charlie brown Posted October 24, 2010 Share Posted October 24, 2010 Mine is a 2009 USA Standard. 2009? So, you bought it (recently?) "used?" If so..that may be the reason the prvious owner sold/traded it off? Somtimes there is no "fix," unfortunately. It's just a characteristic, of that particular guitar, itself. I hope that's not the case with your's, but it is possible. Did it just start doing this, or was it characteristic, from the beginning? Good luck, with it! CB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tonebias Posted October 25, 2010 Author Share Posted October 25, 2010 No it was new.... I think its the wood. but I will go through the hoops first and live with a bad couple notes on the G string if necessary. Not happy about it, but after all it is a Gibson and they don't have the best reputation for thier QA process. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charlie brown Posted October 25, 2010 Share Posted October 25, 2010 No it was new.... I think its the wood. but I will go through the hoops first and live with a bad couple notes on the G string if necessary. Not happy about it, but after all it is a Gibson and they don't have the best reputation for thier QA process. Could it be a high fret, or two? Have you had it fret dressed? Pre-pleked Gibsons, have (sometimes) had some fret issues. Not always their fault, though...as depending on where it's shipped, and how...or how long it lives in a warehouse, in what conditions, etc...can effect the fingeboard and frets. And, sometimes bad fret jobs slip by! So..??? CB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rewddawg Posted October 25, 2010 Share Posted October 25, 2010 Could it be a high fret, or two? Have you had it fret dressed? Pre-pleked Gibsons, have (sometimes) had some fret issues. Not always their fault, though...as depending on where it's shipped, and how...or how long it lives in a warehouse, in what conditions, etc...can effect the fingeboard and frets. And, sometimes bad fret jobs slip by! So..??? CB Hey CB can't you check the fret heights with a straight edge of a certain length? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charlie brown Posted October 30, 2010 Share Posted October 30, 2010 Hey CB can't you check the fret heights with a straight edge of a certain length? Yeah, overall...but that's not all that accurate. It doesn't take much height difference, to fret out, at certain areas. Might just need a decent fret level, and dressing? Hard to determine, without seeing it. But, a good luthier, should be able to determine what the problem is. CB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SG FAN Posted October 30, 2010 Share Posted October 30, 2010 All 3 of my SGs sustain well, even my Epi. I'm guessing you got a dud, I know it hurts to hear that but there's a good chance it could be true. SGs lack the body mass of a LP, but IMO, if you can't get an SG to out-sustain a Strat, something's wrong. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tom brown Posted November 2, 2010 Share Posted November 2, 2010 Heres my take on all of this for what its worth.. I think slamming the tail piece is kinda like when you slam the suspension on a automomoble. It can lead to several other problems due to the fact the guitar ( and automobile) are designed a certain way for many specific reasons. They include sustain, balance, intonation, bridge alignment, life of strings, string tension, ect. It alters what the designers have been doing for 70 years, tried and true methods. The alternative is on a link i posted here, i have also seen the spacers (or bushings) sold seperate but i am unable to locate them at this time. This piece has the spacers with the tailpiece i am talking about. http://www.zzounds.com/item--GIBATP0 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kzin Posted November 3, 2010 Share Posted November 3, 2010 I started to notice that it mainly the G string that is causing problems and typically after mid neck, the 12th fret is awful but there is no buzz whatsoever just a fizzle out after about 3 seconds sort of like touching the string. Basicly all standard sg I´ve had played have had a dead spot around the area your describing, and so does my current one. It has something to do with what frequency the wood resonates (someone who knows the physics can problably explain it). Try to tune the string higher or lower and see if its the same fret or the note it self wich is causing the problem. There were a discussion on the forum some time ago about this. Someone said he had noticed that the problem hadn´t been so pronounced on cheaper sg´s wich didnt have one-piece necks. Anyway, I would just forget about it. Most strats I´ve played hade hade a dead A-note, and most sg´s seem to have a dead f# note. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Opiate Posted February 18, 2011 Share Posted February 18, 2011 Hello all, I had a very similar problem with my Gibson SG Standard. The G-string would just fizzle out after about 3 seconds of sustain when fretted on the 10th and upward. I took it in to the shop and it ended up needing a minor truss rod tweak. I bought it brand new and I started noticing it after about a week. Not sure exactly why it happened in such a short amount of time but I'm thinking that since I had a custom set up and had the action lowered it bowed the neck slightly because of the new tension it was under vs the factory high action defaults. Does that sound right to you guys? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BoyVader Posted February 18, 2011 Share Posted February 18, 2011 Not happy about it, but after all it is a Gibson and they don't have the best reputation for thier QA process. Er, no good knocking Gibson again....what about your QA? Didn't you play it before you bought it? :unsure: Guitar's can sit in shops for a while, and it may have been "setup" in store after leaving Gibson?.... My SG doesn't sustain anything like my LP either...2009 SG Standard. Hope you solve the mystery.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charlie brown Posted February 18, 2011 Share Posted February 18, 2011 You know...I had a similar issue, with one of my Ric 12-strings. One of the octive strings wouldn't sustain. Turned out to be a "nut" slot problem, where it was dampening the string somewhat. Fixed that, and all's well, now. So..??? CB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EVOL! Posted February 18, 2011 Share Posted February 18, 2011 Er, no good knocking Gibson again.... In tonebias' defense, Gibson did have questionable QC about ten years ago. It has improved exponentially as of late. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pizzaface Posted February 19, 2011 Share Posted February 19, 2011 I just got my SG special and im very please with it, i have been reading thís thread and i was thinking if the Alnico II magnets has something to do with the sustain problem? Because they arent that stong as Alnico V magnets. String vibrations and stuff like that. I dont know really. Just my thought. Regards from Sweden! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TimboLPSG Posted February 21, 2011 Share Posted February 21, 2011 The SG just isn't going to ring out like a LP or a PRS. I came to that conclusion after experimenting with my '61 RI. I did find that pure nickle strings provide a small but noticeible improvement in sustain. I've toyed with the idea of replacing the factory nut, as I've had an ambivalence about it since day one of owning the guitar. Other than that, I've just accepted that the SG is a "niche" guitar, and as someone mentioned ealier in the thread, it is endearing to those who favor its unique qualities and characteristics. My final thought is that a BB Pro pup, at least one at the bridge, might provide you with acceptable sustain on this guitar. They added significant sustain to my LP (and it didn't even need it) over the stock 480/498 configuration. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TimboLPSG Posted February 21, 2011 Share Posted February 21, 2011 As an aside, if you're into pedals I've found that mixing in a little low-level chorus or analog delay (or both) will definitely "stretch" out sustain on the SG even at relatively low I/O volume levels. If it's a clean sound you're working with, you get to keep it along with some added ring. Now a good distortion/overdrive effect will, of course, add sustain to damn near any guitar. My Boss Power Stack ST-2 will tack on about 10 extra seconds of ring even on my SG. So, there are workarounds, depending on your tastes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jared.our.lord Posted October 18, 2016 Share Posted October 18, 2016 I know this is an OLD topic, but I wanted to say I found this because my LP had the same issue. The problem was an un-level fret, as someone noted above. Very small amount of un-level. For a short term fix I raised the action a hair. Long term I will probably get the frets leveled by a decent luthier. Strange thing is, it wasn't a problem until after a fret dressing during a string change, a couple years after buying the guitar. Thanks, all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Col Mustard Posted November 30, 2016 Share Posted November 30, 2016 Howdy folks, I have a question about my new SG. I love the thing, it feels right, plays decent but I have a sustain problem. When I brought it home I started noticing that it would ring well for a certain amount of time that then sort of fizzle out. Originally I just thought it was pickup height but after adjusting them quite a bit there was no effect. I also put new strings on it to no avail. Then, I decided to gut the electronics by getting rid of the silly circuit board and going for a standard 4x500K pots and PIO caps like I did on my Les Paul. Soldered all joints and shielded the cavity. Nothing... I have tried the entire setup with other guitars and they ring just fine so it’s not anything but the guitar. I sure hope I don’t have a dud SG with crappy wood, that wood suck (pun intended)… Any suggestions? I don't think there is anything wrong with your guitar. Some guitars sustain longer than others. My SG faded special will sustain for 19 seconds until I can't hear it any more... so it likely sustains longer. When it won't sustain as well, it's time to change strings. New strings will sustain longer. Old dead strings will not. But since you did change them, you might try some different brands. There are a lot of great strings for sale. Ernie Ball is a good brand, but maybe a set of Gibson Bright Wires would sustain longer, or a set of D'Addario like I use. Or Slinkies... I have a Tone Pros bridge and tail on my 07 SG faded special, the one I mentioned. That is a really good mod to install. The bridge clamps on to the posts, and that increases sustain. It's expensive though, so I'd try all the cheaper things first. Tone Pros bridge is great. I have tried the tailpiece in a number of different positions. Right now, my SGs are both top wrapped... which means I poke the string through from the front, and wrap it over the tail piece before it goes to the bridge. You keep your tail piece low when you top wrap. I get better sustain with the tail piece just off the deck... not cranked all the way down. If your guitar is not top wrapped, and the strings touch the back of the bridge, sustain will suffer. One little aggravating thing that SGs suffer from is a dead spot or two. G string at the 12th fret is one that other players have also reported. The only cure for that is a thing called a Phat Finger, which is a weight that you add to the headstock. The dead spot is caused by a resonance factor in the wood of the neck. Fender guitars have these as well, G string at the 7th fret on a P-Bass is notorious... The guitar makers know about this, and have for years, but no one has been able to do anything about it. I have another SG, a 2012 SG special '70s tribute. That one has a maple neck, and sustains great, and I haven't noticed the dead spots as much. Most players just learn to work around them. One way to test your guitar and see if it needs a weight at the headstock is to play it unamplified, standing near a wall... Then move closer to the wall and play your guitar with the headstock touching the wall. If it rings better and sustains longer with the headstock in contact with the wall, then some weight at the headstock might help sustain. Good luck with this. The other easy solution is a Dyna Comp pedal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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