Wonder if you all could help me with a recent problem.
I have been playing guitar for a while and decided to buy myself a Freshman FA250D just before Christmas. It sounded great in the shop and throughout the holiday but recently, when I try to forma G chord things go wrong. The chord sounds awful and when I checked this out I discovered that the instead of the top E string being a G it was actually a rather muffled G#!!!
Is this because I am forming the chord wrongly or does the guitar need new strings already? Also, if it is me what am I doing wrong because most notes on that third fret of the E string sound .... YUKK?
Many thanks
What did the guitarist do when he was told to turn on his amp?
He caressed it softly and told it that he loved it.
Okay, I think I understand your questions. I am not trying to be funny with my responses, just trying to get to the bottom of your problem:
1. How do you know it is a G#? Are you checking it with a tuner?
2. Are you sure the high E string is tuned to E?
3. Are you fretting the 3rd fret on the high E string?
4. The frets may need to be leveled - it is possible that the 4th fret is too high and when you play the 3rd, it sounds muffled.
5. Yes, a new set of strings is always a good idea when you buy a guitar - most times the strings on a guitar you buy are not the greatest.
6. Visit with a guitar repair tech, explain the problem. Also ask him to "set up" the guitar. He will change the strings, check neck, etc. Kind of like a tune up for your guitar. It should play much easier after that.
Yes I checked it with a tuner after having carefully tuned it with a good quality tuner that has never caused me any bother.
I am fretting the third fret on the high E and I am also finding I hit G# when I fingerpick too - although it sound muffled etc. Just to help (I hope) I have gone back to my old guitar and there's no problem so I don't think it's me.
What did the guitarist do when he was told to turn on his amp?
He caressed it softly and told it that he loved it.
Maybe the fourth fret is a bit too high, ask your local luthier.
Before I got too crazy into checking intonation and fret height etc, I would double and tripple check the tuning of all your strings. Your guitar sounded fine recently so I would look for simple things first. I have occasionally, and I have seen others do it as well, tuned a string to a # or b with a tuner and not noticed until I started to play. I have even double checked and missed it again. It may sound stupid but it is simple mistake that can easily be made with a tuner.
I am gathering that you are refering to your low E string. Check it against the tuning of your old guitar in the open position. Do they sound the same? If they sound the same open and different when fretted then you have a larger problem and I would return it.
Cheers,
Max
I had an issue last year that sounds roughly similar to what you're experiencing here. You can check out that thread here. There are some helpful suggestions in there that may give you other things to look for.
In the end I had the guitar set up professionally (it was needing one anyway) and this not only solved the problem, but it also made the guitar much more playable than it was previously.
If you don't want to go down that path just yet though I would most certainly begin by changing the strings; it's the cheapest option to begin with. :)
From little things big things grow - Paul Kelly
Hi Guys
Just to say thanks for all your advice. I ended up taking the guitar to the shop and they told me I had two problems. First - because I have central heating the guitar had "settled" and now needed adjusting as the rods were bending the guitar slight. A 30 second job and I was almost on the road. Then the techie checked it over and also identified that the 13th fret wasn't sitting properly so he whipped it into the workshop and a short while later I was back on the road with a now sweet sounding instrument.
Total cost for the whole thing - zero ... proving that not everyone out there is out to make a fast buck. Needless to say they will be assured of my custom in future!!
OK I'm just back home and off to practice for a while. You all have a great weekend and thanks again for the support.
D
What did the guitarist do when he was told to turn on his amp?
He caressed it softly and told it that he loved it.
