17
votes
Accepted
Are these indentations on the frets of my Acoustic for intonation? Can I apply this to the frets of my Electric?
That's fret wear. The strings have slowly eroded away some of the fret material, leaving those dents. Over a long enough time, they become deep enough to cause problems.
When the fret wear is bad ...
- 51k
12
votes
On instruments that use frets, where's the best spot to press a string on, in order to minimize hand fatigue and potential for injuries?
Producing a sharp angle for the string over the fretwire makes for a clear, clean sound. So just behind the fretwire will be a good place. It also means not having to press down on the fingerboard so ...
- 173k
11
votes
Why is a zero fret so uncommon on guitars in spite of all the advantages?
To make it safe against buzz, the string has to run across the zero fret with a bit of pressure. This makes the strings move across the fret with some stickiness so they follow the tuning machine ...
- 111
10
votes
Accepted
How to tell if an electric guitar has good quality
Check the neck for bowing, twisting, and any other defect. Also check the action on the neck. Check play every fret on each string and be sure that they all ring purely and that they don't squeak ...
- 1,861
9
votes
Which type of wood for an electric guitar should one choose for rock/metal music?
There is no specific combination of wood types that make a guitar more or less appropriate for rock/metal music.
Essentially all combinations can and have been used to good effect by various ...
- 17.5k
9
votes
Accepted
How does bracing work?
The lines illustrate the bracing... Special made wooden braces glued on the top and bottom of the guitar, inside the body of the guitar.
Without bracing, the construction would not be strong enough ...
- 106
9
votes
Accepted
Does soundhole placement affect guitar tone?
The majority of sound from an acoustic guitar is produced by the sound board (or 'top').
The soundhole allows the sound waves generated at the inside face of the soundboard to escape the body.
With ...
- 1,909
9
votes
Accepted
Are there any violin family instruments built without a left shoulder?
As far as double basses are concerned, it's not uncommon to see a body with something like this:
Just a normal double bass body, with a left shoulder cutaway (if it is really called like that). They ...
- 30.6k
9
votes
Are these indentations on the frets of my Acoustic for intonation? Can I apply this to the frets of my Electric?
Those fret indentations are wear caused by playing. No manufactures would put them in on purpose.
My first move would be to consider that the neck is actually too close to the bridge. Maybe it could ...
- 173k
8
votes
How risky is it to have a maple fretboard refretted?
When removing frets damage to the fretboard is always a consideration, some kind of chipping as the old frets come out is something to be anticipated, rather than disregarded. There are various ways ...
- 921
7
votes
Does the type of wood on a solid body electric guitar affect its tone or sound?
If we separate out the effects you could see,
The body/neck wood could absorb energy from the strings, causing the sound to decay faster (and with preference for certain frequencies)
The body/neck ...
- 45.5k
7
votes
Is my truss rod broken?
An addendum to leftaroundabout's answer.
Never tighten the trussrod against the tension of the strings. Slacken them first.
Never use the truss rod to pull the neck. Pull the neck manually & use ...
- 22.6k
6
votes
Accepted
What's the difference in sound between different wood grades?
This answer is specifically about acoustic guitar sound board grading as as that's what your question refers to, there are other grading systems for other instrument building woods.
Different wood ...
- 1,909
6
votes
Scale length with incorrect bridge position
Not only would your fretted notes play flat, but as you go further up the fretboard, the flatter your notes will get!
6
votes
How to tell if an electric guitar has good quality
You seem to have done a little research on what the particular model Fender Guitar in question should sell for. And from your question, it appears that you have some concerns about why this one seems ...
- 26.8k
6
votes
Flamenco guitar strings
In Europe, stringed instruments (harps, guitars, violins) have used strings made from animal gut for millenia.
The lower strings of a guitar were sometimes made with gut wrapped around a silk core.
...
- 5,712
6
votes
Are there any violin family instruments built without a left shoulder?
The "electric family" of string instruments are often designed without any shoulders. The below photos come from Wikipedia's entries for electric cello and electric upright bass, and an ...
- 55k
6
votes
Are there any violin family instruments built without a left shoulder?
Aside from electric instruments like @Aaron mentioned, this is not unheard of but extremely rare. I have seen a few upright basses over the years in bass shops with a cutout in the upper bout like ...
- 17.5k
6
votes
Accepted
Magnetic part of pickup sticks out
Some pickups are designed like that, so it's almost certainly normal.
But if you hit it with the pick while playing, you should probably lower it a bit. Lower it equally on both sides with the two ...
- 6,261
6
votes
Accepted
Is my truss rod broken?
It does tighten up if I turn it clockwise
The truss rod doesn't seem to be broken.
I don't see much of a change in the relief of the neck. It seems to be dead straight all the time.
Normally the ...
- 33.4k
5
votes
How to tell if an electric guitar has good quality
There are a few things you might not be able to check easily when you go to see it:
Whether the truss rod works. Even if the action and setup seem perfect, do you know that the neck's truss rod will ...
- 45.5k
5
votes
What is the Difference between Maple and Rosewood Fretboards
It makes no difference to the sound or playability of an electric guitar whether you have rosewood or maple for the fingerboard.
Did you know that the human eye has a blind spot that your brain ...
- 357
5
votes
Accepted
What are the dimensions, angles of a Gibson Les Paul standard pots cavity?
Schemtics are tricky, there's 3 things you can do:
This link contains many blue prints of a Gibson Les Paul. There are no measurements on each axis. However, on each PDF there is a scale. Use the ...
- 1,784
5
votes
Accepted
Violin bridge E-string: pad or hardened insert?
My old student violin doesn't have the "bridge pad" for the E string and normally E strings come with a sliver of a tube which you can adjust to stop the E string cutting the bridge. On the ...
- 5,037
5
votes
Accepted
Why do classical guitars necks meet the body at fret 12th and steel strings at fret 14th?
I'm not a luthier, but my understanding is that the 12th-fret join is used to maximize volume and tone. The 14th-fret join is a compromise for playability, and is more acceptable on a steel-string ...
- 416
4
votes
What's the difference in sound between different wood grades?
My name is Bruce Rubin of Rubinsguitars.com The soundboard grading system is based on cosmetic appearance and closeness of the grain. When a well-crafted soundboard is produced by a skilled maker, He ...
Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible