Ibanez ew20asent setup - Should it play this painfully?

[pillBOX]

I had my Ibanez ew20asent's headstock repaired and also setup 2 weeks ago. I had the tech guy install custom light strings (.011-.052) and asked to make it fingerstyle-friendly. The guitar plays unforgivingly. By that I mean that unless I play with perfect finger position and with uncomfortably firm pressure, it tends to fuzz. That may sound funny but it just feels like a chore to play the guitar in order to prevent it from fuzzing on me. I don't expect it to play as friendly as my electric or nylon guitars but I can't shake the feeling that it needs an adjustment. I've been playing for about 5 years so maybe it's my newb ignorance. Let me know what you think.

Here's a youtube vid I took showing the string height along the neck:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=AFSBH-5BSeM

[charles Tauber]

It is difficult to say for sure without seeing it and without measurements. Based solely on appearance, I'd suggest the bow in the neck is too large, the nut too high and the saddle too high, but without any room at the saddle to lower it.

Straightening the neck may alleviate the nut and string height some, though that is not the purpose of straightening the neck.

If you wish, measure the distance from the top of the 12th fret to the bottom of each string so that the measurements can be compared to a typical string height. You could do the same for the bow in the neck, holding down a string at the first fret and at the 14th fret. Typical measurements for the bow are in the range of .005 to less than 1/64" depending upon player, strings, preferences... Common string heights at the 12th fret are 3/32" for the bass E and 5/64" for the treble E string.

If you want a lot more detail, see Basic Guitar Setup at http://charlestauber.com/luthier/Resources.html

[pillBOX]

Thanks for the response. I wish I had the tools to make the measurements. I'll be taking it back to my tech guy this week and see what he says. I get that some guitars may require a bigger effort to play but this guitar doesnt feel right. Especially as I play down the neck. At the higher frets I can only make pull offs one fret away. No way it happens two or three frets away unless I go back to the top of the neck at the lower frets. Seems the action is way too high towards the higher frets.

[Ned Milburn]

Based upon your description I came to the same possible reason as Charles - possibly too much neck bow.

Without any tools you can easily check your neck bow.

- fret the low E string with 2 hands, one at the first and one near the 14th fret
- view from the side near the 7th fret and judge how much clearance you see
- you can make the clearance easier to see by alternately pushing the string to the fret and releasing. To do this, you'll have to fret the string near the 14th fret with your RH pinkie, and use your RH index finger to fret near the deepest part of the bow.

A general rule of thumb is that your neck bow should be adjusted so that there is no more clearance than the thickness of a high E, B, or G string.

I am giving general guidelines, since there are many factors that can dictate different ideals for different guitars and guitarists.

[VintageV400]

Originally Posted by pillBOX

Thanks for the response. I wish I had the tools to make the measurements. I'll be taking it back to my tech guy this week and see what he says. I get that some guitars may require a bigger effort to play but this guitar doesnt feel right. Especially as I play down the neck. At the higher frets I can only make pull offs one fret away. No way it happens two or three frets away unless I go back to the top of the neck at the lower frets. Seems the action is way too high towards the higher frets.

I use a metal ruler to measure my action, I'm sure you have a ruler? any ruler will do for a rough guide

[pillBOX]

Originally Posted by HCG Canada

Based upon your description I came to the same possible reason as Charles - possibly too much neck bow.

Without any tools you can easily check your neck bow.

- fret the low E string with 2 hands, one at the first and one near the 14th fret
- view from the side near the 7th fret and judge how much clearance you see
- you can make the clearance easier to see by alternately pushing the string to the fret and releasing. To do this, you'll have to fret the string near the 14th fret with your RH pinkie, and use your RH index finger to fret near the deepest part of the bow.

A general rule of thumb is that your neck bow should be adjusted so that there is no more clearance than the thickness of a high E, B, or G string.

I am giving general guidelines, since there are many factors that can dictate different ideals for different guitars and guitarists.

Thanks for the info. I wont be home till Wednesday and cant access my guitar until then. I also have an appointment with my tech guy on that day and I'll let you know what he says.