way too low action on a new Gibson j 45 studio?

[attaboy_jhb]

As you can imagine, I was very excited to recieve my new Gibson in the post today but then, after playing it for a few minutes I became very dissapointed because there seems to be a problem with the guitar. Basically, the guitar is very badly setup and the strings rattle from about half way up the neck. So i look at the relief and right away I can see that the guitar has way too much relief. I then unscrew the plate on the headstock to get to the truss rodd and I see right away that the truss rod is completely loosened. So I tighten it a bit to get to a more acceptable relief but then the buzzing is all across the neck and I see that the action is way too low. I take a measurement at the 12 fret low e string and it is only 1mm on the low E string! That is 0.039" when it should be 6/64". So what is actually going on here? Is the saddle too low? Has the guitar dried up too much and the top has sunk in while in storage for the last 6 months? The guitar came sealed from the factory so how can this be? The inspection leaflet that came with the guitar shows that it was inspected at the end of last year. Up at the top, it says "Action 12th fret L:5 H:3. I guess the L refers to the low string and the H to the high string but not sure what the number means.

Is any of this odd? I would appreciate any help and advice. Maybe I got it wrong and will need a humidifer or maybe all Gibson guitars ship with the truss rod loose for safety reasons? I have purchased many guitars from many manufacturers, Martin, Taylor, Maton, Cole Clark and never have I seen something like this. The guitar is unplayable!

thanks!

[rmp]

yes it is odd, Gibson's usually come around 7/64s ~ 6/64s and need to be setup.

I would also think that those numbers a for L - Low E 5/64s, H High E 3/64s. 5/64s is about right for the Low e, but for the High E, if that's what they set it at the factory, that is borderline too low.

5/64s L 4/64s H is about where all my acoustics are (One is a 2016 J200)

any chance for an exchange/refund ?

What a bummer... and Good luck resolving.

[leinad]

neck , saddle, or nut all possibilities. neck reset?-take 24" straight edge and place between 3rd and 4th string and it should rest on bridge- saddle to low use a shim would fix the saddle - nut to low , i think would have to be replaced.

[attaboy_jhb]

Originally Posted by leinad

neck , saddle, or nut all possibilities. neck reset?-take 24" straight edge and place between 3rd and 4th string and it should rest on bridge- saddle to low use a shim would fix the saddle - nut to low , i think would have to be replaced.

Is it possible the top has sunk slightly while being in storage?

[attaboy_jhb]

Originally Posted by rmp

yes it is odd, Gibson's usually come around 7/64s ~ 6/64s and need to be setup.

I would also think that those numbers a for L - Low E 5/64s, H High E 3/64s. 5/64s is about right for the Low e, but for the High E, if that's what they set it at the factory, that is borderline too low.

5/64s L 4/64s H is about where all my acoustics are (One is a 2016 J200)

any chance for an exchange/refund ?

What a bummer... and Good luck resolving.

Could the high E number be 3/32"? That is weird though because that would higher than 5/64... unless they wrote it back to front. So 3/32 for the low E string and 5/64 for the high E string.. anyhow it is all speculation

I can get an exchange but will have to ship my guitar back to Germany and wait at least 3 more weeks!

Very annoying

Can a humidifier solve the issue? Maybe the guitar has dried in storage and the top has sunk a bit in?

[attaboy_jhb]

Found an article on taylors website that explains both symptoms I had when I received the guitar, mainly

1) too much neck relief and
2) low action

The article says that both of these are symptoms of a dry guitar.

Seems like common knowledge so just wanted to check if anyone else thinks I should get a humidifier?

[jw3571]

I just had the same thing happen on a Gibson Dove I just got. The saddle is really tall but the strings seem really low in the nut. There is a lot of relief but the truss rod is nearly completely loose. Getting really bad buzzing on the open strings. I'm going to need to take it in. I've bought a few Gibsons lately and they have all been set up great with no buzzing.

[redir]

How much saddle is exposed above the bridge?

Was it stored with string tension off?

What you describe to me, assuming you now have the relief proper, is a saddle that is too low. But my first question is important.

[attaboy_jhb]

Originally Posted by redir

How much saddle is exposed above the bridge?

Was it stored with string tension off?

What you describe to me, assuming you now have the relief proper, is a saddle that is too low. But my first question is important.

The strings were tuned down slightly. about 2 tones flat

the saddle shows about 2mm on High and 3mm on low E above the bridge... now when i compare it to my Martin it isn't too different. My Martin also has about those specs on the saddle

any ideas?

[redir]

Originally Posted by attaboy_jhb

The strings were tuned down slightly. about 2 tones flat

the saddle shows about 2mm on High and 3mm on low E above the bridge... now when i compare it to my Martin it isn't too different. My Martin also has about those specs on the saddle

any ideas?

Ok so on average you have 2.5mm of saddle protrusion. Your action at the 12th fret is 1mm when it should be 2.5mm. What that means is you need to raise your saddle by 3mm. That's in inches about 7/32nd of saddle protrusion when ideally you would have 4-5/32. It's not ideal but potentially doable. You probably would not want to shim that but rather have a new saddle made. If it's well fit then it should be ok but it will change the tone of the instrument and put a lot of stress on the front of the bridge where cracks can happen as a result of tall saddles.

And I am assuming that all else is set up properly and that there is nothing wrong with the top of the guitar like caving in at the sound hole. It sounds like the neck is over set but it could very well be in an acceptable range. IF you take it to an experienced tech then they can better help you as they can analyze it in person.

[charles Tauber]

Originally Posted by attaboy_jhb

Maybe the guitar has dried in storage and the top has sunk a bit in?

Originally Posted by attaboy_jhb

Seems like common knowledge so just wanted to check if anyone else thinks I should get a humidifier?

That can be a symptom of a dry guitar. However, you really need to know what is the relative humidity of the environment in which you now store the guitar. Do not humidify because you can. Do it only because it is necessary.

The starting point is to use a hygrometer to measure the humidity of where you store your guitar. That should be done prior to doing anything else. Only after that has been done and in an acceptable range for at least a few days, should you get into other possible causes.

If there is too limited window in which to return the guitar to able to get a hygrometer and monitor/alter the humidity level, return the guitar.

Originally Posted by redir

IF you take it to an experienced tech then they can better help you as they can analyze it in person.

That would be the best approach. Or return it for one that is more appropriately setup to start with. On a new instrument of that price, you really shouldn't have to incur the expense of replacing the saddle.

[NotALuth]

You could try Gibson’s new Virtual Guitar Tech service!

https://www.gibson.com/Support/Virtual-Guitar-Tech

Regards,
Clive.

[Dbone]

Originally Posted by attaboy_jhb

As you can imagine, I was very excited to recieve my new Gibson in the post today but then, after playing it for a few minutes I became very dissapointed because there seems to be a problem with the guitar. Basically, the guitar is very badly setup and the strings rattle from about half way up the neck. So i look at the relief and right away I can see that the guitar has way too much relief. I then unscrew the plate on the headstock to get to the truss rodd and I see right away that the truss rod is completely loosened. So I tighten it a bit to get to a more acceptable relief but then the buzzing is all across the neck and I see that the action is way too low. I take a measurement at the 12 fret low e string and it is only 1mm on the low E string! That is 0.039" when it should be 6/64". So what is actually going on here? Is the saddle too low? Has the guitar dried up too much and the top has sunk in while in storage for the last 6 months? The guitar came sealed from the factory so how can this be? The inspection leaflet that came with the guitar shows that it was inspected at the end of last year. Up at the top, it says "Action 12th fret L:5 H:3. I guess the L refers to the low string and the H to the high string but not sure what the number means.


Is any of this odd? I would appreciate any help and advice. Maybe I got it wrong and will need a humidifer or maybe all Gibson guitars ship with the truss rod loose for safety reasons? I have purchased many guitars from many manufacturers, Martin, Taylor, Maton, Cole Clark and never have I seen something like this. The guitar is unplayable!

thanks!

Does the top look sunk?

Where does a straight edge placed on the fret board fall relative to the bridge? Does the straight edge end up below, at, or above the top of the bridge?

New guitar buzz kill for sure. Bah.

I would send it back on principle alone. I’m not saying to do that necessarily. I am super particular. This is ridiculous for an expensive guitar like this. Probably fell through the cracks due to the pandemic or something, but it does not make it alright. J45s are readily available. Get the next one.

[attaboy_jhb]

Originally Posted by Dbone

Does the top look sunk?

Where does a straight edge placed on the fret board fall relative to the bridge? Does the straight edge end up below, at, or above the top of the bridge?

Look!



I have to add that overnight, I left the guitar in a mildly humidified room. today the action is at 2mm. The buzzing seems gone already.

I took this photo right now, so would appreciate your feedback. Do you think the top has sunk in?

I have a 6 year old Martin guitar and just as an experiment, I tried this on that guitar and the results were a bit different. There was a tiny dip toward the bridge... maybe like half of what is on the Gibson but it is by no means straight and flat. Should it be?

[redir]

Originally Posted by attaboy_jhb

Look!



I have to add that overnight, I left the guitar in a mildly humidified room. today the action is at 2mm. The buzzing seems gone already.

I took this photo right now, so would appreciate your feedback. Do you think the top has sunk in?

I have a 6 year old Martin guitar and just as an experiment, I tried this on that guitar and the results were a bit different. There was a tiny dip toward the bridge... maybe like half of what is on the Gibson but it is by no means straight and flat. Should it be?

That's not the photo Dbone was after. Lay the ruler on the center-line of the fretboard on top of the frets, ideally with no relief but don't worry about that for now. But take the tension off the strings for this measurement. What we want to know is how much airspace is there from the top of the bridge to the ruler.

But that image doesn't show a top sunken it. It's just showing the angle that is imparted in the top to produce the neck angle and it looks on the high side to me. But it's probably ok too especially since your action is at 2mm now.