Bends choking out past the 12 fret?

[rhoadsfan11]

Hey dudes. I just received my first Charvel. Im pretty impressed so far. I ended up with the use style 1 in slime green. But one issues I'm having is, When I'm doing bends on the high E past the 12 fret the notes choke out... is this something that can be fixed with a proper setup? Or am In a little bit of a bind here?

[Hellbat]

is this something that can be fixed with a proper setup?

Yes.

Sounds like neck relief and action adjustments should fix it up. Worst case scenario you'd need a fret level/crown/polish but most likely it's a combination of relief and action height.

[rhoadsfan11]

thanks man. I'll take it to get a setup now, and hope that fixes the issue.

[BayRocker]

A proper setup is in order. You should always do a setup to your liking when you get a new git. Or if you don't know how, have someone that does do it for you. Unless, of course, it is setup perfectly when you get it, which hasn't happened to me yet in 30 years

Sounds like your trem post on the high E side may be set a bit too low. Perhaps someone was going for ridiculously low action?? Neck relief may help too, all part of a good setup.

[Richard W]

scalloping could also help

[BayRocker]

scalloping could also help

Not sure how this helps?

[rhoadsfan11]

Alright guys, Took it to my tech. she's getting a fret dress and level, then a nice setup. I'm sure she will feel a million times better when I get her back Friday.

[Trem]

scalloping could also help

Not sure how this helps?

Not sure either. I think it would help about as much as jumping up and down on it. :think:

[rhoadsfan11]

well the reason notes choke out is because of the radius correct? like a standard fender neck that has a curved radius notes will choke pretty badly but with a Charvel/Jackson the radius is virtually flat, it resolves this issue right? So I'm not really sure what scalloping would do.... BTW it was the poor setup and fret wear that was causing the issue so the problem should be resolved when I get it back Friday.

[Trem]

Yes typically that's the theory, though my old strat with 9.5 radius never choked out, depends on how low you have your action i suppose, that and it had a standard tremelo so the bridge probably raised a little bit when bending hard and compensated for it a touch. That's what i figure anyway since i never had a choking problem on any guitar unless it had a high fret.

[Richard W]

Not sure either. I think it would help about as much as jumping up and down on it. :think:

Scalloping improves sustain and makes notes ring louder, especially on the higher frets. That's why you see guys like Alexi Laiho, Roope Latvala, Steve Vai, and Herman Li with their fingerboards scalloped from 20-24 or 21-24 to make the notes ring louder. They scallop to prevent the notes from choking out.

[VitaminG]

Scalloping improves sustain and makes notes ring louder, especially on the higher frets.

How? On higher notes with modern jumbo frets, the frets are so close to together that you can barely touch the fretboard wood anyway. Fretting out occurs when the bent note fouls against a higher fret. This is alleviated by a flatter radiused fret. Removing all of the wood on a 7.5" radius neck isn't going to change that.

Given that Alexi, Roope, Steve & Herman are all playing hot pickups through fairly high gain amps, removing a small portion of wood BEHIND a fret isn't going to have a significant impact on the loudness of the note or on its sustain

[84sups]

Scalloping the fretboard only makes it easier to play fast runs. It reduces the "impact" when doing hammer on's and taps.

[Trem]

Scalloping improves sustain and makes notes ring louder, especially on the higher frets. That's why you see guys like Alexi Laiho, Roope Latvala, Steve Vai, and Herman Li with their fingerboards scalloped from 20-24 or 21-24 to make the notes ring louder. They scallop to prevent the notes from choking out.

Umn, no.
I used to scallop all my fingerboards when i was a teenager in the 80's cause "Yngwie did it", and i thought it was "cool". But i actually got used to it and liked it, and continued doing it till the late 90's.
However it had nothing to do with sustain in any way whatsoever. Nor did it make the notes ring longer, nor does it stop a note from choking out. None of those things are true at all, sorry.

[surfreak]

Scalloping improves sustain and makes notes ring louder, especially on the higher frets. That's why you see guys like Alexi Laiho, Roope Latvala, Steve Vai, and Herman Li with their fingerboards scalloped from 20-24 or 21-24 to make the notes ring louder. They scallop to prevent the notes from choking out.

The reason why these guys scallop the dusty end of the fretboard is because the frets there are really close to each other, and a scalloped fingerboard makes fingering more accurate. This is also why Uli Jon Roth removes the half-tone frets above the 24th on his guitars, simply to have more real estate on which to put his fingers.

Scalloping has no tonal advantages.