Emerald X-20 NUGD and Saddle Question

[SprintBob]

Hi CF fans,

Happy to report a New Used Guitar Day with my getting a 2017 Emerald X-20 with a Cocobolo veneer and short scale setup.

I was changing the strings on it the night before last and checked the setup. Neck relief was at .010”. I tweaked it down to .006” and then checked the 12th string action. I found the low E string action was the lowest of all the strings. The A through the high E had descending action ranging from .075“ to .060”, in the ballpark for a low action fingerstyle setup. But the low E had an action of .060”, identical to the high E. In DADGAD tuning, it can buzz if I pluck it with enough force. The saddle appears to be the stock black graphite Tusq saddle and I think the best way to remedy this is to get another saddle from Emerald. Just curious if anyone has ever run into this with that saddle. I can only surmise a previous owner might have tried to lower the action and sanded the bottom of the saddle but did not do it evenly or squarely.

Lovely guitar. Very comfortable, good resonance and projection, and very balanced tonally.

[Captain Jim]

Congrats on the X20, SprintBob! The cocobolo veneers are always striking. My X20 is also from 2017. No issue with the saddle; in fact, that guitar came to me setup like it was made for me. Sounds like maybe the previous owner may have taken down a bit too far.

No doubt that Emerald will be able to get you another saddle.

[Earl49]

Emerald sent me a new saddle last year when I reported that my X30 was set up too low. It buzzed no matter how softly it was played. I shimmed up the saddle with a couple of strips of credit card, which fixed the problem. Later I fitted the new saddle to the same height. For now, try the shim trick....

I felt kinda bad that the postage from Ireland was about $10 according to the stamp on the padded 5" x 7" envelope. I could easily have ordered the same saddle from the US for less, or bought one locally. My custom X20 with a 24.6" scale length is somewhere in the build queue. Meanwhile I am suffering along all deprived with just the full-scale version I've had for a couple of years. And the X30. And the custom X20-12 twin of the one or order. And two X7's. Plus a Rainsong WS-1000 and a Blackbird Lucky 13. So I'm able to be pretty patient.

[RP]

Congrats on your new X20. In my experience, there's really no guitar that's more comfortable than an Emerald...

[121]

I didn't want to wait for a saddles from Emerald and got this.
Except for height, it's an exact match to the original saddles on my 2016 X7, 2017 X20, and 2018 X30.
Just sand down the base for the height you desire.
I even used it on a 2018 X10, after shortening a little on each end to reduce the length.

[SprintBob]

Originally Posted by 121

I didn't want to wait for a saddles from Emerald and got this.
Except for height, it's an exact match to the original saddles on my 2016 X7, 2017 X20, and 2018 X30.
Just sand down the base for the height you desire.
I even used it on a 2018 X10, after shortening a little on each end to reduce the length.

Thanks for the info!

[SpruceTop]

Originally Posted by SprintBob

I can only surmise a previous owner might have tried to lower the action and sanded the bottom of the saddle but did not do it evenly or squarely.

This. The low-E should have more action-clearance than any of the other strings. A new saddle will do ya for. Enjoy!

[futboljim]

Congrats, Sprint Bob! It would be great to see pics!

I prolly could have been patient to wait for a used woody, short scale to pop up, but am pretty pleased with what I received. I am sure you will be equally happy!

Originally Posted by Earl49

Emerald sent me a new saddle last year when I reported that my X30 was set up too low. It buzzed no matter how softly it was played. I shimmed up the saddle with a couple of strips of credit card, which fixed the problem. Later I fitted the new saddle to the same height. For now, try the shim trick....

I felt kinda bad that the postage from Ireland was about $10 according to the stamp on the padded 5" x 7" envelope. I could easily have ordered the same saddle from the US for less, or bought one locally. My custom X20 with a 24.6" scale length is somewhere in the build queue. Meanwhile I am suffering along all deprived with just the full-scale version I've had for a couple of years. And the X30. And the custom X20-12 twin of the one or order. And two X7's. Plus a Rainsong WS-1000 and a Blackbird Lucky 13. So I'm able to be pretty patient.

oh the agony of the wait. glad you have some good company!