Notes seem to "thunk out" in the middle of the neck

[Dennis Duross]

Clearly I don't know exactly how to describe this, but fretted notes on all strings seem to have less power and sustain in the 5th thru 10th fret range.

Not a problem in 1st thru about 3rd position, and they seem to recover approaching the neck block.

Which makes me think that the middle portion of my neck is somehow robbing energy from the strings?

Something's not right.

[Peter Wilcox]

Please give some more info - type of instrument, woods in neck and fret board, how they were glued. It seems something may not be solid in the problem area. I have heard of a wood defect/density change causing this in a localized part of the board, but not over so large an area.

[Mark Swanson]

It sounds like your neck may not be straight, and the middle frets are fretting out a bit.

[Waddy Thomson]

Adjustable truss rod?

[Dennis Duross]

Sorry, I really didn't give enough info, did I?

It's a steel string guitar, maple neck, wenge fingerboard.

I don't hear it quite as pronounced today as yesterday, and now I'm wondering if (since I'd just strung it up for the first time) it was/is just sort of settling in?

Still notice it to some extent, although it's really more in the 7 thru 12 fret region, where it just seems the notes lack something, they don't have the ring, or power, they just sound a little thuddier, like they're just being robbed of some of their energy.

It's not that they're fretting out, Mark, just that they seem (somewhat) noticeably less musical in this area.

Maybe it's me. This is just my third build.

And it could also be that my way of building it is the culprit. It has a high domed top and back (0.71" high over it's 19.5" length), the back is unbraced, and the soundboard is lightly and idiosynchratically braced. See the pictures.

And I've noticed the same thing in the other two builds, even though the first and second were floating bridges, the first had an archtop style X-brace, and the second had no top bracing at all, while this one is a pinned bridge.

So maybe this highly-domed construction restricts plate movement at this location, and has this effect.

[Mark Swanson]

Do you have enough relief in the neck?

[Bob Gramann]

Also, make sure that those frets aren't loose. A loose fret sucks away a lot of sound.

[Michael Lewis]

Run a quick bead of CA along each fret, then test your notes. A loose fret sucks energy out of a string. I think Bob has probably nailed the issue. If this doesn't make it better we want to know about it.

[Dennis Duross]

It'll have to wait until after work tonight, but I'll check the relief (I was going for dead flat), and will check the frets for loosies. Will I need to slacken the strings first?

[Waddy Thomson]

I'd give it a few days to settle down, before making any decisions on whether or not it needs work. Guitars change a lot in the first few days after stringing up. The neck may move some more.

[Bob Gramann]

On one of my early guitars, I was really disappointed when I string it up. It was about the most dead guitar I had ever played. A couple of hours later, for some reason, I put the mirror inside and looked. Still attached (with masking tape) under the bridge was the plywood gluing caul from when I attached the bridge. Without that, the guitar sounded wonderful.

[Dennis Duross]

Sounds like something I would do, Bob.

It occurs to me that I'd be well-served by getting a fresh bottle of CA before doing any wicking.

I did use CA when I fretted, but looks like an additional application is in order.

Any thoughts on whether I should slacken or remove the strings or if I can just wick away with the strings on?

[Bob Gramann]

Personally, I would look really close with a magnifying glass to make sure that the fret was seated and then clamp or hold it down tight while the glue grabs. If you can do that with the strings on, then go ahead. You will probably spill some on a string. That might have deleterious effects on intonation.

[Michael Lewis]

Is that a pin type bridge? If so, just loosen the strings and pull the pins out to get the strings out of the way so you can work on the fingerboard. If you can't easily remove the strings from the bridge slacken them so you can pull them off to the sides of the neck, out of the way so you can work on the frets.

I test frets with a small steel rule by tapping them with the end of the rule. If they give a sharp click they are well anchored, but if they give more of a thud they are loose.

[Dennis Duross]

Thanks for all of the replies. I haven't been able to get back to this yet, but am hoping to work on it this weekend.

I did check the fret seating with a magnifier, and they all look like they make solid contact with the fingerboard.

Also it seems to be not quite as bad as it was originally, so Waddy's comment about giving it time to settle in may have merit.

I'll spend some time clinking all across each fret, and will hit it with some CA (which I also did when I fretted it) and will let you know.