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I bought a Martin JC-16R awhile back and requested that the action be setup low.  When the guitar arrived, the action was low just as I asked and played without buzzing.  Playing the first 5 frets is great...action is perfect.  However, playing up the neck gets harder and harder and requires more pressure to play.  While this is somewhat normal, it seems harder to play than usual.

As I look at the nut, I notice the strings are pretty much buried in the Micarta and come out pretty low.  Shouldn't the strings be setting on the nut, not buried in it.  It seems to me this allow the strings to be the same height up the neck.

I'm going to get a bone nut and saddle, but I'm just curious if this is my problem or could there be another cause.

Thanks.

Ken

Neck rel if. As you get to the 6-12th frets there is relief that has been imparted into the neck and fretboard. there is more string clearance there than in front of and behind those fret locations

Neck relief. As you get to the 6-12th frets there is relief that has been imparted into the neck and fretboard. there is more string clearance there than in front of and behind those fret locations.

I swear I am going to fire my spell checker

actually this relief starts at the nut and ends at the 12th or 14th fret depending on the if it is 12 fret or 14 fret neck. It is just at its peak at the 8th or 9th fret.

As you play closer to the saddle you are shorting the string. like a lever and fulcrum the shorter the lever the more force is required to move the lever the same distance or chord length.

My guess is that the action was only adjusted at the nut and not both the nut and saddle. That would explain why the action seems fine in positions I-V and not all along the neck. Get a pro to set it up and it should play fine.

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"Building guitars looks hard, but it's actually much harder than it looks." Tom Buck

[QUOTE=Hesh1956]Ken you are right that the strings should not be buried in the nut but I am guessing that there is another cause here.



It would be helpful for some of the pros here if you told us how old the guitar is now, what RH is it kept in, and what gauge of strings you are using?



Then maybe someone else will be able to help you.



Thanks![/QUOTE]

Hesh, the guitar is less than 6 months old and has been kept in a strict 45 percent humidity.  I also use light gauge strings.

Ken

I'm gonna have to change my name to "Gomer" or something... there are so many Kens on the forum now that even I am getting confused who is talking to who

 

I think whoever set up your guitar just filed the slots deeper at the nut and didnt adjust the saddle as Steve suggested. It is not completely unusual for the strings to be somewhat lower in the nut, especially if it has been adjusted. In an ideal world, only half of the string should be in the nut and the other half sticking out. This is more of a cosmetic thing though and shouldnt affect the way you play at all, even if the strings are quite deep into the nut.

 

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Reguards,

Ken H

if the nut slots are filed to lower the action the top of the nut should be dressed so that the strings ride in the slots appropriately. competent techs know this. it is not just cosmetic, either.

however, without action and relief measurements it is not possible to suggest a course of action.

My guess is there is .008 relief at the 8th but if this one has had special set-up work done to it, As Michael said it need to be examined to determine a course of action.