New ASAT Classic S and a question

[jklotz]

Hi guys, 1st post. Hope everybody is doing well. I just received my ASAT Classic S alnico, and have been playing it for a few hours. It's a very nice guitar. Pickups sound great, and I love the switching options. Fit and finish are perfect too. I love the neck, but the frets are a little bigger than I'm used to. I'm sure I'll get more comfortable with them as I spend some more time with it.

Question. It came strung up with 10's, but it is really stiff to bend. So I threw on some diaddario 10's just to make sure they were actually 10's. On this guitar, 10's feel more like 11's. (I've got a bunch of tele's, some Fender, some parts casters, etc - this one is tougher to bend than any of the others). It plays really well, with low action and no buzzing, so I don't think it needs a setup. Is there anything I can do, short of going to a lighter gauge string, to make it loosen up a little? Or is it just the way G&L's are?

Thanks, any input appreciated.

[Elwood]

I've found that the depth of the nut slot plays a big role in how easy it is to fret and bend, all else equal.

That's the first thing I'd check.

[blargfromouterspace]

This is something I've noticed too, but I have never been sure about what it is that makes it so. I'm going to check and compare nut slots to see if there's truth to Elwoods suggestion

[Blackdogxx]

The setup at the factory may be pretty good, but adjustments are usually necessary to get it just right. A factory cannot tailor a guitar to your hands or the dryness of your house... find a good local setup guy and first check the 12th fret gap (fret top to string bottom). Typically it is about 1/16" or 3/32". The nut slots control the feel of easy/hard to play. The '3rd fret test' is to press just past fret 3 and look closely at the gap at fret 1 or 2. It should be nearly invisible, but tapping there should make a small 'clink'. If so, the nut slots are cut deep enough. Best left to a practiced setup guy (I have nut slot files and a 1 /32 and 1/64 marked small gauge) or you can do it yourself if you work carefully with the nut slot files (it takes 6). Neck relief is controlled by the truss rod nut and do NOT adjust it 'righty tighty' (versus 'lefty loosey') with strings at tension. Lower the tension well below a full step (E down to D) before tightening the truss rod nut to 'flatten' the fretboard. It's not a suggestion, but be aware that the pickups can be tilted and raised (or lowered) to get the general tone balance among the pickups. Then you can bring out the strength of a single string by raising the polepiece up toward the string by maybe 1/2 or even a full turn or more. The 'D' is typically somewhat weak and needs to be made louder.

[Craig]

The setup at the factory may be pretty good, but adjustments are usually necessary to get it just right. A factory cannot tailor a guitar to your hands or the dryness of your house... find a good local setup guy and first check the 12th fret gap (fret top to string bottom). Typically it is about 1/16" or 3/32". The nut slots control the feel of easy/hard to play. The '3rd fret test' is to press just past fret 3 and look closely at the gap at fret 1 or 2. It should be nearly invisible, but tapping there should make a small 'clink'. If so, the nut slots are cut deep enough. Best left to a practiced setup guy (I have nut slot files and a 1 /32 and 1/64 marked small gauge) or you can do it yourself if you work carefully with the nut slot files (it takes 6). Neck relief is controlled by the truss rod nut and do NOT adjust it 'righty tighty' (versus 'lefty loosey') with strings at tension. Lower the tension well below a full step (E down to D) before tightening the truss rod nut to 'flatten' the fretboard. It's not a suggestion, but be aware that the pickups can be tilted and raised (or lowered) to get the general tone balance among the pickups. Then you can bring out the strength of a single string by raising the polepiece up toward the string by maybe 1/2 or even a full turn or more. The 'D' is typically somewhat weak and needs to be made louder.

I agree with Blackdogxx except for "raising the polepiece up" because this guitar is an ASAT Classic 'S' Alnico and the pole pieces are not adjustable
like on the MFD pickups.

[helle-man]

I agree with Craig & Blackdog.

In these situations, the very first thing I always try is to tighten the truss rod. That can make a difference faster than anything else.

Will