[Robin, Wales]

I have to say that this YouTube video of SCGC using their PLEK machine was a bit of an eye opener regarding relief, fret buzz and set-ups in general. What struck me most was the slow motion vibration pattern of a string. The way the energy pulse travels up the string to the nut or fret and back down really made me think about set-ups. You can see the pulse within the first couple of minutes of the video. Basically, a string does not vibrate in a uniform ellipse, with the widest vibration in the middle of the string - it is a totally different pattern.

I have noticed a few strange things myself. Such as, if I use a 1mm Dunlop nylon pick I get fret buzz - every time. If I use a 1mm Wegen or even a standard celluloid pick then I don't. So the pattern of the energy pulse from some picks is different to others.

Incidentally, unlike Martin who fret the board and then mount it to the neck and then mount the neck to the guitar, and then PLEK the frets. SCGC mount the fretboard and neck to the guitar BEFORE installing the frets. The fretboard itself is then profiled by the PLEK machine, then the frets installed, then the frets profiled by the PLEK (plus nut and bridge profiling).

Anyway, with the talk here about how much relief you need, I though that this video would help to show that it is perhaps not how much relief is needed in the middle of the fretboard that is important but how much relief is needed in the first few frets beyond where you happen to be fretting. And some necks will bend slightly differently to others at various points, so you cannot dial in a uniform amount of relief and get the same results from every neck.