tchaz Posted March 26, 2018 Share Posted March 26, 2018 Hi, I have a critical issue with my Songwriter that I can't seem to resolve. I've bought it a bit more than a year ago but I noticed the issue maybe half a year ago when I started giging on regular basis. The high E string has lower output than other string. It really kills the mood on solos as the sound really drops. I've tried all I can think of - string angle on the bridge, bridge is perfecly flat, different strings etc. no change.... I've even turned the piezo around and still the same... Any suggestions? How is it with Gibson guarantee? Otherwise I'll sell it and buy a Martin (yes it's that annoying)... Looking fwd to hear some suggestions... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aliasphobias Posted March 27, 2018 Share Posted March 27, 2018 Hi, I have a critical issue with my Songwriter that I can't seem to resolve. I've bought it a bit more than a year ago but I noticed the issue maybe half a year ago when I started giging on regular basis. The high E string has lower output than other string. It really kills the mood on solos as the sound really drops. I've tried all I can think of - string angle on the bridge, bridge is perfecly flat, different strings etc. no change.... I've even turned the piezo around and still the same... Any suggestions? How is it with Gibson guarantee? Otherwise I'll sell it and buy a Martin (yes it's that annoying)... Looking fwd to hear some suggestions... Hi and welcome! There are a lot of choices between wonky piezo and 'sell get a Martin'. When you say the bridge is flat, do you mean bridge or bridge saddle? What is your saddle material? For a piezo to work well the saddle slot has to be perfectly flat, the bottom of the saddle has to be as well. It is also a big help to have good downward pressure on the saddle, by way of break angle over the saddle or string ramps, A good tech can suss these things out in minutes (and that means good tech not music store employee). As a starter try dropping the tuning on EADG and leave the b&e to pitch, is the e any clearer? Most piezo problems are very easily solved. You will probably be surprised to think you put up with something so annoying, for so long, when it was that simple. As far as I know Gibson warranty is gold but only one year outside the US. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jvi Posted March 27, 2018 Share Posted March 27, 2018 go ahead and sell the dam thing !! dont be annoyed ! buy a Martin ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buc McMaster Posted March 27, 2018 Share Posted March 27, 2018 .....I've even turned the piezo around and still the same... Well that seems to eliminate the pickup as the source, leaving one to think there is indeed a contact issue between saddle-peizo strip-bridge under the e string. If you like the guitar otherwise it is a fixable problem.........don't let emotion make the decision to sell. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mickthemiller Posted March 27, 2018 Share Posted March 27, 2018 When you say .....I've even turned the piezo around and still the same... have you turned it over or turned it end to end? The latter would mean you would have re drilled a hole in the bridge slot at the high e end, so I doubt you did that. So, turning the piezo over would really make no difference as the pressure on it is merely reversed, but still really the same. You can try the other suggestions re the bridge saddle and slot being flat etc but it may be that the piezo needs replacing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kidblast Posted March 27, 2018 Share Posted March 27, 2018 The most common cause is the saddle is not true. Have you checked that? One solution to test without changing anything, is to get some shielding tape, (the kind that is used for grounding electric guitars) and put a small piece under the side of the bridge where your noticing the volume drop. If that does seem to help, then the saddle is not 100% true/flat. To flatten the saddle, tape some sanding paper, (220 grit is good) on to a counter or table top, then carefully slide the saddle over the sand paper, until you can put it on a straight edge and not see any space at all. ORRRR,, find a good repair guy and let them look at it.. don't hold your breath waiting for Gibson to help you with any warranty claims. In other words, If you want it fixed, just go get it fixed, and pay the man.. Gibson will actually probably tell you, it just needed to be setup. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MorrisrownSal Posted March 27, 2018 Share Posted March 27, 2018 I bet the bottom of the saddle needs to be shaved evenly - assure equal contact. I am guessing a $100 setup with a new saddle fixes it... and gets the action perfectly hones in to boot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tchaz Posted March 28, 2018 Author Share Posted March 28, 2018 Hi - Thanks for so many good suggestions :) Here is a bit more in detail what I've already done - not alone but together with a professional... First thing we did is to set the action to my desire by shaving of the saddle (bone) and make it completely flat at the same time (used a marker in the end to make the bottom black and then grined on a flat surface to assure equal "wear"). Unfortunately that didn't help - step 2 was making sure the string has direct path (more force) to the saddle so we made some "space" on the part where string is comming out of the body. Didn't help. Step 3 was to increase the string thickness and detune other ones - still no luck. Step 4 was to turn the piezo around - and yes there is a prefabricated hole on both sides so you can just unplug the piezo and turn it around - no drilling needed. By this we believe we eliminated the source problem. Unfortunately still no improvement and that is where I'm starting to ask if there are any other ideas... So - any other ideas? Faulty Saddle? Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rct Posted March 28, 2018 Share Posted March 28, 2018 I'd get under the bridge/saddle, make sure there isn't a glob of fish glue right under there, or some errant piece of brace shaving that has ended up there. Then, believe it or not, I'd be up at the nut, making sure that string isn't too...snug in there, cocooned let's say, damping it. If it doesn't vibrate fully it'll be dull and low energy. Where the string heads down into the mystery hole, is the string leaning on the edge of the hole in the bridge, obviating downward pressure. If the saddle is flat and right I'd head for a new pickup. rct Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jinder Posted March 28, 2018 Share Posted March 28, 2018 My 1990 Hummingbird has a slightly weak low E through the Matrix Infinity I have in there. No idea why...it’s usable though, and if anything makes the guitar less feedback prone for live work. I think it may be down to inconsistencies in the bone saddle, the only three possibilities in my eyes are the saddle (not flat or bone density varying across the length), unevenly routed slot floor or faulty piezo element. The string binding at the nut is an outside possibility but don’t write it off! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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