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Old 01-11-2017, 08:24 AM
Hot Vibrato Hot Vibrato is offline
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Some good suggestions so far. String height at the 12th fret should be about 3/32" (2.4mm), with just a tiny amount of relief (.007" or .178mm). If these adjustments are correct and the low E is still dead, I would suspect that the dimensional changes done to the neck have caused a resonant frequency in the neck that coincides with the frequency(ies) of the dead note(s).

In a lecture printed in American Lutherie #9, 1987, Don Teeter mentions a flemenco guitar he had on his bench with an inexplicable dead note. He clamped to the headstock a piezo transducer connected to a strobe tuner dialed in to the dead note. He knocked on the neck and the strobe tuner indicated that the neck was indeed resonating at the frequency of the dead note. Teeter says that any appreciable change in the weight of the neck will change the neck resonance, and he cites an experience where the issue was solved simply by changing the tuners.

The issue of a single dead note is more common on classical and flamenco guitars, but it is plausible that the neck resonance of a steel string guitar could affect a single note or a range of notes. I've seen some products over the years that clamp or screw to a guitar headstock, and their manufacturers have claimed that they improve tone by altering the neck resonance. While the theory behind this is sound, I don't believe that it's necessary for most guitars. However, I might suggest an experiment: clamp something heavy to your headstock and see if the dead note(s) are more present with the added mass. If there is no change to the tone of the guitar, then neck resonance is likely not the issue. If the tone of the guitar is improved, then look no further. I believe I read that Don Teeter has dealt with such issues by drilling into the end of the headstock and adding a lead weight to alter the neck resonance.
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