I have built 5 fretless CBG's and decided to try a fretted one. I purchased a neck that was fretted.
I have fought with it for 2 days now. I am tuning GDG, I can get the low G so it's in tune for all the notes. The other 2 strings are always sharp no matter what I do. I have used different nuts and bridges to change the action on the strings, but it is always sharp. Since one string seems to be fine, I am thinking there is something I must do in order for all the strings to be in tune the entire neck. Any advice (besides don't buy pre-fretted guitar necks and smash it into firewood) would be appreciated.
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If you can get the low G intoned correctly, then there is nothing wrong with the pre-fretted neck.
It is very common to have to angle the bridge to get all strings to intone correctly, but I would look at your action height at the 12th fret. If the action is high, then pressing those middle and high strings will certainly make them go sharp.
As a test, check the intonation using your slide only. Only press hard enough to get a clean note. If it intones correctly with a slide, but goes sharp when fretted, then that is a pretty good indicator that the action is too high.
You can usually get very close with the bridge angling approach. Set the bridge location so that the middle (D) string is intones correctly, then try angling to get the two G strings to intone.
This is something you can work out with a methodical approach.
Let us know.....
Most times there are 3 reasons why intonation will go wonky.
The space between the nut and the first fret is wrong, the bridge is in the wrong place or the strings are too high from the frets.
Check that the 12th fret is halfway between the nut and the bridge (or at least very close). Have a look at where the nut sits in relation to the fret spacings (you can get a quick test by using a capo, loosely capo at fret 1 and tune it up and see if it helps intonation). Have a look at string height they should not be very high above the frets (a couple or 3mm at the highest point and 1/4mm or less near the nut).
By the sound of your problem, i think Hal has most likely hit it, as Tom says if you are getting 1 string perfect, most likely all are tuneable with a bit of bridge angle, i generally start with the middle string, but Hal's suggestion of high string first at scale length is probably a better datum.I've found the action height has a large effect on how much angle your bridge needs to intonate better
Thanks for all the advice. When I was putting an angle to the bridge I could get the 12th fret to tune on all strings. It was always out up at the nut. As I worked toward the 12th fret it started coming back into tune. It came with a nut, but I am working on making something that is going to bring the strings closer to the neck. Fretless is so much easier to put together.
First, it should ALWAYS be in tune at the nut, or open... If it's not, you need to re-tune your strings every time you move the bridge... Moving the bridge can throw your guitar out of tune, which will make it impossible to intonate.
You really only need to set intonation on the outer two strings. One question: What is the action set at the 12th fret? It should be no more than a gap of 0.080 between the bottom of the string and the fret... too high, and it really gets hard to set the intonation, as you have to lengthen the scale in order to compensate for the fact that the string gets tighter to push it down a long distance.
It came with a nut
I'm guessing that's your problem, you haven't cut the nut slots deeper to get the correct action height. Here's a stewmac link to read up on setting action height
http://www.stewmac.com/How-To/Online_Resources/Neck_Building_and_Re...
A picture full length head on and one close up near the nut (perhaps also a close up near the bridge) would help.
I agree, but the first thing I thought about was if the bridge was straight or angled. That's likely the problem unless the frets are crooked.
It also depends on if your tuning by open string tuner, fret placement tuning or harmonic tuning.
By the sounds of it though it does seem like you want to slant the bridge, thicker strings (especially wound strings need an adjustment to be longer, the top string bridge placement stays in the same place but the other basser strings need slightly longer.kinda like it's slanted further back for the bass strings.
If your comfortable with harmonic tuning, the this. Get your middle harmonic the same as your twelfth fret and mark the sting at the bridge where the saddle placement is with a felt tip pen. Do this for each string then slant your bridge to be the best angle between each of the markings. It's not perfect, but then neither is a store bought guitar, theres imperfections all over every fretboard and that includes fender and Gibson fretboards.
Tim, as usual, this forum has offered a whole bunch of good advice for you. This is undoubtedly offered to you based on the experience of the folks replying to your problem. I have used these adjustment methods myself on different builds with good result. If the neck is straight, there is usually a solution to be found.Be methodical, trying one thing at a time. Most of all, don't give up on fretted necks. There are many good videos available to assist you in Building Your Own! I made several before I got happy with the result. It can seem intimidating, but is tremendously rewarding when you string up your own build, tune it up, and play that fretted neck that you made. As Wayfinder referenced, zero fret necks are a good way to go. I have made 15 or 20 zero fret necks. I have recently started cutting, fitting, filing, and installing bone nuts. A new learning curve for me, but the first one was the hardest. The easiest thing for me would have been to chuck the bone and go back to zero fret, but I hung in, cursed a bit, and went back to filing and fitting. It was worth it, as I have added a build option that I can use. It's a process, not an event. Hang in, work it out, learn as you go and add to your skill set. Good luck going forward!
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