Extra buzzing on Taylor V-braced guitars?

[michaelveloz]

Folks,

I loved the guitar (one of the most beautifully striped necks I've seen) and I wanted it, but for $4k I just couldn't accept that this one buzzed when none of my other Taylors do with the same capo.

The salesman told me several times that he has tried many guitars in his life and they all buzz at one time or another, implying that I should just suck it up.

I'm thinking of buying the guitar (Guitar Center) and taking it to a local pair of guys that are known to do really good work here in Charlotte, NC.

Also, I ordered a $150 Heritage Capo (yoke style) from G7th last night. If I understand it right, it's supposed to accommodate for the fret-board radius and apply the right amount of fretting to each string.

Will keep you all informed.

[Dirk Hofman]

Seems like the AGF can offer a warmer welcome than we’ve seen here today.

[jaymarsch]

Originally Posted by michaelveloz

Folks,

I loved the guitar (one of the most beautifully striped necks I've seen) and I wanted it, but for $4k I just couldn't accept that this one buzzed when none of my other Taylors do with the same capo.

The salesman told me several times that he has tried many guitars in his life and they all buzz at one time or another, implying that I should just suck it up.

I'm thinking of buying the guitar (Guitar Center) and taking it to a local pair of guys that are known to do really good work here in Charlotte, NC.

Also, I ordered a $150 Heritage Capo (yoke style) from G7th last night. If I understand it right, it's supposed to accommodate for the fret-board radius and apply the right amount of fretting to each string.

Will keep you all informed.

Even a $25,000 guitar might need a set up since even a $25,000 guitar can be affected by humidity, etc that can slightly shift the neck relief. I hope that you find that a good guitar tech can get your new beauty set up the way you like it with no buzz. I think you will really like the G7th Heritage capo. They are really wonderfully functional and beautifully made. Please do let us know what you discover and welcome to the forum.

Best,
Jayne

[vindibona1]

Originally Posted by michaelveloz

Hi there
I've been tempted several times to buy a new Taylor V-braced guitar but I'm finding that they tend to buzz much easier when capo'd than previous Taylors I own.

Has anyone else noticed this? Is this simply a side effect of the new bracing allowing the string to vibrate more??

Michael

You know... I just occurred to me that I had forgotten... My 814ceDLX had some buzzing up the neck and needed a fret level right out of the box. Yeah, a $4000 with unlevel frets. Fortunately I live 10 minutes from a Taylor service facility and he fixed it under warranty in a day. I didn't have to ship it which would have cost almost $100.

I wouldn't expect to have to do that with a Bourgeois or Olsen or Froggy, but we have to remember that Taylor are marketing geniuses that have the ability to sell expensive assembly line guitars. While they should never leave the factory with issues it is not uncommon.

[archerscreek]

Welcome to the forum.

I’ve heard salesman and techs make similar comments about relatively expensive guitars multiple times over the years. “That’s no big deal. It’s normal.” I think it’s fairly common to hear it. From finish issues to binding issues to tuners. They pass the buck or kick the can down the road for someone else to deal with. I’ve never personally heard it said about a capoed guitar buzzing but can easily imagine it being said based on what I’ve heard previously over the years. In fact I’ve heard similar comments three times in the past 6 months-one related to binding, one to the case, one to a rather dull looking spot in the finish.
And extending it out 6-12 months before that, another about an electric’s pickup that didn’t come on right away. “That’s normal. No big deal.”

I never bought any of the guitars with issues that went unaddressed, but if you like that particular guitar except for the buzzing, talk to the store manager and make the offer of buying it if they can eliminate the buzzing. Just be sure you are playing the guitar in a reasonable fashion because anyone can make even the best setup guitar have a string hit a fret with how we pluck or strum string. You said you were strumming fairly hard with your thumb when you got the buzz. I can easily see that method bouncing a string up and down in an abnormal fashion.

Looking forward to pics. Good luck.