Jem7vwh wow or lfo like syndrome!

[Ralph khoury]

Well i bought this new jem that was shipped directly from japan! it played like a dream before the 14th fret, while anything above the 14th fret on the octave position sounded like ****! i can here this on the Low E string, A string, D string, & G! 1st i thought it could be fret buzzing, so i raised the bridge a little lowered the pickups a little the result was that the noise level dropped dramatically but still i could hear it, to describe the sound, it is some kind of a wow effert or lfo, the wow gets faster as i move towards the bridge on the fret board! it goes like wowowowowow! i put my ear on the guitars body, and i heard this effect too! of course it gets amplified by the pickups and heavy distortion! what made me believe that it is not fret buzz is that i can hear this effect at the 24th fret! what do u think is the problem? i aslo hear sometimes a strange sustrained resonance but i figured out that it might be the new trem springs! last question, are the 2002 Jems prestige?

[Courjan]

I know exactly what you mean. I have the same problem but unfortunately I could not find a solution.

[Ralph khoury]

Did u ask a technician about it? cos here in lebanon its hard to find 1!

visit my website at www.freewebs.com/ralph-khoury

[wilch]

I know what you mean aswell.
I had the same problem with my RG.

Hold a note and it won't sing.. It kinda warbles instead right?
Changing the strings worked for me though.

In answer to your last question, All Japanese Jems have the prestige treatment (hand finished, etc, etc, etc).

wil..

[Drew]

That REALLY sounds like fret buzz to me. If the lower frets are fine but 14th+ is buzzing/warbling, then my guess is it's a combination of a low bridge and a little too much neck bow. Check out the tech section at this site for a walk-through of a decent setup.

-D

[Courjan]

I've discussed this with a Tech actually. I left my BFP with him for a week if he could discover it but he hasn't been able to come up with much. I recently changed my PUPs on my BFP it's still there but much less audible now. BTW I have it on my UV and my JPM as well so go figure.

Drew, it's not fretbuzz, wish it was. I get this even with open harmonics.
Especially on 5th fret harmonic on the G string. But it does change a bit with the way you pick.

[Rich]

Sounds more like resonating springs

[MicJustMic]

Thanks Rich, always beating me to the punch. :P

I agree with Rich, try stuffing some tissue or cotton balls in the spring cavity, which may help. Not so much that it hinders the movement, just enough to stop them from vibrating.

I use a foam pad (insulator strip from local hardware store, used mainly for air conditioning/duct installation/insulation) cut into 2.5 inch by 2.5 inch by .5 inch squares. It fits perfectly in the trem cavity, either under or over the springs.
Just to stop the springs from making noise, I've never had them do what you have, but I HATE the extra noise they produce sometimes.

If that's not it, I'm stumped.

Mic

[Courjan]

That's what I thought it was... until I dampened my springs but the noise stayed unchanged.

You know I have a way of explaining it, but it's a bit awkward.
Let's say you fret the G string on fret 5. Play it, it's a C. Now play the other side of the string between the nut and fret 4. You hear a very high pitch note. Well it's impossible but it seems like that note is amplified along with the real note. While it is very very subtle, it does create a disonance . This happens especially with gain. Higher the gain, more the effect is pronounced.

Another clue turn the tone knob down, it goes away.

Clashing overtones??

[Courjan]

I've increased the action and lowered the pickups a bit. The results are good. Try it and see if it works for you.

[Ralph khoury]

Well thats what i did when i 1st heard this noise but the noise was reduced by 60%! now i wonder why Vai stuffs these elusive tissues behind his guitar on the springs, could it be the same problem! and if its so then Ibanez should be ashamed of themselves especially for the lo-pro edge problem which needs filing! couldnt they do it themselves!

[Rich]

If Ibanez should be ashamed for not muting their springs then you can blame every guitar builder for the same fault

Ibanez did address the knife issue by redesigning the studs. Then they discontinued them. For that they should be ashamed

[JEM10th]

Wow!
HereŽs exactly that problem that i discovered just recently, after soldering in a new pair of Evolutions in My JEM10th.
Could that be an EVO problem ?
Cant seem to remeber that problem before i "opened" the guitar, using the "quickmethod" by Mr.Harris. Just took off the springs, leaving the strings in the trem, and then removed Trem too the side of the guitar, while operating in it.

Strangely, when i assembled all again, it seems like the action went down alittle bit (perhaps the neck moved backwards when the tension from the strings were gone. I just raised the trem by 1/8 turn on each stud and then it was good again.

next time i did that whole thing again, it went down in action the second time too, so now iŽll leave it for a couple of days, just to see if the neck settles again

Strange "fluttering" sound though, especially on my "G" string 24th fret it all just stinks .

IŽll try anything to get rid of it FFS

PEACE

[Ralph khoury]

No Jem10th it is not the EVO's cos if u put ur ear on the body of ur guitar and play on the G string fret 17 for example without pluging ur guitar u will hear this noise, the EVOs only amplify it and since they are hot u can imagine how much the noise could be amplified. the only way to nearly solve this problem is to raise ur bridge lower the pickups and try vibrating the notes! vibrating a note kills that noise! actually i only hear it now on the G string and the low E but the main problem is in the G string cos it is used more often than the low E on the octave position! Actually i heard the same noise on the VSBL.

[Rich]

That's not "my" method, it's been around longer than I've been playing Ibanez

Strange that your action would change if the trem angle didn't, unless you had the neck off and didn't get it seated again?