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Post subject: Issues with my 2009 american Tele.
Posted: Wed May 26, 2010 7:29 pm
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So. I have owned this guitar for about 7 months.
I already own a 2005 american so I thought adding a second one would round out my live rig.
But all I've had is issues with it since I got it.

Now a bit of background.
I play a half step down, drop d.

My problem is that this guitar, when properly set up, will not hold tune even through a whole song.
I have have had 4 (!!!!) different people set this up (including the guy that has done all my other guitars flawlessly)
Also, the string saddles at the bridge seem to adjust themselves the more I play.
Basically, I cannot play the guitar.

Has anyone had this problem before?
Any ideas what the problem could be?


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Posted: Thu May 27, 2010 6:53 am
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I want toi make sure that I understand, do you play in "E" flat, or half a step down in "D?"

Now to your problem. I'm not a tech, but it could be the saddles or it could be the nut. My first guess is the nut. I'll pose this question to a luther I know and see what he can tell me.

I know what it feels like to buy a guitar and then find out that the thing imposible to play. And no matter what you do or who you take it to they can't figure it out either.

My buddy Phil Jacoby has never failed me.

Paris


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Posted: Thu May 27, 2010 11:33 am
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sorry for not being clear.
We play in e flat but the low is tuned do a d flat.
so it's dropped d tuning, but everything is flat.
I'm not good with this kind of stuff.

For some reason it just seems like all these people who work on guitars just can't seem to solve the problem. It's a bummer.


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Posted: Thu May 27, 2010 6:03 pm
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As I saw on a poster somewhere, "I have no solution but I certainly admire your problem."

But what you're saying makes no sense.

Not holding tune (in normal circumstances) will be either stretchy strings or bad tuners. When it de-tunes is it going sharp or flat?

Now if it's not a stable platform to maintain the relation of the string to the body and neck, maybe so, but what you're talking about is like the neck has no truss rod? That should be pretty obvious.

And the saddles "adjusting themselves" during playing. Huh? Are they moving up and down in relation to the next, or just moving back and forth? Half step down on strings isn't a big deal, you're going to have to have strings clown-loose before bridge saddles start moving.

Are you playing death metal and using a drywall paddle as a pick? Not bustin' on you, just curious as can be as to how I could replicate the problem you're describing.


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Posted: Thu May 27, 2010 6:22 pm
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Shouldn't be the tuning. I have a highway one, and we play Eb and occasionally drop Db and no tuning issues. It actually holds solid through a half hour set and i also play combination rhythm and lead.


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Posted: Thu May 27, 2010 8:36 pm
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That's very strange indeed. Telecasters are about most stable tuning platforms I've encountered. I can bash mine around all night and still play in tune.

I suspect you've got some truss rod issues. Perhaps you should examine it yourself? Fender has some excellent how-to guides on their website; they're available under the "support" tab at the top of the page.


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Posted: Fri May 28, 2010 10:54 pm
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This is the information I received from my buddy Phil.

I hope it helps.

Quick answers:

1) While friction in the nut is the major culprit in tuning issues, other things affect it:
strings - reasonably good condition and properly installed, hopefully lockwrapped!
loose screws adn poorly fitting hardware - opportunities to hang up and misbehave; guitar vibrate and loose stuff vibrates along with it.
floppy neck - not stable enough, usually because of a poor piece of shaft material, nothing can be done about that.
Basically the movement of parts of the system needs to be controlled, some allowed to move in limited range and some only when desired to move. Nothing can be done about a neck that fill not stay still. Fender makes many, many guitars and as such while their overall quality of the AM line is very good, lemons can get out. IF this is a new guitar, pursue warranty options!

Paris


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Posted: Sat May 29, 2010 8:45 am
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raeldridge wrote:
As I saw on a poster somewhere, "I have no solution but I certainly admire your problem."

But what you're saying makes no sense.

Not holding tune (in normal circumstances) will be either stretchy strings or bad tuners. When it de-tunes is it going sharp or flat?

Now if it's not a stable platform to maintain the relation of the string to the body and neck, maybe so, but what you're talking about is like the neck has no truss rod? That should be pretty obvious.

And the saddles "adjusting themselves" during playing. Huh? Are they moving up and down in relation to the next, or just moving back and forth? Half step down on strings isn't a big deal, you're going to have to have strings clown-loose before bridge saddles start moving.

Are you playing death metal and using a drywall paddle as a pick? Not bustin' on you, just curious as can be as to how I could replicate the problem you're describing.


When it de-tunes it's going flat. Even after properly stretching the strings, it still will not maintain a proper tuning.

The saddles will move south, so to speak. They migrate themselves towards the body. I don't really know how to explain it more.
I'm not a hard player.
This is why it makes no sense.

I don't think it's the neck to be on it to be honest. There's no noticeable issues with it. It's just a weird problem.
Thanks for all the suggestions though.


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