Electric Guitar Neck Shaving

[rogercollege]

I've got a new Fender Jazzmaster and I'm having some trouble with consistent tuning throughout the neck. Once the instrument is in perfect tune...I hold chords and the notes aren't completely in tune with other. I can even hear significant change in pitch by holding fretted strings and pushing down harder into the neck. If I accurately tune with harmonics then tune by fretting the 5ths and 4th...the fretted tuning is never accurate.

I feel like the frets are too high. Anyone experience this? How do I solve this problem. Shaving frets? Sanding neck?

[ckeene]

I've got a new Fender Jazzmaster and I'm having some trouble with consistent tuning throughout the neck. Once the instrument is in perfect tune...I hold chords and the notes aren't completely in tune with other. I can even hear significant change in pitch by holding fretted strings and pushing down harder into the neck. If I accurately tune with harmonics then tune by fretting the 5ths and 4th...the fretted tuning is never accurate.

I feel like the frets are too high. Anyone experience this? How do I solve this problem. Shaving frets? Sanding neck?

Are you sure the intonation is ok with the bridge saddles? That would be the first thing to check.

Next thing I'd check is the action. If it's too high you may well be bending strings out of intonation when fretting.

Could you be bending strings out of tune when you're playing? Might it be a technique issue? (I don't mean to be insulting or anything here. Just going through a mental list of issues!)

I feel like overall fret height is a less likely culprit. However, I find that many brand new Fenders have room for improvement with setup: things like dropping the action, fine tuning the truss adjustment, lowering action at the nut and dressing the frets. A good setup/tuneup might go a long way toward making the guitar more playable and less prone to intonation issues.

An absolute last case is that the frets aren't spaced correctly, but that never happens.

The other thing is that using the harmonics vs fretted note comparison isn't a great way to tell if your guitar is in tune, at least not "in tune" in a manner where you can play in every key.

[GarryJ]

Most guitars can exhibit a change of pitch if you push down hard enough while fretting a note - what you describe sounds more like an intonation and/or bridge height problem, which can be adjusted with a bit of patience. I own a Jazzmaster myself, they're one of the more tricky guitars to find the set-up sweet spot on that I've come across, but once you get there it's worth the effort. (I love the narrow radius neck on older Fenders.)

Just after halfway down on this page there's a section on setting the bridge height and intonation on a Jazzy for beginners. It should have been setup properly at the factory but it sounds like you've got a duffer and will have to do it yourself, or take it to a guitar tech ($$$).

Have you restrung the guitar since you bought it? If so you may have to adjust the truss rod inside the neck, which is a bigger job and requires a little more care, and yet more patience.

If it's an instrument you're going to have for a long time, I completely recommend learning to sett it up yourself, not only will it save you cash but it's a valuable skill to have. Just be sure to take extra care to begin with.

[GarryJ]

One more thing with the Jazzmaster - if it has the original design Jazzmaster bridge, replace it with a Mustang bridge. The strings will pop out of the older design bridge frequently enough to incite blind, white-hot rage.

[newfuturevintage]

Harmonic and fretted tunings are always off from one another.

pushing down on a fretted string that's not bottoming on the fingerboard wood will always sharpen the note.

If you have an instrument without a compensated nut, open chords will always be a bit off, especially close to the first fret. Shorter scale instruments exhibit this more than longer scale instruments.

Google "earvana nut" for some reasonably concise explanations of what a compensated nut is / does.

[roscoenyc]

Get heavier strings

[dino]

Being a set neck guy myself, I have no personal experience in dealing with bolt-on's.
My old friend and long time Fender owner, always removes the neck on a new instrument and places a shim between the body and the neck. He has done this to all his Fenders, including basses, and apparently it makes a huge difference in intonation and playability. I would agree with a previous poster that you should learn to set up your instrument, but you may want to take it to someone for an initial set up. At least before you start permanently removing wood or metal. An experienced guitar technician has a better understanding of how different adjustments interact with each other. If you ever get up here to the DC area, I would enthusiastically recommend Action Guitar in Arlington Va. Matt Baker is a great guy and an outstanding tech. He also has a sweet collection of old instruments and amplifiers for sale. Just don't drool on the merchandise.

dino

[BOWIE]

The nut might be high, which is the case with many guitars. The frets also might not be correct. Take it to a tech (pray you'll find an honest one as most are pretty bad) and ask him to give an evaluation before working on it. A good tech will be able to play a few notes and tell you what the problem is.

[Nick Sevilla]

I've got a new Fender Jazzmaster and I'm having some trouble with consistent tuning throughout the neck. Once the instrument is in perfect tune...I hold chords and the notes aren't completely in tune with other. I can even hear significant change in pitch by holding fretted strings and pushing down harder into the neck. If I accurately tune with harmonics then tune by fretting the 5ths and 4th...the fretted tuning is never accurate.

I feel like the frets are too high. Anyone experience this? How do I solve this problem. Shaving frets? Sanding neck?

Here's the deal :

1.- The intonation is off.

"What is Intonation" you ask?

It is when the instrument is completely in tune with itself, at all points that are playable on it.

Here's how you get there:

1. BE PATIENT. This is going to take you at least 1/2 hour, if not more. If you don't like tweaking things 1/32" or less, and then repeating a process to re-tune a string... about 15 times, then hire a competent tech to do it for you.

2. OK, you ARE patient, ok, proceed: Use a QUALITY TUNER.

3. Tune the instrument with nen strings. Stretch the strings so they stay in tune, while playing the string open. Put ALL the strings on, and do the stretch -until- they-stay-in-tune bit. For all the strings...

4.- Once the guitar strings stay in tune while playing them open, you are ready for step 5.

5. Start on one side of the guitars, (string 1, for example) and do the following. Pick the string, and immediately note the exact tuning on your tuner. Then do a harmonic on the 12th string, pluck the string again, and note where the tuning is. It SHOULD be the SAME. Notice where the FRET is when you play the harmonic. Is it rught under your finger? GOOD. Not right under your finger? BAD. But fixable.

6. Third step is actually playing the 12th fret, and noting what the tuning is on THIS FRET. If it is OFF, which it will be, this is how much out of tune your string is.

7.- Fourth step is taking a look at the BRIDGE SADDLE which is where the string rests ON THE BRIDGE (not by the tuning pegs, but the body-side). Are there any screw that can be screwed with (he he he) ? What king of tool do you need there? Go get one of them tools with the right tip.

8.- Once you have the right tool, you are now ready to start adjusting the BRIDGE SADDLE. GO EASY!!!. Try turning one whole turn CLOCKWISE, and check the 12th fret note. Is it getting closer? YES? NO?

9. Once you figure out which way the screw gets the 12th fretted note to get closer to tuning, you're in business.

10. HOLD ON!!!. Once you get it there, you NEED to RETUNE the string at the OPEN position. And THEN CHECK THE 12th FRET AGAIN.

This sounds easy, btu if you're not patien, you'll drive yourself crazy. Anyways, the point of the exercise is to get BOTH the OPEN string AND the 12th fretted note to AGREE in their tuning.

Then, and ONLy then is your guitar INTONATED.

Cheers, have a nice day, and don't wake up the drunkards in the alley on your way out...

[ashcat_lt]

Then, and ONLy then is your guitar INTONATED.

Well, it's intonated at the 12th fret, and will be off to some degree at other spots on the neck. This is the standard way to do it, and usually gets you close enough, but in any case intonation is a comprimise. Personally, I don't play the high notes all that much, but I do play the 7th fret octave thing pretty regularly, so I've been setting intonation so the 7th fret is as close to exactly a 5th above the open string as I can get it.

BTW, you want to have your action and neck relief set before you get to this point, it will make a difference. Also, you really should repeat this process any time you change strings or even tunings. Fun...