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  #1  
Old 05-21-2018, 12:20 PM
buzzardwhiskey buzzardwhiskey is offline
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Default New tuners for Martin CEO7?

Any CEO7 player out there who have found a drop-in replacement for what I consider serious inferior tuning machines?
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Old 05-21-2018, 12:31 PM
littlewing1208 littlewing1208 is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by buzzardwhiskey View Post
Any CEO7 player out there who have found a drop-in replacement for what I consider serious inferior tuning machines?


Most people replace them with Gotoh se-700 which, based on your opinion are equally inferior. If you don’t like the looks of them, just say it. Mechanically and functionally they get the job done. They don’t have all sorts of plastic washers in them like the Gotohs.
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Old 05-21-2018, 12:35 PM
Nctom Nctom is offline
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There's always Waverlys. You should be able to find something you like there.
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Old 05-21-2018, 12:40 PM
littlewing1208 littlewing1208 is offline
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Originally Posted by Nctom View Post
There's always Waverlys. You should be able to find something you like there.


They aren’t drop in. The holes are enough off that you need to fill and redrill. I was dead set on putting Waverlys on my CEO7 but after playing a bunch of Collings with them, I decided they are just eye candy that don’t function (smoothness or ability to hold tune) any better than the Golden age relic tuners.
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Old 05-21-2018, 12:51 PM
Frankie2blue Frankie2blue is offline
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Interesting. I had a CEO for a while and hated those tuners. Got a set of Waverlys and found the holes to be only slightly off. I slightly elongated the tuner holes in the Waverly (just one of the two holes) with a dremel tool and they dropped right in. Looked better and played far better. Screws covered up the elongated hole in the tuners easily. Most higher end guitars from Collings on up will use those waverly tuners and I find them to be far superior imo. I would not fill holes and drill new ones in the peghead myself though, as you can’t take that back to unaltered stock.
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Old 05-21-2018, 01:25 PM
Nctom Nctom is offline
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My assumption was like Frankie's, a little elongation of one of the holes and the Waverlys were good to go. As it turned out, other problems with my CEO-7 precluded a change of tuners. After repairs I decided to sell it and bought a Waterloo. The tuners on it are the same but the problems are not.
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Old 05-21-2018, 01:29 PM
littlewing1208 littlewing1208 is offline
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Default New tuners for Martin CEO7?

I wasn’t interested in drilling/grinding $150+ tuners.

Of course I expected Waverly sympathizer responses. No doubt they look good but I’m anxiously awaiting a data driven study on Waverly vs (fill in the blank) tuners that scientifically eliminates effects on tuning stability of the nut and humidity and temperature based expansion/contraction of wood. This study doesn’t exist so all we have to rely on is armchair experts . Listen, I understand that it is human nature to want ‘the best’ particularly on a high end item (imagine the revolts if Collings or Bourgeois start putting $40 Grover V97s on their guitars) but open gear tuners are a perfected piece of engineering at this point in time. The delta across the full spectrum of quality is nearly imperceptible to the end user. If anything the plastic that companies like Gotoh and Waverly are putting into open gear tuners is a back tracking as they will fail and likely not in a serviceable way.

Last edited by littlewing1208; 05-21-2018 at 02:03 PM.
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Old 05-21-2018, 02:05 PM
brianmay brianmay is offline
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If you didn't like the tuners . . . why buy it?

Not noticed Martin fitting low standard tuners to any of their guitars frankly.
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Old 05-21-2018, 02:41 PM
RogerPease RogerPease is offline
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This topic has been discussed extensively over on the UMGF.
Try a search for "CEO 7 tuning machines". There several threads.

I went with Waverleys ($$$) because I could get nickel finish with
ivoroid buttons that I thought would change the looks of the
guitar less. (Stewmac.com)

The Gotohs cost *way* less ($$) but have to be ordered from Japan
to get the off-white buttons. If you're good with nickel buttons you can
get them here in the States no problem.

No fill & drill is needed, nor is hole elongation needed. You do need to
baby them in a little. Get both screws started on a tuner and then,
tightening each screw alternately a little, get the base plate of the tuner
to move gradually down all the while parallel to the back of the headstock.
Do *NOT* just crank one screw all the way tight and then try to insert
the other screw and tighten it all the way down. If you don't get what I
mean have your local guitar tech do it.

Really, go check out the threads on UGMF.

Cheers, _Roger
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Old 05-21-2018, 02:44 PM
Nctom Nctom is offline
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Are there any tuners you like? The goalpost keeps changing with you. Tuners must fit with no work on your part, they can't be Waverlys, they obviously can't be any we have suggested so far. Boy Howdy, buying a guitar must be a lot of fun for you.
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Old 05-21-2018, 02:54 PM
penname penname is offline
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I followed the thread on UMGF for months and finally went with the nickel button Gotoh’s. Exact drop in fit and you can even use the original bushings. The original tuners functioned and I lived with them for years, but the the Gotoh’s work much better for me.
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  #12  
Old 05-21-2018, 02:56 PM
buzzardwhiskey buzzardwhiskey is offline
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Apparently this is a tender topic. The following is my opinion only!

The tuners that come with the CEO7 are functional. They hold well. They're not grotesque looking. That about ends my PROs section. For CONs... of the four other acoustic guitars I've owned in my lifetime, those installed in the CEO7 are the least smooth. For a $1400 guitar, they're awful.

So it looks like no direct replacement exists. That's a shame. But in no way is it a reason to abandon this instrument. As 14 fret 00's go, this one is the bees knees for playability and sound.

EDIT: Oooo! I just saw penname's post. I will look into the Goto's.
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Old 05-21-2018, 03:09 PM
gr81dorn gr81dorn is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by buzzardwhiskey View Post
For a $1400 guitar, they're awful.
Isn't a CE0-7 almost double that, like ? Seems the current Map is over $2600...which really just makes your point even worse.
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  #14  
Old 05-21-2018, 03:12 PM
littlewing1208 littlewing1208 is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Nctom View Post
Are there any tuners you like?

The tuners that come on a given guitar.

Tuners are one the the absolute least substantive things on an acoustic guitar but people are obsessed with changing them. I myself used to fall in this camp. It’s just distraction from playing the instrument. Almost universally, tuning stability is unrelated to the tuners themselves.

@OP I told you a make and model in the 2nd post that is a drop in replacement.
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  #15  
Old 05-21-2018, 03:14 PM
buzzardwhiskey buzzardwhiskey is offline
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OK. I'm willing to take a chance! I've ordered the Goto SE700 with black "butter bean" tuners.
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