm not close minded at all. I just stay away from crazy modding which is close to useless and requires drilling and other things like that. Too risky to damage such an expensive guitar for a feature I don't care about at all.

No I did not say you were close minded

I was saying that Parker guys are a little more fanatical about their guitars than most in my experience, me included! I never have felt so partisan towards another brand in 25 years of playing.

I think it is in part because Les Pauls and Strats have their place in 'history', they are established and understood, in terms of sound and image.

....whereas 'our' guitars are new concept, technology and the look/shape is unconventional and does not appeal to all. They play beautifully and that makes it even more important that people see beyond the unconventional looks and design.

I think the Les Paul weight issue is typical - heavy Pauls sustain more than hollowed or light ones - ergo - the heavier the guitar the more resonance - so the Parker should be very Strat like, thinner with minimal sustain...but nothing is further from the truth... looks are the decieving part!

 

[j2112c]

The thread is buzzing along again... he he... it is pretty active when you compare to the Les Paul or Kramer threads that have come and gone...

Divided opinion and fanatism... ha ha perfect! Now lets not leave any blood on the carpet guys!

 

[wkcchampion]

No I did not say you were close minded

I was saying that Parker guys are a little more fanatical about their guitars than most in my experience, me included! I never have felt so partisan towards another brand in 25 years of playing.

I think it is in part because Les Pauls and Strats have their place in 'history', they are established and understood, in terms of sound and image.

....whereas 'our' guitars are new concept, technology and the look/shape is unconventional and does not appeal to all. They play beautifully and that makes it even more important that people see beyond the unconventional looks and design.

I think the Les Paul weight issue is typical - heavy Pauls sustain more than hollowed or light ones - ergo - the heavier the guitar the more resonance - so the Parker should be very Strat like, thinner with minimal sustain...but nothing is further from the truth... looks are the decieving part!

The Fly has been used by a good bunch of very famous guitarists, like Brian May, EVH, The Edge and so on. Check out Queen's Mother Love, Brian recorded the entire song with a Fly Classic.

I understand the tone argument though. These guitars, especially the earlier ones with Gen1 pickups (like Eldy), have a very distinct voicing. Thy won't give you a LP or Strat tone, they have their own. I mean, they have a lot of definition and some sweet frequencies that aren't commonly found. Again, listen to that Queen song, and hear how Brian (who of course is a master) gives nuances to the notes. I believe he recorded with the Fly direct (no amp), mixing piezo and magnetics, with delay, reverb and chorus.

 

[j2112c]

The Fly has been used by a good bunch of very famous guitarists, like Brian May, EVH, The Edge and so on.

Quite true, yes, famous gutarist use them, but they are not famous for using them.

My point is that when you think May you think of his Red Guitar, EVH the Frankenstrat Kramer, The Edge the wood finish Gibson Explorer... when the you think Parker you think.....
...er what do you think....?
Vernon Reid? Adrian Belwho? K.W. Engage?


This is where Gibson and Fender are known from years of sounds, years of famous artists... Hendrix Strat - Slash LP - the list is endless... and it does effect public conciousness of these 'brand sounds' and what to expect from them.
Nobody outside our Parker community I think has a very real idea of what Parker is.... we see this in all the comments about the guitars that are nonsense - like they do not sustain, the necks are too slippery and need to grip more, lots of uninformed 'stuff'.


One thing I would like is a stronger endorseeship of Parker... one that enhanced the positives of the brand. If they are advanced quick playing guitars, get them endorsed by Prog. Metallers or Jazz Fusionists like Steinberg targeted years ago... Holdsworth, Garsed ect

We know that endorseeship is often marketing, it often has little to do with the product and it is mainly paying artists but it helps so much.

(Kramer was the worst for paying over the top for artist endorseeship - perhaps EVH was the only one that could be justified) -


Just more fuel to the thread!

 

[wkcchampion]

This has been discussed a lot. Many Parker users agree that Parker has done bad marketing in the years.
Obviously, Gibson and Fender are famous because they have contracts everywhere. Parker should do more in this aspect.
When I bought the Mojo, I had never heard of any of the endorsers except Adrian Belew... And I don't like them today as well Especially Martone and Adam from KW Engage

 

[j2112c]

This has been discussed a lot. Many Parker users agree that Parker has done bad marketing in the years.
Obviously, Gibson and Fender are famous because they have contracts everywhere. Parker should do more in this aspect.
When I bought the Mojo, I had never heard of any of the endorsers except Adrian Belew... And I don't like them today as well Especially Martone and Adam from KW Engage

Indeed. Agreed.