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Post subject: Did I Just Damage My New (MiM) Tele?
Posted: Wed Nov 14, 2012 12:33 am
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Hello fellow tele lovers,

I may have accidentally damaged my tele tonight. First - here is the introduction:

I know virtually nothing about (the anatomy of) guitars. I just know that I absolutely love the sound of telecasters. I know how to (just barely) play the guitar as I learned on my old acoustic Fender. I thought learning how to play electric would be a nice hobby, and since I love the sound of telecasters I picked one up recently.

I only know how to play barre chords as well as a few scales but I'm having a blast and I love the tones. I have no clue what I'm doing on guitar at this point and I already love the sounds this thing is creating! I'll be taking my first lessons soon.

Ok so this is where the sad part comes in... tonight I was taking the guitar off and was a bit careless in the motion I used to take it and the strap up and over my head... long story short on the way up and off I accidentally rammed the tuning keys and/or headstock into an overhead light and fan. It was a really solid hit. It was brutal - I immediately felt my stomach sink.

I can't see any visual damage whatsoever.

Anyways, I played a bit after the hit and the guitar sounds a bit off now. Nothing 110% obvious to someone who doesn't play an instrument. Nothing that awful. I made sure each string was still in tune - that's not the issue. It sounds a bit... muted? Less lively? Less bright? I find it most noticeable in the lower frequency E, A, D and G strings... they don't seem to sustain as long, or have the same life or vibration / resonance. It just sounds different.

For example when I try to use my fingers instead of a pick and use my right hand to sort of mute the top two string for base notes they don't sound nearly as good now - these two strings are where I notice this effect the most. Actually all six strings don't seem as crystal clear and life like (bright and smooth). Okay I give up trying to describe the sound with words...

But it could all be placebo. I feel like I abused my baby so maybe my ears are tricking me? For all of you out there who are full of knowledge on how guitars are built and assembled and how they work mechanically... would it make sense that ramming the tuning keys / headstock could create the specific sound change I'm describing? Or do you think it's all in my head?


Thanks!


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Post subject: Re: Did I Just Damage My New (MiM) Tele?
Posted: Wed Nov 14, 2012 3:12 am
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i think it might be your ears telling you to be more careful with your guitar.

guitars are very, very simple things, just some wood and bits of metal. over the years they've been put through a lot worse than being jammed into a ceiling fan accidentally.

i cant see how anything could have been affected other than your tuning pegs, string trees or strings. and if everything looks alright, it probably is.

im no good at setting up my own guitars, despite playing for years (not very often mind), if i ever get to the point where i 'think' one of them doesnt sound like it should do, i take it down the shop to get it set up. doesnt cost very much, and sometimes its just my ears. the shop owner will give it a play, turn round and tell me theres nothing wrong with it and send me on my way, no charge.

im inclined to believe him if hes turning down my money im ready to throw at him.

anyways, i really cant think of anything that could have been adversely affected, certainly not to affect the sound.


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Post subject: Re: Did I Just Damage My New (MiM) Tele?
Posted: Wed Nov 14, 2012 4:12 am
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Hi, Fender guitars can take a hell of a beating before something gets really damaged. Lots of us here have probably done the Fan or Cieling light thing so it is not at all uncommon for that mistake to happen, don't beat youself up about it. You have probably moved the neck in the pocket with that really solid hit so it may require a reset. This would probably have affected the way your strings play on the fretboard. It is very easy to reset the neck or to check if it is misaligned but if you are not comfortable to do it yourself then take it to a competent guitar tech. Otherwise your paranoia might be exacerbating the feeling that it plays differently.

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Post subject: Re: Did I Just Damage My New (MiM) Tele?
Posted: Wed Nov 14, 2012 3:13 pm
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Location: Natural Bridge, Virginia
I would inspect the ceiling fan for serious damage and thank the stars that you don't own a Gibson. :lol:

Put some new strings on the guitar, do a full setup, checking the neck alignment as mentioned, and play away. :wink:

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Post subject: Re: Did I Just Damage My New (MiM) Tele?
Posted: Wed Nov 14, 2012 10:50 pm
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This is going to seem stupid, but did you accidentally turn down the tone knob?

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Post subject: Re: Did I Just Damage My New (MiM) Tele?
Posted: Fri Nov 16, 2012 5:19 am
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There is no way in the explanation of what happened (which I've done about 5,000 times to all of my electrics) could you have done anything that is going to change the sound. If anything, I would expect a ding in the wood on the top of neck hear the headstock, and if you REALLY creased it, maybe a bent tuning head, but I doubt it,

My advice is,, Relax, no worries, this stuff happens and Fenders "bounce"....

and yea, check your tone control!! if it's not that,,, it's your guilty conscience punishing you for a momentary lapse of caution...

Play on!


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Post subject: Re: Did I Just Damage My New (MiM) Tele?
Posted: Fri Nov 16, 2012 8:35 pm
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I doubt you really damaged it either. But if you feel something isnt right take it into a guitar shop and have one of their guys look at it. Most places wont charge you just to take a look. By the way if they suggest you get a set-up, it's something you might wanna do. It'll probably play better afterward than it did even before the 'accident'.


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Post subject: Re: Did I Just Damage My New (MiM) Tele?
Posted: Tue Nov 20, 2012 6:45 pm
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Joined: Fri Dec 02, 2011 1:55 pm
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Must be a while since you posted this.

And any Tele person is a friend of mine. Reading this post made my stomache sink and feel your pain as well . . . I sure hope it is a (placebo) as you described it.

Do you have any Tele friends that live near the vicinity and they can add their input and telll you where to go from this point on?


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Post subject: Re: Did I Just Damage My New (MiM) Tele?
Posted: Fri Nov 30, 2012 4:15 pm
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I got the odd feeling that you might have been wondering if any electrical damage was done? (Maybe I misintepreted what you were considering.) If the tuners/strings/pickups had somehow formed a circuit from the fan, you'd have been part of it. You'd have known that right away ... so nothing to worry about from that angle either.


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Post subject: Re: Did I Just Damage My New (MiM) Tele?
Posted: Fri Nov 30, 2012 4:51 pm
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Ok first off I'll ignore the stuff others have posted since I don't want to read it all xD Now then let me state my opinion :D Guitars do chip and dent through the years unless you're just amazing at taking care of them and careful when using them. You now have a funny story for people down the road for when you first started playing :) Guitars aren't meant to take impact as it can throw things off and it's really just wood,screws,some metal bits and tension from the strings on the neck. I would get a setup done on it asap just to make sure it's all ok :) I for one am weird if I touch something like pickup height it sounds different to me even if I took measurements and put it back the exact was it was before. I've heard of people hitting their necks and their truss rods start having a slip issue on a maple neck it's a lot more difficult to fix ,but on a rosewood it's pretty easy and costs less. As for the electronics they should be fine (unless the person did a crappy job when attaching the wires and thery were loose) but I wouldn't worry about that I would just worry about the neck/truss rod :)


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