gravesleo Posted November 28, 2013 Share Posted November 28, 2013 I recently purchased my first JTV a month ago and the thing I noticed when I got my hands on it was that compared to my RG series Ibanez the string tension was slightly more taut, despite having the same string gauge as my Ibanez. In recent weeks I have broken the high e string twice when doing simple whole step bends around the 15th fret and 10th fret respectively. Oddly enough, in ten years playing my Ibanez I have never broken a string, so I immediately concluded that this was do to the string tension. Does anyone have a JTV-89F they feel has more string tension then is typical of a guitar strung with 10's? If so, have you been able to rectify this and how? I'm not sure if this feel is unique to the 89F with a floating bridge because I tested an 89 in the store, but the 89F had to be special ordered so I didn't get my hands on it until it shipped. I'm thinking of having a tech setup the action but if this won't help I will spend my money elsewhere. Any advice would be appreciated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nevla Posted November 28, 2013 Share Posted November 28, 2013 Firstly, i'd check your bridge and the blocks that hold your string in place. Are they over tightened? It doesnt take a lot to over tighten them, squash the string and weaken it at the point it exists the bridge. In terms of the tension, i'm not sure you can change it. Strings need a specific tension to be in tune, and the bridge springs need to equal that in order to keep the bridge floating. Was your ibanez a floating trem too? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gravesleo Posted November 28, 2013 Author Share Posted November 28, 2013 The Ibanez has a floating trem also. The strings on the Variax are actually breaking at the fret where the bend is being performed, as oppose to at the saddle. For example, I was doing whole step bends fretting at the 15th and 10th frets respectively in both instances, when the string literally broke right under my fingers. I imagine you're right about the string tension with regards to floating the bridge. If it isn't the string tension then maybe the fret wire has something to do with it I guess. Aside from my fingers, the fret wire is the only other thing in contact with the string at the location of the breaks (for the most part). At this point I won't feel comfortable bending any strings, at least not while playing live, until I get to the bottom of this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sherimehmood Posted November 28, 2013 Share Posted November 28, 2013 could be a bad set of strings .... the strings are usually nickle or coper wound ... if there is corrosion inside the winding of the strings, they can become weak and can break with even minor bends .. you are doing whole note step bends and i am guessing using the floyd rose from time to time as well ... even if your strings are slightly corroded they can break. try getting strings from a shop that might have newer stock .. see if that works ... if that doesnt do the job i would suggest taking the guitar to a luthior ... i dont take my guitars to your average guitar techs because most of them dont know what they are doing .. luthiors are always a safer bet .. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnnyayyy Posted November 29, 2013 Share Posted November 29, 2013 I recently purchased my first JTV a month ago and the thing I noticed when I got my hands on it was that compared to my RG series Ibanez the string tension was slightly more taut, despite having the same string gauge as my Ibanez. In recent weeks I have broken the high e string twice when doing simple whole step bends around the 15th fret and 10th fret respectively. Oddly enough, in ten years playing my Ibanez I have never broken a string, so I immediately concluded that this was do to the string tension. Does anyone have a JTV-89F they feel has more string tension then is typical of a guitar strung with 10's? If so, have you been able to rectify this and how? I'm not sure if this feel is unique to the 89F with a floating bridge because I tested an 89 in the store, but the 89F had to be special ordered so I didn't get my hands on it until it shipped. I'm thinking of having a tech setup the action but if this won't help I will spend my money elsewhere. Any advice would be appreciated. Comparing my JTV to my Ibanez side by side I am going to guess the difference in tension is caused by a different headstock angle and maybe a different body/neck angle. I notice the same difference in tension tho it doesn't bother me much and I would bet the increased tension helps with purity of tone going into the JTV piezos - I know when I downtune my JTV and the strings get loose and flappy it creates all kinds of problems with the modeling. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnnyayyy Posted November 29, 2013 Share Posted November 29, 2013 the string literally broke right under my fingers. This makes it sound like the frets need some polishing, I would think rough spots on the frets are grinding the string in those spots. I know the fretwork on my JTV is not what I would call "good"... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
katiekerry Posted November 29, 2013 Share Posted November 29, 2013 It could be some of the strings are tuned a octave high, I have actually seen it before even with people using a floyd rose bridge they just have multiple springs ( like 4 or more) and they have it cranked really tight againts the body.. I unfortunately have friends that have no clue of how to properly set up or tune a guitar.. (needless to say after I did a fresh string install and tuned them correctly they had no more issues) And for some reason I don't know why but they thought their guitars played tremendously better ( who'd of thunkit).. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gravesleo Posted December 1, 2013 Author Share Posted December 1, 2013 I think you're on to something Johnnyayyy. I did the same side by side comparison to my Ibanez and concluded the same things. The angle of the headstock certainly plays a role which I can do nothing about. However, the fret wire on the JTV doesn't seem to be nearly as polished as on my Ibanez. I will give customer service a call so we can go over the warranty details first, before I have anyone touch the JTV. I appreciate everyone's comments and insights. Thanks all... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tomb68 Posted December 2, 2013 Share Posted December 2, 2013 Just chiming in, I too noticed the stiffer feel of my JTV-89 compared to a Strat(Blocked) or Jackson DK2(Floyd)with the same strings. I had to drop the JTV to 8's to get the same feel as 9's on the other two. My preferred strings are DR pure blues 9's on everything, but they felt very stiff on the JTV. I'm pretty sure it wasn't a bad(actually 2) set. It's a annoying because I prefer the feel of nickel strings, but no one makes a nickel set of 8's, just nickel plated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevekc Posted December 2, 2013 Share Posted December 2, 2013 The strings on the Variax are actually breaking at the fret where the bend is being performed, as oppose to at the saddle. For example, I was doing whole step bends fretting at the 15th and 10th frets respectively in both instances, when the string literally broke right under my fingers. Actually what you describe is a result of frets that are rough and need polishing. My Tyler JTV-59 required a fret polish, because i could detect rough tops of frets during vibratos and string bending on many frets. Take your guitar to a luthier and have the frets polished. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ifor38special Posted November 2, 2016 Share Posted November 2, 2016 Just chiming in, I too noticed the stiffer feel of my JTV-89 compared to a Strat(Blocked) or Jackson DK2(Floyd)with the same strings. I had to drop the JTV to 8's to get the same feel as 9's on the other two. My preferred strings are DR pure blues 9's on everything, but they felt very stiff on the JTV. I'm pretty sure it wasn't a bad(actually 2) set. It's a annoying because I prefer the feel of nickel strings, but no one makes a nickel set of 8's, just nickel plated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ifor38special Posted November 2, 2016 Share Posted November 2, 2016 Rev Willys Mexican Lottery Brand are 7's now on my JTV-89f. Order on Amazon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Palico Posted November 3, 2016 Share Posted November 3, 2016 This makes it sound like the frets need some polishing, I would think rough spots on the frets are grinding the string in those spots. I know the fretwork on my JTV is not what I would call "good"... Actually what you describe is a result of frets that are rough and need polishing. My Tyler JTV-59 required a fret polish, because i could detect rough tops of frets during vibratos and string bending on many frets. Take your guitar to a luthier and have the frets polished. Add one more vote your fret likely needs some polishing. My 89f had 3 high frets when I got it, which was frankly a bit disappointing for such and $$$ guitar. Took it out to very good luither in my area and had him level a repolish the entire fretboard. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cruisinon2 Posted November 7, 2016 Share Posted November 7, 2016 Add one more vote your fret likely needs some polishing. My 89f had 3 high frets when I got it, which was frankly a bit disappointing for such and $$$ guitar. Took it out to very good luither in my area and had him level a repolish the entire fretboard. Factory produced, assembly line guitars invariably have fretwork that falls somewhere between "lackluster" and "pounded in by a chimpanzee with a rock". It's not just Variax guitars that suffer from this. I've seen it countless times, from numerous brands. If they're being pressed in by some guy who has to finish 250 other necks this week, attention to detail is essentially impossible...doesn't much matter how much you're paying for it. Sad, but true. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lion2000uk Posted November 13, 2016 Share Posted November 13, 2016 i have niticed that my first string is weaker when using varix, however when using pickups the full sic strings are perfect is it just mine? Regards B Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cruisinon2 Posted November 14, 2016 Share Posted November 14, 2016 i have niticed that my first string is weaker when using varix, however when using pickups the full sic strings are perfect is it just mine? Regards B No, it's not just you. Piezo outputs vary. That's why string volumes are adjustable in Workbench. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lion2000uk Posted November 14, 2016 Share Posted November 14, 2016 That reassures me, I am very happy with my JTV 89F guitar, to be honest I prefect it to my les Paul, or my other guitars Thank you Ben Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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