resonance dead spot

[Tor]

Re: resonance dead spot

Got the very same problem with my G&L, the 13th fret on the B-string. Annoys me to no end, as I really, really like the guitar in all other aspects!

The guitar tech I consulted gave the same reasoning as Ashur gave. I do hope it's something else though. Gonna have another tech look at it later..

Report back with your findings Fuse.

[uOpt]

Re: resonance dead spot

http://www.stratoblogster.com/2006/10/fatfinger-headstock-guitar-sustain.html

It is basically a weight you put on the headstock hoping it wiggles things and the resonance frequency ends up somewhere where it's not a base note anymore.

I have one and it just kills the guitar sound for me, but not much, so YMMV. It will probably work better if you remove the velvet and mount it hard.

Another thing is that what is resonating there might be your truss rod, I would wiggle it a bit (loosen it, tighten it again) to see whether it's maybe a little loose. Also check for loose tuners.

What has a large chance of moving the resonance frequency if it is not the truss rod is change light to heavy tuners, or vice versa, whatever you have.

[GoldenVulture]

Re: resonance dead spot

One of my guitars has a really annoying dead spot on the 3rd string 11th fret. I like to hang out in this area of the neck pretty often so it's actually bugging the crap out of me. I fret that note and it decays wayyy faster than any other note.

I can tell it's got nothing to do with setup or frets, as all I have to do to get the note to ring out is to press the headstock up against something like a wall or door frame. As soon as I back away, the note dies.

Have you guys had this problem? What did you do? Live with it? Sell it? Fixing it doesn't seem like a possibility, as it's a set neck.

Does it have humbuckers?

[FuseG4]

Re: resonance dead spot

Does it have humbuckers?

Yes it does

[FuseG4]

Re: resonance dead spot

let's put it this way:
if it were your guitar, and it was not your "#1", but you feel like you worked hard for it, would you drop MORE money into it trying to fix something like this, or would you sell it, and go find "teh ONE"?
I mean, if I sell it, sure, I loose some $. If I pump more $ into it and still sell it, then I'm out more money! Every dollar spent fixing the problem could instead go to funding one that plays great out of the box.

i dunno... I'm sittin here playing it... the guitar sounds good, except for that fret. It seems like I should just go for the "super setup" and get a guitar tech to just make it the best he can and then I'll live with the one fret being a little weak, if it's not fixable. I had better not give up too quickly. I really did bust my ass to buy this thing and I do really like it.

[Redmist]

Re: resonance dead spot

Fret slot. But yeah, that's the cause of dead spots almost always (in my very limited experience).

This is the first check I would make if it is definately not the next fret up choking the played string.

It's no big deal to heat the fret and pull it without damaging the board, especially if it isn't seated well.

[GoldenVulture]

Re: resonance dead spot

Yes it does

You could try adjusting the pup/s further away from the strings and make sure it's not a string/magnet pull issue.

[FuseG4]

Re: resonance dead spot

You could try adjusting the pup/s further away from the strings and make sure it's not a string/magnet pull issue.

thanks, but this is one of the first things I looked at. It seems to be unrelated to magnet pull.

[Ashurbanipal]

Re: resonance dead spot

let's put it this way:
if it were your guitar, and it was not your "#1", but you feel like you worked hard for it, would you drop MORE money into it trying to fix something like this, or would you sell it, and go find "teh ONE"?
I mean, if I sell it, sure, I loose some $. If I pump more $ into it and still sell it, then I'm out more money! Every dollar spent fixing the problem could instead go to funding one that plays great out of the box.

i dunno... I'm sittin here playing it... the guitar sounds good, except for that fret. It seems like I should just go for the "super setup" and get a guitar tech to just make it the best he can and then I'll live with the one fret being a little weak, if it's not fixable. I had better not give up too quickly. I really did bust my ass to buy this thing and I do really like it.

Did you play the guitar before you bought it?

If you really like the guitar and it's just one note, I wouldn't lose my head over it; hell, I've been living with mine for a long time and it hasn't impeded my music making progress. And I only have one working electric guitar, so I can't go to another that doesn't have bum notes. Take it to a tech and ask for an opinion.

[FuseG4]

Re: resonance dead spot

Nah I got it online. I played a few in the guitar store, and they all sounded pretty dang good. I thought I had nothing to lose. Well, I didn't even know about dead spots until I owned this one.

[guitfiddle]

Re: resonance dead spot

Fret slot sounds about right. If one is up a bit, then it won't transfer all the vibrational energy to the neck. It's just like when you put the neck against the wall, and it resonates, then dies as you pull it away. Same thing happens if the fret is pulled away from the board.

[Empty Pockets]

Re: resonance dead spot

gota play 'em before you buy 'em man

got

to

.

i broke this rule twice and got lucky, but i'm lucky in a lot of ways. people with average or normal luck should always play-test first.

[FuseG4]

Re: resonance dead spot

I've been making adjustments to the truss rod and I've straightened the neck out a little over the last few days. I had it at about .09" and took it down to what looks like about half of what it was.
The dead spot isn't gone, but it's a little better. So does that point to a fret problem after all? Does that change or adjust your diagnosis?

I've got a ton of stuff to take care of as I'm moving, I don't wanna take it to a tech until I know I've got a little chunk of change in the bank, just in case. Plus I'd like to give the guy a direction to go in before I hand this baby over.

[FuseG4]

Re: resonance dead spot

gota play 'em before you buy 'em man

got

to

.

i broke this rule twice and got lucky, but i'm lucky in a lot of ways. people with average or normal luck should always play-test first.

I got super lucky with the strat from wildwood. I had a feeling that they don't stock too many of the "duds", based on people reviewing them, but one can't be sure. I'm happy I hit a home run.
But overall, I'm pretty turned off to the idea of gambling $1000 on wood and workmanship variables. If I get a LP, I know I have to play it first. I've seen a ton of variance in those. Good thing I finally have no plans to buy any guitars for a while.