stiff strings that are hard to bend on my DK2M

[notesfromhell]

I have a Jackson DK2M and the problem i have with my guitar is that the strings are really stiff. It's hard especially to do a high e string bend, but other strings are difficult as well to bend. I bough the guitar used and remembered liking it a lot but for some reason decided to get a set up on it, I remember after i got my guitar set up I did not like the feel of it and the strings felt stiffer. I did not change the gauge of the strings or anything. So I decided again to get my guitar set up again by another tech, who I thought had more reputation, he took one spring out of the back of the guitar, and also swapped an .08 instead of a .09. Even after all this the guitar felt the same.


I know this is not how a guitar should feel optimally for bending, as I tried a jackson dinky with emgs at a guitar center and the guitar felt amazing to play, bending was no problem and I could get really nice vibratos. Didn't feel like the action was anything different. Is there a way i can get my guitar playing like that? The last two times, i think the techs tried to lower the action. Is it basically down to having higher action or is there something else in to consideration? playing hair metal stuff with bending is hard with this guitar.

[Amerturk]

It just sounds like you still have too many springs. 3 springs is enough for a floyd and some people use two. Lesson learned, don't take your guitars to a tech. Learn to set them up yourself, it's not hard and your really can't destroy anything if you put pieces back in the right place. If you set your floyd to 3 springs it should look like this: \ | / (the top of this line being the back of the guitar, the bottom of this sentence being near the trem claw)

If you make this move, the height of the floyd will be high in the back and you will have to tighten up the trem claw until the floyd sits even. This may take a few minutes of trial and error on the tuning since you will have to tighten, tune, tighten, tune and then possible loosen and tune until the floyd sits true.

[Grawnday]

You might like a guitar tuned to E flat instead of E.

[Newc]

Could be rough frets as well. Are they easy to move over-handed, without fretting them?

[P I K A]

I was going to suggest Eb as well. I play in Eb and like the tone better as well.

[Nightbat]

perhaps a fretboard conditioning might help, a little bit of oil goes a long way for smooth bends

[vondran]

String height also affects the string tension and feel of bends. Check the heigth of the high E and B. They should be lower than the other strings. Also, the tech should set up the neck relief to as flat as can be achieved. This lets you lower the action without fret buzz. You can check the neck relief by fretting the string at the 1st fret and at the same time at the highest fret, and then look at how high the string is above the 10th fret. I like mine to have the tiniest space between the fret and string at the 10th fret when fretted at the first and last fret. Many like it to be just enough to fit a business card between the fret and string. If it's bigger the truss rode may need to be tightened. If the string if on the fret, then it the truss rode may need to be loosened.

[ginsambo]

Probably used to 009 strings tuned to E flat on a 24.75" scale length. 10's tuned standard on a 25.5" scale will feel like iron in comparison. But it's good, stop being a poofter and go through the pain barrier and you'll be holding 4 step bends with vibrato on it in no time.

Personally for Demartini stuff I prefer 10's tuned to E flat or standard. They sound way better than 9's IMO and are much better for those honky bends he does mid solo, where as 9's sound thinner.

Seriously, if you can't hold a 4 step bend with killer vibrato on the G string on any guitar, you can't play IMO. OK maybe a 1 step bend whole tone at the least. What the Feck is a step anyway. I thought it was a whole tone. It's only callous.

Anyway, you sure it wasn't an old fusion you tried?

[JACKSONFREAK]

The trem is simply not set up correctly. With 9s or 10s it should bend as smooth as a strat with the same guage strings. If not easier with the lift a floyd gets with string pulls. Just find a tech that knows how to setup a floyd correctly. Ask your friends who they use pplay their guitars and see if they play like u want it too. Or if ur in Chicago just bring it to me.

[straycat]

The reason the strings feel that way is there is too much tension on the claw screws or too many springs.
3 springs is fine but you will need to make some adjustments to the floyd to sit level with the top of the guitar.
The floyd system is a balance between spring tension and string tension simple as that.
Loosen the spring claw screws and the back of the trem will dip down in the back so tighten the strings and get the trem to sit level with the body,then see how stiff the strings feel.
If still too tight repeat the process until you find where they feel the best to you.

I see this almost once a month with people bringing in guitars so I show them how to properly set one up.
It takes time but once you have messed with it a few times its an easy fix.Its not rocket science.
I think you need to learn instead of paying a tech who really has no idea what they are doing.

[ginsambo]

I think I understand what you guys mean now, to be honest, I thought it was bullshit when I first read it as I couldn't understand what you meant as effectively I thought there was no difference in tension to a TOM or hardtail bridge. But it's dawned on me now. If the floyd is pinned back hard against the recess with loads of excessive spring tension, spring tension which is naturally wanting to pull it back even more, beyong the recess if it could, that would definitely make life more difficult.

All the same I would leave it, maybe tighten up the spring screws a bit more, get bloody fingertips and become a hardcore supergiant guitar player....or do as Straycat et al says might be more sensible.

[cullenszoo]

What brand of strings were installed? are the frets clean and shiny? there is the slight chance the strings are getting hung up on grime or oxidation. It's not that the strings are stiff but rather they are meeting resistance against the fret.

[Devotee]

Pic of the spring cavity, knife edges and bridge?

I agree with ginsambo, i play with 11 gauge strings in Eb. It was hard to get used to initially, but now it's a piece of cake.

[Grim]

I play with 11s in E on 24.75 and I find them slack, and I don't have massive hands. I would use 10s in E on 25.5" (and do...). I have 10s on my Schecter 7, and it's 26.5".

Though it seems us guitarists are in a perpetual penis contest over string thickness, I don't think there is a disadvantage to using lighter strings in 9/10 cases. This said, if you are used to 8s or 9s oftentimes 10s can feel like a huge adjustment.

How difficult is the bending? Is it possible to get a step or a step and a half?

[84sups]

Try some spray fret board conditioner. I hear it helps make it feel slicker. Take the back cover off and take a look how the springs are situated. They should be situated /|\ for some reason if they are ||| it will feel stiffer.