More "zinggggg"

[Les Cargill]

I play an MS Classic w/ round shafts. It was developing a whiny sound. Not quite "zing" but something annoying in the room and in the PA mains. This was making levels setting difficult.

I thought the pickup was going microphonic. It does pick up handling noise. But they all do to an extent.

Nope. A Scotch-brite green kitchen pad to the top of the changer fingers took out the whine. There was visible fine stuff taken off.

As you change strings, look over the tops of the changer fingers, where the strings make contact last before going up the neck. If there's extra material there ( like dirt ), or the top of the changer finger shape is off by *just a little bit*, you may have Bad Tone Things Happening.

And if you don't change strings that often, visually and audible-check the guitar now and again. I could see what was causing the problem once I knew what to look for. I relaxed the offending strings, pushed them to the side and then cleaned the bridge.

Unlike a six-string bridge, the changer fingers are a slow, shallow curve. Just a little extra or worn material can make a big difference.

Also: make sure your PA guy knows what frequencies to cut to get rid of that sort of thing.

[Andy Jones]

I had the same problem with the same guitar.I did the same thing you did.An added bonus,I never broke another 3rd string after that.