Leonard McCoy

No nitro finish is a real dealbreaker for me. There's barely a company left on this planet who does nitro, which is so difficult to work with, as well as Gibson.

The Everly is scheduled for delivery in September/October. So far, everything is on track. Since the original Kluson vintage waffleback tuners are back (they are pricey), I might just try to get Gibson to install those instead of the scheduled Gotoh keystone tuners. If it is not possible anymore since we are fairly close to delivery, I might just get the Klusons installed after the fact or leave it be altogether. Cedar is plenty loud, that is not the issue. It is just that cedar as a top wood, while it generally gives the steel-string a broken-in sound right off the bat and its grain looks quite, quite neat, old, and even, I also found that the wood gives the guitar a muddy, rumbly, and overall unbalanced, little defined sound. That's not what I want from my steel-string acoustic.

For a steel-string acoustic, cedar is just meh as a top wood.

Well, I gotta give you guys that: You got a lot more faith in their products than the manufacturer himself when it comes down to whether or not those guitars stands are safe for nitrocellulose lacquer finishes (hint: they say they ain't so sure).

Also, the Hercules stands are not safe for our nitro-finish guitars since the plasticized grip parts are bound to rub off on the guitar over time.

Here's what we learned: a **** thread remains a **** thread no matter how many **** posts you throw into it.

New guitar tab: Rubylove (1971) Had I known before how complicated the song structure would turn out to be, I would probably have let this one go. This marks Cat's second song in Open E (besides the sublime "If I Laugh"), and it's a tour de force no doubt. Be sure to get the time signature down first (see notes at bottom). With this one tabbed out, I have the complete Teaser & the Firecat album as guitar tabs on the site now. Yay! Cat wanted to introduce his Greek influences into his music, and so some friends of his father, who ran a Greek restaurant, came down to the studio to play on the record with their bozoukis. Alun's daughter, then four years old, asked Cat to sing "the Rubylove song" and so the name stayed, but he song was originally called "Who'll Be My Love?" and did not contain the Greek verse until later. Together with "If I Laugh", this song is a tour de force through all kinds of Open E voicings. Even the advanced player will have to overcome the unusual time signature of the song first so be sure to read the bottom notes on rhythm first.

Though I'm not a fan of the AG Modern bridge design from an aesthetic standpoint, it looks quite alright here. The guitar also looks mighty comfortable to play. Mini-jumbo-ish?

The chord fingering indicated is an exact match for Cat's. If you barré here, you may have trouble playing the hammer-on from Fsus2 onto F hidden in the intro.

Oh, I forgot: best played on a Gibson J-180.

Since the forums got wiped and with it my old thread, I guess I'll have to start a new one. New guitar tab: I Wish, I Wish (1970) With the advent of his second career and with it his new album MONA BONE JAKON (1970), Steve charted onto a new spiritual journey, and his growing sense of enlightenment is perfectly reflected in the lyrics of this song. Musically, this is a very catchy gigging song that keeps on rolling, one that guitarists can perhaps appreciate the most.

Clearly, there shouldn't be a gap between fret and binding. Clearly, if there is one, the fretboard has clearly extended and the guitar should be brought in to a competent luthier for check up and damage control. Clearly, the guitar can't be played at all if any of the strings keeps getting stuck in said gap. Clearly, this is how it should look like (clearly, I never tire of posting prestige pics of my baby, which is, clearly the whole point of this post and I, clearly, didn't read any of the previous posts and/or followed the conversation):

If it weren't for the automatic tuners, the HP lineup would be a no-brainer.

The Gibson website has the guitar listed with a rosewood fretboard, and on there in the comments the Gibson customer service has confirmed it to be so (link). A macro snapshot of the fretboard would perhaps give more of a visual clue.

So why would you swap your original with that aftermarket one? I don't get it.

To clarify that paragraph of mine, I was attempting to explore string tension, or rather string pressure exerted on the bridge in regards to the difficulty of string bending, especially overbending. Even though the pitch of the note is defined by the tension and bridge to nut length, bending and, lesser so, even fretting itself, which is basically a micro-bend, use up the entire string length including the parts beyond the nut and bridge, that is from tailpiece to headstock. Now, if the string breaks at a sharp angle over either the nut or the bridge (low tailpiece), it becomes more difficult for the string to move over the saddles or nut (greater string friction on bridge) because the string exerts a lot more pressure on the bridge or nut due to the break angle of the string, which in turn makes bending seem more difficult because you're effectively using less string to absorb the bend. The result: stiffer bending, but less distance to bend note to desired pitch. If there is a less sharp angle or none at all over the nut or bridge (high tailpiece), the string passes through most easily (less string friction on bridge), thereby allowing you to use the entire length of the string for the bend. The result: easier bending, but greater distance to bend note to desired pitch.

As to my knowledge, Gibson have never provided any guidelines as to the ideal height of the tailpiece or whether the string ends leading to the tailpiece should or shouldn't be touching the bridge. It'll also be difficult to convincingly prove whether there really be any sonical advantages if the strings not be touching the bridge. Some players swear it'll give them more sustain, while others mute the dead string ends entirely on either end, that is behind the bridge as well as the nut, with additional equipment so as to avoid any (unwanted) overtones. The short Sweetwater bit posted above (link) discusses another aspect, namely string tension, and how a higher tailpiece reduces overall string tension, while lowering it adds to it, which can play for or against the player. A little experimentation as to what suits one best as player goes a long way. For instance, if you're a lot into overbending (one and a half steps and two steps) you might want to avoid to have the tailpiece set to the lowest position possible so as to not to make overbends excruciatingly difficult to execute due to the additional strength needed if string tension is noticably higher than if the tailpiece were set to normal heights. Luthiers are less, or rather not at all, concerned with this problem by the way. My luthier even asked me whether Gibson had any recommendations as to this when setting up my Les Paul. Luthier Dan Erlewine's take, of Stew-Mac fame, for instance goes into the details from a technician's point-of-view in his article Tune-O-Matic setup: is the trouble with the bridge or the neck angle? (StewMac.com, 2009) without providing conclusive evidence for or against one way or another however.

You're right; I wasn't thinking it through. It's inherent in the design of a loudspeaker and in the design of guitar pickups that they should emit or be affected by electro magnetic fields. For example, sitting too close with your guitar to the loudspeaker of your amp or a desktop computer will cause noise issues (it's particularly bad with the latter). A distance of 2 meters from the electro magnetic source is considered safe for your sound.

What kind of Les Paul is it? Got pics? If the hum goes away only if you touch any of the metal parts (and thereby grounding it yourself with your body), then please check the grounding of the guitar again. There must be something amiss there.

It's a grounding issue then, as I suspected, but I'm not sure you can fix it yourself. Any of the Shadow pickups I tried were susceptible to malfunction, and this seems to be the norm if we go by anecdotal evidence. Often they even refuse to function properly out of the box. They got a real bad rep. When I had experienced such a grounding issue myself, I made the retailer swap out the electronics entirely at their cost which fixed the problem (the guitar was brand new and still under warranty at the time). I still let the guitar go in the end. Get a high-end Ovation instead and don't bother with crappy tech.

reserved for Japanese s/n

This is a guide to help you identify your guitar's place and year of manufacture by the instrument's serial number alone, based on the information given on the unofficial Epiphone wiki here, which mostly seems down nowadays. There are basically four distinct formats, also called identifiers, in which order serial numbers occur on Epiphone instruments. For Japanese and refurbished models, which are special cases, see bottom. YYMMFFRRRRR YY = year of manufacture MM = month of manufature FF = factory ID RRRRR = ranking number Example: 08121520333 = 2008 / December / factory 15 / unit 20333 Note: Models from 2008 and onwards omit the factory ID letter prefix. Pre-1994 productions also frequently omit the factory letter codes and appeared as all digits, e.g. 3042779. FYYMMRRRR F/FF = factory ID Y/YY = year of manufacture MM = month of manufacture RRRR = ranking number Example: 3021234 = Samick Korea / 1993 / February / unit 1234 Example: S3021234 = Samick Korea / 1993 / February / unit 1234 Example: S93021234 = Samick Korea / 1993 / February / unit 1234 Example: SI01021234 = Samick Indonesia / 2001 / February / unit 1234 Example: SI010212345 = Samick Indonesia / 2001 / February / unit 12345 Note: There may be no factory designator for some 1993 and earlier models. A single digit month of manufacture may occur for some 1997 and earlier models. The ranking number may consist of any number of digits. FYYMRRRR F = factory ID YY = year of manufacture M = letter code to corresponding month RRRR = ranking number Example: R01B0123 = Peerless Korea / 2001 / February / unit 0123. Note: The month of manufacture is single letter corresponding to each month such as A = January, B = February, etc. FYYSSSS This serial number formats is solely used on Epiphone Elite or Elitist models. F = factory ID Y = single digit year of manufacture (2002-2009) YY = double digit year of manufacture (2010-Current) SSSS = sequential ranking number Example: F21234 = Fuji-gen Japan / 2002 / unit 1234 Example: T101234 = Terada Japan / 2010 / unit 1234 Factory Letter Codes The following is a comprehensive list of factories and countries for serial numbers that start with at least one letter. B - Bohêmia Musico-Delicia (Czech Republic) BW - ____?____ (China) CI - Cort (Indonesia) DW - DaeWon (China) EA - QingDao (China) = Epiphone Acoustic ED - Dongbei (China) = In Chinese "Dongbei" means Northeast. EE - QingDao (China) = Epiphone Electric F - Fuji-gen (Japan) = Elite/Elitist models (see post below on Epiphone Japan Serial Numbers) F - Qingdao (China) = Les Paul Standard '59 / '60 / Tribute Models (see bottom of post on F-Serial Numbers Used on LP Std'59/'60 models and Tribute/Plus models) F/FN - Fine Guitars (Korea) = non-Japanese models FC - ____?____ (China 2000's) Possibly "Global Fine Supply Ltd." FC - Fuji-Gen (Japan 1990's) H - _______ (China?) Found on a 1995 El Nino G/GG - Identified as early modern Masterbilt acoustics (Epiphone says they have no record of G serials) GR - Grand Reward (Farida, Guang Dong) China, Seen on some early Masterbilt acoustics GP - ____?____ (Korea) found on a BB King Lucille from 2001 (verified by Epiphone Customer Service) I - Saein (Korea) J - Terada Gakki Seisakusyo (Japan) J - Unknown. Possibly Jakarta, Indonesia - Found on a 1997 S-310 JK - ??? Korea or Indonesia - Found on a 1999 G-310 Junior K - Korea Ins. (Korea) L - Leader Musical Instrument Co Ltd (Korea) MC - Muse (China) MR - Mirr factory, China N - See: FN O - Choice (Korea) P/R - Peerless (Korea) QG - Qingdao Gibson (China) - Interim designation used prior to "EA" & "EE" S - Samick (Korea) SI - Samick (Bogor, Indonesia) SJ - SaeJun (China) SK - ??? SM - Samil (Korea) SN - ____?____ (Indonesia) T - Terada Gakki Seisakusyo (Japan) U - Unsung (Korea) UC - Unsung China (China) WF - ____?____ (China) found on an Accu Bass Junior from 2001 X - ____ (China) - Early to mid 1990's serial number label - Verified by Epiphone Customer Service. Seen on "Epi" brand guitars. Y - Korea (seen on a PR775CE) Z - Zaozhuang Saehan (China) Factory Number Codes Some models from 2008 onwards have serial numbers that begin with a certain digit. 11 = MIC sticker on a '08 Masterbuilt 500 12 = DeaWon or Unsung (China - uncertainty remains as to which factory) 13 = China - factory unknown 15 = Qingdao (China) - electric 16 = Qingdao (China) - acoustic 17 = China - factory unknown MIC sticker on a J160E 18 = China - factory unknown found on one 2009 model bass 20 = DaeWon or Unsung (China - uncertainty remains as to which factory) 21 = Unsung, Korea 22 = Korea (factory still unknown) 23 = Samick factory Indonesia I = Indonesia (this letter has appeared as the 5th digit on two authentic new models made in Indonesia) Note: The factories identified by the codes above are based on patterns which users have observed. The numbers appear as the 5th and 6th digits in the serial number. This information has not been officially confirmed by Epiphone. F-Serial Numbers on Les Paul Standard '59/'60 Models and Tribute/Plus Models The latest serial number system used by Epiphone has not yet been completely deciphered. The new "F" models are made in China. The new system seems to be just continously running model numbers rather than a dedicated code for year, month, and place of manufacture. F300000 = late 2009 used on LP Std'59/Std'60/Tribute models Continued around F310650~F311050 in spring 2012 on Tribute-Plus models Continued around F305000 in 2011 Continued around F310000 in 2012 Continued around F317000 in 2013 Continued around F324000 in 2014 Continued around F330000 in 2015 Refurbished Models Serial numbers starting with "311xxxx2 on a golden sticker are refurbished guitars as sold by Musical Instrument Reclamation Center (MIRC). There is no way to tell the year or the month it was made. A few points of note: The original serial numbers are usually defaced. Original warranty is void. Sometimes the word "2nd" is stamped on the back of the headstock. MIRC specs can often be different from stock specs.

Probably a grounding problem—does the hum vanish if you touch the medal part of the jack with your hand while playing? What's the exact guitar model you're using? More information plus pictures would probably yield a greater response here or elsewhere.

The LR Baggs Element is an active preamp fitted entirely into an endpin tube. As Buc says, the preamp is enabled, draining the 9V battery, whenever a cord is plugged into the 1/4" output jack. Never leave your guitar plugged in if you're not playing.