saddle transducer question

[daddy ray]

i have a seagull acoustic that has a l r baggs saddle transducer pickup

the action is higher than acceptable but not bad enough to warrant re-setting the neck in my opinion

yet it is high enough i don't want to merely file the saddle down

is the baggs saddle/transducer removable from the bridge in a normal manner so i may rout the slot in the bridge lower to get the desired string height

is any glue normally used in the placement of a saddle of this type

any info from someone who has experience in this area will be greatly appreciated

thanks dr

[Brian]

I thought it was just a thin wire strip that was threaded through a hole in the body and sat underneath the bone of the saddle, but I could be wrong.

[Devon Headen]

Brian is right. It is magnets under each string (that's why you use synthetics for the saddle, so it has even density) wired together and out of the bridge/bridgeplate. The saddle should be loose enough to fall out with the strings off. I'm not sure how I'd go about taking out the pickup. Probably just pull it up and out, then snip it off, and push one side into the body. then rout, clean out the saddle slot, then rewire the pickup in.

[www]

If it as I am thinking, I would remove the jack (tie a piece of string to it for pulling back through the hole when your done). Desolder the pickup wire. Pull the pickup up, wire and all through the bridgeplate. Reroute the bridgeplate and put it back together again.

[Devon Headen]

oops...listen to www..I need to think outside the box a little more.

[Hoser Rob]

I don't know if I'd mess around with it myself. A neck reset would be pretty drastic. I'd probably develop a relationship with the best guitar repair shop you can find. Lowering the saddle height is pretty straightforward, but an undersaddle pickup requires a very accurate fit to the saddle, making it precision work.

And please, please check out FRETS.COM. It's the best information source out there.

[Devon Headen]

I think we know hoser rob's opinion about repairing guitars now. Yes, guitar work is precise, but the point of this forum is self repair, and self building. I don't think he'd be asking how to fix it if he didn't want to do it himself.

Devon

[Devon Headen]

I reread that just now, and I came off very rude. That's not my intention at all, so please don't take it that way. I was simply trying to make a point.

Thanks,

Devon

[darren wilson]

It is magnets under each string (that's why you use synthetics for the saddle, so it has even density)

Uh, no. No magnets involved at all with acoustic transducer-type pickups. Synthetic materials are used to approximate the density and tone of ivory or bone in a cheaper, more ecologically-minded way.

Just yank the saddle next time you've got the strings off and see what's under there and it should be fairly obvious how to proceed.

[Devon Headen]

I've been reading about piezo recently, and you're right. I thought piezo elements were just a different kind of magnet at the time I wrote that. I still don't quite understand what piezo is, though. The synthetic saddles are uniform in density, and ivory bone aren't. With ivory and bone you can have denser and lighter areas. That's what Dan Erlewine's Guitar Player Repair book says at least. From what I've seen most manufacturers do recommend synthetics (ie tusq) over natural bone and ivory.

Devon

[Hoser Rob]

I think we know hoser rob's opinion about repairing guitars now. Yes, guitar work is precise, but the point of this forum is self repair, and self building. I don't think he'd be asking how to fix it if he didn't want to do it himself.

Devon

The reason I suggested a luthier was because sanding down the saddle is the normal way to solve this problem. Neck resetting is probably the last thing needed. Routing the saddle slot is not only unnecessary, it will make the pickup sound worse if not done exactly right, and may necessitate a neck reset in the future. If you don't know what you're doing to a delicate instrument, find someone who does. And read www.frets.com (and Dan Erlewine's repair book) too.

[Devon Headen]

I totally respect that and agree with you, cause I'm hoping to get into the guitar repair business, I'm simply saying that this site is for do-it-yourselfers. Although a word of caution is definitely merited for major work like this I don't see how routing the saddle slot will cause a need for a neck reset. If you go too low then I imagine you would have to either make a new (larger) saddle, or replace the bridge, though. Filing the saddle down makes more sense to me than any other option, though.

Devon

[Hoser Rob]

I think the reason lowering the slot may necessitate a reset is because it'd give you less room to lower the action later. This, I think, is why necks usually need a reset - there's less than 1/8" or so exposed above the bridge. You'd have to measure the action to be sure you'd need to lower it anyway. I have a Seagull and the action measures at 1/16" at the 12th fret. I think any lower on mine would be too low. I've heard stories about Seagulls having high action, but when I bought my S6 I tried 3 of them and they were all similar. One I thought was too low. It didn't buzz but it seemed dead - like the strings were being damped at the low frets.