My guitar is in tune but on higher frets it goes out (when i play open E and then E on the 12th fret)?

Question

what do i do to fix it?

Answer 1

Acoustic or electric? If it's an electric, the "intonation" needs to be adjusted. Do your bridge saddles have screws that move them towards the neck or towards the rear of the guitar? (not up and down) If so, you move the saddles up if the fretted note at the 12th fret is flat - move them back if it's sharp. You have to loosen the string every time you adjust it, and it will take several times to get it right. And you need a good tuner.
If it's an acoustic, the whole bridge has to be repositioned - a big expensive job that only a really expensive guitar would justify.

Answer 2

Usually this is something you adjust by adjusting the point the string rests on in the bridge. Some guitar bridges have a tiny thumbscrew you can turn to make the adjustment for each string; others are adjusted with a screwdriver; some can't be adjusted and you would basically have to replace the bridge with a new bridge.

If a string is out of tune on every fret it's the other end of the string that would need to be adjusted. It's also possible that the frets are in the wrong places but this is very uncommon in guitars made in the last 50 years.

Answer 3

All of the above are good suggestions. But before you do any of these, I would suggest you change your strings, if they haven't been changed in a while. I have a lot of guitars, so i generally only change strings the day before a gig. If i pick up one I haven't played in a while, I sound the harmonic and compare on the 12th fret. If the intonation is off, and since I know my axes are good, I change the strings and that solves the problem.

Answer 4

That means either the frets are improperly placed or the string length is wrong. Without knowing what type of guitar you have, and how off the notes are (and whether sharp or flat) it's hard to say much more, but it's likely some adjustment at the base of the strings, however they're connected, is needed.

Answer 5

The "action" might be too low, or too close to the frets. Also, the neck could be warped or bent, causing a bad action, or the guitar is of lesser quality, or the strings are bad quality or warn, or the bridge could be warn or the wrong type/size. Maybe someone at a guitar shop or music store should look at it...That's your best option.

Answer 6

The previous comments are valid, but your guitar may have a warped neck. Take it to a qualified technician at a reputable music store and get it fixed. It shouldn't go over $20.