Now that my Morse is properly set up-

[Funky Chicken]

It's a whole new guitar.

Part of me is a little concerned about what the tech needed to do to get things right. He filed a couple of bridge and nut slots to get them just right, and put a thin shim in the neck pocket to change the angle a bit. It's set up for 9's now, and it finally plays like the guitar I wanted. There's no (0) tension on the truss rod right now, which is another concern, but I'll keep an eye on it.
I took a leap of faith when I bought the guitar. The last time I played one was at least 15 years ago, and I remember being really impressed with it, but when I first got mine I was a little underwhelmed. Now I can't wait to really see what it's all about.
I guess the moral of the story is that a good setup can make ALL the difference. This is the first guitar I've owned that I felt like I couldn't get to play properly by myself, and I'm really glad I didn't give up on it.

 

[beej]

Excuse my confusion- was this a new guitar or second hand? Seems like a lot of work for a new instrument.

 

[Funky Chicken]

It was a new guitar in October 2005, one of the last Buttercream guitars ordered. I bought it from a dealer with a stellar reputation who may have ordered the only Morses in Buttercream that were produced. I got it in Mid-October and didn't really have a lot of time to spend with it until Christmas week.

Yeah, Beej, I thought it needed a lot of work too-more than I'd expect of an EB guitar. I figured I'd give it a setup and see if that sorted things out before going back to the dealer or to EB. I don't mind the filing of the slots nearly as much as the need to shim the neck and the fact that the truss rod has zero tension to get the relief right.

Part of me thinks I should just play and enjoy it, but part of me wonders if there's something "wrong" here. If things get to the point where I feel like SLO needs to take a look at the guitar, I'll send it out to them.

I'd love some input from Morse owners/techs on the forums-is my experience something you've never heard before?

 

[beej]

Wow, it sounds like it might have some issues. That bit about the truss rod would make me a bit nervous- maybe a call to customer service for some advice is in order? Best to tackle any problems sooner rather than later.

 

[Colin]

My Morse plays like a dream, I get a pro setup once a year (now that I'm back to being an unemployed musician again) and very seldom have any probs. I play 10's but 9's should be more than fine.

Colin

 

[beej]

Guess I should chime in on My Y2D- didn't require any tweaking, neck is dead straight, and string height @ 12th fret (w/ capo @ 1st fret) is about 3/64ths. I put 9's on and it didn't require any tweaking whatsover.

 

[doubleR]

When I bought my Morse I had it set up professionally because I wanted the oddball string sets that Steve Morse uses replaced with the standard 10's that I use.

 

[Funky Chicken]

My Rosewood Super Sport came out of the box dead-on perfect, which is why I'm a bit puzzled by the Morse...

 

[Colin]

My Rosewood Super Sport came out of the box dead-on perfect, which is why I'm a bit puzzled by the Morse...

The guy that set it up for you, what did he say? If he wasn't concerned, maybe there is nothing to worry about.

 

[ratter]

My EVH has had a neck shim and several nut shims from the very beginning. A dozen years later and it's still one of the best guitars I've ever played. I guess the point I'm trying to make is, if it rocks, don't sweat it.

 

[CudBucket]

Why would any EBMM need a shim out of the factory? That doesn't make sense to me. I played a Y2D last week and it was absolutely perfect off the rack.

 

[ratter]

Why would any EBMM need a shim out of the factory? That doesn't make sense to me. I played a Y2D last week and it was absolutely perfect off the rack.

How do you know the neck wasn't shimmed on that one? I'm not saying that it was, of course, but just saying...

Shimming the neck is not an uncommon practice at all. Nor is shimming a floyd nut. And it's not uncommon for nuts and frets to need attention on a new instrument. I'm not just talking about EBMM (it's probably a lot LESS common on EBMM's than on most production instruments). My Custom Shop Les Paul 'pings' at the nut when you're tuning up the B and E strings - indicating that the nut slots aren't cut right for the recommended gauge. It happens. No big whoop.

What I think is really crazy is shunning a good piece of wood just because it needs a tweak here and there to get "right". If a guitar kicks butt, it kicks butt, no matter how it got there.

 

[CudBucket]

Ratter, these guitars are made on CNC mills. Every pocket and every neck is exactly the same. I'm sure Jon or BP can chime in here on this if I'm wrong. Noone should be taking shipment of a new EBMM only to find it needs a shim.

 

[ratter]

Ratter, these guitars are made on CNC mills. Every pocket and every neck is exactly the same. I'm sure Jon or BP can chime in here on this if I'm wrong. Noone should be taking shipment of a new EBMM only to find it needs a shim.

If Jon does chime in, he will probably mention what he has in the past, which is that EBMM does occasionally shim the neck in the factory. They use small plastic shims. I'm not the only one here who has a factory-shimmed EVH.

http://www.ernieball.com/forums/showthread.php?t=3579


I think you are underestimating the amount (or impact) of the hand-finishing that goes on, or maybe overestimating the precision of the construction method maybe? Even a non-guitar player would have been able to easily tell the difference, by feel, between my two EVH necks. All Fender guitars come off a CNC machine too. Ever notice any neck pocket discrepancy from one Fender to the other??? Not to mention that this is wood we're talking about...wood is subject to change...

Also, I think there's a difference between a neck needing a shim to be playable, and a neck needing a shim to be setup very very well.

Shims are not evil. A tweak of the truss rod is not the end of the world. Even world-class guitars like EB's need some help now and then.

 

[CudBucket]

I think you're missing my point. I can understand, in some cases, a shim installed at the factory. What I don't understand is why a shim would be needed immediately after delivery.

I know my way around the "making" of a guitar. I built this from scratch. You can see more at www.dafguitars.com. I know would changes. But it shouldn't require a shim after delivery.

 

[ratter]

I think you're missing my point. I can understand, in some cases, a shim installed at the factory. What I don't understand is why a shim would be needed immediately after delivery.

Beautiful guitar!

I see no reason why this guitar in particular couldn't have experienced an isse that required a new setup and a shim, at least in the view of Funky Chicken's tech. Maybe it got banged in shipping? Maybe there was a drastic humidity change? Maybe the issue could have been addressed without a neck shim, but for whatever reason, wasn't? I'm sure it left the factory within spec...maybe Funky Chicken was shooting for an end result that was above and beyond what was done at the factory?

And I still maintain that your assertion that because these are CNC made that "every neck and pocket is exactly the same" is not true at all. Far from it. Maybe *immediately* after they come off the machine they are, but definitely not by the time they get further down the line. I mean, hey....If they are all exactly the same, then why would any guitar need a shim from the factory???

 

[beej]

My two cents, then I'm out. I don't see the shim as a big issue. But I do see having to file the nut as suspect (maybe an overzealous tech?). The fact that the truss rod is loose and the neck is naturally back-bowed a bit to cover the string pull could be an issue if the neck bows further. You don't want to wake up in a few months and have no way to straighten it.

Anyway, it's Funky Chicken's guitar so no point in us fussing about it. This can all be put to bed with one quick call to customer service. Either they see it as an issue or it's not.

 

[CudBucket]

Hey, anything is possible I suppose but in this case, it just seemed a bit odd that so much was required by a tech, on a new guitar. I know that if mine arrived and needed that much work, I'd be curious.

I guess the bottom line is if FC is happy, that's all that's important!

 

[edensdad]

Ratter, these guitars are made on CNC mills. Every pocket and every neck is exactly the same. I'm sure Jon or BP can chime in here on this if I'm wrong. Noone should be taking shipment of a new EBMM only to find it needs a shim.

Ten years ago, before I became a professional computer geek, I was a senior CNC machinist, then engineer and programmer for ten years for a company that made components for artifical hearts and other medical stuff. I ran HAAS 3 & 4 axis machines and also did CADCAM and design with AutoCAD. It doesn't matter if you setup the machine perfectly, there will be a little variation in the output based on the minute play (about .005") in the machine, the density & variation in the material, machine cutting speeds, cutting tools (sharpness and speed), etc.

A machine is far more consistent and accurate that a person with tools, but it isn't dead on perfect.

Having said that - I think EBMM guitars are the best available - the fit, finish and workmanship is impeccable. Changes in climate and other factors can result in a guitar needing a setup. I had a 1984 hand made USA Charvel-Jackson that would freak out and need adjustments all the time and that was an amazing guitar.

 

[tommyindelaware]

My two cents, then I'm out. I don't see the shim as a big issue. But I do see having to file the nut as suspect (maybe an overzealous tech?). The fact that the truss rod is loose and the neck is naturally back-bowed a bit to cover the string pull could be an issue if the neck bows further. You don't want to wake up in a few months and have no way to straighten it.

Anyway, it's Funky Chicken's guitar so no point in us fussing about it. This can all be put to bed with one quick call to customer service. Either they see it as an issue or it's not.

+1
have your neck inspected by the ones who know how to correctly evaluate.... (ebmm)........&..... can do something about it while it's still under warranty........& don't end up voiding the warranty by letting someone unauthorized monkey around w/ it !!!!!!