Advanced Jumbo question

[vourot]

I bought an 07 AJ back in January and I really love it. The sound is superb and it looks and feels great. I had pretty much made up my mind on a Martin D-28 but I didn't want to pull the trigger until I could play an AJ. As luck would have it I made a trip to a Guitar center and they had one in stock ( on clearance no less) . Anyway, they also had a j-45 on sale and a Hummingbird artist which I also wanted to try. Glad I made the trip because it was love at first strum. I was also happy because all the j-45's I had tried previously were disappointing ( except for a j-45 RW ). The AJ lived up to everything I read about it. I have a question about the bridge pins and nut. Will switching them to bone or Tusq really make a difference in tone that will be noticeable? Like I said , I think it sounds great as is but if its worth doing I would look into it. Any opinions?

 

Thanks!

[guitarstrummer]

Welcome to the forum. Some people can really notice a difference when changing the bridge pins, but I can't seem to notice much. For me, changing the bridge pins is more for cosmetic reasons than tonal. You may hear more of a difference in changing the nut to bone, though. Some models come with a bone nut, so you'll want to make sure what you already have, before changing it out. FWIW, I've never changed out a nut, just for tonal reasons. For me, you'll notice the most tonal difference is when changing the saddle to bone. Many Gibson acoustics come with a Tusq saddle. Tusq isn't at all bad, but you may wish to change to a bone saddle if yours has Tusq.

[vourot]

Hmm, forgot about the saddle. I guess I should take it somewhere for a setup, this being my first nice guitar and all. The bridge pins are definitely plastic ( shameful ) the nut is most likely plastic as well. Thanks for the reply!

[geelinus]

Be careful not to get sucked in by snobbery or trendiness. There's absolutely nothing wrong with plastic pins/nuts/saddles; most manufacturers of better to high-end guitars install plastic pins as standard.

 

Tusq offers greater sustain, and bone accentuates treble, but plastic does a very fine job of evenly transferring tones for most folks.

[guitarstrummer]

Hmm' date=' forgot about the saddle. I guess I should take it somewhere for a setup, this being my first nice guitar and all. The bridge pins are definitely plastic ( shameful ) the nut is most likely plastic as well. Thanks for the reply![/quote']

 

It will not be a "plastic" saddle. Unless someone else has done something to it, it will either be Tusq or bone. That's ususally the first thing people change out for a tonal difference. And geelinus is absolutely right. There's nothing wrong with plastic pins. I just like others for cosmetic reasons.

[gearbasher]

I have two J-45s w/factory installed under saddle pickups and tusq b-compensated saddles. One of the saddles is slotted on the bottom between every top sting slot (this is the closest thing I can find to show it: http://estore.graphtech.com/mmGTI/Images/PQ-9600-00-F.jpg ) , the other looks like a normal saddle. My question is: If I install bone saddles, will it effect the sound of the transducer pickups? (btw I really don't like the amplified sound all that much)

[ajsc]

My AJ came with bone nut, & Tusq saddle. I changed the pins to bone. The pins made a small, but nice change to the sound.

Putting med strings made a huge difference, in sound.

The AJ can hold it's own with my SJ-200 now.

Best guitars Gibson ever made,except for the Songwriter Deluxe,or maybe the Hummingbird,

or J-45RW,or Southern Jumbo,or,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

[guitarstrummer]

I have two J-45s w/factory installed under saddle pickups and tusq b-compensated saddles. One of the saddles is slotted on the bottom between every top sting slot (this is the closest thing I can find to show it: http://estore.graphtech.com/mmGTI/Images/PQ-9600-00-F.jpg ) ' date=' the other looks like a normal saddle. My question is: If I install bone saddles, will it effact the sound of the transducer pickups? (btw I really don't like the amplified sound all that much)[/quote']

 

Did the Tusq saddle with slots on the bottom come like that from the factory? Your photo looks like a brand new one, before the bottom is sanded down when adjusting the action.

 

I don't think a bone vs. Tusq saddle will make too much difference when using the pick up. The main reason that Gibson installs Tusq saddles in their models which have pick ups is because the Tusq material tends to be more consistent than bone. As long as you had a good piece of bone and the bottom was flat, you should be OK.

[Gilliangirl]

Hmm' date=' forgot about the saddle. I guess I should take it somewhere for a setup, this being my first nice guitar and all. The bridge pins are definitely plastic ( shameful ) the nut is most likely plastic as well. Thanks for the reply![/quote']

It seems to me that the reason why Gibson puts the plastic pins on is because they know people change them out anyway. Some prefer ivory, some prefer FWI, some prefer bone, some prefer horn, some prefer rosewood etc. It's like jewellery to me. You can stock them with pearls but why when people are going to replace them with diamonds, turquoise, semi-precious stones, etc. Knowing that, you might as well stock them with plastic. I still have the plastic ones on my guitar but will likely put bone on at some point. I'm one of the ones who does hear a slight difference, and the plastic sound fine. I found the rosewood ones, while visually attractive, seemed to muffle the clarity a bit/made it more of a muddy/mellow sound. Anyway, I digress.

[Taylor Player]

I have a 2005 AJ.... It has a Tusq nut and bone saddle which I guess is the opposite of ajsc's AJ. I called and spoke with the Bozeman people because I got the guitar in a trade for a Taylor T5 (A very good trade IMO!)

 

I swapped out the cheap plastic pins for bone and immediatly noticed more sustain and brighter notes. I like it. Bob Colosi is the man to go to. Size 2A works great. He typically has the double inlay pins on sale in that size. I think his site is Custom saddles but if you Google Bob Colosi you will find his site. Here is a shot of my pins on the AJ.

 

[LPDEN]

How did you find the intonation out of the box?

[ajsc]

Hey Taylor Player..where did you get your avatar?

Very cool!!

[Taylor Player]

Hey Taylor Player..where did you get your avatar?

Very cool!!

 

I don't really remember what site but I think when I was googleing pictures for the AJ' date=' I found this old adv. from the 1930's and just saved it in my picture folder. When I was choosing an avitar, it just kind of seemed to fit. If you want a larger version to copy, let me try this. [img']http://i225.photobucket.com/albums/dd219/lofapco/GibsonAJadv.jpg[/img]

 

I also almost choose this for the avitar but decided on the AJ one instead.....

 

[ajsc]

That's very cool,,,,,,,,,,,,Thanks

I was looking for pics also, that one didn't come up. The very first guitar on tv, came up.

If I can figure out how to post pics , I will post that one. It was an AJ by the way!!

Thanks again.

I have new wallpaper now.

[ajsc]

http://www.gibson.com/magazines/amplifier/1997/9/archives.html

Here's the link

[Taylor Player]

Great article and photos. I seem to remember seeing that too when I got my AJ.

 

Man... I love these Canons!

[LPDEN]

Yes, a very cool cool article. Great link! I really enjoy reading those sort of stories and the tie to Gibson history. I could read these all the time and never tire.

[ballcorner]

I have found over many years and many sets (I even had a jeweler make me a set out of silver) that pin, nut and saddle sets can have an impact on sustain and tone - though not always welcome changes. There are also certain dangers with some pins.

 

The theory, if I understand my luthier properly, is that a harder nut, saddle or pins will provide the best foundation for the string's energy to transfer to the top. As such, materials like plastic can absorb energy that another material like Tusq might actually transfer to the guitar. However, the caveat to this is: How much energy will the plastic absorb versus what is the cost to replace the parts?

 

The reason the world's major manufacturers install plastic pins has nothing to do with cost savings. Plastic pins are less dense than wood. When a guitar is shipped from the plant to parts unknown - it may be subject to many climate changes, humidity adjustments and temperature ranges of more than 80 degrees. As the bridge expands and contracts in the cargo holds and warehouses, the plastic pin is the best insurance against a stress fracture developing in the bridge.

 

So, everyone essentially agrees that the plastic pins are cheap and nasty, but there is a reason for them in transit. Now that you have the guitar home and you are keeping it in proper conditions vis a vis humidity and temperature, you can choose to invest in quality pins. What kind? From where? Well, those are simply issues of taste.

 

Myself, I really like the inlaid pins available from places already mentioned in this thread. My choice is to have custom pins made with special inlays that are unique to me and my lifestyle. I have sets with dog paws inlaid, stars, diamonds, rubies, aluminum dots, lettering and I have sets made from metals. Still, my Gibson Advanced Jumbo still holds the original plastic pins because the guitar sounds great just the way it is. This, I think, is the best advice I can give: Ask yourself if the guitar actually needs to be changed. Does it sound great in its present configuration? Do you really want to mess with that? Are you sure?

 

I put new rims and tires on a car once and the low profile rubber actually made the car more difficult to drive in certain conditions (rain). Yes, it looked better, but it did not perform as well. Changing a nut or a saddle when the one you currently have is working on a great sounding guitar is risky. I have had nuts replaced and the luthier didn't cut the slots properly, for example, and this affected intonation until I took it to another luthier to be fixed. In that case the factory nut had chipped and I had no choice. Where you have a choice, allow me to recommend that you do nothing, but maybe get some flashy pins just for fun.