Muffled/Muted Low E String (J-200 Studio)

[paganskins]

I've posted this in the AGF repair section but also thought the Gibson experts here might have an insight.

 

On a guitar with plenty of height in the saddle and a good break angle on the low E string what could be the cause of a lack of sustain and a muted tone?

 

There's plenty of relief so the string is well away from the frets when vibrating, it's more like a palm muted tone than fret buzz.

 

Guitar is a J200 studio which has tusq nut and saddle, the other strings are all OK and sustain normally. There's a marked difference between the E and A so it must be something very localised to the E causing it.

 

I've tried replacing the string and still have the same issue.

 

What should I be looking as a possible culprit, saddle issue, something loose inside bridge plate or brace wise, poorly seated ball end?

 

Possibly connected I also get a sympathetic buzzing/vibration sound when I hit the low E hard, I had been blaming the this on the fishman aura elipse in the sound hole.

 

Thanks.

[Matters]

Has it always been thuddy? Does it clear up when you fret that string? You could try a new bone saddle and remove the UST if it has one.

 

Matt

[paganskins]

Has it always been thuddy? Does it clear up when you fret that string? You could try a new bone saddle and remove the UST if it has one.

 

Matt

 

I think it has always been thuddy I just took it as being the gibson thump people talk about, not sure if it's worsened or I'm just noticing it more.

 

It doesn't clear up when fretted, if anything it get's progressively worse up the neck.

 

I was thinking bone saddle might be a good place to start if I couldn't see anything obviously amiss inside, I'll also lift the UST and have a look at the slot though I'm a bit reluctant to remove it as it's part of the factory fitted aura system.

 

Thanks Matt

[ParlourMan]

Start playing alternate bass fingerstyle blues like MIssissippi John Hurt, Gary Davis et al... your guitar is now very desirable and 'authentic' sounding.....

 

Flippancy aside, get the guitar to a tech, demo the issue to him, get them to check the setup etc... also check the strings you use, maybe you need strings that ring a bit more clear. What strings are on now, how old?

[paganskins]

Start playing alternate bass fingerstyle blues like MIssissippi John Hurt, Gary Davis et al... your guitar is now very desirable and 'authentic' sounding.....

 

Flippancy aside, get the guitar to a tech, demo the issue to him, get them to check the setup etc... also check the strings you use, maybe you need strings that ring a bit more clear. What strings are on now, how old?

 

I do use a folk accompaniment palm muted strumming style a bit like John Doyle quite a bit and it works for that well too.

 

It's there with a brand new martin sp and the fresh rotomatic I replaced it with as a check last night.

[paganskins]

As suspected the saddle was the culprit, it had been filed down badly and the base wasn't flat and subsequently not making contact beneath the low E.

 

I quickly leveled the base before posting off to Chris Alsop for a bone copy to be made, better but I'm still going to try a bone saddle instead.

 

Can't help wondering how much the fishman UST must inhibit the acoustic tone.

[dchristo]

As suspected the saddle was the culprit, it had been filed down badly and the base wasn't flat and subsequently not making contact beneath the low E.

 

I quickly leveled the base before posting off to Chris Alsop for a bone copy to be made, better but I'm still going to try a bone saddle instead.

 

Can't help wondering how much the fishman UST must inhibit the acoustic tone.

 

 

glad you got your guitar fixed. I have installed and removed several USTs and never could tell any difference in sound

[BigKahune]

.

 

Seems it's turned out fine for you. Yep, with a UST the saddle bottom needs to be as perfectly flat as possible. And sometimes it's simply a seating problem.

 

 

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