Do you have that friend that can make a perfectly tuned guitar sound sharp?

[Blazer]

Well, I was reading a thread about Jerry Garcia's “Tiger” guitar, which is being reissued by Eastwood guitars. And somebody jokingly said, “Do they space the frets, so it sounds stretched sharp out of tune in places?”

And that reminded me of a former bandmate of mine who also was a close friend, who had that “Ability” of picking up a perfectly tuned guitar and making it sound horribly sharp when playing it.

It wasn't that the guy didn't know how to play, but he had the touch of a lumberjack, squeezing the strings so hard that they'd go sharp straight away.

Anybody else know somebody like that?

 

[Weazel]

I think you need to change the word "flat" to "sharp" in your story.

 

[Nick Fanis]

Huge frets and pressing down the strings on your fretting hand like they owe you money does it every time.

 

[Skyhook]

Well, I was reading a thread about Jerry Garcia's “Tiger” guitar, which is being reissued by Eastwood guitars. And somebody jokingly said, “Do they space the frets, so it sounds stretched sharp out of tune in places?”

And that reminded me of a former bandmate of mine who also was a close friend, who had that “Ability” of picking up a perfectly tuned guitar and making it sound horribly flat when playing it.

It wasn't that the guy didn't know how to play, but he had the touch of a lumberjack, squeezing the strings so hard that they'd go flat straight away.

Anybody else know somebody like that?

Oh hell yes!!!

 

[Festofish]

I got a pretty mean grip on mine too. Explain it to him. He’d probably appreciate it…maybe.

 

[Blazer]

I think you need to change the word "flat" to "sharp" in your story.

Gotcha, thanks for the heads up.

 

[bgmacaw]

Some people have a "death grip" on their guitar neck that not only makes it go out of tune but also will tend to wear out their frets quicker. But, no, it's not their technique that's the problem, it's the guitar's problem because XYZ guitar company makes a guitar that won't stay in tune and uses weak metal in their frets.

 

[stxrus]

When I got my first SG that had medium jumbo frets I thought this guitar is horrible. I tried would Gs. Didn’t help. Adjusted everything I could. Didn’t help. I read somewhere about how grip could effect tuning. A serious lightbulb moment!
I guess I just like smaller frets but my death grip is gone and I have much less hand pain/discomfort than I used to

 

[DM1975inKS]

I can make one sound like crap. Does that count? All I gotta do is play it.

 

[ChicknPickn]

This is where a poorly cut nut makes its presence known.

 

[bottlenecker]

One of my favorite guitars has a weak neck joint that requires me to hold up my arms like a classical player, or my arms will pull it very obviously sharp. It's made me aware that any guitar will go at least a little sharp if I rest my arms on it as I play. My right arm on the body pulls back a little, and my left hand wants to hang off the neck a little and pull it back.

 

[RobRiggs]

Me. About the first 7 years I played

 

[Manual Slim]

I'm the friend. Necks are made for strangling.

 

[goonie]

Oh man I went to a concert a few months ago and the support act was such a neck strangler, I swear when she played an open d chord it sounded like Daug.

 

[metalicaster]

My guitar is strung 7–38 and has tall frets. Nobody who tries it can make chords work at first.

 

[rarebreed]

I'll admit, I'm that guy too. I'm so heavy handed if I play a guitar with 9's on it, it will sound out of tune.

 

[radtz]

If their isn't a little bit of sawdust on the floor after 10 minutes of playing, you're being too dainty.

 

[1stpitch]

Yep, that's me. Mainly the low E. I'm trying to learn to play with a lighter touch.

 

[posttoastie]

I guess tone is in the fingers

 

[PhoenixBill]

This is where a poorly cut nut makes its presence known.

Bah, not according to a few of the videos on YouTube…according to them, you merely tighten the truss rod until you get the action you want. Cutting the nut slots to the proper depth and adjusting the bridge once the neck relief is dialed in? Nope, just crank down on that old truss rod. “Trust me, I have a YouTube channel, that makes me an expert luthier…”