S2 not staying in tune

titansfan4196

New Member
Joined
Oct 22, 2013
Messages
32
Sigh... This is becoming a pain. I have an S2 Custom 24. I've noticed it doesn't always stay in tune. In fact, whenever I use the tremolo, it comes out of tune. (Please, don't bother to tell me not to use it. I paid a lot of money for this guitar and I expect to be able to use it without so many problems.) Sometimes they just go out of tune randomly even when I don't use the tremolo (The strings usually go sharp).

All answers appreciated!
 
Nut binding? Maybe try graphite in the slots (not sure if that's good advice on the S2 nut or not), but you may have to get them filed a bit. Do the strings ping at all when you're tuning them up? That can be an indication that they're binding.
 
If the S2s are like my other PRSi it takes some time for them to break in so to speak.
Here is what I suggest
1) Check the set up of your trem and guitar lots of good videos on youtube
2) Always tune up to pitch
3) Play the guitar aggressively / use the trem as much as possible, then change strings and do it again ( this is the fun part )
your trem will gradually get better ( it did on mine )
4) sometimes a small waggle of the Trem brings it back in tune.
 
Welcome to the world of PRS.
It takes a bit of tweaking to get my PRS guitars to stay in tune with the trem.
Could be binding at the nut.
Could be the tremolo baseplate screws are not aligned perfectly.
Could be a combination of the two.
These are the two common causes.
 
I wonder if you can characterize the out-of-tuneness behavior. Do you find they go out of tune sharp a lot when you use the trem, but go out of tune flat when you don't use the trem but have been doing some bends?

That would indicate binding at the nut.

If always sharp, then I would bet it is with the trem bridge set-up - the baseplate screws vs the springs are arguing over something.

As rugerpc asked: did you change the gauge of the strings from factory? If you went bigger by more than one size, the nut will very likely bind.
 
Yes.
Every PRS I've ever owned has required some work to get it to stay in tune with the trem.
As for my experience, that's just been a fact.
I've never had a PRS stay in tune right after purchasing it.

For me it has been just the opposite. Every PRS I have ever bought, even the used ones from eBay, has stayed in tune. And I'm not talking about 2 or 3 of them - dozens.
 
I don't doubt that some people have trouble keeping their trem equipped PRS in tune, but I occasionally wonder if it's user error and ignorance (I don't mean that in a jerky way) instead of the guitar or its craftsmanship that are to blame, or if people have unreasonable expectations of a single-locking tremolo.

If your nut is cut for a smaller gauge of strings it will bind and you will have issues. If you have wraps of string around your locking tuner posts it's not the guitars fault, you're simply doing it wrong. There should never be any wraps of excess string around your post, doing so will negate the purpose of locking tuners in the first place. If you don't stretch your strings the guitar will of course go out of tune, and the same will happen if you don't tune "up" to pitch rather than "down" because of the slack created in the gear of the tuner. If you're concerned that your guitar is out of tune after sitting in its case or on a stand in a non-humidified environment for a few days... IDK, tune it.

This isn't directed at anybody in this thread, or the twenty other threads that pop up about this same topic every month, I just don't have any problems keeping my PRS in tune after I check for all of the above. The SE trem block can add another wrinkle if the holes are not smooth enough for the string-ball to enter freely and I have come across that, but never on a core model PRS.
 
I have to be honest here ..................... I have never, ever, ever had a problem with a PRS Trem staying in tune & I have had more than a few.



Disclaimer: My PRS Trem does go out of tune if I break a String :tongue:
 
For me it has been just the opposite. Every PRS I have ever bought, even the used ones from eBay, has stayed in tune. And I'm not talking about 2 or 3 of them - dozens.

+1 This has been my experience as well.
 
It's not user error in my case.
I'm endorsed by Reverend guitars and even though they are made in Korea and final finishing and setup in the USA, each one has stayed in tune with even extreme tremolo abuse.

I use 9-42 gauge strings.

I've had only four of them (USA PRS) with trems and each one has had tuning issues.
Once I get them setup correctly (funnel cut the nuts, align the tremolo base plate screws) they are just fine.

I can only go by my own experience.
 
I believe the S2 bridges are the same as those used on the SE models. That is not necessarily a bad thing but some have expressed a greater happiness by replacing the stock bridge with a PRS USA bridge.
That being said, I have a USA made "core line" Custom 24 which is still in showroom new condition. I have experienced a little tiny bit of that slightly out of tune thing but I'm not doing anything drastic about it right now. My plan is to use the trem a lot and give it time to "break in", and then maybe use a little Big Bends Nut Sauce guitar lubricant on the nut. It's supposed to be good on fixed bridges too.
 
... not gonna call out anyone in particular, but...

BBBbbbbbbrrrrrriiiiiinnnnnngggggGG!!!!

That's my Other Agenda Detector going off....

*********

For the OP if he is still here:

Did you change the string gauge?
 
Last edited:
Back
Top