Silo Special, metallic trebly buzz. Change saddles?

[menvafaan]

Hello,

My Silo Special (rosewood/trem) is a great guitar, and I love the feel of it. However, there is one thing that keeps me from really bonding with it.

For some reason it has this metallic trebly buzz all over the neck, but more prominent on the higher strings higher up on the neck. I have changed pickups and had a guitar tech level the frets and set it up, and tried different brands of strings. The buzz is still there, and it feels like some tones are half dead because of it. It simply doesn't ring out as a fine instrument should.

I have tried to locate it, and it's pretty hard to find exactly where it originates, but I think it might actually be the bridge saddles, so I'm considering trying out some new ones.

Have anyone else experienced this phenomenon with their Silo Specials?

Those of you who has replaced the saddles, how did it affect the tone, and which saddles did you switch to?

I hope someone can give some useful tips.

Thanks!

 

[John C]

Do you current or have you ever had other guitars with trem bridges and bent saddles? Did you get the same kind of rattling from them?

 

[menvafaan]

Yes, I've also had an AL, and it didn't have the same kind of buzz.

Why?

 

[John C]

I've had 3 Silo Specials and they all had some type of for lack of a better term "metallic sound" that seems to be coming from the bridge area - as did two Fender '62 Reissue Strats I had before I got into EBMMs. I guess I've always assumed that was just part of the "charm" of a vintage bridge and single coils. I did have an AL with the trem, but it was the MM-90s model. I don't remember it having that sound - I assumed it was due to the MM-90s. As you can see from my avatar, my current Silo Special is the s/s/s version - as were both the previous ones.

 

[guitfiddle]

I know what you are referring to John. I have guitars with the same phenomena. I do think it is tied to the combination of the trem bridge and the single coils. I don't know how to get rid of it though, aside from going to a hardtail or humbuckers (I have a bunch of hardtails with single coils, and several 'bucker guitars with trems and none of them make the sound you are talking about). I wouldn't change a thing on that Silo you have though. That's one of, or the nicest, that I've seen.

 

[menvafaan]

Actually I doubt that it has something do do with the pickups. It's actually most prominent when the guitar isn't even plugged in.

 

[guitfiddle]

Actually I doubt that it has something do do with the pickups. It's actually most prominent when the guitar isn't even plugged in.

I understand, but I find that I can actually hear it when I'm playing through an amp with singles, but can't hear it with humbuckers. What it sounds like through an amp is what matters most to me. I have acoustics for unplugged stuff.

It doesn't bother me at all, but if it bothers you then I don't think you could go wrong trying a saddle replacement. I'd go with non-metallic ones (graphite) for the best chance of it making a notable difference.

 

[andynpeters]

I don't really understand this I have a SS as well as an ASS MM90 plus 2 Strats & they certainly don't have any kind of metallic noise which prevents the guitar ringing out. Are you sure it's not the tremolo springs vibrating? A piece of foam under them is a quick fix

 

[jamminjim]

I don't really understand this I have a SS as well as an ASS MM90 plus 2 Strats & they certainly don't have any kind of metallic noise which prevents the guitar ringing out. Are you sure it's not the tremolo springs vibrating? A piece of foam under them is a quick fix

+1 first thing I'd check


Second thing would be the saddles and height adjuster screws for looseness.

 

[John C]

I know what you are referring to John. I have guitars with the same phenomena. I do think it is tied to the combination of the trem bridge and the single coils. I don't know how to get rid of it though, aside from going to a hardtail or humbuckers (I have a bunch of hardtails with single coils, and several 'bucker guitars with trems and none of them make the sound you are talking about). I wouldn't change a thing on that Silo you have though. That's one of, or the nicest, that I've seen.

Thanks. I'm not planning on changing mine; it's something I only hear when playing unplugged and it doesn't bother me. I guess I associate it with a "Stratty" sound since both the Fender '62 reissue Strats I had before I moved to EBMMs did the same thing unplugged..

 

[Spudmurphy]

This one is worth a try and will cost you very little.

Get some [ame="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Bostik-Blue-Tack-Economy-Size/dp/B0013N6W4Q"]blue tac[/ame] (or whatever they call it over there) and place a small rolled ball of it the size of a small pea) on each string behind the nut.

A friends had this problem on 2 guitars and the noise disappeared when this was done. The trouble is I don'r know how the problem was rectified - I bleeb it had something to do with the nut. Hell it's worth a try