Having a problem with D-Tuna on my Axis

[phillybri]

Here's the deal: I followed all the instructions, unclamped the low E, tuned to D, reclamped and used the tiny allen wrench to fine tune to E.

Everything is good until I try to go back down to D. The D is completely out of tune, and if I go back to E, that's also out of tune!

Any ideas?

 

[W.Suitor]

The base of the trem plate must contact the body completely level. Any destablisation of the trem unit will have dire consequences) Also, when you pull out the D-tuna, make sure you back off the fine tuner on your bridge all the way out, then turn it one whole turn clockwise (you should feel it contacting the black saddle screw) to allow for a little scope when you rutune to E. Try that. Really though, if you have an issue with a non EBMM part, you should contact that company directly!

 

[Stratty316]

Mine was a pain to set up when I got it. Check out YouTube for set up help on this as well. Dialing it in was the hardest part

 

[BrickGlass]

They are pretty frustrating to set up. I used one for 15 years and just recently said to hell with it. Decided to just keep the guitar in drop D permanently and took the D-tuna off. YouTube is your friend. Some trial and error is helpful too.

 

[PeteDuBaldo]

I've had to modify the undersides of saddles and shim necks to make those things have enough travel to work properly. They can be VERY frustrating.

 

[Stratty316]

No mods necessary on the old gotoh trem... But there is a reason the Green Axis never got one

 

[phillybri]

I took my Axis to the great Mark Kane (http://www.thefretking.com/), and he got the D-Tuna dialed in perfectly.

Interestingly, he said heavier gauge strings work better in the D-Tuna. Something about the increased tension makes it operate more smoothly...

 

[Flash Gordon]

I've found if I set my fine tuner down far enough, I can back it out to drop D tuning with a few twists. So it takes 15 seconds rather than 2... It's way better that futzing with the D-Tuna.

 

[djpharoah]

Just installed one on mine and yeah it took a few trials to install especially since I could never return to D properly. You need to play around with it.. took me 10 minutes.. also make sure your string is stretched out. I've noted that before on other guitars a 42 was really hard to setup but a 46/48 was perfect and much easier.

 

[d-bone]

Works very smooth on my ebmm evh with 042.
Remember, the necks isn't originally designed for a d-tuna. They need graphite rods in them to prevent movements.
But it still works good enough.

If it ain't working smooth, it's likely that the joint in the saddle assembly is too stiff and needs a little lube and a wiggle to move easy. This is very important!

 

[Stratty316]

Works very smooth on my evh with 042.
Remember, the necks isn't designed for a d-tuna. They need graphite rods in them to prevent movements.
But it works good enough.

If it ain't working smooth, it's likely that the joint in the saddle assembly is too stiff and needs a little lube and a wiggle to move easy. This is very important!

The D-tuna was designed while he was still with EBMM... The initial Proto types were on some of his personal EBMM EVH guitars. No graphite rods needed. It's really about dialing it in. I do use hybrid slinkys on my guitar and you may be right about the heavier E making a difference. I've always used them for other reasons.

 

[BrickGlass]

I always put a heavier gauge string on the low E when I had the D-tuna. My life is better without the D-tuna though and I'm glad I took it off. It was handy when I only had one or two guitars back in the day. Now that I have a few more it is nice to just leave one in drop D.

 

[Stratty316]

I always put a heavier gauge string on the low E when I had the D-tuna. My life is better without the D-tuna though and I'm glad I took it off. It was handy when I only had one or two guitars back in the day. Now that I have a few more it is nice to just leave one in drop D.

I totally would take of off of my Axis as well, but it's more work at this point to take it off than leave it there. After all, the guitar plays and sounds great as is so why mess with it.