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Joined:
January 2010
Posts: 6
Location: Louisiana | Just got my first Ovation! It's a 1867 Legend from 2002. I'd been thinking about getting one of the transparent black-topped Celebrity CC28s, but this used one was only a bit more and included a case.
A couple of questions, if you don't mind:
1) Has anyone else experienced any seasonal fret-end popping with Ovations? On the first through third frets, on the high E side, there is just the slightest hint of fret popping; not an annoyance or dangerous, but just enough to be noticable. Anyone else get this from time to time?
2) Never having owned one before, I was wondering if it is normal for the built-in preamp to feel a bit "loose", as if it's being suspended from the side of the body. I can wiggle it around a little - just a litte - and want to make sure that that is correct and won't be problematic.
3) Regarding the preamp: when I first got it earlier today, the controls were really crackly, but after working them a bit, the noise went away. Is it safe to spray something like DeOxit on the sliders?
4) Right now, the action is just a tad high for me; I've already restrung it, so I'm living with it for now (my calluses could use the work out), but I've seen in the Owner Manual PDF from the Ovation website that there are some shims included in all Ovations. It also says that great care should be taken in removing the saddle to remove or restore the shims. Are they somehow attached to the saddle, or will I have to fish them out of the saddle slot?
5) Just an observation: Dunlop StrapLok included! That's an awesome and completely unexpected benefit.
Looking forward to being part of this club. |
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Joined:
January 2006
Posts: 1128
Location: NW Washington State | Can't answer the guitar questions, but use the Deoxit sparingly. I've messed up the feel of slide pots by enthusiastically spraying them with lots of contact cleaner. A little bit is Ok and will probably clear things up.
If the sliders feel rough, you could try Deoxit FaderLube . Again, not too much or the lubricant could gunk things up.
-Steve W. |
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Joined:
January 2010
Posts: 6
Location: Louisiana | Thanks for the info, numbfingers; hadn't heard of FaderLube before. |
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Joined:
November 2006
Posts: 3969
| Congrats on the guitar, that's a nice one. For the frets you can tap them down with a hammer (gently) with the neck supported by a block of wood with a towel or some such on top of the block to keep from scratching the neck.
Not sure which pre-amp you have - is it rectangular or kidney-shaped? The way to tighten those differs.
Any kind of electrical pot cleaner spray will work to reduce or eliminate the static crackling.
The shims rest freely underneath the saddle-pickup assembly (what we call the PUassy). You just need to be careful not to break the pickup wire when you pull the saddle up out of its bridge slot. Once you do that you can access the shims easily and remove one or two. |
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Joined:
January 2010
Posts: 6
Location: Louisiana | Thanks, G8r. I loosened all the strings earlier today and removed the one shim that was there; I suppose the previous owner had removed others. Action is now fine, though I may tweak the relief next week.
The preamp is kidney shaped.
I actually have a fret hammer, but they're not popping UP, they're popping OUT of the ends. |
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Joined:
December 2009
Posts: 686
Location: Route 66, just east of the Cadillac Ranch | Welcome Grigori. I'm new here myself and I think you'll find this group to be a great bunch of folks.
Originally posted by grigori:
I actually have a fret hammer, but they're not popping UP, they're popping OUT of the ends. I've had necks dry out and leave the frets extending beyond the fretboard, but time spent in the case with a humidifier always seems to correct the situation. |
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Joined:
May 2009
Posts: 43
| Nick,good call.I'm glad this thread came to this.Frets "Pulling up" does not happen,fret boards dry up and spit them out.Hydrate.And do not "Reset" with a hammer..... |
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Joined:
January 2010
Posts: 6
Location: Louisiana | Humidifying sounds like a good idea; thanks Ultrafan. I was thinking it was a seasonal thing anyway. |
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Just bought a Legend!