Dead sounding guitar- help to tone

[somebodyelseuk]

Forget all the electronics bollox, the tone is in the strings and how they vibrate. Like I've heard many guitar shopping guides say "If it doesn't sound good acoustically, then it probably won't sound good plugged in."

...oh dear.

[Chuck H]

Thanks for the insights. It sounds OK when plugged in especially now that I found better settings and upgrade some Elna Silmic II, 1uF caps in a couple old DOD pedals and lifted some highs-shunting ceramic caps. I'll try and post a sound sample after sorting another issue...

Also, I get more amp hum when I partly turn down the volume pot for some reason. The Carvin power transformer radiates like crazy which may be the problem.

How does the DOD part of this relate to the guitars dead tone? As to the hum with the volume down, you said the wiring was pretty good. But this sounds like there may be a mistake that's causing the ground reference and series resistance to elevate at the same time.

And I can't imagine how a specific amp transformer should be responsible INSTEAD of the guitar unless it's causing the same problems with your other guitars.

The question was raised as to just what "dead sounding" means. Does the guitar sound dead acoustically (unplugged)? Is it just a dark sounding guitar or is there a lack of sustain also? What are we trying to help you with?

Using an FR comes with some compromise. If you want the FR then you need to accept and/or compensate for the fact that all the string vibration is amalgamated through a huge mass of metal on a spring load before getting into the wood via two little knife edges. You mentioned that this guitar has a maple fingerboard. Maples resonance isn't all that. Maybe try an ebony fingerboard? It'll cost you a neck, but it might be just what this guitar needs. Some cost for the experiment could be recovered by reselling the neck you don't use perhaps.

[guitician]

...oh dear.

??

[Guitarist]

It should get a new set of strings and I aught to really recheck the wiring. The reshaped 24 fret maple neck (Washburn) isn't the best grade to begin with and was like $25 from eBay I'm comparing it to two other fine axes (rosewood and thick ebony fretboards) and it is only a few years old. The others are 25. It doesn't sustain terribly badly. I was leery of the alder but it may be settling in yet.
As Chuck says, the Floyd doesn't help even though it one of the world's finest varieties. The Bournes pot is 230K and the tone pot—which I never use—is 1 Meg. Thanks for the uF values, good to have!

I'll check the volume pot issue with the other guitars...but don't worry about it guys, there isn't much more that can be done.

BTW Aside: I threaded a mic stand into a welded nut/plate (vs the weighted base) power-glued onto the board. If it holds up then the setup is easier. The lightweight, stereo cab also has permanent mics. It's a lot of design and rework come into focus.

[guitician]

Those pickups may be magnetically pulling the vibration from the string reducing sustain. How far are they from the strings and can they be lowered.

[Guitarist]

I'm happy to say that swapping out a funky, new, two magnet bridge pickup for a T-Top Gibson humbucker was the fix. Now that guitar resonates and rings beautifully, what a difference! That's so much for your help

[Jason Rodgers]

Hi,

I made a custom axe: RG shape, with Edge/Floyd w. copper block, lacquer sprayed sides and back, nitro on top (for looks in iced-tea burst), one single coil and one HB, maple neck (not the greatest), poplar body.

It is now 3 years old and isn't sounding any better compared to my other, albeit amazing, few electrics. So just wondering if some lengthwise drilling in the body may be in order to liven it up. Another idea, might be to mount a transducer/shaker to it and hum it out in hopes to awaken it. I was almost desperate enough to install active pickups but they don't come low output/vintage-toned just high-gain units.

any thoughts/successes?

I read through this whole thread before realizing it was from over a year ago. Glad you found a relatively simple fix without resorting to major surgery. Not sure who is recommending drilling holes and vibrating guitars, but I find those sorts of DIY "fixes" absolutely reprehensible. These are probably the same people suggesting cryogenic treatments to improve tone. If you can't figure out why a guitar doesn't sound the way you wish it would, get a second opinion from a reputable professional repairman/tech/luthier. There are 5 bazzillion guitars in the world, and the worst thing that could happen is this one isn't for you (even if you built it yourself and it's your magnum opus). Many of these "life hacks" on the interwebs are just that: hacks proposed by hacks.

[PaulBass]

I put unity gain buffers in all my guitars and the difference is night and day. it might take some wood chopping to fit the battery but well worth it