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Dead spots, sure. But dead string?

dnabbet2

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May 31, 2017
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211
I've heard of "dead spots" on the fretboard, but I seem to have a dead high-E STRING that doesn't ring as as long or as loudly as the adjacent B. So, I've raised the high-E pole-piece and lowered the B and G, and that helps, but it's still not right.

I'm going to try swapping out that one particular bridge iron for another from an identical bridge I have on hand. And I'm going to try swapping the bridges altogether. But I thought I'd consult the collective wisdom here first -- I've owned a couple of dozen Les Pauls and never come across this.
 

metropolis

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Sep 14, 2018
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390
I've had this issue a few times with second hand Les Pauls and it's always been the saddle groove causing the issue.

Firstly, does it occur with fretted notes as well as the open string? That will rule out the nut.

Assuming it is the saddle, what I'd suggest is just pull the string out of the notch or groove it sits in and place it somewhere else on the saddle to hear if that fixes the issue. It will want to jump back so play it gently but in my cases I've noticed a clear difference by doing this which tells me that little groove is the problem.
 

dnabbet2

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May 31, 2017
Messages
211
I've had this issue a few times with second hand Les Pauls and it's always been the saddle groove causing the issue.

Firstly, does it occur with fretted notes as well as the open string? That will rule out the nut.

Assuming it is the saddle, what I'd suggest is just pull the string out of the notch or groove it sits in and place it somewhere else on the saddle to hear if that fixes the issue. It will want to jump back so play it gently but in my cases I've noticed a clear difference by doing this which tells me that little groove is the problem.

It's all up and down that string. And bends especially die out though they're not "buzzing out". I'll try your suggestion, then another bridge, then another bridge iron in order of the easiest first. Thanks very much.
 

el84ster

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Sep 10, 2001
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1,420
Also make sure the e string saddle is all the way down in the bridge. The saddle screw can sometimes touch the bottom of the string just enough to cause this. Make sure that sucker is pushed all the way down and fully popped into place.
 

dnabbet2

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May 31, 2017
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Also make sure the e string saddle is all the way down in the bridge. The saddle screw can sometimes touch the bottom of the string just enough to cause this. Make sure that sucker is pushed all the way down and fully popped into place.

Yes, I used to get that when I had actual 1950s Les Pauls 'cause the bridge irons were loose. Good suggestion. Thanks.

This is a Faber ABRN with the little cog-type circlip holding the adjustment screw in place.
 

metropolis

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Sep 14, 2018
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The Fabers I've had have both have slots already cut so it might be that one of those just needs a bit of polishing or modifying. I went up a couple of string gauges from when it was installed and it caused the problem on the unwound strings.
 

dnabbet2

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May 31, 2017
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The Fabers I've had have both have slots already cut so it might be that one of those just needs a bit of polishing or modifying. I went up a couple of string gauges from when it was installed and it caused the problem on the unwound strings.

I tried another Faber ABRN and it sounded a bit better. But it was also aged while the rest of the hardware is shiny.

Then I had the accidentally good idea of going back to the shiny one but flipping it around so the adjustment screw heads face the tailpiece. And that also sounded a bit better, but the big improvement was that the slots in the bridge "body" -- the ones that you press the adjustment screws into before you slip on the circlip -- were also toward the tailpiece, and I could adjust the tailpiece lower for a steeper breakover angle because the high E string slipped right into its corresponding slot rather than fouling on the bridge.

I'm probably not describing this well, but I think the steeper angle probably made the most difference ... and it doesn't look too strange.

Thanks for the help.
 

metropolis

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Sep 14, 2018
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That makes sense and in my experience if there's a rough patch that's catching on the string the angle can affect how badly you notice it. I switched a guitar from stop tail to Bigsby and because the break angle changed a perfectly normal sounding bridge all of a sudden had some issues.
 

Strings Jr.

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Jan 17, 2016
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Have you tried changing the string? Dead strings are far more common than dead spots on the fingerboard.
 

metropolis

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That's why I suggested moving the string onto a different part of the saddle. I thought it was a dead string on my Custom but as soon as I moved where it was lying on the saddle it came to life again.
 

El Gringo

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Apr 8, 2015
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5,657
That's why I suggested moving the string onto a different part of the saddle. I thought it was a dead string on my Custom but as soon as I moved where it was lying on the saddle it came to life again.
This is good advice to try , move the string out of the slot a hair towards the treble side of the guitar .
 

rick c

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May 28, 2016
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282
How can you do this if the saddle is slotted for the string?
 

El Gringo

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Apr 8, 2015
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How can you do this if the saddle is slotted for the string?
Loosen the tension on the string and remove it from the slot a hair and place it towards the treble side of the fingerboard ( if you are looking at it from the bridge -to your right ) This will help if you are getting like a Sitar effect from the G string .
 

TM1

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Jun 27, 2003
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8,349
Use a better make of string! I would get something from Europe or U.K. American made strings are 90% crap with cheap wire. Gibson until 1971 used silver plated wire, then went to the Tin plated shit everyone else in the U.S. uses. Europeans use Silver plated German music wire which sounds 10x better and last 6-7 times longer.
 

dnabbet2

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May 31, 2017
Messages
211
That makes sense and in my experience if there's a rough patch that's catching on the string the angle can affect how badly you notice it. I switched a guitar from stop tail to Bigsby and because the break angle changed a perfectly normal sounding bridge all of a sudden had some issues.

I've been working with Faber bridges and for some reason I find I have three I've been able to swap out and compare. But I was also able to replace the original Robbie Krieger Gotoh Nashville-type bridge and it makes a BIG difference in evening out the the volumes of the unwound strings.

But is it because of the greater mass or because Gibson actually cut the Gotoh's bridge irons whereas I'm just using the small uniform grooves the Faber's come with?

So, because I've got a few of the Fabers, I'll cut gauge-specific slots in the irons of one of them and see if that produces the same effect as the Gotoh. And I'll report back. Thanks again for all the help with this.
 

Wound_Up

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Apr 5, 2020
Messages
52
I've been working with Faber bridges and for some reason I find I have three I've been able to swap out and compare. But I was also able to replace the original Robbie Krieger Gotoh Nashville-type bridge and it makes a BIG difference in evening out the the volumes of the unwound strings.

But is it because of the greater mass or because Gibson actually cut the Gotoh's bridge irons whereas I'm just using the small uniform grooves the Faber's come with?

So, because I've got a few of the Fabers, I'll cut gauge-specific slots in the irons of one of them and see if that produces the same effect as the Gotoh. And I'll report back. Thanks again for all the help with this.

Any updates with this? Dealing with the same thing currently. Going from a 9 to a 10 really helped out but I'd much rather use 9s and not have to go up a size.
 
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