dead spot

[Gunn_Slinger]

Dead spot...

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Well.. Had a good hour playing the new Schecter yesterday. All seemed fine until I bent the B string at the 15th fret (D) to E. It sustained noticably shorter than other notes fretted or bent. Not only was the sustain shorter but the decay at the end was unnatural.

The action was a touch over 1mm which is very low, so I thought it was likely being choked when I bent the string. I setup the guitar, adjusted the truss to take out a little excess relief and raised the action to about 4/64ths at the 12 on the high E which felt about right for me.

Still got the same issue. Had a good look at the frets and they're nice and level - no high or low frets and you can clearly see the string isn't making contact with any frets above at all - even when bent. At 4/64ths on a 14" radius board I shouldn't be getting any choking at all unless there was a high fret.

There is only two explanations at this point... A dead spot - an area where the natural resonance of the instrument - or part of the instrument - is cancelling out the played note causing it to die prematurely (If I understand the science correctly) or a duff string.

I'm going to experiment later today. I'll tune the string a half step down. If it's a dead spot then the spot will move. Failing that, i'll change the string.

It doesn't die immedaitely... I do get a couple of seconds sustain... It's just that unnatural - unmusical decay - almost like I wasn't keeping enough finger pressure on the string.

I doubt I could return it as i've had it since October and they may just say it's "one of those things". I could learn to live with it perhaps but i'd rather not.



If any of you guys can think of anything i've overlooked....
__________________

Thanks
Clay

[frus]

does the D note on E string 10th fret do the same?

[David Schwab]

Detune the string a couple of steps to a lower note and see if it does it. If it does, then it's the frets. If it doesn't, you might have a dead spot in the neck.

If it's only happening when you bend it sounds like the frets. What happens if you play the note you are bending up to on that string, but without bending? Does it die out? If not, then it's the frets.

It's common for guitars to need to have the upper frets level down on a slope to prevent this.

Schecter is one of the better import brands because they dress the frets here in the US after they receive the guitars, but all factory guitars can use a little fret dressing when you get them.

[jrfrond]

Before you troubleshoot any string issues, always change to a fresh set of strings. If you still have the problem, raise the action a bit to see if it changes, to remove the frets from the equation. If it doesn't, it might just be a resonant dead spot. Also, pay close attention to see how it sounds ACOUSTICALLY, without being plugged in.

[Gunn_Slinger]

thanks guys
I did all of the above and the problem is still there. A resonance dead spot seems to be the problem. I'm taking it back to the guitar shop and see what they will do. I bought it in october.
Thanks for all the good info
Clay

[David Schwab]

thanks guys
I did all of the above and the problem is still there. A resonance dead spot seems to be the problem. I'm taking it back to the guitar shop and see what they will do. I bought it in october.

But wait... if you detuned the string, and it still happens, then it's not a resonant dead spot because they are frequency dependent, and you just changed the frequency. That would cause it to shit to a different fret/note. That was the idea of that test. If it's still there it's not a dead note caused by the neck. The fact that it happens when you bend means the note is fretting out.

Have the upper frets leveled and have a drop off put in. They can also flatten the radius out a little which will help.

[Gunn_Slinger]

Thanks Dave
DeTuning the string did cause it to move. Frets checked out perfect.
It's in the hands oc schecter now, to fix or replace.
Thanks to all for the good info.
Clay