warped neck? old martin acoustic guitar question?

Question

i have an old 60s martin acoustic guitar in decent shape but when i play it the high e string goes off tune after the 12th fret, no matter how i manipulate the tuning, its fine till the 12th then it seems to denote somewhat and doesnt match up to the others up there, is this a sign of neck warp or what? its only on that string in that position and up, seems weird for nothing else to be effected if it was the neck warped, any ideas? isnt there a way to bend the neck yourself with the lil hollow bar thing inside? i forget...any info would be appreciated....thankies

Answer 1

Depending on your model, Martins built in the 60s don't have a truss rod...they have a T shaped bar or a square tube that is not adjustable.

Your top is probably pulling up behind the bridge causing the string length to be shorter and causing intonation problems. Looking behind the bridge for a "hump" may indicate this.

If you have high action the neck may have to be reset. This requires the separation of the back from the sides, cocking the neck back, and regluing. Very complex repair.

Answer 2

I think you should go fro Martin since your BF leans more on the Martin side. Taylors and Martins have different "voices" and it all goes down to which voice does make you "smile". IMO a Taylor has a livelier sound and the Martins have a more relaxing sound. Why don t you try to ask your BF (in a subtle way) if he had already tried Taylor guitars as well. Another thing though in buying a guitar is that even the same model of the same brand can sound different. Actually, a few years back, my wife wanted to surprise me too with a new guitar. Good thing though is that I kinda had a hint that she was going to do just that but I kept on telling her that she should not buy a guitar without letting me choose which one I want. In the end she took me to the store told me her budget and made me choose. I ended up walking out of the store with a Martin on my hand and a huge smile on my face!

Answer 3

Doesn't sound like a warped neck to me. I would take it to a local musical instrument store where they repair guitars. They may know what it is w/o charging you for the info. Have you tried a new high E string?If the diameter of the string changes over its length, that would cause a problem like yours.

Answer 4

You need serious help.
Go to the link and click on "Services"...or at least find a reputable guitar workshop near you and get it tweaked.