F4 nut height

[mandojimmy]

I have an excellent condition 1920 F4 but not in love with the tone. It was set up with a very low nut but definately no buzzes. My feeling is that low nut pressure means more bridge pressure and brighter sound. I'm experimenting with a higher nut (possibly more likelihood of intonation not being absolutely perfect on first few frets)which means less pressure on bridge and whilst this won't make the top move as much I'm looking for a wooder sound all round. Anyone any thoughts on this please ?
Also definately didn't like the bright sound with the original pearl nut although it was very good on the D and G strings. The idea of having a split nut comes to mind with the pearl for the D & G giving clarity on the covered strings and having bone for the other half to avoid the "shrill" sound that a pearl nut gives on the treble strings.
Any comments welcome.
Thanks
Jimmy Powells (England0

[Chris Baird]

Jimmy, I think you will find that the nut height is an important factor in playability and has virtually no perceivable effect on the bridge or the tone. The nut material will indeed have an effect on tone as will the way that the nut slots are cut. I would say, if you set on experimenting, to switch to a bone nut. And, as I said before, the height of your nut is a matter of playability and not tone(as long as it doesn't buzz and the slots are cut well).

[Potosimando]

I have had a few mandolins over the years that were difficult to play when I purchased them, and one thing the luthier did on each of these mandolins when setting them up properly was to drastically lower the nut--in general there is a huge difference in playability between a high-set nut and a lower-set nut (high is not good at all, from my experience). Take careful note of Chris Baird's suggestions above--he knows what he's talking about...boy howdy, does he ever.

[JEStanek]

I think the only tonal difference a higher nut would give your music is the sound of you complaining about how much your fingers hurt! http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif If Chris Baird offers advice on nut height (and you should see his F4s!!!) that's good enough for me.

Perhaps string choices will affect your tone better?

Jamie

[mandojimmy]

Many thanks to early responses. seems Chris baird is the man. he may be able to pass comment on F4s generally. I had a 1915 F4 which was much lighter in weight and had a bell-like tone which was very thin. my 1920 F4 seems to have been built to last forever. it has a much wider chunky neck (although still quite comfortable) but is not as open a sound as I'd like. I basically prefer an F5 sound but love the whole looks and charisma of a Gibson F4 and it's quite frustrating as I looked in the Uk for a long time to find an F4. finally found a great condition one with absolutely straight neck, no top sinkage but it's so closed a sound with little overtones it almost feels like it's overbuilt. If I crank the action up it gets very much louder but there's always the danger of too much pressure. Perhaps Chris can throw in some comments if he knows what I mean. I played a $200 mandolin today which oosed overtones so maybe I should move to an F5. I have a few mandolins but still searching for the perfect one.
Many thanks to all
Jimmy Powells

[Paul Hostetter]

F-4s, like any mass-produced instrument, vary widely in tonal response. The nut height, of course, has nothing to do with anything but playability in the first few frets. There are a few things one can do to maximize an instrument, but largely it is what it is. I have a magnificent F-4 and a very nice A-4 which greatly exceeds it. I think the only thing that would bring out the potential in the F-4 is regraduating the top. Maybe someday I'll pursue that. Meanwhile, I love to look at the F-4, but I play the A-4.

[Chris Baird]

I agree with Paul. Some F4s are good and some aren't. It is very hard to say why; esp. over the internet.
I wouldn't try to alter the instrument but rather trade it for something else that fits your needs.