So I have a 2008 MIA Standard. I love it but at times it bugs the crap out of me. Why? String choke.

Now I know what you're all gonna say and I'll stop you right there; the action is not real low. In fact its still factory set with minor adjustments.

The choke happens at arround the 15th fret when bending more than a semi tone particular on the high E string. Very irritating.

Now like I said the action is far from low. Its close to standard in fact. I was thinking that it might be becasue I use 10 gague strings instead of the factory fitted 9s. As in higher thension making a slight difference to the curvature of the neck?!??!! I've adjusted the truss rods on old and cheap guitars and bases before so I have a good idea what I'm doing but I be far to freakin nervous to try it on my strat.

Any thoughts what i can do to get rid of the choke without turning my baby into a slide guitar? Sub question how to you achieve low action without loss of sound on a strat?

Help, help, help..........

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"For every one person who loves you there are five lined up to just hate you" - P. Westerberg

Hi leftofthedial: just a little bit of basic information required. Did your guitar have this choking high on the neck before you switched from 9s to 10s? Or is it specifically associated with the heavier strings?

An obvious question, but I'm not sure the answer is so obvious, if indeed it has developed since the string change.

Yes of course heavier strings will curve the neck a little bit more. But that shouldn't cause choking anywhere - indeed the opposite. Essentially, the nut end of the neck will have been pulled foward in relation to the rest of the guitar, slightly raising the relief in the middle of the neck. However, presuming nothing else has changed, then if anything the strings should be slightly higher over the tongue (top end) of the neck too.

On the other hand, if you have adjusted the microtilt a shade with the idea of counteracting the heavier strings, then all is clear. The tongue will have been raised in relation to the strings: outcome, choking.

Same thing if you have dropped the saddles, to compensate for what your fingers perceive as higher action, but is really higher relief.

Does that make sense?

Essentially, I think something else must have changed in addition to the strings. Identify that and we will be approaching a solution.

Over to you.

Cheers - C

Phew. About the 9s choking I don't know. I found the factory fitted strings to be really unstable for tuning when I got the guitar so switched up to my prefered gague and brand. If the coated strings didn't last so well I would have reverted to 9s by now just to test it! (seriously coated strings are the future!)

Can you tell me more about how to work to micro tilt function? This sounds interesting.

Thanks

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"For every one person who loves you there are five lined up to just hate you" - P. Westerberg

Whoa! If you haven't adjusted that microtilt already - then leave it well alone! That's only going to make this problem worse.

You understand what it is, right? That little hole in you neckplate has a bolt inside it that can be driven up into the heel of the neck to raise it so's the neck starts to angle downwards from the face of the guitar.

Miami Mike ran a thread here asking how many people ever used it: the answer turned out to be almost none of us. Strat neck joints are very well made these days. Little likelyhood you'd need to adjust that microtilt.

I was only asking in case you had done so, because it would explain your choking problem.

So instead, have you made adjustments to you saddles?

Cheers - C

I would check if the radius if the strings at the bridge matches the radius of your neck. One of the main reasons strats went with a flatter radius over time was that players were 'fretting out' or as you say choking higher on the fretboard, though many prefer the more round radius for first position chords.

Is your bridge level? Like is maybe the treble side higher or lower than the bass side?
I would check that stuff out first.

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I'm not an expert, but I play one on the internet.

Why mess around? Just take it to a good tech and have it set up.

If it's just one particular area, or string, I'd look at a fret over there. It's possible that one might be a tad high.

I think I'd have someone check the level of those frets first to rule that out.

Thanks for the info chaps. I have raise the action slightly and it seems to have helped a little (i have 1 tone bend capability now!).

I'll give a few other things a go and see if there is any improvements.

Cheers

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"For every one person who loves you there are five lined up to just hate you" - P. Westerberg