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Fret Buzz/High E Slippage on a New Guitar


darling67

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On 3/15/2020 at 7:12 PM, darling67 said:

 

As promised... some pics of the nut, and a pic of the neck looking down to the stop bar. Interesting… when looking at the latter, the space between the 1st and 2nd string seems much wider apart than the 2nd and 3rd string. Perhaps the 1st string is not far enough "inside" the fretboard? 🤔

Thanks!

20200315_154836_zpskdoyl9hb.jpg   20200315_155007_zps5tkudujo.jpg   20200315_154824_zps9ujqyomj.jpg

20200315_155156_zps8ikvkzad.jpg   20200315_155349_zpsfbfyz4m3.jpg

It appears that way to my eyes too, but not by much.

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12 hours ago, Sgt. Pepper said:

Corrected. I should have looked. I only have 8 or 9 copies of that album in all forms. Used to have it on 8-track. Loaned it to my friend and he never returned it. Been listening to that album since '79 and all this time I've gotten it wrong. I suck.

 

Well... as much of a self-proclaimed Beatles aficionado I have been most of my adult life, I still get things wrong that I was certain I had nailed-down… whether it's "who sang what", or "who played what on that song", etc.... I am always learning new things. One of the great things about The Beatles: there's so much to KNOW.

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11 hours ago, deeman said:

 

I agree, yours is totally better and we totally de-railed this thread about high e slippage. My apologies to the OP.

 

No sweat. These things happen.... and if it's because of The Beatles, then there's no foul! 😀

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10 hours ago, zigzag said:

 

It may just be the lighting, but it seems to me like your neck binding is thinner between the second and fourth frets. Could it be possible this is contributing to string slippage. It took me over a year to notice this on my 335 at around the fifteenth fret. It is high enough to where it is not the cause of the slippage, but it is now all I see when I look at this guitar.

3GkvAns.jpg

 

Wow! I hadn't noticed that. Good catch.... I don't think it's the lighting, either. I'll go check it out now. If it is, then this is a return—no way around it.

Thanks.

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Thanks for all the replies, gents.

I just picked her up to play, and the high E string is now virtually dead. Plucked it, and it's just a sad, buzzy, toneless noise. 😕

I think Sweetwater is going to get this guitar back from me. Not sure what the deal is, but I don't think I want to deal with the deal! 🙄

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The slippage problem may also be also be pronounced by the fret tapering closer to the edge of the fretboard. It's funny, but I've had this issue only with my 335, and it has changed the way I play it. It mainly affects my vibrato and pull-offs. This is the only Gibson, or Epiphone for that matter, I've had this issue with, and otherwise, I love the neck and the guitar. But I shouldn't have to change the way I play it just to put up with shoddy workmanship. I wish I had caught it during the return period. 

It is also quite possible that the neck is twisted causing the buzzing on those three strings. If so, that problem is irreparable. I've seen quite a few neck issues with Gibsons... more so than any other brand. But that may be coincidental.

Edited by zigzag
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13 minutes ago, zigzag said:

The slippage problem may also be also be pronounced by the fret tapering closer to the edge of the fretboard. It's funny, but I've had this issue only with my 335, and it has changed the way I play it. It mainly affects my vibrato and pull-offs. This is the only Gibson, or Epiphone for that matter, I've had this issue with, and otherwise, I love the neck and the guitar. But I shouldn't have to change the way I play it just to put up with shoddy workmanship. I wish I had caught it during the return period. 

 

I'd heard about all the QC issues with these 2020 Epi's, but I have had really good luck with buying guitars sight unseen. Never any issues at all. My luck has run out, it appears. I can't adjust or modify my playing style enough to circumvent this. Nor do I want to. Strings shouldn't slip off the fretboard so effortlessly.... and now the string is dead? Eek!

Edited by darling67
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22 hours ago, darling67 said:

 

I'd heard about all the QC issues with these 2020 Epi's, but I have had really good luck with buying guitars sight unseen. Never any issues at all. My luck has run out, it appears. I can't adjust or modify my playing style enough to circumvent this. Nor do I want to. Strings shouldn't slip off the fretboard so effortlessly.... and now the string is dead? Eek!

My 2011 Epi 61 SG Special's frets go well into the binding, which was typical on the old G400 style Epiphones. Most of your photos show look like the frets are extending far enough over the binding but the dressed angle, to me, looks like it may be too great where the top of the angle is over the fingerboard. If you can see it, the angle of my fret ends are more vertical starting at the edge of the fingerboard. 

 kgpJS4V.jpg

If any are like zigzag's below, you may want to contact Gibson support..

3GkvAns.jpg

Edited by mihcmac
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5 hours ago, mihcmac said:

My 2011 Epi 61 SG Special's frets go well into the binding, which was typical on the old G400 style Epiphones. Most of your photos show look like the frets are extending far enough over the binding but the dressed angle, to me, looks like it may be too great where the top of the angle is over the fingerboard. If you can see it, the angle of my fret ends are more vertical starting at the edge of the fingerboard. 

 kgpJS4V.jpg

If any are like zigzag's below, you may want to contact Gibson support..

3GkvAns.jpg

 

Interesting observation. Right, like my frets are "sloped" down and away... creating the right circumstances for a string to slide off—like a water slide! LOL!

I have a feeling this guitar will ultimately be returned. Need to initiate and authorize it first, and Sweetwater has been dragging their feet getting back to me. They're usually a lot more attentive and on the ball. I guess Covid-19 is screwing with everyone's lives in one way or another.

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On 3/19/2020 at 4:25 PM, darling67 said:

 

Interesting observation. Right, like my frets are "sloped" down and away... creating the right circumstances for a string to slide off—like a water slide! LOL!

I have a feeling this guitar will ultimately be returned. Need to initiate and authorize it first, and Sweetwater has been dragging their feet getting back to me. They're usually a lot more attentive and on the ball. I guess Covid-19 is screwing with everyone's lives in one way or another.

I have noticed that a few new Epiphone owners experiencing fret buzz have backed off the nut tension a little to help relieve the buzz. Then after the neck settles are able to lower the bridge a bit.

Because I live on an Island almost all of my guitars are purchased online. A few of my new Epiphones came with the nut completely backed off from Musicians Friend., Sweetwater claims to setup before shipping, perhaps they over tightened the neck. Epiphone necks are typically not as stable as Gibsons and can go back forth while stabilizing in their new environment.

God luck and stay well...

Edited by mihcmac
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6 hours ago, mihcmac said:

I have noticed that a few new Epiphone owners experiencing fret buzz have backed off the nut tension a little to help relieve the buzz. Then after the neck settles are able to lower the bridge a bit.

Because I live on an Island almost all of my guitars are purchased online. A few of my new Epiphones came with the nut completely backed off from Musicians Friend., Sweetwater claims to setup before shipping, perhaps they over tightened the neck. Epiphone necks are typically not as stable as Gibsons and can go back for a while stabilizing in their new environment.

God luck and stay well...

 

Hey, thanks for the insights...

Yes, Sweetwater does their "55 point inspection". So, it's hard to fathom how they'd miss something so obvious. I do find it odd how, when I first got the guitar, it was mainly some fret buzz and the string slippage. But since then, it's graduated up to a dead string.

So, it seems like there's some "adapting" or "adjusting" going on with something… the neck, specifically! I don't dare mess with my guitars, out of fear of screwing something up worse. Could giving the truss rod a couple turns help at all? I wanted to adjust the wrap-around stop bar (these don't sport a bridge), thinking it might help, as well.

Not really sure what else to do or where to begin trying to remedy this on my own, if the guitar can be salvaged and avoid a return.

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Doing one thing or another out of context won't do you any good.  The guitar needs to be set up to function correctly, which is done in a certain order.  If you follow general rules you can't do anything to a guitar you can't fix a minute later.

rct

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12 minutes ago, rct said:

Doing one thing or another out of context won't do you any good.  The guitar needs to be set up to function correctly, which is done in a certain order.  If you follow general rules you can't do anything to a guitar you can't fix a minute later.

rct

So what would step #1 be for a guitar that began with fret buzz, that turned into a dead string? 😒 I'm thinking the string slippage will be remedied when the other things are.

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4 minutes ago, darling67 said:

 

Hey, thanks for the insights...

Yes, Sweetwater does their "55 point inspection". So, it's hard to fathom how they'd miss something so obvious. I do find it odd how, when I first got the guitar, it was mainly some fret buzz and the string slippage. But since then, it's graduated up to a dead string.

So, it seems like there's some "adapting" or "adjusting" going on with something… the neck, specifically! I don't dare mess with my guitars, out of fear of screwing something up worse. Could giving the truss rod a couple turns help at all? I wanted to adjust the wrap-around stop bar (these don't sport a bridge), thinking it might help, as well.

Not really sure what else to do or where to begin trying to remedy this on my own, if the guitar can be salvaged and avoid a return.

Like rct says there is nothing you can do that can't be undone... Most of the online people that complained about fret buzz got their guitars from Sweetwater and got buzz relief by loosening the truss rod. When neck adjustments are done it can take a while to settle in. A normal tweak to fix the problem you are talking about would be about an 1/8 counter clockwise turn and let it set for a while and check if the buzz is better, it ain't rocket science.. Or you take it in to be setup by a pro.. 

PS in my opinion Sweetwaters 55 point inspection is worthless..

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1 minute ago, mihcmac said:

Like rct says there is nothing you can do that can't be undone... Most of the online people that complained about fret buzz got their guitars from Sweetwater and got buzz relief by loosening the truss rod. When neck adjustments are done it can take a while to settle in. A normal tweak to fix the problem you are talking about would be about an 1/8 counter clockwise turn and let it set for a while and check if the buzz is better, it ain't rocket science.. Or you take it in to be setup by a pro.. 

PS in my opinion Sweetwaters 55 point inspection is worthless..

 

LOL! 😄 55 point-less inspection?

Ok, thanks!

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On a different note, I bought a 12 string acoustic way back and it played fine up to the first 5 frets.  I played mostly on the first 3 frets and going up to the 5th on that  guitar. Later on I noticed a dead spot from past the 5th on up to 12th fret.  Think about a year passed by.  I couldn't figure out what was wrong and still under warranty I took it in to Guitar Center. They had their luther look at it and he was eyeballing the neck, tweaked the truss rod here and there. The neck was warped and twisted.  They took it back and gave me a brand new 12 string. Guess, Guitars are like a box of chocolates. You never know what you're gonna' get? LOl

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  • 2 weeks later...

Hi there!

This was my experience, if it helps anyone.


I am having the same issue whit a Les Paul Special from this new collection. When I pickup the guitar from the store, i realize that there where some fret buzzing, but i thought that it was only the action being too low, after raising it by giving some relief on the truss rod, it was still giving a lot of fret buzz. So i pick up a fret rocker, and check every fret, ending up in 8 high frets. 


First, i take it to the shop, they only raise the action more, making it uncomfortable, and still giving some fret buzz, so they sent me to the official, Gibson and Epiphone service. They gave it a complete setup, and new strings, and the guitar came out good, without any fret buzz, at that moment, i didn't check again the frets... Two weeks later, the problem appears again, whit a lot of high frets. So i think that it might be, that they reseated the frets, and they got loosen again. 

I don't know what to do whit this guitar, on the service, they told me that on this "cheap" guitars, they don't do fret works, that only can ask Epiphone for a new guitar. So that makes me think that, in that case, i might end up whit a guitar whit the same problem, or another. It's been 2 months since i bought it, and i can't enjoy it the way it should be. 

Just to tell you that i went whit a friend of mine the day i bought it, he was buying an SG from this same collection, 2 of 3 that they have in stock, have the same problem, so it is a common problem. 


On the service, they charge around 130 euros for a proper fret leveling. 


Any advice guys? i´m getting tired of this, just a bad experience, also the neck has a bump in the rear, no from a punch, it is bad from the factory. On any other way, the guitar is gorgeous.

Thanks in advance. 

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2 hours ago, roberyto said:

Hi there!

This was my experience, if it helps anyone.


I am having the same issue whit a Les Paul Special from this new collection. When I pickup the guitar from the store, i realize that there where some fret buzzing, but i thought that it was only the action being too low, after raising it by giving some relief on the truss rod, it was still giving a lot of fret buzz. So i pick up a fret rocker, and check every fret, ending up in 8 high frets. 


First, i take it to the shop, they only raise the action more, making it uncomfortable, and still giving some fret buzz, so they sent me to the official, Gibson and Epiphone service. They gave it a complete setup, and new strings, and the guitar came out good, without any fret buzz, at that moment, i didn't check again the frets... Two weeks later, the problem appears again, whit a lot of high frets. So i think that it might be, that they reseated the frets, and they got loosen again. 

I don't know what to do whit this guitar, on the service, they told me that on this "cheap" guitars, they don't do fret works, that only can ask Epiphone for a new guitar. So that makes me think that, in that case, i might end up whit a guitar whit the same problem, or another. It's been 2 months since i bought it, and i can't enjoy it the way it should be. 

Just to tell you that i went whit a friend of mine the day i bought it, he was buying an SG from this same collection, 2 of 3 that they have in stock, have the same problem, so it is a common problem. 


On the service, they charge around 130 euros for a proper fret leveling. 


Any advice guys? i´m getting tired of this, just a bad experience, also the neck has a bump in the rear, no from a punch, it is bad from the factory. On any other way, the guitar is gorgeous.

Thanks in advance. 

Call Gibson support

Europe: 00+8004GIBSON1

US & Canada: 1-800-4GIBSON

or email suport

https://www.epiphone.com/Support/Contact

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Just now, mihcmac said:

Call Gibson support

Europe: 00+8004GIBSON1

US & Canada: 1-800-4GIBSON

or email suport

https://www.epiphone.com/Support/Contact

 

Thanks for the advice, i already did it, they told me to take back the guitar to the service. That's why i am looking for advice, and others experience. Maybe it is just a waste of time, as is the last time i took it, the next step for sure, is a new guitar. Anyway whatever i chose to do, i will share it here.

Cheers

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