jbarker393 Posted March 27, 2011 Share Posted March 27, 2011 Hello everyone! I haven't posted for quite some time, but have run into an unusual problem that I thought maybe some of you may have some insight on. I purchased a Songwriter Deluxe Studio in the summer of 2010 and it played beautifully till about October. At that time, I noticed a serious vibration coming from around the bridge area of the guitar. I sent the guitar back to Gibson twice before they finally admitted they didn't know what the problem was and gave me a new guitar to replace the original one. I received the new one in late January of this year and played it for about a month before developing another vibration around the bridge area. I sent the guitar back to Gibson AGAIN, only to have them contact me claiming it's just an overtone and the guitar is fine. I just received the guitar back today and the vibration is still there. I bought this guitar specifically for recording purposes because I liked the way it played as well as the nice full sound I get with it. Unfortunately the vibration has made it basically useless for recording and it is not even enjoyable to play anymore. Has anyone else encountered an issue like this with a Gibson acoustic? I'm starting to wonder if it's the model or if Gibson acoustics quality is just not that great. I'm so disappointed with this bad experience that I'm ready to give up on the Gibson acoustics. Any information or suggestions to help solve this problem would be greatly appreciated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigKahune Posted March 27, 2011 Share Posted March 27, 2011 . Sorry to hear of your trouble. I wonder about a couple of things: Is the environment a part of the situation - possibly the humidity levels. Maybe a dryer environment shrinking the part/s involved, creating room for vibrations. And/or something not secured/seated properly with the pickup system / saddle / bridge pins. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rar Posted March 27, 2011 Share Posted March 27, 2011 ... At that time, I noticed a serious vibration coming from around the bridge area of the guitar. I sent the guitar back to Gibson twice before they finally admitted they didn't know what the problem was and gave me a new guitar to replace the original one. I received the new one in late January of this year and played it for about a month before developing another vibration around the bridge area. ... Any information or suggestions to help solve this problem would be greatly appreciated. This sort of thing is literally impossible to diagnose without having the guitar in-hand: take a look at Frank Ford's list of possible causes of buzzing to get an idea of the number of possibilities in a case like this, and bear in mind that the sound coming from the bridge area does not mean the problem is in the bridge area. However, if you post a recording that demonstrates the problem, we could try making guesses. Just don't take the guesses too seriously. You really need to get the guitar to someone who is an expert diagnostician. -- Bob R Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
strat-o-steve Posted March 27, 2011 Share Posted March 27, 2011 I have an Alvarez that had a mysterious overtone when playing the A string open ( picked a little hard ). Try this...... 1. Change your strings, try another brand. 2. Change your bridge saddle, try another type of material. :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jbarker393 Posted March 27, 2011 Author Share Posted March 27, 2011 I have an Alvarez that had a mysterious overtone when playing the A string open ( picked a little hard ). Try this...... 1. Change your strings, try another brand. 2. Change your bridge saddle, try another type of material. :D I did try changing strings to Martin SP's and that didn't seem to make a difference. When I spoke with the gentleman from Gibson that was working on it, he said would change the saddle to bone which he did , but that didn't seem to make a difference either. I live in western PA, so it is a fairly dry environment in the winter. That may be a factor as someone stated in an earlier comment. I never thought of the humidity as being a problem since I have 2 Martin acoustics that have never seemed to be affected by the environment. Last night I did increase the humidity in the case so that its about 50% right now. That too has not made a difference. Maybe it's just time to trade it in on something else. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rar Posted March 27, 2011 Share Posted March 27, 2011 Last night I did increase the humidity in the case so that its about 50% right now. That too has not made a difference. Be sure to give it enough time. At 50% relative humidity, a severely dried-out guitar can take a couple of months to recover. However, I doubt that's your problem. Gibson has hydrometers capable of measuring the moisture content of the wood -- not that skilled luthiers can't recognize a dried-out guitar when they see one, but this thing measures exactly how dried out -- and surely would have told you if lack of humidification were an issue. -- Bob R Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stu2820 Posted March 28, 2011 Share Posted March 28, 2011 rar is right. It might not be coming from the bridge even though it sounds like it is. Does it do it unfretted? Sometimes if you haven't got enough relief in the neck, you can get buzzes from the headstock side of a fretted string i.e. between the fret and the nut. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jbarker393 Posted March 29, 2011 Author Share Posted March 29, 2011 rar is right. It might not be coming from the bridge even though it sounds like it is. Does it do it unfretted? Sometimes if you haven't got enough relief in the neck, you can get buzzes from the headstock side of a fretted string i.e. between the fret and the nut. I appreciate all of the replies and suggestions. Maybe I am jumping the gun and need to give it a little more time and a little more trouble shooting. The vibration is only occurring on the B string when it is fretted. When played unfretted, it sounds fine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stu2820 Posted March 29, 2011 Share Posted March 29, 2011 Ok, JB. Fret each string on the 3rd fret and see if any touch the 1st fret, especially the B. If you tap each string over the 1st fret and you hear a click, it's not touching. If say, the B is touching, build up sucessive layers of paper under the string right in the B nut slot to temporarily raise the string. If the rattle stops, there's the problem and you need a new nut really. Frank Fords site is amazing and the tools ain't much from Stew Mac. I tought myself setups long a while back and wouldn't let anyone else do mine......except Frank maybe. Edited to add, make sure the whole guitar is set up properly first. I play heavy and need 3.5mm action, 0.5mm relief with mediums to avoid sympathetic rattles and excessive fret buzz. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hogeye Posted March 29, 2011 Share Posted March 29, 2011 I appreciate all of the replies and suggestions. Maybe I am jumping the gun and need to give it a little more time and a little more trouble shooting. The vibration is only occurring on the B string when it is fretted. When played unfretted, it sounds fine. Just wonderin'? When you were working with Gibson customer service were you talking to Montana or Nashville? Where was it you sent your guitar for evaluation? I will say that it seems unusual that two guitars would have the same problem. I think we would like Gibson to solve this mystery not just swap out guitars. What did your dealer say when you presented him with the problem? Did they try to fix it locally? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jbarker393 Posted March 29, 2011 Author Share Posted March 29, 2011 Just wonderin'? When you were working with Gibson customer service were you talking to Montana or Nashville? Where was it you sent your guitar for evaluation? I will say that it seems unusual that two guitars would have the same problem. I think we would like Gibson to solve this mystery not just swap out guitars. What did your dealer say when you presented him with the problem? Did they try to fix it locally? I originally took the guitar to a local dealer and after taking a good look at it, they advised me to send it back to Gibson. When I sent it back to Gibson, I sent it Montana. The first time they looked at it ( before they swapped it out ) they said they checked the bracing and made some neck adjustments as well some nut adjustments and sent it back. The second time I sent it to them, they said they couldn't figure out what was causing the vibration and swapped out the guitar for a new one. I would have liked to have known what was causing the problem, but they said they didn't know. When they assessed the guitar I currently have, they said would change the saddle to bone and see if made a difference. So far, the saddle change hasn't eliminated the vibration. I still think that when paying that much for a "quality" instrument, you shouldn't have to go through this much hassle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hogeye Posted March 31, 2011 Share Posted March 31, 2011 I originally took the guitar to a local dealer and after taking a good look at it, they advised me to send it back to Gibson. When I sent it back to Gibson, I sent it Montana. The first time they looked at it ( before they swapped it out ) they said they checked the bracing and made some neck adjustments as well some nut adjustments and sent it back. The second time I sent it to them, they said they couldn't figure out what was causing the vibration and swapped out the guitar for a new one. I would have liked to have known what was causing the problem, but they said they didn't know. When they assessed the guitar I currently have, they said would change the saddle to bone and see if made a difference. So far, the saddle change hasn't eliminated the vibration. I still think that when paying that much for a "quality" instrument, you shouldn't have to go through this much hassle. You are right. You shouldn't have to go thru this. I can't imagine that this has happened to two guitars in a row. It's the first time I have heard of something like this and must admit I'm confused by your term of vibration. As we all know the bridge is supposed to vibrate to transfer the string energy to the top but it sounds like your guitars are doing something different? Could you be referring to a string buzz??? regardless...Gibson needs to figure this out. Keep us posted and good luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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