Members daver969 Posted August 28, 2007 Members Share Posted August 28, 2007 I just got an Amigo travel guitar, and I just can't tune it. I tune it to standard pitch, check the intonation, and it's way off. Consequently, most chords sound like tortured cats. I read somewhere that short scale guitars need to be 'de-tuned', but I'm not sure exactly what to tune it to. Is there a proper way to tune a short scale guitar (24")? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members garthman Posted August 28, 2007 Members Share Posted August 28, 2007 A 24" guitar should tune OK. I think you need to check the setup. Have a look at Freeman's "Is my guitar sick?" thread above. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members daver969 Posted August 28, 2007 Author Members Share Posted August 28, 2007 A 24" guitar should tune OK. I think you need to check the setup. Have a look at Freeman's "Is my guitar sick?" thread above. Yeah, I think you're right. I think what I really need to check is the "Is my guitar a cheap PoC" thread. ;-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members garthman Posted August 28, 2007 Members Share Posted August 28, 2007 Yeah, I think you're right. I think what I really need to check is the "Is my guitar a cheap PoC" thread. ;-) I didn't want to say that but . . . . could be, I'm afraid. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members happy-man Posted August 28, 2007 Members Share Posted August 28, 2007 I'd think you'd use standard tuning. With a smaller instrument, you are not going to want to tune it lower. With low price, short scale instruments, intonation is an issue; sometimes a big issue. I just got a cheap soprano ukulele (where these problems are greatly magnified). What I've learned from ukulele forums is that guitar players have to learn to "get over" the intonation thing. You can spend $500 for a really nice uke, and it should have much better intonation than my $34 special, but it isn't going to be like a guitar. Is that 24" from nut to saddle? I've recently got a parlor guitar, and it has great intonation. It's tuned using standard tuning. I emailed the manufacturer to ask what guage strings should be used on it; they replied with light (12-53). I've picked up some inexpensive guitars that I refer to as "not even bad". Hopefully you don't have one of those. These types are just not playable unless you're tone deaf or enjoy sonic pain. I'd find what guage strings the guitar is made for and put those on. Really bad strings can make a guitar seem "not even bad." For badly intoned guitars, I have more luck tuning with a tuner, ie. you can't tune the guitar to itself. It's that way with my uke. If I tune it with a tuner, I don't drive people out of the room when I play it. If I try to tune it by fretting strings, I can't take the results. If the nut and/or bridge are not in the proper spot you'll have issues. Scott O Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members daver969 Posted August 28, 2007 Author Members Share Posted August 28, 2007 ...Is that 24" from nut to saddle? I've recently got a parlor guitar, and it has great intonation. It's tuned using standard tuning. I emailed the manufacturer to ask what guage strings should be used on it; they replied with light (12-53).....Scott O Yeah, I believe it's nut to saddle, I'm just quoting a spec sheet from some online seller. This is really a no-name bargain rate guitar, so I'd bet it's basically just a case of 'you get what you pay for'. I think I'm just going to have spring for a better guitar. I'm looking at Go-Guitars at the moment, seems to be lots of really satisfied customers there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members dblazer Posted August 28, 2007 Members Share Posted August 28, 2007 My Larrivee parlor guitar has a short scale (24 1/4") and it tunes the same as any of the rest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DonK Posted August 29, 2007 Members Share Posted August 29, 2007 My guess is that the bridge saddle is mounted at the wrong angle to the strings. It wouldn't have to be off by much to completely screw up the intonation. As far as short-scale guitars requiring special tuning, whoever told you that may have been thinking of the Tacoma Papoose or original Baby Taylor. Tacoma designed the Papoose to be tuned to A (standard tuning with a capo at the 5th fret) and Taylor originally planned for the Baby to be tuned to F (but later relented and recommended standard E). In both cases the tunings were for tonal reasons, not intonation purposes. A long time ago I owned a Fender DuoSonic, 22.5", standard tuning with no problems. My youngest son has a 3/4 scale Squier Strat, and I have a Baby Taylor - no tuning problems with either of those either. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members guitarist21 Posted August 29, 2007 Members Share Posted August 29, 2007 Yeah, like everyone has said, a guitar with a 24" scale should not necessarily have huge tuning issues. I would recommend you get the guitar checked out by your local guitar tech/repair guy. Ellen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DeepEnd Posted August 29, 2007 Members Share Posted August 29, 2007 Supposedly, a farmer was once asked how long cows should be milked. He replied, "They should be milked the same as short cows." Same thing applies to guitars. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Shmoo Posted August 29, 2007 Members Share Posted August 29, 2007 interesting. I have a Pignose travel guitar which is the worst tuning guitar I have ever owned...the only travelling it has done is to my closet Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members happy-man Posted August 29, 2007 Members Share Posted August 29, 2007 Yeah, I believe it's nut to saddle, I'm just quoting a spec sheet from some online seller. This is really a no-name bargain rate guitar, so I'd bet it's basically just a case of 'you get what you pay for'. I think I'm just going to have spring for a better guitar. I'm looking at Go-Guitars at the moment, seems to be lots of really satisfied customers there. What are you wanting? Going from the Amigo to the Go is a significant jump in price. A few years ago I thought I'd look around for a really cheap ( On the other hand, if you are willing to spend more, I'd suggest looking at parlor guitars. I just got a Simon & Patrick parlor for $210 with a solid spruce top. It's not an all-around guitar, you don't want to stum it hard, but it's really sweet. Whatever you get, I'd try one first. Scott O Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members daver969 Posted August 29, 2007 Author Members Share Posted August 29, 2007 What are you wanting? Going from the Amigo to the Go is a significant jump in price. A few years ago I thought I'd look around for a really cheap (On the other hand, if you are willing to spend more, I'd suggest looking at parlor guitars. I just got a Simon & Patrick parlor for $210 with a solid spruce top. It's not an all-around guitar, you don't want to stum it hard, but it's really sweet.Whatever you get, I'd try one first. Scott O I want something I can take backpacking: really small, and either 1) really cheap, but sounds tolerable, or 2) not so cheap and sounds good. I thought I'd try option (1) first, but upon getting the guitar I realized that my standards are probably higher than can be satisfied with a really cheap guitar, so I decided I should go for option (2). Since I can't really try them out first (few stores carry any selection of backpacking guitars), I figured I should go with a known winner. By nearly all the reviews I've seen, the Go is a winner, and not too expensive to boot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members garthman Posted August 30, 2007 Members Share Posted August 30, 2007 There are a few travel guiatrs available. Washburn and Johnson both do travel guitars: www.washburn.com/products/travel/index.aspx www.johnsongtr.com/Trailblazer.156.0.html I've not played either so I can't comment on their quality but at least they are reputable manufacturers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members brahmz118 Posted August 30, 2007 Members Share Posted August 30, 2007 I just got an Amigo travel guitar, and I just can't tune it. I tune it to standard pitch, check the intonation, and it's way off. Consequently, most chords sound like tortured cats. I read somewhere that short scale guitars need to be 'de-tuned', but I'm not sure exactly what to tune it to. Is there a proper way to tune a short scale guitar (24")? I have severe intonation issues with the First Act Discovery children's guitars, which have a scale length of about 19". I also had intonation issues with a Baby Taylor (22.75" scale). As the scale gets shorter, the tension needed to get the string to concert pitch decreases. So a short-scale guitar tuned to standard has relatively loose strings. These guitars would need a higher gauge to match the same tension of a full-scale guitar. If I weren't lazy, er -- I mean really busy, I'd go use one of the string tension calculators on the web to be more exact. If the strings are too slack, intonation suffers. Take any guitar you own with great intonation, tune the A string down to F, and see what happens as you fret up the neck, especially if you squeeze hard or medium-hard. Conversely, on your Amigo, try tuning the A string up to B. You'll probably find that intonation improves. At least, this is what happens on First Acts. However, if I tune the whole guitar up a whole step, the bridge rips off after a while. The First Act Discovery is half the cost of an Amigo -- maybe the Amigo is better constructed. For a travel guitar that's not so cheap but sounds good, consider an Emerald. Virtually indestructible and great intonation (full 25.5" scale on a small body). You can get one for the price of 9 Amigos... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members JRMoon Posted August 30, 2007 Members Share Posted August 30, 2007 WOW! The only Emerald I found was $700. I've been eyeing the Little Martin LXM. It's $279 on MF, but I can get one at the local GC for $259. I thought it sounded great (much better than the Big Baby Taylor, IMO). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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