Adding a string tree to a Carvin DC727 (fixed bridge) to mute headstock noise

[singularity098]

I was wondering if anyone had opinions on this.

My Carvin DC727 gets a lot of string noise up at the headstock and it pisses me off. You know what I mean, just really high frequencies ringing out past the headstock. I've tried electrical tape to mute the strings and that works fairly well, but obviously looks obnoxious, which is unacceptable to me on such an instrument. Foam would work too, but seriously, that looks terrible. I don't want to have to do that.

It occurred to me that perhaps I could just pick up a string tree for a 7 string floyd guitar such as an Ibanez on eBay and just install it on the guitar to kill that awful noise. I don't see why it wouldn't work.

Anybody ever do something like this or have suggestions? Thanks.

 

[jwatso89]

I usually get a scrunchy from the dollar store, or just a piece of black foam to put under the strings.

 

[oremus91]

Carvin doesn't use the tree on their headstocks because they already have the tilt and if you think electrical tape looks bad imagine irreversible holes in the headstock. I'd just go down the foam route as "hackish" as it might seem.

 

[ibanez4lifesz]

Just get a small hair tie and put it around the headstock. Works, and its small too. I do it on all my guitars (PRS, EBMM, KxK, etc.), and even though I'm also big on cosmetics, it doesn't bother me at all.

Function is more important in some things!

 

[onefingersweep]

Yes go with a hair tie that has the same or similar color as the guitar.

If you put a string tree there you will alter the tuning stability of the guitar, not worth it.

 

[singularity098]

Bah... yeah, it's probably all true. I always get myself into trouble when I modify a guitar!

Thanks for the advice.

I just ordered some of these:
GRUV GEAR · FretWraps String Muters · MAKE LIFE GRUV

Hopefully they look a little nicer than tape and shitty scrunchies.

 

[JaeSwift]

Besides all that, string trees are made of metal and thus do not mute string noise.

 

[singularity098]

Well I did test that by having a friend hold a thin and hard edge against the strings up there while I played a few things and it muted the strings extremely well.

Maybe it made the frequencies so high pitched that I couldn't hear them? lol

 

[JaeSwift]

That's because your friends finger was dampening the metal, stopping oscilation

 

[FrancescoFiligoi]

It's an issue that occurs to MANY Carvins, one I owned included. It makes the guitar sounds like "industrial noise"....some foam under the nut solved it for me!

 

[Fiction]

I'd prefer a Hair-tie over the FretWrap, They essentially look the same except the FretWrap is 10 times wider.

 

[singularity098]

I went to the grocery store and bought some hair ties (not scrunchies but the thin ties) with no metal on them. Works pretty great, actually.

I put 3 of them on there and it doesn't look bad at all. In fact it almost looks good.

I'm still excited for the fretwrap though because that would probably be even more effective and great for muting strings when recording solos and what have you...

 

[AwakenNoMore]

I cut up pieces of foam from the boxes my Seymour Duncan pickups came in and place a strip right behind the nut, does wonders.

 

[Alberto7]

I have an obnoxiously bright orange hairband right behind the nut, on a Carvin that's meant to look very classy. It does not bother me at all, and, with time, I've come to think that it looks rather good. Tell that to Guthrie Govan, too. His guitars are beautiful, yet he still keeps those things on the headstock.