Staying in tune...

[worthmoremusic]

I've had my SE CE 24 Satin for a couple of months now and although I enjoy playing it, it's the only guitar I have that seems to need to be re-tuned daily. When I'm not playing it, it lives in the gig bag it came with.
Could it be that all my other guitars have bone nuts and this PRS model has what appears to be a cheap plastic one ? The nut slots on the PRS don't seem as wide or as deep as all the other (non-PRS) electrics I own that came with bone nuts...

Anyway, every day the G string is easily at least a whole step flat and the other strings just need a very slight pitch adjustment. The intonation isn't perfect but few guitars ever "truly" are.

Is it only the vintage inspired, more expensive PRS guitars that come with bone nuts and all other models use their proprietary synthetic nut material ?

Curious if anyone else has had tuning issues on maybe their less expense models.... ?

Thanks...

 

[Birdsofprey]

Based on reading your post easy fix. Have a bone nut put on it so it will be like your other guitars, done.

 

[JasonE]

My first thought is that it is easy to bump a tuning key when in a gig bag. I wouldn't think the nut would be the cause of a guitar going out of tune on it's own, unless you were doing a lot of string bending and it was bound in the nut and it released over time after it was put away. That wouldn't be my first thought though.

 

[Alnus Rubra]

My SE 245 does the same thing when it’s in the gig bag.

For some reason the G tuner key is susceptible to a knock and puts it flat, more often than not.

 

[deathworlder]

A whole step is a lot to attribute to a binding nut...

 

[alantig]

A whole step is a lot to attribute to a binding nut...

When my nuts bind, my voice changes by more than a whole step.

 

[Bogner]

Like Most Everything Else In Life...Nut Issues.

 

[deathworlder]

When my nuts bind, my voice changes by more than a whole step.

Yeah...but your fetish makes it go lower.

 

[deathworlder]

Like Most Everything Else In Life...Nut Issues.

So True...

 

[sergiodeblanc]

I cant

 

[aphantomvaper]

What color is it? The guitar, not the nut.

 

[worthmoremusic]

A whole step is a lot to attribute to a binding nut...

Thanks...the string does look very snug in there.

 

[worthmoremusic]

My first thought is that it is easy to bump a tuning key when in a gig bag. I wouldn't think the nut would be the cause of a guitar going out of tune on it's own, unless you were doing a lot of string bending and it was bound in the nut and it released over time after it was put away. That wouldn't be my first thought though.

No...I don't do a lot of string bending. In the gig bag, which leans against the wall, you got me thinking maybe the headstock/ tuning button is resting on the wall which is knocking that string out of tune... possible....but it also could be that string has zero play in the nut. It's too squished.
Might just use a tiny file ever so gently and or get some nut sauce... We'll see how it goes. Thanks for your response.

 

[deathworlder]

Thanks...the string does look very snug in there.

I'm having a hard time understanding, if it is a bound nut, how it ends up flat, unless you are tuning down to pitch.
Always start below pitch and tune up to help avoid tuner backlash. If you're not doing this, try it and see if there's any improvement.

I'm not saying it can't be the nut, but my impression of the clues seem to point to something else.
-not a problem when you're playing
-going flat, not sharp
-seems to occur when it's in storage

 

[Going Modal]

As others have already rightfully said, it's probably a (ahem) nut problem. For quite a while on my Les Paul, I couldn't keep the damn thing in tune; the G-string (ahem!) was especially notoriously difficult to keep in tune. One relatively simple trip to a quality, trusted guitar-repair guy in the area and VIOLA! it stays in tune and no issues whatsoever. You can do all those other things (like string stretching, specific tuning techniques, etc.) but they'll all just be band-aids until you fix the actual issue.

 

[Alnus Rubra]

No...I don't do a lot of string bending. In the gig bag, which leans against the wall, you got me thinking maybe the headstock/ tuning button is resting on the wall which is knocking that string out of tune... possible....but it also could be that string has zero play in the nut. It's too squished.
Might just use a tiny file ever so gently and or get some nut sauce... We'll see how it goes. Thanks for your response.

Mine does the same. It’s just a gig bag thing.

 

[worthmoremusic]

My SE 245 does the same thing when it’s in the gig bag.

For some reason the G tuner key is susceptible to a knock and puts it flat, more often than not.

Interestingly enough, there are a plethora of UTube videos and articles how it's usually issues with the G string...

 

[worthmoremusic]

I'm having a hard time understanding, if it is a bound nut, how it ends up flat, unless you are tuning down to pitch.
Always start below pitch and tune up to help avoid tuner backlash. If you're not doing this, try it and see if there's any improvement.

I'm not saying it can't be the nut, but my impression of the clues seem to point to something else.
-not a problem when you're playing
-going flat, not sharp
-seems to occur when it's in storage

-I always start below the pitch and tune up.... My understanding regarding tuning issues is that any number of things can be the cause. Here are just a few:
- uneven frets
-improperly adjusted neck can cause intonation and tuning issues
-strings can and sometimes do get hung up at the nut or bridge if the slots aren't cut properly.

I often wonder if something happened during shipping...

I'm not a heavy or hard player..definitely not what anyone would call a shredder by any stretch of the imagination...I actually have a fairly light touch in comparison to many players and IF I do bend a string, it might be a 1/2 step if even that much. More and more I'm beginning to think it could be the fact that the headstock and tuners are resting against a wall overnight..although in a gig bag and the G string tuner is getting pushed, or moved.
Think I will try an experiment and leave it out of the case tonight and not resting against a wall...or just leave it in the case and not leaning against the wall but rather lying flat.

Also not sure if temperature and or humidity plays a part here...I know those things can and most often do reek havoc with wooden instruments..and for electric guitars the neck and frets especially can become affected.

I have seen tons of UTube videos and read several articles about how it's always the G string that goes out of tune....and usually remark about it's often the nut. Who knows....

The odd thing is, once out of the gig bag, re-tuned and if the guitar sits out all day it's fine....however the next day if I'm not playing one of my other guitars and reach for the PRS, simultaneously I reach for the tuner cause I KNOW I will need it !

Anyway...just airing some thoughts. You know, process of elimination.

Maybe one day I'll make the 2.5hr o/w trek to John Mann's Guitar Vault who is a dedicated PRS dealer and see what he says about this issue AND check the tone knob which has zero resistance as compared to the volume... OR to a luthier I once went to a bit closer to home. It's not a major thing re-checking the tuning daily, just has become a bit of a mystery that's all...

 

[deathworlder]

I'm just saying, there are things you can do before going straight to the nut to at least eliminate possibilities. Don't store it in a gig bag is another thing...have you tried that? It's troubleshooting 101; hit the low hanging fruit first in an attempt to find the root cause. Shotgunning parts at it is an undefinitive approach.

 

[deathworlder]

Just for comparisons sake; here's my SE CE Satin Standard nut.