High E choking out?

sick pickle

sick pickle

Experienced
My S2 594 is setup perfectly. Basically factory specs. The guitar plays great...except for the High E bending up full on the 22nd fret. The note has a definitive cut off point where the sustain just dies. Unlike the B string, I can do a full bend on the 22nd fret and the sustain rings out much much longer.

The pickup heights are not too high. I have them at factory spec. Why would B sustain out on 22nd fret, but not high E? Other than changing the string itself, I am at a complete loss!

Here you can see the difference between High E bend and B string bend. The E just dies off and doesn't ring out at all.

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Just changed the high E string for a new one...still getting the same thing. So looks like there is some issue with the guitar. Given that I am bending at the last fret, could there be something with the bridge? Even if I just puck the 22nd fret (no bend), it basically dies out the same way and sounds sort of 'microphonic' in a weird way.

Here is a sound sample. First note is the B string, plucked, 22nd fret - it resonates and rings out. Second note is the high E, 22nd fret, plucked. I repeat this one other time.

Setup - Fractal FM9 using a Soldano 100 head with delay type tone.



Any ideas?
 
Deleted. You said 22nd fret and I thought it was a 24 fret guitar. If that's the top fret, it can't be fretting out.

Maybe it's just quiet up there. Try turning off the noise gate completely.
 
Maybe the e pole itself needs raised a little provided that is even possible with the pups you have. Can’t be a fret problem being the last fret. Is this only at the 22nd fret? Does your sustain improve moving back down the frets? If it improves moving down the frets (back up to tue first fret) then I doubt it is a bridge issue. What size e string? Will it sustain longer if plucked harder? There is a chance it’s just the nature of that string at that high fret on that guitar. One last question if you tune the string up a step or down a step does the sustain change?
 
Bertotti said:
Maybe the e pole itself needs raised a little provided that is even possible with the pups you have. Can’t be a fret problem being the last fret. Is this only at the 22nd fret? Does your sustain improve moving back down the frets? If it improves moving down the frets (back up to tue first fret) then I doubt it is a bridge issue. What size e string? Will it sustain longer if plucked harder? There is a chance it’s just the nature of that string at that high fret on that guitar. One last question if you tune the string up a step or down a step does the sustain change?
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Yeah, going down in frets (like 17th, 15th, etc.) the sustain is fine!

I am stumped!
 
sick pickle said:
Yeah, going down in frets (like 17th, 15th, etc.) the sustain is fine!

I am stumped!
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Try tuning it up or down a step and if the sustain changes at the 22nd fret a slim chance it’s at a frequency that this particular build doesn’t like and it just kills sustain quickly. How well does the open string sustain? I would also measure current pup heights and start moving it up and or down to see if that changes anything with that string. You can always put it back where it was after. I find it hard to blame the bridge but you know anything is possible and I’ve seen some things happen I would have never even thought of.
 
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No chance this could be a finger placement issue? Just asking to cover all the bases. You could capo at the 22nd and pluck the e and b again to see if anything changes.
 
Yeah, dropping the string down a half step - it rings out a bit more true, it still cuts off but rings out longer than the regular 440 standard tuning.
 
sick pickle said:
Yeah, dropping the string down a half step - it rings out a bit more true, it still cuts off but rings out longer than the regular 440 standard tuning.
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I can’t help but think it is something to do with this guitar. Kind of like how some acoustic instruments get wild tones this one just doesn’t like that note and dampens it quicker. How about the same note on a different string?
 
Bertotti said:
I have always thought it interesting how it happens.
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It’s like tuning two strings together and then dropping the pitch of one by a few cents . Things start cancelling each other out. The solution is change the resonant frequency of one of the two pieces. The start point could be a different mass stop tail. Hopefully this will make enough difference to add a bit of space away from the problem frequency.
 
Check if the actual fretwire is seated properly into the neck on whatever fret you’re using

A big gap between the fretwire and fretboard wood will contribute to loss of sustain

Edit : google fret gap for picture references
 
If the fretwire is seated properly…

Concerning possible dead spots from a guitar’s acoustic properties

When the frequency of a fretted note matches the natural resonance frequency of the guitar’s neck and body, and the resulting vibrations interfere destructively, it can cause a dead spot. This dead spot leads to less energy in the vibrating string, which reduces the sustain of that particular note. The energy that would normally sustain the note is instead absorbed by the guitar’s neck or body, leading to a quicker decay in the sound.
 
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