Wood Library Custom 24 - String Spacing from the edge of the fingerboard ?

[Peromustejn]

On my new Wood Library Custom 24 the high E string is closer to the edge of the fingerboard than the low E. This is on the last fret. There is 0,5mm difference.
Spacing at the nut is even on both sides.
Has anyone else noticed this on their PRSi ?

 

[shinksma]

It happens to an extent on all guitars, especially if the intent is to give the thicker E string a bit more "fret real estate" than might be needed for the e.

Does it make it more difficult to play, or are you just noticing the visuals of it?

 

[Peromustejn]

Here is how it looks
It is just a visual thing, does not affect playbility.
In the video of Neck and Body Assembly is shown how they check the string distance from the fingerboard.
I thought they should be even, and my guitar is dud.

 

[Bogner]

Regarding Nuts And String Spacing, There Are A Couple Of Ways It Is Approached. You Can Have Equal Spacing Between Strings In The Nuts Slots And Proportional Spacing. There Is A Difference, Although Subtle, In How It Looks And Feels. This Is Due To Taking Into Account The Thickness Of The Heavier Strings And Compensating For That. Maybe This Article Will Explain And Be Of Help?

Using the String Spacing Rule for guitars and mandolins - StewMac

Erick Coleman uses Kevin Ryan's proportional string spacing rule for more jobs than Kevin ever expected: 12-strings, mandolins, bridge saddles... Plus: an explanation of the difference between equal spacing and proportional spacing.

www.stewmac.com

 

[Peromustejn]

Regarding Nuts And String Spacing, There Are A Couple Of Ways It Is Approached. You Can Have Equal Spacing Between Strings In The Nuts Slots And Proportional Spacing. There Is A Difference, Although Subtle, In How It Looks And Feels. This Is Due To Taking Into Account The Thickness Of The Heavier Strings And Compensating For That. Maybe This Article Will Explain And Be Of Help?

Using the String Spacing Rule for guitars and mandolins - StewMac

Erick Coleman uses Kevin Ryan's proportional string spacing rule for more jobs than Kevin ever expected: 12-strings, mandolins, bridge saddles... Plus: an explanation of the difference between equal spacing and proportional spacing.

www.stewmac.com

Thanks for the info.
The nut is not the issuse here.
If I understand correctly, the distance from the edge of the high e string and the distance from the edge of the low E string to the edge of the fingerboard should be equal at the last fret. In the video the guy uses the same tool to check both sides.

 

[Bogner]

Thanks for the info.
The nut is not the issuse here.
If I understand correctly, the distance from the edge of the high e string and the distance from the edge of the low E string to the edge of the fingerboard should be equal at the last fret. In the video the guy uses the same tool to check both sides.

The Nut Slots Determine The String Spacing In Conjunction To The Saddles And Neck Width In A Linear Fashion. The Example, And What I Said Offers Two Examples For The Spacing Scenario You Are Speaking Of. So Yes, The Nut And The String Spacing That Was Cut Into The Nut Does Matter. Another Thing That Could Be Slightly Off Is The Nut Placement. The Nut Could Be A Hair To The Right Or The Left Off Center When It Was Put On The Guitar. If You Have Calipers You Can Measure The Neck Width At The Nut, The Nut Size And If There Are Any Gaps From The End Of The Nut To The Edge Of The Fretboard/Neck. If That Is Not Centered That Could Be Why There Appears To Be More Space between The String And The Fretboard Edge.

 

[shinksma]

@Bogner , the issue here is that, although the nut is cut correctly, one could conclude that perhaps the bridge is misaligned with the neck/body joint, resulting in strings at the 24th fret being too far left or right. They would be fine at the first fret. As the OP said, the nut is (apparently) not the issue.

 

[Peromustejn]

Yes, the nut is cut, spaced and aligned perfectly. The strings are not aligned at the 24th fret. To me it seems that when installing the neck, they did't sand the neck heel evenly on both sides.
I would only like to know if anyone else has notiched this on their PRS guitars.

 

[88prs]

Take some Pics and send to Customer Service for evaluation. They are awesome!

 

[DISTORT6]

Take some Pics and send to Customer Service for evaluation. They are awesome!

This.
We are measly, unpaid, deputized Customer Service folk in here. We can only get you so far with our independent assistance

 

[Bogner]

@Bogner , the issue here is that, although the nut is cut correctly, one could conclude that perhaps the bridge is misaligned with the neck/body joint, resulting in strings at the 24th fret being too far left or right. They would be fine at the first fret. As the OP said, the nut is (apparently) not the issue.

I Understand What You Are Saying And In Essence My Previous Post Touched On This Same Point. I Have A Hard Time Believing The CNC Machine Made A Mistake On The Bridge Placement, Etc. When The Guitar Was Being Made. The More That Is Shared On This The More It Solidifies My Point On The Nut And Here Is Why. You Say There Is No Issue On The Spacing At The First Fret So The Nut Is Therefore Fine. Take That Spacing Down The Neck In A Linear Mindset And If The Nut Slot Spacing Is Off Or The Angle Of The Slot Is Off In Any Way That Is Going To Adjust The Linear Aspect Of The Line From Nut To Bridge. The Further Away You Go From The Nut The More Noticeable The Difference Will Be. You Say It Is Fine At The First Fret But Off At The 24th Fret Area. The Scenario I Just Laid Out Is A Very String Possibility As To Why. It Wouldn't Take Much At All To Be Off At The Nut To Get The Result The OP Is Inquiring About. Yes It Could Be A Bridge Placement Issue But I Doubt That. It Could Be A Nut Issue Which I Do Believe This Is..Whether It Is Spacing Or Nut Slot Angle (Right/Left) Or Maybe Even A Little Of Both. The Neck Heel Would Need A Fair Amount Of Sanding To Be Off That Much So I Doubt That Is The Case As Much As I Count The Bridge Placement Being Off. A New Nut Doesn't Cost Much And Very Well May Solve The Problem. The Part Number Is 6643 (Black Synthetic) And It Is Pre Cut So You Could Drop It In And Bring Your Strings To Tension And Position The Nut To Where The Spacing Works AND THEN Glue It In. You May Have To Do A Little Work On It To Get Everything The Way You Want It But You Would Know Right Away If A New Nut Solves The Problem. If The Original Nut Is Better, Pop The Original Back On And Glue It Up And Play The Guitar And Be Done With It.

 

[Peromustejn]

@Bogner,

thank you for your in depth reply, but still, the nut is OK. I have built and/or replaced the nuts on most of my guitars. On all my guitars the string distance from the edge of the fingerboard is the same on both sides, at the nut and at the last fret.
That is why I am "questioning" this guitar.

The GrapTech 6643 nut does fit my PRS SE perfectly, but not this guitar.
Another thing to note, the guitar came from the factory with a black tusq nut. Maybe because its a lefty guitar.

I agree, the bridge placement can't be off. All the body routing is done with CNC including the bridge/tremolo mounting holes and the bridge pickup ring mounting holes. The neck pickup ring mounting holes are drilled during final assembly, when the strings are already on the guitar...
If the nut is installed correctly, the bridge is positioned correctly, the only remaining point of "failure" is how the neck was installed.

Here is the picture of a straight edge parallel to the neck on the low E side:

IMG_4611.HEIC

drive.google.com

The edge of the neck is parallel to the straight edge all the way.

straight edge parallel to the neck on the high e side:

IMG_4612.HEIC

drive.google.com

The neck tapers off leaving a small gap.

 

[Bogner]

Hopefully PRS Can Help Resolve. Good Luck!

 

[shinksma]

OK, now that I see the pictures, I don't really see a problem.

I misinterpreted your initial statement that perhaps the e string (the skinny one) is closer to the edge than the E string (the fat one).

But you are seemingly concerned it is the reverse.

What I see is perfectly normal - the E string is fatter (I'm not fat, I'm big boned) - look at where the center of the string is, vs the e string. The fatter string is centered in the same spot, but because it is fatter, it looks closer to the edger. Is that what you are concerned about?

Your E string (assume 0.046 gauge) is about 1.17mm thick, whereas your e string (assume 0.010 gauge) is about 0.25mm thick. That's a difference of 0.92mm. So naturally the thicker string looks like it is almost 0.5mm closer to the edge.

As for the neck tapering - there is always some hand-sanding done to get the neck into the pocket tightly. Apparently a bit more was taken off the treble (e) side vs the Bass (E) side, or the treble side has a very mild "bulge" (TWSS) that could have been sanded a bit flatter. That small gap is probably not noticeable until you start taking straight edges to everything.

I don't see any issues with your (left handed) guitar.

 

[shinksma]

You Say There Is No Issue On The Spacing At The First Fret So The Nut Is Therefore Fine. Take That Spacing Down The Neck In A Linear Mindset And If The Nut Slot Spacing Is Off Or The Angle Of The Slot Is Off In Any Way That Is Going To Adjust The Linear Aspect Of The Line From Nut To Bridge. The Further Away You Go From The Nut The More Noticeable The Difference Will Be. You Say It Is Fine At The First Fret But Off At The 24th Fret Area.

There no way, geometrically, in a linear Euclidean space (i.e. I'm ignoring effects of local black holes), that the nut could be off but the first fret is fine, and then it only gets worse towards the 24th fret, and the bridge is otherwise perfectly aligned. If anything, with a mis-aligned nut the problem should be about twice as bad at the first fret compared to the 24th fret (because the misalignment goes to "zero" at the bridge).

Although IMHO there is no issue in this specific case, if there was one it would be caused by either the bridge being misaligned (CNC or not, Something Went Wrong) or the neck-body joint is misaligned (which would be my first guess).

 

[Peromustejn]

@shinksma
No, the high e string (0.010 gauge) is closer to the edge of the fretboard. (looking at the edge of the sting to edge of the fingerboard)

 

[Slo-mo]

What is the distance between each string at the 24th fret? I measure the closest guitar to me at the moment at exactly 3/8". So if you're are all spaced evenly, there is no nut or bridge issue as that would throw the spacing between at least 2 strings off. I could be the neck sanded too much on one edge or some such. If so, that should be brought to the attention of PRS Support/PTC.

edit: * I measured from center of each string, as they are different gauges the edge of string will vary.

 

[Peromustejn]

The distance between each string at the 24th fret is 9,5mm (measured from center of each string). Spaced evenly.
I have already sent an email to PRS Support. I am waiting for their reply.

 

[shinksma]

@shinksma
No, the high e string (0.010 gauge) is closer to the edge of the fretboard. (looking at the edge of the sting to edge of the fingerboard)

Ah, OK, that makes it a bit more clear - the other photos seemed to indicate the opposite case!

Well, if you aren't happy with it, you should reach out to PRS about it, as you have done. I will admit, for all I know, it is intended to be that way, or maybe considered "within tolerance".

I have no idea whether any of my PRS are asymmetric that way, but even if one or more are, I probably don't notice. Nonetheless, when I get a chance, I'll go check a few of mine.