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December 2005
Posts: 117
| I'm having two problems with my 1778T. One is that the action is a little low... I think. The strings seem to buzz against the frets sometimes. It has two shims under the bridge right now.
Also, by the neck, the round piece that the strap button or strap lock screws into is loose, so my straplock comes loose often because that part turns.
Any tips? |
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November 2006
Posts: 62
Location: Canada | For low action, the shims certainly wouldn't be the cause since they're there to raise action, after all. I would suspect that your truss rod may need loosening since buzzing on the first few frets would indicate to me that you need more neck relief.
Without seeing the guitar it's hard to say for certain but a quarter turn of your truss rod counter clockwise couldn't hurt and may give you the neck relief you need. |
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December 2005
Posts: 117
| I only mentioned the shims to avoid people saying that I should put shims in there, if 2 is a good ammount, you know? But thanks... maybe I'll try that. |
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May 2006
Posts: 97
Location: Chicago | Check the humidity levels that your store the guitar in. The top might be caving in a little, lowering the action in the upper frets. |
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Posts: 8307
Location: Tennessee | Tighten down the strap button ... should just be a phillips head screw. That could also be having an effect on your "fret buzz" ... sometimes buzzing comes from very wierd places on a guitar. My worst problem is making the frets buzz by poor finger placement. :rolleyes: |
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Posts: 1320
Location: Round Rock, TX | On your strap button issue, put a black rubber washer between your strap button and the guitar. As long as the round piece is securely attached to the guitar this should prevent it from turning on you.
Another thing to do is ask around and find a good guitar tech in your area. I love mine. If one is not available (or even if one is) I second giving the truss rod a 1/4 turn counter clockwise, but be careful. I had a friend that just knew he needed to relieve the tension in his neck. He was wrong. The truss rod was already as counter clockwise as it would go. He broke the truss rod. What would have been a $50 setup turned into a $450 repair. I'm definitely not saying don't try it. Just don't bear down if it doesn't want to turn. |
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June 2006
Posts: 106
Location: UK | I was just reading the manual that came with my ovation and it says that to check the neck you should hold down the low E on the 1st and 12th frets then check the gap between the string and the 5th fret. It shouldn't be touching. The clearence should be the same as the thickness of the flap from a book of matches. (It also gives the actual gap in fractions of an inch but I guess they expect all ovation giggers to be heavey smokers and most likely to have matches in their pockets rather than proper tools)
I've never owned a US Built ovation so don't know what quality to expect but on the few Celebrities I've owned (First one 20+ years ago and another just this summer) and in both cases I had annoying buzzing which was traced back to the bracing. |
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Posts: 1138
Location: CT | Originally posted by Axcontrols:
I've never owned a US Built ovation.... Go Buy one. NOW! |
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May 2003
Posts: 4389
Location: Capital District, NY, USA Minor Outlying Islands | Things to look into:
Sometimes the strings make a difference. Did you put on lighter gauge strings? Try thicker strings.
They have half thickness shims, usually supplied with the guitar--- add one.
The ovation truss rods are pretty good, I've cranked mine up to 2 turns and no problems. So I think at least up to one you should be ok. It usually takes a day for the neck settle in place after a half a turn of the truss rod.
Is the guitar being kept in a relatively cool place? Or hot place? Or humid place? Try keeping it in a case with a humidifier and a hygrometer to keep the temperature and humidity constant. This whole adjustment period should take a month doing it one your own.
I've had this adjustment period with every guitar I've owned. Also, remember its an acoustic, not a solid body electric, so the action will be little higher.
Strap lock: Did you try screwing it tighter?
If any of these looks daunting, or if they don't work, then bring it to an ovation rep in your area. He'll tell you if its under warranty. |
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June 2006
Posts: 106
Location: UK | brainslag, read my other post about the cost of US built ovations here in the UK.
Example I just received yet another celebrity (CC049 Mid Bowl Country Artist for £369 ($700USD) incl free delivery. The nearest I can get in a US built model is a super discounted £1295 ($2500USD)
In the past I've been more than happy with my celebrities once I voided the warranty by taking them apart and putting them back together again.
Having said that, the CC049 which arrived less than an hour ago looks to be 100% perfect (time will tell. it's a present from my girlfriend so apart from just checking that it's not damaged I can't actually give it a good thrashing for a couple of weeks). It's my first nylon strung guitar so even if I could afford a US built model I'm still a bit warey of (my girlfriend)spending US model money on something which might just be a 'phase I'm going through'. |
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December 2005
Posts: 117
| I haven't been able to try to fix the buzzing yet, but about the button...
I have been tightening the button, that's not the problem. Once it gets to a certain tightness, it just keeps turning. This is because the black circular thing that the screw goes into instead of the wood is loose. It makes it so I can't tighten the button all the way, and the button eventually comes loose after a couple hours of playing. |
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Posts: 1320
Location: Round Rock, TX | Did you try the rubber washer? |
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March 2005
Posts: 12759
Location: Boise, Idaho | Unscrew it. If it is a screw, rather than a bolt, the threads are probably stripped and you can get it to tighten up with a small piece of wood like a toothpick and possibly some glue. If it is a bolt and it comes out, I may have just made the problem worse because a nut might have come off inside your guitar. It should be a screw, though. |
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Posts: 2804
Location: ranson,wva | the expandable moly bushing could be striped....jason |
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September 2006
Posts: 143
Location: Shotley Bridge, Northern England | Hey there Ax,
further to your comment (and June posting) about prices: with the current £/$ exchange rate, there will never be a better time than now to buy a USA-made Ovation from across the water. Even with import duties, VAT and ParcelForce charges, you should find an Elite-type model(Collectors in my case) at UK Celeb prices if you look carefully on eBay. Search this board for '84 Collectors' to see the details of my recent eBay purchase.
HW |
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December 2004
Posts: 370
Location: Isle of Man, UK | ...in fact, if you can:- buy 2.
You can then sell one which will at least pay for itself and most likely contribute heavily towards the other and bingo - you're a winner. Pay now whilst Exchange Rates are the way they are...
I wash I'd been able to afford to do that when I got my nylon viper made. It crossed my mind, but things were just too tight to think about it in any detail.
JB |
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November 2004
Posts: 4413
| Despite the fact that he probably wears a whippet on his head and eats parkin, the Hillman is absolutely correct. It's always cheaper to import one yourself, but the exchange rate now means that they'll never be cheaper. Even with shipping/duty/vat it will be WAY cheaper, maybe half price, compared to UK prices.
email al and get buying. |
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November 2004
Posts: 4413
| Snap, Rockabilly boy. Thanks for the nice thoughts on another post. I'm fine, apart from a cold.
What happened to your footnote about the flat? Have you finally sold it? |
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September 2006
Posts: 143
Location: Shotley Bridge, Northern England | Hey Schroeder, you're right: it IS half price (actually, probably less than, allowing for the markup that a Collectors model would attract here in the UK).
Whippet on his head eh? Hmmm... Where would I put my cap in that case?
Better a whippet headwarmer than drinking that stuff you lads down there call beer...
HW (with a whippet HW) |
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Two minor problems