I have a guitar question.
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I have a guitar question. Is it normal to have to retune your guitar every time you put a capo on and take it off?
I'm not talking like the 8th fret, I'm talking like the 3rd fret.
Does this mean my guitar needs to be set up or is that just how it goes? The electric guitar I play now, which I love, has this behavior, and I don't remember experiencing it before with other guitars.
(Jimmy) Paging @samvarma
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I have a guitar question. Is it normal to have to retune your guitar every time you put a capo on and take it off?
I'm not talking like the 8th fret, I'm talking like the 3rd fret.
Does this mean my guitar needs to be set up or is that just how it goes? The electric guitar I play now, which I love, has this behavior, and I don't remember experiencing it before with other guitars.
(Jimmy) Paging @samvarma
@alisynthesis @samvarma Some guitars with tremolos have this also. One the remedies I know for that is to put some graphite (pencil) in the slots of the nut. The strings may not glide well in there as you put the capo on and off. Just a thought.
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I have a guitar question. Is it normal to have to retune your guitar every time you put a capo on and take it off?
I'm not talking like the 8th fret, I'm talking like the 3rd fret.
Does this mean my guitar needs to be set up or is that just how it goes? The electric guitar I play now, which I love, has this behavior, and I don't remember experiencing it before with other guitars.
(Jimmy) Paging @samvarma
@alisynthesis@io.waxandleather.com @samvarma@fosstodon.org no I do not have to return my acoustic when I move the capo around. Never had to on any of my electrics I owned through the years either (I currently don't own an electric that isn't wall decor)
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@alisynthesis @samvarma Some guitars with tremolos have this also. One the remedies I know for that is to put some graphite (pencil) in the slots of the nut. The strings may not glide well in there as you put the capo on and off. Just a thought.
@Roofhare interesting! Also,
I don't think I've seen you around for a bit? Or maybe we've just been two ships passing in the night. -
I have a guitar question. Is it normal to have to retune your guitar every time you put a capo on and take it off?
I'm not talking like the 8th fret, I'm talking like the 3rd fret.
Does this mean my guitar needs to be set up or is that just how it goes? The electric guitar I play now, which I love, has this behavior, and I don't remember experiencing it before with other guitars.
(Jimmy) Paging @samvarma
@alisynthesis in my experience, no. SG1000 and a Yamaha Compass CPX-15. And a Gretsch G5420T actually maybe a little with the Gretsch
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@alisynthesis @samvarma Some guitars with tremolos have this also. One the remedies I know for that is to put some graphite (pencil) in the slots of the nut. The strings may not glide well in there as you put the capo on and off. Just a thought.
@Roofhare @alisynthesis @samvarma If it’s not a tremolo guitar, then no, that’s weird. Your tuners may be a little loose?
As for graphite, pencil led will work in a pinch, but I’ve had better luck with purpose-bottled graphite lubricant. The particles are finer and tend to do a better job than pencil lead.
You can find it at local hardware stores or bike shops. Here’s an Amazon link to what I’m talking about.
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@Roofhare @alisynthesis @samvarma If it’s not a tremolo guitar, then no, that’s weird. Your tuners may be a little loose?
As for graphite, pencil led will work in a pinch, but I’ve had better luck with purpose-bottled graphite lubricant. The particles are finer and tend to do a better job than pencil lead.
You can find it at local hardware stores or bike shops. Here’s an Amazon link to what I’m talking about.
@RyanHyde it's not a tremolo guitar. I'll try tightening up the tuners, thanks! That's something I'd actually like to replace at some point. As far as I know, this guitar (early 80s, I think) is totally original.
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@alisynthesis @Roofhare @samvarma Oh interesting. Yeah, new tuners may fix you right up. If the strings are brand new, then I’d say it’s just a matter of working the slack out at the tuning head, but I imagine you would have mentioned if these are brand new strings.
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@alisynthesis @Roofhare @samvarma Oh interesting. Yeah, new tuners may fix you right up. If the strings are brand new, then I’d say it’s just a matter of working the slack out at the tuning head, but I imagine you would have mentioned if these are brand new strings.
@RyanHyde nope, not brand new strings either. And the guitar plays pretty nicely in tune up the neck. I bet you're right about the tuners. It would make sense that if they're a little loose, that extra pressure could knock things out.
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I have a guitar question. Is it normal to have to retune your guitar every time you put a capo on and take it off?
I'm not talking like the 8th fret, I'm talking like the 3rd fret.
Does this mean my guitar needs to be set up or is that just how it goes? The electric guitar I play now, which I love, has this behavior, and I don't remember experiencing it before with other guitars.
(Jimmy) Paging @samvarma
@alisynthesis Depends on the guitar. My Ovation is mostly ok with tuning / capo shenanigans, but my Ibanez Artcore jazz guitar - which tbf also goes out of tune if you look at it funny or pick it up wrong - not so much. Most of my capo usage was on a gig where I was required to a) use the Artcore and b) use capo a lot, so in the end I had to just suck it up and pretend it was a banjo.
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@alisynthesis Depends on the guitar. My Ovation is mostly ok with tuning / capo shenanigans, but my Ibanez Artcore jazz guitar - which tbf also goes out of tune if you look at it funny or pick it up wrong - not so much. Most of my capo usage was on a gig where I was required to a) use the Artcore and b) use capo a lot, so in the end I had to just suck it up and pretend it was a banjo.
@conniptions
that's punk rock. -
@RyanHyde follow-up question. Is installing new tuners something I can do myself with only rudimentary knowledge and no experience with setting up guitars? Or is that better left to someone who knows wtf they're doing?
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@RyanHyde follow-up question. Is installing new tuners something I can do myself with only rudimentary knowledge and no experience with setting up guitars? Or is that better left to someone who knows wtf they're doing?
@RyanHyde I say no experience. I have done very minor things like adjusting a truss rod, but never any real work.
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@RyanHyde I say no experience. I have done very minor things like adjusting a truss rod, but never any real work.
@alisynthesis Nah, there’s no magic to it. Ideally you’ll find tuners that match the current type in terms of screw layout and shaft diameter. Diameter is more important than screw layout though because you can just drill new pilot holes if you need to. You’ll need calipers to determine the current shaft diameter. You may also need to measure the internal diameter of the holes in the headstock, which involves removing one tuner of course.
Worst case, you may need to ream out the holes a bit. I had to do this for my cheap Gretsch, which was the first guitar I changed tuners on.
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@alisynthesis Nah, there’s no magic to it. Ideally you’ll find tuners that match the current type in terms of screw layout and shaft diameter. Diameter is more important than screw layout though because you can just drill new pilot holes if you need to. You’ll need calipers to determine the current shaft diameter. You may also need to measure the internal diameter of the holes in the headstock, which involves removing one tuner of course.
Worst case, you may need to ream out the holes a bit. I had to do this for my cheap Gretsch, which was the first guitar I changed tuners on.
@alisynthesis Take a picture of the back of your headstock and I may be able to help.
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@RyanHyde follow-up question. Is installing new tuners something I can do myself with only rudimentary knowledge and no experience with setting up guitars? Or is that better left to someone who knows wtf they're doing?
@alisynthesis@io.waxandleather.com @RyanHyde@techhub.social they are usually attached with a screw and a nut that fits around the actual tuning peg - the nut keeps the tuner level and prevents tilting motion while the screw prevents rotational motion. Super easy to remove and replace. It is a guitar modification that your risk of fubar'ing your axe is very low, and in your case sounds like it would probably fix the axe staying in tune.
Get two sets of spare strings when you do it in case it break one string while putting on the new ones. Use a jewelers screwdriver or electronics screwdriver, avoid even one of those USB charged electric screwdrivers. -
@RyanHyde follow-up question. Is installing new tuners something I can do myself with only rudimentary knowledge and no experience with setting up guitars? Or is that better left to someone who knows wtf they're doing?
@alisynthesis@io.waxandleather.com @RyanHyde@techhub.social full disclosure, I was a roadie for a college professors classic rock band in my 20s and have built a guitar that does not play because after 3 attempts at fretting (do not ever do this), I paid to have a guy do it and he screwed the instrument up beyond repair.
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I have a guitar question. Is it normal to have to retune your guitar every time you put a capo on and take it off?
I'm not talking like the 8th fret, I'm talking like the 3rd fret.
Does this mean my guitar needs to be set up or is that just how it goes? The electric guitar I play now, which I love, has this behavior, and I don't remember experiencing it before with other guitars.
(Jimmy) Paging @samvarma
@alisynthesis I have pretty cheap and basic guitars with basic, rather crummy tuners, and I don’t have to retune them when I add or remove the capo. (I noticed you were retuning a lot during your last stream
. Beautiful guitar though!)
@samvarma -
@alisynthesis@io.waxandleather.com @RyanHyde@techhub.social full disclosure, I was a roadie for a college professors classic rock band in my 20s and have built a guitar that does not play because after 3 attempts at fretting (do not ever do this), I paid to have a guy do it and he screwed the instrument up beyond repair.
@unsafelyhotboots @alisynthesis Frets are basically the one thing I pay a pro to do, but I’ve only ever needed that once. And that was just a fret end dress.
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@unsafelyhotboots @alisynthesis Frets are basically the one thing I pay a pro to do, but I’ve only ever needed that once. And that was just a fret end dress.
@RyanHyde@techhub.social @alisynthesis@io.waxandleather.com agreed. Fretwork requires specialized tools and a lot of experience doing it. My guitar was unplayable because the frets were put in the wrong place between frets 12-15 and it had a zero fret so the lower action from the zero fret ended up biting me in the ass.
