Rosinante Posted September 11, 2020 Share Posted September 11, 2020 (edited) Just dropped off my J45 std red spruce for a setup with a new bone nut and saddle to replace the tusq. The only problem I have had with the guitar since I got it was that the high e was a bit lower than the other strings which is annoying with finger picking, and the nut sometimes pings when tuning. Any guitar my tech touches always comes back playing and sounding better. Been meaning to have this done for a while, but didn’t want to let go of the guitar, leaving town for work for a couple weeks, and decided now is the time. I thought about replacing the element for a K&k, but I don’t really mind the element for my purposes. Looking forward to getting it back after the trip. Anyone have experience going bone and leaving the element in their standards? Edited September 11, 2020 by Rosinante Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigKahune Posted September 11, 2020 Share Posted September 11, 2020 I bought a new J-200 some years ago that came with a tusk saddle on an Element, and plastic bridge pins. Yes, there’s the “tusk is made for electronics” thing, butI thought it was a bit muddy. I switched to a bone saddle and pins, left the Element in and was happy. Still the set up. 😎 . 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rosinante Posted September 11, 2020 Author Share Posted September 11, 2020 2 hours ago, BigKahune said: I bought a new J-200 some years ago that came with a tusk saddle on an Element, and plastic bridge pins. Yes, there’s the “tusk is made for electronics” thing, butI thought it was a bit muddy. I switched to a bone saddle and pins, left the Element in and was happy. Still the set up. 😎 . That’s good to hear. I have never had any problems with other guitars when it comes to Bone Saddles and UST’s, but this is my first experience with a bone saddle and an element. @BigKahune did you find that the bone improved the tone, changed it in anyway or didn’t really effect things either way? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kidblast Posted September 12, 2020 Share Posted September 12, 2020 just about every new acoustic needs a good setup.. and when you get it back.. BOOM... that's when the magic happens. let us know how it comes back sounding and playing... My hunch is it will be money and time well spent. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dhanners623 Posted September 12, 2020 Share Posted September 12, 2020 Three years ago, I had the Tusq saddle on my ‘16 J-35 replaced with a Bob Colossi bone one. The first thing we discovered was that the Tusq saddle was too thin so it was leaning in the slot under string pressure; the bottom wasn’t making proper contact with the bottom of the slot. A properly fitting bone saddle improved things right away. Then in the summer of ‘19, I had the Baggs Element system removed, so now the saddle was in direct contact with the slot. That was yet another improvement. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deadbug Posted September 12, 2020 Share Posted September 12, 2020 I have a new j-50 and has the same issue's high e volume and an occasional string slip threw nut Curious to know what your guy does or did to resolve the high e issue Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigKahune Posted September 12, 2020 Share Posted September 12, 2020 15 hours ago, Rosinante said: .... @BigKahune did you find that the bone improved the tone, changed it in anyway or didn’t really effect things either way? Yes . To my ear it went from kind of muddy and a bit soft to crisp and clear. I've been on the forum for quite a whiie and it's not unusal to see some make this change. Of course there are also those that will pull the UST. Got a B-compensated bone saddle from Colosi and bone bridge pins to boot. I'm still happy with it. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rosinante Posted September 12, 2020 Author Share Posted September 12, 2020 9 hours ago, deadbug said: I have a new j-50 and has the same issue's high e volume and an occasional string slip threw nut Curious to know what your guy does or did to resolve the high e issue I don’t have any volume issues with the e, it’s just lower than the other strings physically. I think the factory jut threw in a compensated saddle and maybe lowered the saddle unevenly or something. So the replacement saddle is mostly to bring the e into better alignment with the other 5 strings. If your issue is that the high e has a different volume than the other strings plugged in it could be that the saddle isn’t level on the bottom, I’ve had that happen with a matrix infinity before. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deadbug Posted September 13, 2020 Share Posted September 13, 2020 got it, When I do my first string change I'll be scoping it out! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fortyearspickn Posted September 13, 2020 Share Posted September 13, 2020 (edited) DB, May sound silly, but make sure there's not a speck of sawdust (or Unicorn Dust) in the saddle slot. And if it has an Under Saddle Transducer, that it is lying completely flat. No wrinkles. If the first string is hi up at the first fret, compared to the other 5 - it is more likely the nut slot needs to be filed down a hair. By a tech with a first string nut file. Edited September 13, 2020 by fortyearspickn Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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