Members Saturday Posted February 12, 2008 Members Share Posted February 12, 2008 so i changed the strings of my telecaster (daddario chromes, same set with same gauge as i used lately)- set them in tune- started to play- and i wanted to try the intonation. oddly enough, it was all pretty well in tune escept the A string, which was WAY OFF , like, 15 cents.- now i try to fix it, by moving the saddle forward to the bridge.- and nothing changes. i move it A LOT (like, 1cm) and nothing happens. it's still a lot out of tune in the 12th fret. wtf? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Ratae Corieltauvorum Posted February 12, 2008 Moderators Share Posted February 12, 2008 so i changed the strings of my telecaster (daddario chromes, same set with same gauge as i used lately)- set them in tune- started to play- and i wanted to try the intonation. oddly enough, it was all pretty well in tune escept the A string, which was WAY OFF , like, 15 cents.- now i try to fix it, by moving the saddle forward to the bridge.- and nothing changes. i move it A LOT (like, 1cm) and nothing happens. it's still a lot out of tune in the 12th fret.wtf? sharp or flat? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Saturday Posted February 12, 2008 Author Members Share Posted February 12, 2008 sharp. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members placeboemotion Posted February 12, 2008 Members Share Posted February 12, 2008 could it be possessed? Or alternatively stuck at the nut? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Ratae Corieltauvorum Posted February 12, 2008 Moderators Share Posted February 12, 2008 could it be possessed? Or alternatively stuck at the nut? If he's gone 10mm with it, it's either a {censored}ed string or a {censored}ed tuner:confused: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members solderjunkie Posted February 12, 2008 Members Share Posted February 12, 2008 Bad tuner FTW Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Phrostbit Posted February 13, 2008 Members Share Posted February 13, 2008 If a string is intonating sharp, you want to make the string longer (i.e. flatter) so move the saddle away from the bridge towards the back of the guitar. --PB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Saturday Posted February 13, 2008 Author Members Share Posted February 13, 2008 im making the string larger.ok, i tried it again and now it changed a bit. but i really moved the saddle. this is weird. maybe the string needs to be played more in order to go out of tune less or something? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members JimboJ Posted February 13, 2008 Members Share Posted February 13, 2008 Bad tuner FTW How does a bad tuner affect intonation? I thought we put an end to all that foolish talk about bad tuners causing tuning problems. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Ratae Corieltauvorum Posted February 13, 2008 Moderators Share Posted February 13, 2008 How does a bad tuner affect intonation? I thought we put an end to all that foolish talk about bad tuners causing tuning problems. The tuner....not a machine head:poke: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Bubbluz Posted February 13, 2008 Members Share Posted February 13, 2008 as in dying battery Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members The Birdman Posted February 13, 2008 Members Share Posted February 13, 2008 Or weak battery...if it's dead, it probably won't work at all. Just a thought....I presume you are retuning the string to A AFTER moving the saddle, and BEFORE rechecking the intonation. Moving the saddle definitely affects the tuning of the string. Yes, I know it's obvious, but I had to mention it because what you're telling us is so weird. I've definitely been known to do a "DOH!" myself. Also...if your Tele has only three saddles, be aware that moving that saddle will also affect the intonation of your low E string. You might have to pick which string is more important to you that the intonation is correct. Roger Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members leakyfaucet Posted February 13, 2008 Members Share Posted February 13, 2008 Are you checking the harmonic at the 12 fret against the fretted note at the 12 fret? If your fret was worn down significantly, this could result in a sharp note when you fret it. Is the saddle as far back as it will go? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members JimboJ Posted February 13, 2008 Members Share Posted February 13, 2008 The tuner....not a machine head:poke:Ahhhhh... I stand correctedObviously a Deep Purple album can't affect intonation Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DaleH Posted February 13, 2008 Members Share Posted February 13, 2008 Also...if your Tele has only three saddles, be aware that moving that saddle will also affect the intonation of your low E string. You might have to pick which string is more important to you that the intonation is correct. Roger You can get around this by getting the two strings on any barrel as close as you can, then raise or lower one of the barrel height adjustment screws a hair. Then re tune. A 1/8 or 1/16th turn is not really enough to notice in height but can bring a string back in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Professor Tom Posted February 13, 2008 Members Share Posted February 13, 2008 If he's gone 10mm with it, it's either a {censored}ed string or a {censored}ed tuner:confused: Although I haven't seen one for years a bad string is a possibility, change the string and check it again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Saturday Posted February 13, 2008 Author Members Share Posted February 13, 2008 it's a 6 saddle bridge. it's a MIJ Tele (top loading bridge)i'm using the tuner on amplitube, with my ASIO soundcard, so i reaally doubt it's deffective.no, i can still move the saddle further of course, but i don't know. i mean, they look like this...|------|----|------|-----|-------|-- |----- and still about +10 cents off. i played some chords and it sounds alright, not really out of tune. but i thought that if i moved the saddle it would change.and yeah, of course i move the saddle, tune to A again, and re-check.i can move the saddle all the way down and this doesn't really affect much the guitar right? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members pimphat22 Posted February 13, 2008 Members Share Posted February 13, 2008 Did you strech the strings real good before intonating? Seems stupid but i have had that problem before. Just a thought. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members AlexMC Posted February 13, 2008 Members Share Posted February 13, 2008 You normally want to end up with a pattern like this (high to low E): |---- -|--- --|-- -|--- --|-- ---|- The 4th string saddle usually ends up just about parallel with the 2nd string, and the 5th parallel with the 3rd. All three of my electrics looks like this and they're intonated perfectly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Stephan1980 Posted February 13, 2008 Members Share Posted February 13, 2008 You normally want to end up with a pattern like this (high to low E):|-----|-----|---|-----|-- ---|- The 4th string saddle usually ends up just about parallel with the 2nd string, and the 5th parallel with the 3rd. All three of my electrics looks like this and they're intonated perfectly. yup, that's approximately the way my saddles look... another possibility is that maybe your tuners are loose or something else is loose. perhaps you need a new nut. Check the intonation by playing the 12th fret harmonic and seeing if the 12th fret note matches up. That's how I do mine and it sounds good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Saturday Posted February 14, 2008 Author Members Share Posted February 14, 2008 ok update. using the harmonic of the 12th fret it's in tune. fretting the 12th gives out of tune. so that means?... also, playing in other frets (like, the 7th, 10th and so on) also gives slight out of tune. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members AlexMC Posted February 14, 2008 Members Share Posted February 14, 2008 You are on the right track! What you are trying to do is adjust the intonation so that the fretted 12 fret note is exactly in tune with the harmonic at the 12th fret. Why are we doing this? To ensure that the 12th fret is EXACTLY halfway along the length of the string. We KNOW that the 12th fret harmonic is exactly an octave higher than the open string, so this is our 'reference note'. If the fretted 12th note is higher pitched than the harmonic, this means that the distance from the 12th fret to the bridge saddle is too short; likewise if the fretted 12th note is flat, it means that the 12th-fret->bridge distant is too far. The actual pitch of these notes isn't really that important; what we are trying to achieve is *equality in pitch* between the harmonic and the fretted notes. Once we have altered the scale length (nut to bridge/saddle) to ensure this is the case, we can THEN tune that string to pitch. I repeat to clarify: we aren't too worried about the exact pitch/tuning of the string right now; we are merely trying to adjust the bridge saddle positions so that the pitch of a note fretted at the 12th fret is an octave higher than the open string. Once the 12th fret is established as the halfway point between nut and bridge, then all the other frets should be in the right place for their fretted notes to be in tune as well. As if by magic! Try starting with the bridge saddle layout I posted on the previous page: |-----|-----|---|-----|-- ---|- Then adjust from there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members AlexMC Posted February 15, 2008 Members Share Posted February 15, 2008 Any luck yet? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members GarysBlues Posted February 15, 2008 Members Share Posted February 15, 2008 That pattern above is a GOOD STARTING point for electrics. Pretty sure thats exactly what Fender does. But when you move the saddle the intonation should change. There could be a few different things happening. Most importantly is that you are using a So-So Tuner? That really isn't giving you a pin=point reading with slight variations. And really thats what you want. But it sounds like your on the right track with the Harmonics and you not responding makes me think your intonation is correct and your.......PLAYING!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members leakyfaucet Posted February 15, 2008 Members Share Posted February 15, 2008 If the fretted note is sharper than the harmonic at standard tuning, I see six possibilities: -Your nut is cut improperly, with the scale length not starting at the very edge of it-Your 12th fret is too worn-Your 12th fret is physically misplaced too far from the nut-Your bridge saddle is too close to the nut-You are fretting way too hard-Your strings are completely {censored}ed Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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