Just wondering if anyone can help me with a slightly frustrating, and quite perplexing tuning issue. I recently built a Gibson SG copy from a ‘build your own’ kit - great fun and a nice way to learn about the workings of an electric guitar. I must admit I had no great no expectations about the quality of the instrument but was pleasantly surprised to find that it actually plays wonderfully, except for one small thing (now this is a little hard to put into words so please bear with me):
If I tune the G string correctly it sounds fine when played open, but sharp as soon as I play any higher note. Checking it with a tuner shows that it’s actually slightly sharp all the way up the fretboard, although it’s most noticeable at the first and second frets (G# and A). So, for example, playing the open 4th (D) string and the 3rd (G) string on Fret 2 together jars horribly, whereas move up slightly and the 4th string/Fret 5 and 3rd string/Fret 7 sound OK together.
If I flatten the G string slightly to make it more ‘harmonious’ with the 4th string (i.e. so it sounds nice when played on the second fret at the same time as an open 4th string) it then sounds obviously flat when played open as part of a chord.
So to summarise as simply as possible: Tune the G string correctly and it sounds sharp when I play an A; tune it so A sounds right and it sounds flat when I play an open G.
I really can’t get my head around how this can happen - everyone I have asked tells me this is probably an intonation issue and to adjust the bridge position for that string, but this has made no difference. Wherever I position the bridge the result is exactly the same - when it’s correctly tuned open my tuner always shows the 3rd string as around +18 at the fifth fret. It’s almost as if the frets are in the wrong place but only for that one string! I’ve tried fitting heavier strings which has helped a little (as they bend less under pressure) and I can work around the problem to some extent by splitting the difference and tuning the G string a little flat, but I would love to know the real reason for this and whether there is any permanent fix.
Thanks in advance to anyone who can offer an explanation.
OK, feel a it daft as I just noticed there are a couple of similar threads on this site already so I'll take a look at those. If anyone has any ideas I'd still love to hear them but in the meantime I'll check out the other posts.
Excuse me if you've tried setting the intonation up, if not, check this out:
http://www.sweetwater.com/insync/how-to-set-your-electric-guitars-intonation/
Google Setting Guitar Intonation for other sites that answer the same question.
Notes
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Many thanks for the post with the link to the intonation guide. That was helpful and informative. However, following it hasn't solved my particular issue. I am beginning to think this is something I will have to live with. Tuning the G string a little on the flat side means that any chords featuring an open G string aren't TOO unbearably out of tune, whereas barre chords are all fine.
Would still love to know the root cause though. It's true that the action is a shade high but the other five strings are all perfectly fine. I've examined the state of the nut but can't see any imperfections or variations that would account for this. And checking the tuning actually reveals that all fretted notes are a little high when the G string is correct when played open (I think it's just more obvious to the ear on the first and second frets).
All very baffling to someone of my limited brain power :-(
Might have had a small breakthrough with this...
I stumbled across a blog entry by someone who was having a similar issue and it seems the cause was that the action was simply set too high meaning that extra effort was required to push down the strings and causing some to sound sharp. Apparently this commonly manifests itself on frets 1 and 2, where the relative distance the strings are being pushed down is higher. It doesn't explain why, in my case, it only affects one string and I still don't really have a solution, but to prove the point I lowered the bridge height as much as possible and the pitch is certainly better.
Unfortunately, lowering the action like this has meant that an earlier problem with buzzing on the 6th string has returned so I will need to experiment with a slight truss rod adjustment and/or find a happy medium somewhere.
But it's nice to at least have an explanation so I thought I'd post it as information for others. It seems setting up a guitar is quite a balancing act!
It's probably not the truss rod - look along the neck, if it's not visibly bent out of line, you don't need to mess around with the truss rod.
The 6th string is thicker than the others - you increase the mass per unit length to help you get the low sound without slackening of the tension too much - so the bridge needs to be a little higher on the 6th string side. Look at any decent Classical Guitar and you'll see it's quite noticeably higher that side.
So, raise the bridge about a millimetre on the 6th string side and see what you sound like.
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