infuriating little problem

[Homebake]

i just fixed a little problem which has been annoying me for about an hour.

around the 8-11 fret area on the high E string, on one fret i'll sometimes get the note the fret transform into the octave harmonic. the other frets around it will be fine, just that when you play this fret it will play normally then flip into the harmonic an octave above.

the only way i can fix this is by altering the intonation. it seems if you move the saddle closer to the nut, the problem fret moves back towards the nut too and if you move the saddle further away, the fret with the problem goes up. i managed to balance it between frets or something, because i'm not having this problem on any frets at the moment.

action and neck bow don't seem to have any effect on it. looking at the fret an octave above the trouble fret, the string is miles away from touching it (well, NORMAL distance, it's not touching the fret).

can anyone shed any light on this? i also had this on my G string, adjusted the intonation and it was fixed.

[jb4674]

Check to see if the fret is raised at the edge, you could be getting the string caught, thus hearing the note an octave higher. What kind of guitar is this? Can you post some pictures?

Jimmy

[6fingers]

You don't adjust saddles to fix fret(or anything else) problems.
You adjust sadles ONLY to fix tuning.
Now its octaves are out of tune.
That harmonic could be 2 things=

1- string scratching saddle's surface,sand saddle's surface a little and probably it'll stops.
2- string scratching fret.

You can even lubricate saddle's surface but if there are bumps there ít won't helps you.

[Homebake]

yeah, i know, the intonation is still set properly, i mean i only moved the saddle like, 0.7 of a mm either way or something, i realise what intonation is about.

thanks for the info on the saddles, it most likely is the problem. what do you mean by "string scratching fret?" also? the fret i'm actually fretting on, or the fret an octave above.

it's an rg2550z btw, with an edge zero.

[6fingers]

I meant high frets so strings scratch them when vibrating.
Usually bad fretwork causes strings scratching first fret.
But probably seems you have to sand that saddle's surface.
If you don't know how to sand it, buy another saddle.

[Homebake]

how do i sand them? 000 grade steel wool? are you talking about the contact point where the string first touches the saddle? i'm not talking about the string lock block.

i took a look at the saddle and there's slight wear where the string sits and a little bit of the silver finish has worn off. i wiped it with a bit of cotton and got some dust off it, but problem is still there.

also, i'm 90% sure, the string isn't scratching any other frets when vibrating. and why would small bumps at the saddle cause an harmonic?

[6fingers]

I don't know,google it.

[Homebake]

is this a common problem or is it just a guess that it might be the saddle?

[6fingers]

Dude we are not playing your guitar so everything is guessing.
If strings aren't touching any fret so the problem is saddle or lock nut.
One of them or both need to be sanded.
It's a commom problem on used guitars or guitars with crap trems.
Buy a new saddle.Change it.Problem not solved = try a new lock nut.
Problem not solved .....go to a church lol

[Homebake]

ok, well it's a new guitar, made this year, only had it a bit over 2 months. the edge zero is a quality trem.

as far as the nut is concerned, i cleaned it too and everything looks fine, and it shouldn't be that, it would only be that if the open string was concerned.

as far as i can tell, it's not the frets. i've raised the action up really high and it doesn't fix it. so it must be the saddle.

what i meant was, if the saddle needed to be sanded, why would a problem with the saddle cause the note to go an octave above?

[6fingers]

If any string heats a bump on saddle,it'll be the same as you touching strings with your finger and generating a harmonic.

[Homebake]

did you mean "hit a bump on a saddle"? i'm going to get some 000 grade steel wool and take the saddle apart and sand it down a bit. thanks for help.

[6fingers]

Yep HEAT is here,there is HIT lol
Dude a new saddle would be better.

[Homebake]

yeah, but a new saddle would take at least a week to get here and it's a huuuuge amount of effort for such a small problem which could probably be fixed by some sanding. and anyway, a new saddle might also eventually have the same problem.

[musicdr]

Have you checked to make sure your tuner nuts are snug.I had a strange harmonic overtone on only one note.It turned out the tuner nut was slightly loose.