Hi Guys...and Gals

OK, dumb question of the day (there are no dumb questions I hear you cry). Why are the saddles on a strat, and most other electric guitars, typically arranged in a kind of arc. By this I mean the E string saddles are set the lowest with the A and B a little higher and the two middle strings, D and G, set the highest. I can understand it on say a violin where each string needs to played individually with a bow but why are they set this way on a guitar. When you strum a chord wouldn't you be more likely to hit each string evenly if all the strings were set at the same height?

Thanks
Chris

It's to more accurately match the radius of the fretboard.

The low E is always the highest string on my guitars. It needs more room to move.

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No no and no

I think it's to do with the curvature of the fretboard, tho' i may be wrong. Look at your guitar and you'll see it clearly, the neck curves up from the low strings kind of reaches a peak in the middle and then curves back down again to the high E and B strings, the saddles compensate for that.

PS. Nick beat me to it

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Luck won't do it and ignorance can't

George Van Eps.