Fender copy hex guitars

[nix808]

Yep,
I see the difference.
Tightening the nut makes the neck straighter.
I have never checked how the mechanism works, but I can use it.
I will definitely use a shim to start with.
Thanks 4 the screwdriver hint Hink, will do.
Thanks a lot chaps
Do you guys think that changing the neck angle is the thing to try?
With strings that start buzzing all the way from the nut to tenth fret unless maximum relief is given?
Or should I try something else?

[susiwong]

Yep,
I see the difference.
Tightening the nut makes the neck straighter.
I have never checked how the mechanism works, but I can use it.
I will definitely use a shim to start with.
Thanks 4 the screwdriver hint Hink, will do.
Thanks a lot chaps
Do you guys think that changing the neck angle is the thing to try?
With strings that start buzzing all the way from the nut to tenth fret unless maximum relief is given?
Or should I try something else?

Read the links I gave you.
Including sample numbers for relief.
An ideal neck needs almost no relief under tension, convex is definitely wrong, every time.
First get that about right.
Then shim for correct angle (a once in a lifetime thing).
Set up bridge saddle height.
Finally fine tune relief and saddle height until you got it.
And always keep the guitar in playing position when checking/measuring, or gravity will have a laugh at your expense (seriously !)
Cheers,
susiwong

[nix808]

I will check the link for future reference Susi.
Yay! It worked.
I sanded it with an mouse sander, better to be delicate,
until the fretboard overhand was snug to the pickguard.
Now the action is as good as my Les Paul Standard!
I have the relief/tension about halfway,
so there is a slight concave in fretboard.
Better than completely backed off for the middle frets.
Can't have it straighter though, I think I will live
with it. Ideally I woiuld like it straighter,
not sure what to do though.
I need to file the nut now, will use a canoe(?!)
shaped needle file.
Cheers
Soon some audio of the guitar synth & more pics.
{happy}8D{/happy}
No shim, so a clean job

[susiwong]

I have the relief/tension about halfway,
so there is a slight concave in fretboard.

Ideally I would like it straighter,
not sure what to do though.

so which statement is true now ?
why not simply tighten the rod some more then ?
Confused,
susiwong

[nix808]

Well, if I make it straighter I get buzzes,
more pronounced toward the nut.
It still needs some relief to fret cleanly.
If I could sand more off the heel, I would,
but the neck overhang, strat style,
is hard against the pickguard.
hmm, not sure what to do, maybe shim,
but I like it neat as is.
It was certainly a step in the right direction to sand it,
but it probably needs another 1/3mm-2/3mm,
that I can't have neatly.
I'll read the link today, just have a cigarette,
and then.
Thanks for helping out! 8D
hmm, what i could do is cut the pickguard w/- my dremel, hmm

[susiwong]

Doesn't make sense to me at all, sorry.
I still believe sanding the neck was the wrong approach to fix the right problem.
You changed the neck angle permanently, doesn't sound like it's correct now.
That's why everybody uses shims ...
With the guitar in hand I could give you a definite diagnosis in 5 mins, impossible over the web.
If I were you I'd show the guitar to an experienced tech before doing any more irreversible modifications, can't be that hard to find somebody around Melbourne.
My local shop doesn't even charge anything for a diagnosis ...
Ymmv,
susiwong

[nix808]

Yeah, I can take it to the shop next week, I am going there anyway to pick up a soundcard.
I had no option but to sand the neck I think.
I didn't want to shim it coz that's ugly.
So originally when I fitted it up, to get the strings anywhere near lowish at the heel end of the neck(without buzzing toward the nut), I had to give the neck maximum relief, the nut was literally loose.
I tried running the neck with more tension, as this is how I wished to have it, coz I like low action.
But the frets were buzzing way up the neck as soon as I tightened the nut.
Now I have sanded the heel, and I have the neck with about half the tension that it will take. The frets don't buzz.
So it's better.
Thanks for musing on this fit up

[susiwong]

Yeah, I can take it to the shop next week, I am going there anyway to pick up a soundcard.
I had no option but to sand the neck I think.
I didn't want to shim it coz that's ugly.
So originally when I fitted it up, to get the strings anywhere near lowish at the heel end of the neck(without buzzing toward the nut), I had to give the neck maximum relief, the nut was literally loose.
I tried running the neck with more tension, as this is how I wished to have it, coz I like low action.
But the frets were buzzing way up the neck as soon as I tightened the nut.
Now I have sanded the heel, and I have the neck with about half the tension that it will take. The frets don't buzz.
So it's better.
Thanks for musing on this fit up

If it turns out allright, and I hope it will, I'll be the first to congratulate and admit I was wrong.
Just try to be on the safe side. I went to see an expert with a tiny neck issue myself recently, it's not a shame to ask for a 2nd opinion, sometimes it's the right thing to do.
Best of luck,
susiwong

[nix808]

Yep, I'll take it to the shop for sure, sounds like a good idea.
It seems to me to be better, I have not much of a curve in the neck any more.
I've been having a lot of fun playing synth with it. Playing and trying to get all the little glitches out of it.
I'm not sure if it will ever be glitch free enough to be played live, but hmm, maybe
I'll post a little audio soon.
If I wished to undo what I have done, it could be sanded back the other way. Just would need to be finished again near the heel.
Take care Susi!
and ty

[Dean Aka Nekro]

Looking forward to the audio examples Nix mate. Not really meddled with anything more than a Roland GK fitted thing for guitar/MIDI/Synth fun but only in a store. Oh and they have the two Moog guitars in but they look scary and sound unlike a guitar and unlike a synth...and the prices
Do i dare try one when i get time? What do you reckon?

Cheers mate

Dean

[nix808]

Okay bro,
u asked 4 it.
Here is a 8mb MP3 with some demoing.
There are chords, hammers, slides and string bends.
I will do another with strums and tremelo soon->
http://www.sendspace.com/pro/dl/2hrg9h
The sound is a wavetable saw made from Cheetah MS6 analog.
There are some glitches, it representative of where it is now.
Cheers folk
Yeah man, fire up a Moog guitar, I think that's what they're for 8D
Wish my shop had one in.
I'm hoping I can get this to work perfect, just a little mod on the pickup would be nice if it works. There is a little bleed between strings, which doesn't help. I'm hoping it can be shielded with mu-metal.
Hope yous r loving the audio

[Hink]

I dont have time now but will later to listen to the clip but one thing concerns me, you said that the shims are ugly. Remember your trig? If you have to use shims large enough to be ugly I think you have a serious issue. The clearance required on the neck is a matter of thousandths of an inch (keep in mind 1/32 of an inch .031"), susiwong says he uses feeler gauges for this while myself I prefer to use magnifying goggles with a machist scale, my ears and feel but either way a shim should not have to be so big it's ugly

[nix808]

hmm,
I could shim it back if need be.
Having the socket open isn't that attractive though?
The problem I have now is at the bridge end,
I have to keep the strings away from the fretboard so they don't buzz.
hmm, it's still better than it was. It's about 3mm from the 22nd fret top to the string on low E.
The thing limiting the action now is that-> the bridge end string height.
I'll play it some more tonight.
Maybe do a take of strums.
The low E is 82hz I think, so there is 1/82nd sec delay for it.
No sorry, my trig no longer exists{blush}
I am not a skilled luthier, but in the end I think I'll still be able to use this neck.
I'll see what they think at the shop next week.
It's a pity u, Dean and Susi can't really scrutinize it at this stage.
Hope you find in the audio some promise for a synth guitar option.

[Feda]

Hey,
I am building 2 guitars w/- hex pickups.
I have a strat copy with all parts in the mail, and a bocote top tele body just.
I build one, the strat, and see if the hex works well translating into frequency figure for playing synth.
I have the software in beta, built in SynthMaker.
Here are some shots of the Strat:




8D

I'm a bit confused about the software part. Are you playing through a guitar to midi converter or are you doing something new (you are talking about software in beta)?

You should probably consider a piezo system if you want to avoid the bleedthough between strings.

[nix808]

I am just counting the guitar string's frequency, and using this sample length figure to drive the frequency input of a wavetable oscillator.
Leif Oddson from SynthMaker forum originally wrote the code, which I have modified. I run the guitar signal into cascaded band pass filters, then a biquad filter before the 0 crossing count.
The band pass cut harmonics, and the biquad turns it into a sine.
The soft is built in SynthMaker, where I can anylyse the signal and output the frequency time at sample rate. It gets trickier to make quick MIDI with SM, although I will retread that path soon.
So yeah, a simple method, kinda home brew.
Cheers
latency is dependant on the time it takes to count 1 cycle, so 1/82nd sec on low E, and less as the pitch goes higher