| Author |
Topic: Stringmaster high string zing thing |
Jim Newberry
From:
Seattle, Upper Left America
|
Posted 27 Dec 2013 11:17 am |
|
I've got a '56 pushbutton short-scale D-8. The tuning I use most is high C6 (with a Bb on the bottom). The high G has this 'zing' that I can't get rid of. It's most prominent acoustically, but I can hear it through the amp, too. I haven't found any mechanical source of a vibration (blend covers, etc) and I've tried heavier gauge strings (.010-.013) and haven't gotten rid of it.
It sounds like high weird-order harmonics more than sympathetic vibration, but I dunno. Is it just the nature of the beast? Are they just unhappy with that high of a string?
_________________
"The Masher of Touch and Tone"
-1950 Fender Dual Pro 8
-1950's Fender Dual Pro 6
-Clinesmith D8
-Clinesmith 8-string Frypan
-Clinesmith Joaquin
-~1940 National New Yorker
-~1936 Rickenbacher B6
-Homebuilt Amps |
|
|
 |
Stephen Cowell
From:
Round Rock, Texas, USA
|
|
|
|
Jim Newberry
From:
Seattle, Upper Left America
|
Posted 28 Dec 2013 9:51 am
|
|
Mr. C, I don't hear it in yours. I'll see if I can get some kind of A or V recording that demonstrates it.
_________________
"The Masher of Touch and Tone"
-1950 Fender Dual Pro 8
-1950's Fender Dual Pro 6
-Clinesmith D8
-Clinesmith 8-string Frypan
-Clinesmith Joaquin
-~1940 National New Yorker
-~1936 Rickenbacher B6
-Homebuilt Amps |
|
|
|
Stephen Cowell
From:
Round Rock, Texas, USA
|
Posted 28 Dec 2013 10:08 am
|
|
| Jim Newberry wrote: |
| Mr. C, I don't hear it in yours. I'll see if I can get some kind of A or V recording that demonstrates it. |
OK, great... I don't have the virus!
Several things can affect tone... if the string is too loose, *or too tight*, it can sound crappy... if the string has inconsistencies up and down it (narrowing, etc... usually from being stretched/tuned too tight) it can sound bad. If the string doesn't pull hard enough down onto the bridge, and the bridge is trying to float up, then it'll sound yucky (the Champ does this with light strings sometimes, same bridge).
You can also make sure your bridge plate screws are tight... the four screws behind the bridge (under the cover) are the main tone anchor; these get loose, sustain gets lost. If you see the plate starting to distort (looking across it at a reflection, for instance) you're pulling them too tight.
Your pickup should be about 1/8" away (two nickel's worth) from the strings... any further, and they'll sound tinny, any closer, and you run the risk of warping the fiber base of the pickup (the cover ears don't go all the way down to the base).
Today I had to get inside mine... there was a crackling short/noise going on. Turns out that on these old '56s they didn't glue the foil down with black corona dope... there is no glue, the foil is loose in there! My neck-neck ground was loose, I bent it up so it contacted the plate better (it's just stapled to the wood through the foil) and screwed the plate back down... good for another 60 years, I reckon.
_________________
New FB Page: Lap Steel Licks And Stuff: https://www.facebook.com/groups/195394851800329 |
|
|
|
Bob Stone
From:
Gainesville, FL, USA
|
Posted 31 Dec 2013 8:04 am
|
|
Jim,
In my opinion, the prime suspects would be saddle and nut string grooves. But dang it, the Stringmasters have case-hardened nuts and bridge saddles. Have you tried swapping any of these components with those of the other neck?
Hope you get it solved. It must drive you crazy.
Happy New Year,
Bob |
|
|
|
Kurt Kowalski
From:
Kendall, NY USA
|
Posted 31 Dec 2013 9:17 am
|
|
I agree with Bob.
I had this happen and solved it by removing the nut and polishing the crud out of the grooves with a buffing wheel.
Hope I helped,
-kk- |
|
|
|
Jim Newberry
From:
Seattle, Upper Left America
|
Posted 2 Jan 2014 10:49 am
|
|
Thanks all. I've made sure every screw on the instrument is tight, and now all 4 pickups have new height-adjuster tubing and there isn't anything amiss with either neck's control cavity. The only thing I know to be wrong with the nut is that the screws are slightly bent and it leans forward (toward the bridge direction) a little bit. Next, I'll do the nut-checks as recomended. It would make sense, since it is driving me "nuts". At gig volume, I don't notice it much, however, especially if the Treble's down.
_________________
"The Masher of Touch and Tone"
-1950 Fender Dual Pro 8
-1950's Fender Dual Pro 6
-Clinesmith D8
-Clinesmith 8-string Frypan
-Clinesmith Joaquin
-~1940 National New Yorker
-~1936 Rickenbacher B6
-Homebuilt Amps |
|
|
|
Chris Scruggs
From:
Nashville, Tennessee, USA
|
Posted 3 Jan 2014 5:04 pm
|
|
Try this, take your bridge bar off and reinstall it upside down. It's the same on both sides and the top side has been dug into by the strings for 58 years, the bottom side of the bridge is still virgin to the string wire. That's the best place to start.
In my opinion, high pitched tunings are inherent to zingning anyways. A6 has the same "shape" to the tuning as "high C6" but is less piercy and twangy. I'm a firm believer of playing C6 with an E on top and nothing higher. |
|
|
|
Jim Newberry
From:
Seattle, Upper Left America
|
Posted 3 Jan 2014 8:50 pm
|
|
Thanks for the tips, Chris. I do like the crutch of that major triad on top, and I'm trying to transition to A6 (I've got it on the other neck). I have a Cajun G on my trap pickup D6, and I don't notice the zing there, but that's a different animal than the Stringmaster. I like the idea of using the back side of the bridge bar, and I need to inspect/polish the nut, too. Thanks again.
_________________
"The Masher of Touch and Tone"
-1950 Fender Dual Pro 8
-1950's Fender Dual Pro 6
-Clinesmith D8
-Clinesmith 8-string Frypan
-Clinesmith Joaquin
-~1940 National New Yorker
-~1936 Rickenbacher B6
-Homebuilt Amps |
|
|
|
Jim Newberry
From:
Seattle, Upper Left America
|
Posted 4 Jan 2014 9:39 am
|
|
Well, I flipped both the nut and the saddle bar to their unused sides and the problem is still there. It's gotta be some sympathetic vibration somewhere. I tried using an automotive stethoscope with no success. I took the diamonds off and tightened the neck bolts some time ago, so the necks are secure.
Oh, well, I'll live with it for now. Thanks for all your help. Gotta practice.
_________________
"The Masher of Touch and Tone"
-1950 Fender Dual Pro 8
-1950's Fender Dual Pro 6
-Clinesmith D8
-Clinesmith 8-string Frypan
-Clinesmith Joaquin
-~1940 National New Yorker
-~1936 Rickenbacher B6
-Homebuilt Amps |
|
|
|
