Our factory shop recently got an email from a Buzz Feiten authorized shop in Italy, with the following question. [Techie/Geeky Warning: Rather technical info following] – >I’m having trouble intonating the 4th melody >string using the formula for BassBottom tuning > because it keeps being sharp. I tune it C# > no offset (at fret [...]
Megatar FAQ
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Category Archives: Intonation
Bass Strings Sound Muddy?
One user in Europe reported ‘muddiness’ in low bass strings on his Megatar. He was not using the standard strings that we supply, but strings of some different construction, and gauges unknown. He asks what can cause tonal changes and especially ‘muddiness’ in low bass strings. Several things can cause tonal changes in the lowest [...]
Q: How Can I Compare the Sound of Chapman Stick and Mobius Megatar?
A: A member of the Tappistry.Org was curious about this same question some time back. He had in his possession a TrueTapper Eclipse, and his Stick, and so me made identical recordings — minimal effects, same settings — and as a further comparison he also recorded the same song on a cheap Strat-knockoff. It’s a [...]
Q: What’s the best tuner to use?
A: Tuners vary. Of course, you can use any tuner, except for one thing you should keep in mind. Electronic tuners have to have a ‘window’ of frequency that is acceptable. If the window is narrow, then it is very very difficult for the human to hit the exact spot where the light turns green. [...]
Q: What’s the Best Way to Tune Up, with the Buzz Feiten Intonation System?
A: When you have the Buzz Feiten Intonation System installed on a guitar or a tapping instrument, your playing will sound more ‘in tune’ than on a normal guitar. But does it require some special way of tuning up? Not really. Of course, the better you tune up, the better you will sound. However, the [...]
Q: I thought that the Buzz Feiten Intonation System has to do with the nut, and tappers don’t play open strings at all! What gives?
A: Lots of folks believe this, because Buzz Feiten’s *first* discovery had to do with moving the nut to make the open strings play more in tune with the fretted strings. However, after that he went further, and along with super-luthier Greg Back of Southern California, they developed a whole set of adjustments you make [...]
Q: Does the Buzz Feiten Intonation System really work?
A: Check it out with your own ears. It works. Major players all over the globe, including Stu Hamm, Liona Boyd, Robert Fripp, Larry Carlton, Jimmy Haslip, Joe Satriani, and Steve Vai all have good ears. Every one of them will now play on nothing else. You’ve got ears. Give a listen to a Feiten-tuned [...]
Q: What about Daniel Schell’s “Mirror Fourths’ tuning, described in the ‘My Space’ method book?
A: Schell’s method enjoys good acceptance as an outstanding method, especially for musicians who plan to do a lot of reading. The factory can restring basses per Schell’s method, and reset the Feiten Intonation System so that you get those benefits under his tuning as well. If you’ll not be using our standard strings, we’ll [...]
