Gibson Les Paul with Intonation Problem

digmymusic

Hey, Anybody got any ideas on a problem I have with intonation on a new Gibson Les Paul Standard. I've had a problem with the G string on the first three or four frets where it is sharp. This is even after getting the open note and the harmonic on the 12th fret the same. I have the tunomatic bridge all the way back but still it's not quite right. Surely a Gibson should be up to scratch. Is this because of the string being unwound as I know this can cause problems. The A string is a little dodgy too but the others are fine so why the problem with the G??

Please give me some advice

Fingers Mcginty

digmymusic wrote: »

.....even after getting the open note and the harmonic on the 12th fret the same:

no...The open note and 12th fret harmonic should always be the same RELATIVELY regardless of the position of the intonation saddles. You should be aiming to get the fretted note and the harmonic correct in pitch at the 12th fret.:)

digmymusic

Thanks Fingers. I'll give that a lash when I get a chance. If it doesn't work I'll be back onto ya!

I'm no expert at the technical end of things. My brother in law suggested changing the strings ( Gibson Brite Wires) for Ernie Ball Super Slinkies as he thought the G could be of bad quality. Any views on this?

Fingers Mcginty

hmmmm dunno. Funny you should mention Ernie Balls though...That's what i use...excellent strings and cheap too. 12 sets for 45 Euro on the bay.
Getting back ti the intonation thing...Ensure you slacken the string off before adjusting the intonation screws each time you are checking
It's usually easy to spot if the intonation is off at a glance Look down at the intonation saddles. They will be staggered usually and appear like so where the top "I" represents the High E sting's saddle

I
                                              I
                                               I
                                             I 
                                              I
                                               I

Fingers Mcginty

Damn my diagram that didn't come out correct ......

feylya

Fixed it for ya

Fingers Mcginty

Cheers

Duff_Man

i saw this before on a brand new les paul when i was workin in a shop in town. it turned out to be the nut and it had to be changed. bring it to a guitar tech see if they can find the root of the problem!

Johnny Storm

Changing strings can often fix intonation problems (string can be made wrong or damaged).
Also if the intonation is off at the first 3 or 4 frets could it be that the nut is cut too high? That would mean you have to press it down extra far to the fret and that extra movement of the string puts it slightly out of tune.

For a quick judge fret each string at the first fret and look at the clearance it has over the second. Compare to the gap between the top of the first fret and each string with the string open.

Edit: Oops, missed Duff Man's post.

Doctor J

digmymusic wrote: »

Surely a Gibson should be up to scratch.

No, their QC can be quite shocking tbh.

I had a band in the studio last year, guitarist had just spent two and a half grand on a Les Paul Standard, brand new. Lovely, lovely sound but every now and then it'd sound off. After a bit of investigation we sussed that any time he'd play a standard G chord it sounded badly out of tune. All the strings were intonated correctly going on the open string and 12th fret harmonic. Got him to play the notes individually...

...low E string: open in tune, 1st fret in tune, 2nd fret in tune, 3rd fret sharp, 4th fret in tune, 5th fret in tune, 6th fret in tune.... unbelievable.

He brought it back and they had to replace it. Not only was it ****tily made, but it passed who knows how many QC inspections and even the staff in a shop beginning with W didn't pick it up. He got a new one and thankfully, maybe luckily, the replacement one was ok.

Do a similar check on your guitar. Check every note on every string. If you find anomalies like that on your guitar then bring it back and demand a replacement. Gibson are charging substaintial amounts of money for their guitars, the least they could do is get the fretwork right. If it's over the first few frets it's probably the nut as mentioned above. Still bring it back though, your guitar should be in a playable condition when you buy it, you should not need to have a nut cut or moved on a new guitar to make it playable.

digmymusic

Thanks Guys. I got the guitar through Thomann in Germany so would be too much trouble to return it without checking other options out first. I think I'll try some new strings and if that doesn't work I will get a luthier to diagnose the problem and get a quote for fixing it. The quote will be going straight to Gibson cos I ain't paying for it!

Eoin Madsen

digmymusic wrote: »

Surely a Gibson should be up to scratch.

They actually have a pretty bad rep for quality control.

Fingers Mcginty wrote: »

Funny you should mention Ernie Balls though...That's what i use...excellent strings and cheap too. 12 sets for 45 Euro on the bay.

Funnily enough, I was talking to Derrick Nelson about strings recently and he didn't think much of Ernie Balls. Apparently they have sucky manufacturing tolerances.

NeMiSiS

I used to use EB's then they started snapping like no ones business, switched to D'Dadarrio.. and no issues.. but that's a whole different thread..

TK