Am I hearing things or being too fussy?

[vindibona1]

I got an email link today regaring and arpeggiation lesson. So I watched. And as I did I was particularly annoyed by this guy's high E strings. It just doesn't seem balanced in intensity of timbre. Am I the only one who hears this? And if so, am I the only one annoyed by it? One would think that a quality guitar like this Taylor (714?) and premium strings you wouldn't have on outlier string in the sound mix???

Am I just being too fussy or is this something we guitarists should really pay attention to?

BTW... I have been having difficulty embedding YouTube vids that play within the forum posts. What am I doing wrong?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FmoLTAwbvjk

[Kerbie]

Vindibona... check out this link and see if it helps.

[Denny B]

I'm old and so's my hearing, but I've listened to it a couple of times now, and it sounds fine to me...

[Bob Womack]

This is the AGF so

A) It is highly probable that you are being too picky and
B) No-one is going to call you on it.



But I do hear a little gritchy buzz on the open E every now and again. Tiny bit of a back bow?

Bob

[JayBee1404]

I hear it too. I wondered if he's catching the string slightly with a finger?

[TBman]

I think he's putting a bit more emphasis on the e treble, plus it is a Taylor he's playing on.

[rick-slo]

1. It's a recording!

2. He is picking D-D-D-U-U-U. Ds are fuller sounding the Us (at least in his
hands). The first U is on the E string and you will notice the difference the most.

3. You're being picky.

[Looburst]

Yes, it is annoying but unfortunately part of that Taylor sound I don't care for, but many do.

[SunnyDee]

Originally Posted by vindibona1

Am I just being too fussy or is this something we guitarists should really pay attention to?

BTW... I have been having difficulty embedding YouTube vids that play within the forum posts. What am I doing wrong?

Some people have more sensitive ears than others. Other people just think people with sensitive ears are fussy.

You are putting the URL inside the youtube shortcode, but you are supposed to strip everything from the URL except the code after v=. In this case it should read only FmoLTAwbvjk inside the bracketed YOUTUBE shortcodes.

[SprintBob]

Originally Posted by Looburst

Yes, it is annoying but unfortunately part of that Taylor sound I don't care for, but many do.

What a constructive comment.

[vindibona1]

Originally Posted by SunnyDee

Some people have more sensitive ears than others. Other people just think people with sensitive ears are fussy.

You are putting the URL inside the youtube shortcode, but you are supposed to strip everything from the URL except the code after v=. In this case it should read only FmoLTAwbvjk inside the bracketed YOUTUBE shortcodes.

Thanks.

As far as the "that's Taylor" comments, to some extent I can understand. But perhaps the comment should be "that's Elixir".

I know a lot of folks are committed to Elixir strings for various reasons. And I'm not trying to sway you from them at all. The point of my post was to wonder why Elixir chose to use this promotional tutorial with (IMO) such a flaw. And while Taylor guitars are known to have a ton more shimmer than most guitars (look out- Martin is beginning to play copy-cat), I don't think the guitar itself would be so imbalanced as to have a single string stick out sonically.

I will give credit to Taylor for developing HD lights with 53's on one end and 13's on the other and also 56-12's in addition to standard gauged sets. It's smart because so many guitars aren't balanced in a way that the player wants to experience. But a single string that has such a different timbre is IMO either a design flaw or manufacturing flaw, and I don't believe that a guitar will be so far out of balance on a single string.

I did re-listen to the recording and while I can attribute some of the increased volume on the high E to picking, it still sounds brighter than the adjacent strings made worse perhaps by the picking.

So, as a test I'm going to attempt to repost the video (correctly this time?).

[rick-slo]

Look elsewhere. The high E string on Elixirs (as any other brand) are unwound. They sound like any other high E string brand.

[N+1]

Originally Posted by vindibona1

I was particularly annoyed by this guy's high E strings. It just doesn't seem balanced in intensity of timbre. Am I the only one who hears this? And if so, am I the only one annoyed by it?

To my ears it's very noticeable and sounds very unpleasant.

I have four Taylors and none of them sounds like this (I'd never have bought them if they did).

[SprintBob]

Elixir strings to my ears tend to emphasize shimmer on the high end and I think vindabona1's comment that it's the strings, not the guitar is accurate. To my ears I've gotten a more balanced tone from Thomastik Infeld Plectrums, DR Rares and Sunbeams, Martin Retros, and LaBella/Martin Silk and Steels on the various Taylor's I own or have owned as well as my other guitars. The guitar played in that video sounds fine to me and I do hear the emphasis on the high E but I don't find it annoying. I'd actually like to learn that riff, it sounds nice.

[N+1]

Originally Posted by vindibona1

I don't think the guitar itself would be so imbalanced as to have a single string stick out sonically.

I should have added to my previous post (saying that none of my four Taylors exhibit this phenomenon) that they're all fitted with Elixir 13-56s. I doubt if there's a generalised 'brand' explanation for that particular top E emphasis in the video.

If this were happening to me, I'd be looking for a notch in the saddle I could smooth; and if I couldn't find one, or if it made no difference, I'd see what a new set of strings might achieve. I wonder what gauge they are? If they're lights, simply moving to mediums might make a difference. I certainly wouldn't be able to live with that top E emphasis, whatever is causing it.