high e string is touching the edge of the bridge on a sg 61 reissue. choice for a bridge replacement

[alexandros]

Hi! I have a sg 61 reissue and i tried to low the tailpiece (in order to gain more sustain) but the high e string is touching the edge of the bridge. My guitar has a nashville bridge,is it worth of changing it with an abr-1 or tone pros? Mine is wide enough and as a result the saddles can move to a bigger area than those of other bridges (helps you to solve the intonation problem in sg's). I have tried to wrap the strings around the tailpiece, but the high strings lost a lot of sustain. thanks!!

[alexandros]

I use standard tuning and 11-52 ernie ball set.

[strat-o-steve]

Raise the stop bar height. Simple. :)

[Kennis]

nvm, reread your post and saw you tried the wrap around.

 

look to the guy above then. nothing else to do.

[L5Larry]

The string bending across the back of the bridge will really do no harm or have any ill or negative affects. Strats and Teles (or any "string through" guitar) all have this extra bend point.

 

The extra bend (and rub) does create a weak point where the string might break, but if you have no breakage problems you'll be fine.

[strat-o-steve]

PS the "extra bend", especially if several strings are doing it, will eventually bend the bridge posts and make your bridge lean forward, ruining intonation and making adjustment difficult. This is because when properly adjusted, the strings will only put downward pressure on the bridge. When the string contacts the rear of the bridge behind the saddle, it creates a forward pressure in addition to the downward pressure already present. Simply raise the stop bar until the string doesn't contact the bridge body. Contrary to the popular myth, the stop bar does not have to be tightened all the way to the body of the guitar for good sustain. That's hogwash. And wrapping the strings over the stop bar will do nothing more than permanently mar the plated finish of the stop bar.

[alexandros]

what about putting washers under the tailpiece? What kind of washers do i need?

[L5Larry]

what about putting washers under the tailpiece?

 

You do not need washers, the posts are adjustable. Just turn the posts counterclockwise (left) to raise the stopbar as far as you would like to.

[alexandros]

I read in some forums that putting washers under the tailpiece is almost the same as setting it as low as it goes.Some people believe that the washers can help you to avoid string wrapping around the tailpiece. (don't forget that i want the tailpiece to be set up as low as it can in order to be more stable and gain more sustain.)

[strat-o-steve]

It won't be any more stable or gain any more sustain. Tone and sustain all come from the guitars overall setup.....including string height, nut condition, proper intonation, and string selection. Washers under your stop bar? That should be a no-no. These parts are made adjustable for a reason....to be adjusted to suit your preferred setup/style. You are chasing a myth. Set the instrument up properly and enjoy it. If you then find you need more "sustain", use a heavier gauge string and a little higher action. ;)

[alexandros]

Is it problem for the strings to touch the back of the bridge?

[stein]

Is it problem for the strings to touch the back of the bridge?

Probrably not a problem if they touch the bridge, the Nashville style has studs into dowels into the guitar- it's fairly sturdy.

 

So, I think you shoud just screw the tailpiece all the way down, check how much "extra" sustain it has, and then raise it back up to normal once you discover it doesn't make a difference.

[alexandros]

It's true that when i screw the tailpiece all down, i didn't notice any difference in sustain but only in tone (more bright). A friend of mine suggested me to change the gibson bridge with a tone pros (chrome again) as it could improve sustain and may be add more brightness to the guitar tone. What do you suggest me for improving my 61 reissue sustain? i am very satisfied with the tone the guitar has, the only thing i want from this instrument is to take all the sustain it can give!!

[rct]

It's true that when i screw the tailpiece all down, i didn't notice any difference in sustain but only in tone (more bright). A friend of mine suggested me to change the gibson bridge with a tone pros (chrome again) as it could improve sustain and may be add more brightness to the guitar tone. What do you suggest me for improving my 61 reissue sustain? i am very satisfied with the tone the guitar has, the only thing i want from this instrument is to take all the sustain it can give!!

 

You can't buy sustain. You either play loud enough with a good enough amp and play well enough to control notes, or you don't.

 

rct

[John Rutherford]

The string bending across the back of the bridge will really do no harm or have any ill or negative affects. Strats and Teles (or any "string through" guitar) all have this extra bend point.

 

The extra bend (and rub) does create a weak point where the string might break, but if you have no breakage problems you'll be fine.

 

 

Good post.

 

This mythic quest for more sustain [ as if it's an infinite resource } certainly

keeps folk up at night.

In my experience the route to a clear, ringing tone is the

relationship between fret and string, i.e. action and neck relief.

 

Dicking about with, or replacing, the bridge and stop bar is a waste of time, money and energy .

[GibSinCity]

[MaadDaawg]

You're probably right, but I've been looking at the Babicz full contact bridges lately and the theory at least seems sound.

[Bender 4 Life]

SGs won't give the "never-ending sustain" of a Les Paul anyhow....not enough wood.

 

I love my SGs for what they are, and don't lose sleep over what they're not.

[GibSinCity]

http://forum.gibson.com/index.php?/topic/89971-height-of-the-stop-tail-piece-on-a-1961-gibson-sg-re-issue/page__p__1233764__fromsearch__1#entry1233764

 

The stopbar sets string tension on the bridge saddles. If the stopbar is not far enough down, the strings can slip off of the saddles, but you do not want to have the stopbar down so low that the strings touch the back side of the bridge. They should only touch the saddles. Personally, I found that swapping out the stock stopbar for a Gibson TP-6 fine-tuning tailpiece gives me more sustain from my SG and gives the added benefit of being able to fine-tune each string.

 

I put a TP-6 on a Flying-V and noticed increased sustain.