REVIEW: Schecter AM6 and AM7 - The Best Guitars I Didn't Like
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- Опубликовано: 1 июл 2024
- I hope you find the information in this video helpful in diagnosing your own issues with unwanted or unmusical overtones. I certainly hold both Schecter and Intervals in high regard, and I would definitely recommend this guitar to anyone looking for a high quality shredder, if you can play test it first.
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0:00 Unboxing
1:00 Intro
3:33 Backstory and Pros
7:40 The Big Oofs
12:02 Mega List of Attempted Fixes for The Clank
16:11 Does this guitar suck?
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More videos on the way soon, so if you'd like to see a video over something in particular, let me know in the comments, or message me on instagram.
- J
Link Tree to all the things:
linktr.ee/plant_based_riffs
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#schecter #am6 #am7 #guitarreview 
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Big props to schecter honestly. They could've easily dismissed the whole problem but they didn't and they were honest about it and that speaks volumes of them. Still is a bummer about their issues and being on both guitars.
Yep, 10/10 respect for them not wasting any time or trying to gaslight me. They easily could have, but instead, they got right to it, tried to correct it, and owned it when they thought the guitars wouldn’t be right for me. Now whether or not they thought I was just some crazy person who was hearing stuff… that remains to be seen 😂😂
Schecter Customer service has never failed me in the 14 years I've played them (play them exclusively and have 8) one time I got a new one, didn't like the grain and stain of it and they actually took it back. Sent me photos of a hand picked one and then did an artist set up on it (fret work) and to this day it still plays better than 99% of guitars that I have tried or played. Hands down the best company out there.
They can't make a good guitar though schecter can stroke you off all day long they just stole your money who cares how nice they act
@@elmerdane Nah. My Sun Valley super shredder Exotic is incredible. No overtones or anything like that, flawless fretwork, beautiful sound, etc.
I know what’s up!!!
I have an Ibanez AZ Prestige that had the same problem when I first bought it. After much trail and error I found that it was the stainless steel trem block (which the AM6 has) The reason that I found this out is that luckily I also have an Ibanez AZ Premium with a zinc trem block - a much softer, less resonant material. So I put the Premium trem with the zinc block into the Prestige and after that it completely behaved.. I then decided to order an extra zinc block for my Prestige and now I couldn’t love that guitar more.
WOW okaaaay 😃 that’s good to know! Maybe I should tell schecter to try a different trem block, but idk what they did with the guitars. The put an entirely new gotoh 510 in there to see if it changed anything, but they used a steel block again! 🫣 Very interesting
thanks for making this video. i feel like you have huge potential as a guitar channel on youtube. keep making vids like this!!
Thank you for that! I have a few videos in the tank waiting to be finished - But my other job is creating content for other people. Been busy with that for a few weeks here. Excited to get back to this!
You fool, I watched this while practicing guitar!
Much appreciation for the thorough breakdown and insight on this situation. 👏🦖
FOILED AGAIN! 😂 Thanks man
Something about your vids just make my day!
I’m glad! Thanks for watching.
The video looks amazing man! And while I'm sad that your AM-6 (and 7) had that issue, I definitely have more respect for Schecter as a company for how they responded
Thanks for the kind words! Yeah they did everything they could probably!
Excellent review! I’m so sorry it didn’t work out. After viewing this, I immediately went and plugged my AM-7 to listen for this same issue. I must’ve been lucky, because I have a slight overtone but nothing near what you have. This same sound isn’t audible on my AZ though.
Your experience really shows through in this. I’m working to be a better guitar reviewer myself and your video was a great inspiration. Cheers! 🤝🏻
thanks for the kind words! yeah it’s a weird sound, so I’m glad yours doesn’t have it! I’m looking forward to doing more reviews - I have a few more lined up :)
AM-6 owner here. Mine had a totally different problem, tuning stability issues; I discovered that one of the tremolo springs was different from the other two and it would constantly move with any slight change in tension, even with small vibratos (not using the bar). My tech did some inspection and said that the faulty spring wasn’t applying the same amount of tension than the other two. Fast-forward one month and I got a new set of Gotoh springs, replaced all of them and the problem was resolved. I can hear that weird overtone in the D string but It’s not as pronounced as yours. I can live with it 🙂
oh weird! I’ve never heard of that happening before. Man, the things you learn, huh. . I’m glad it’s working for you! And yeah, if your overtone isn’t very loud, it’s probably perfectly fine! I’m certainly not trying to get everyone to immediately go test their guitars and start hearing ghosts haha. Every string has natural overtones. BUT… I am in favor of people making MUSIC. So if something is UNmusical on an instrument, it’s ok to try to fix it haha. :)
FWIW - mine had some major tuning instability issues as well. Bending a note would send it out of whack. Light trem use would do the same. Seems I may have finally stumbled on what the issue was. The Gotoh 510 trem has a "Stud Lock" mechanism that is supposed to be tightened down once the stud height is set. Both screws on mine were loose. Tightened those up and so far it has remained acceptably stable. Easy to see how dealers might miss this detail on a check before shipping to customers. Things can also easily rattle loose during ground transit as well. Figured I would drop this info though in case anyone else stumbles across this post/video and is having similar issues. I also have not had the overtone issues, but I also have the guitar setup with heavier gauge strings and in an open tuning so I guess perhaps the resonant frequency changed.
The video production on this video is next level.
Thank you much!
I had this exact thing happen to me with a PRS SE on the A string. I tried all the solutions you could think of and it would not go away. Surprisingly, the amp types i like to play through most (modded marshall styles) highlighted it the most and when i plugged into a mesa dual rectifier it was barely audible. I still got rid of the guitar but it was a shame since it sounded and played so well.
Man, that's wild. Awesome, that schecter did the right thing.
I'm happy to hear how Schecter was responsive with your issues, the customer service was great, and I love how the president reached out to help you by offering to replace the guitar!
Recently, I was on the hunt for a bass guitar for recording that's around $1000. I love thin necks but Ibanez basses in that price range didn't play as nicely as my prestige guitars. After looking at hundreds of bass brands, I randomly decided to check out Schecter because their sls elite bass has a thin neck! I checked the specs, stainless steel frets, fishman fluence pickups and made in South Korea. I thought, there's gotta be something wrong with it... Right? The price is too competitive. Then I saw a 2023 model year used one for sale on Sweetwater exchange for $760 and pulled the trigger. I'm glad I did because this bass plays, feels and sound phenomenally. I'm impressed and now Schecter is on my radar for guitars, and the fact that their customer service is so awesome makes me more impressed. I've never played or even considered a Sechter before but now they're at the top of my list.
I clicked on your video because I'm interested in getting the newer AM-6 with the caramelized fretboard. Thanks for sharing your experience!
I’m glad the bass worked out! Though the president of Schecter never actually reached out to offer to replace the guitar. He offered to let me know when they got a shipment of guitars in that didn’t have such a pronounced clanking sound on the D string in case I was interested in buying it. He never reached out, so I can only assume that every AM6 they have received has the clanking D string issue.
@@Plant_Based_Riffs thanks for the clarification! ⭐
Please read if you’re having the same issue!!! I almost traded / sold my Schecter SLS Elite C-1 for the exact same issue. I bought it second hand and was out of time to return. I tried all of the same trouble shooting as he did. Weirdly enough, filing down the nut for that string fixed it. I understand the graph tech nut was replaced, but it definitely sounds like they had a bad batch of graph tech nuts. My guitar has the Ernie ball compensated nut. I tried multiple string sets of different sizes and gauges, and the nut always appeared to hold the string comfortably with no issue, but filing it down so it could fit in a little lower made the issue completely disappear. My tech said this is commonly overlooked and a fairly common problem with nuts now a days. I can’t be completely certain it was his issue but definitely try that if you’re in the same boat!
This was an amazing video. And you've absolutely earned a new subscriber!
I've been eyeing both of these guitars since they were announced, and I'll admit I'm sad to hear they (potentially) have this issue. I'll be sure to look out for it when I go to try one out.
Interestingly, I own a Schechter c1, which is a similar guitar in a few aspects, bar the hardtail bridge, and the 3-a-side headstock, which thanks to this video I've discovered has a similar issue on the b string. HOWEVER I did find a fix. If you own a fret wrap, placing it directly over the nut, as opposed to behind it. Removed the overtone entirely for me, whilst still allowing my strings to ring out appropriately! Worth a shot on the am-6 I'd imagine!
Huh! Okay, so just ever so slightly catching the string as it peaks in vibration to settle it down. That would work probably! Not worth it for >me< as I’d rather just return the guitar if I can haha but if someone else finds this helpful, amazing! Definitely give the guitars a shot, they’re worth the time in checking it out. Probably even worth the return shipping if you have to pay to return them if you don’t like them. :) Thank you for the kind words, more videos on the way!
@@Plant_Based_Riffs I'll absolutely be trying out both when I get the chance However as I live in Australia, we don't get very much stock of these at all (I'm talking less than 12 AM-6's arriving in ALL of Australia for the whole of 2023, as of my last chat with various suppliers :/ )
As a side note, I'm a little bummed they don't even come with a gigbag at that price point, considering a few similarly priced (or cheaper) Ibanez models I own actually came with a hard case!! Maybe I'll just keep saving up for an Aristides instead 😅🤩
@@finlay460 for sure, but I have a mono vertigo bag that I use for everything anyway, so I really wouldn’t want a crappy gig bag taking room in my closet lolol. Aristides would serve you well, and you can count on consistency from them :)
Ghost tones 😩 I've had so many guitars do this and it's the uttermost frustrating thing. I myself work on guitars daily and have an excellent tech for things beyond my skill level. We have named these issues ghost notes/tones because they are (for the majority) invisible and come and go as they please. We have isolated the strings at both the nut and bridge (using a wedge), replaced the strings, replaced the bridge, the nut, tuners, adjusted action, intonated, tightened/loosened the necks, and replaced springs on tremolos. Yet these types of over tones just seem impossible to get rid of.
If anyone has any other ideas besides replacing, returning, or chunking the guitars, I'm all ears 😊
Great review BTW 😊🙌
that’s very interesting, but good to hear I’m not crazy and wasting Schecter’s time haha.
See the comment below where the person claims it was resonance from the stainless steel trem block? Apparently they replaced it with one of the cheaper zinc blocks and it went away. I'm dying for someone to demo this fix.
@@wisteriahill7584 I wonder if that affects the price point. 🤔 Where did you hear that they are doing this?
Thanks for such a detailed review! To be honest I was expecting these to be priced lower (prices in EU are somewhere around $1.8k...) so I never got to even try it, and I am now definitely considering other options. Respect to Schecter though...
What would you say would be the closest guitar (any brand) to the AM-6 at around the $1k range? The Charvel DK24 HH is the only model with a Gotoh 510 I can currently find, even though it doesn't feature SS frets..
Honestly the charvel DK24 is probably my top recommendation in this price range currently. PRS custom 24 SE is also a very solid instrument at this price point. I really enjoy most of the PRS SE products.
My review AM6 unit arrives today. I'll definitely be on the lookout (listenout?) for this issue. If it's there, I'll link to this video. I've got their exotic SVSS and it's amazing and doesn't have the ringing problem.
I've only had to deal with Schecter customer service once in 15 years and I would concur that Schecters customer service is excellent.
I bought a AM6 2 months ago, plays great no issues ! Looking foward to buying the maple neck AM6,
ayyy I’m glad you got a good one!! great feeling guitar :)
You reckon it's the neck being "twisted" I don't know the right word/description for it...but it's been known to be a problem on some guitars. Spooky , for sure.
Nice thorough video man. Liked it 💯
thanks for the kind words. The neck actually looked pretty straight to me. Seemed to be very straight on both the treble and bass sides.
I’m having the EXACT same issue, and on the same string. I’m praying for a solution on mine. I bought a second hand SLS Elite C-1. I’m financing it, and it’s beyond the return period. I’m currently using cobalt strings on it, and put an order in on a thicker bigger/nickel set of Daddarios. Fingers crossed because I’ve also tried all of the trouble shooting steps you have. I didn’t have it for too long before swapping the strings that were on it for the cobalts. If the problem persisted prior to that, I didn’t notice it. Fingers crossed 🤞
Sorry for your troubles with it! Great feeling and playing guitars, just wish they wouldn’t do this strange overtone.
Very interesting video. I enjoy how well spoken you are in both your videos and comments alike. I’m mildly interested in this signature. I’ve played Schecter guitars for the past 15 years and I’m a huge AM/intervals fan as well. Although I have to admit, the new John Browne signature is looking phenomenal too.
How did the AM guitars feel as far as forearm comfort goes? I have a c7 that I bought back in 2019. It is a killer guitar. Sounds great, plays great. But it’s kinda chunky to be honest, and if I play it long enough my forearm starts to get uncomfortable, I guess from the lack of forearm contouring and hard edge of the body. I’m very curious if that would be an issue with these guitars.
Hey, John. Thanks for the kind words and for interacting! SO the AM signature has a slightly thinner body than a typical C1, as far as as I know.
I’m typically a fan of flat topped guitars with a gentle slope for the arm. I have a PRS 408 that I find marginally uncomfortable because the carve turns into a pretty aggressive edge, and if you’re familiar with the PRS carve, you probably know what I’m talking about. When Aaron first told me that his sig was going to be a carved top (back when he was with Suhr) I cringed just a little because I really love the arm contour. That being said, both the AM6 and AM7 have a very comfortable body that is carved to play. I really enjoyed the feel of it. The poly finish was really nice too. No complaints! It’s carved enough to look nice, but smooth enough to be easy on the arm.
@@Plant_Based_Riffs thanks for the detailed response! I probably won’t buy anything for a while anyway, after spending some time with my c7 I decided I’d definitely wanna play a Schecter in the future before buying it. They’re just making these guitars look so good, and I live in an area where guitar shops are hard to come by, especially ones that would have guitars like this in stock lol
You are quite good at story telling.
I've got to wonder if it is a sympathetic vibration within the pickup. Are they the same?
Pickups were tested and checked out. I also moved the pickup back and forth in the cavity manually, and there was no perceivable change. Thanks for watching and for the kind words 🫡
Hey Jared! One thing I noticed was that the schecter website used to list "carbon-fiber reinforcement rods" previously, but no longer does for these models specifically. Maybe they found out that the issue was coming from the rods resonating in a certain way with that open D string? I'm very curious about whether the more recently built units still have this problem. Keep up the great content!
Interesting! I haven’t heard any updates from them, so we’ll see what happens. I appreciate this info!
Came here to see if anyone commented this. This would be my theory. Truss rod can do the same thing if it is barely loose, which is easily remedied by a quick turn. These rods, if they aren't secured properly could be resonating and causing the issue.
A neck swap would have been the easiest thing to check
Oddly enough I’ve heard this same sound on other Schecters but it’s been rare
It is indeed a weird problem. There's only so much that can produce that sound. As discussed and mentioned with the whole community, the troubleshooting sounds pretty thorough. The only other thing that popped up in my mind was anything related to the looseness of the truss-rod, but I'm not sure if that was investigated. Might be a little late lol and not sure if it would be able to influence the PU signal that much.
It's good that schecter responded they way they did, and I'd expect nothing less from the US schecter side, but I'm honestly a bit more iffy about them, or maybe even the vendor. If someone were to quickly play every note on the guitar before shipping it off (e.g., during setup, checking for buzzes), do you think they would have noticed it?
I do feel a bit of empathy for you, as it's not a nice feeling when you've been waiting and you're excited about a new thing you've acquired, only for there to be something wrong and having to deal with all the hassle afterwards.
I appreciate that empathy - I had been anticipating a signature guitar from Intervals for like 5 years. haha. But yes, I could hear that ringing acoustically as well, and since I and my tech had both adjusted the true rod individually as part of the regular setup of the guitar, and we didn’t hear any change before/after, it may not be the truss rod. Schecter probably also adjusted the truss rod, surely.
But I’m not sure if they would have noticed this clank from a quick play test at the distribution center or whatever. They’d have to really play that D string contrasted to other notes. Hard to know what quality control implementation would be able to detect this other than them just being aware of it now. I do hope that them seeing this will influence a design update if it’s needed, or help design choices on the USA line if this has been a common occurrence for people buying this guitar. I really hope I just got the unlucky two lemons haha.
@@Plant_Based_Riffs not sure if this has been said already, but the springs behind the saddle screws on the bridge make that type of sound
@@aatamisyren4747 yep, I mention both of those in this video. Thank you for the thought tho!
Just finished the video -- again reiterating, you have great delivery :) Definitely keep going Jared, looking forward to your next videos.
BUT, gotta be honest, i'm pretty bummed about this finding ... Was about to purchase one. Am i understanding this correctly, that this overtone is not some one off factory error, but a flaw in the design of the guitar itself? The scale length, break angle at the nut or bridge or something? Definitely can't go ahead and buy it if Schecter expects to leave this as is and "Fix" it through the list they sent you.
Cheers
Man, I have no idea. I asked Schecter point blank “is this issue happening with all the AM models?” and they dodged the question very diplomatically. It’s a hard question. They don’t want to go on the record either way I’m sure. I’ve been told that I just got unlucky, and that this can happen with Import guitars. I say just buy from a place with a return policy with free return shipping, and if it doesn’t work out, it’s only minor it inconvenient. :) It’s a great guitar if you can find a good one.
I love my AM7 its amazing. Sorry to hear you didn't end up keeping them
I’m glad yours worked out for you! Killer feeling guitar!
the consistent element in both guitars that seem overlooked is the brand and gauge of those strings. - whatever they're using by default they were most likely replacing them with the same strings that come stock. I'd be REALLY interested if you slapped some coated strings on there like elixirs if that noise goes away.
The strings were replaced from the stock ernie ball strings to D’Addario NYXLs when I had the setup done. No change. I would be curious if a coated string would have worked though, I didn’t think about that. Probably because I buy my NYXL strings in bulk from a friend who has an artist discount, so I don’t think I would consider Elixir strings for my electric guitars at this time. The NYXLs play nice on all my other guitars after all 🙂
@@Plant_Based_Riffs oh absolutely haha, i'm just an inquiring mind at this point haha. I've been heavily considering picking up an AM-7 but this has me wincing at little bit - maybe it will be sorted out by the time i get mine. interesting situation for sure.
and most definitely i just started playing elixirs in the last year and love them on my acoustic and electrics, so smooth. i'll have to try some NYXLs sometime in the future though.
@@grrttshw I would say it’s definitely worth trying the AM7! It feels absolutely killer. The neck is super comfortable, and the whole guitar was so light and easy to play. I really liked how it felt and it did CHUG CHUG quite well haha. And even if it does have a weird overtone on the D string, just think about it and see how bad it is compared to what I’m demoing here. It may not be nearly as pronounced, or you may not be able to detect it at all. In that case, it’s a keeper for sure.
I solved a problem like that before on another guitar by putting a layer of fabric near the ball of the strings. That sounds like a string resonating problem that needs to be reduced by damping the vibration in a section of the string. Worked great but it was messy to change strings. Cheers and hope you can try that out or let Schecter know about it .
very interesting. I'm having the exact same issues with my my KM6 on both E and A strings.
dang dude. That really sucks. Is it a new guitar?
I had the exact same issue on the A string of a Harley Benton amarok baritone guitar. If I picked the string a bit further away from the bridge than usual there was no issue, but in my normal playing position it would drive me nuts. So I returned it as well.
That’s unfortunate, but yeah, it’s definitely the normal playing position for me.
I spoke to Aaron about it. The issue will be resolved soon at the production level.
I have also spoken to Aaron about it, and he gave me no such news. Curious. So Schecter knows how to fix the problem?
@@Plant_Based_Riffs He wasn't specific. He just said that they were taking care of it. Said it was a QC issue due to the nature of imports.
I'm still wondering whats causing the problem. Its really strange. I'm also wondering how many more of these signature models did this. I've never seen a schecter do this at all. I've owned 4 or 5 schecters and I've played more than I could count. This is truly unique. I've never needed schecter customer support but I'm not surprised to hear they are awesome.
Yeah it beats me! I’m not a technician. 🤷🏼♂️ But I know when something isn’t right.
perhaps a dump question but did you try different brands of strings? I had an Issue with round Fender Strings...bought 10 Packs and 8 of them were ringing on the G String like your D String or the Low E String was completly numb, dumb as I was/am I checked the Bridge, the Saddles ...swapped the saddles....dude...till i changes to differenr strings which were not round. Problem solved. Hope your Problem will dissappear soon :(
Yep, it came with ernie ball strings stock, and my tech put NYXLs on it when he set it up. Problem unchanged. 🤷🏼♂️
Interesting... I have the exact same issue on my Musician Luke 3 and to this day have not been able to figure it out, but its sounds just like the "plinky" sound you showed. Good tips for sure.
Dang dude. That’s shocking. Music Man is pretty on top of things.
@@Plant_Based_Riffs Yea I decided to end up just hanging on the the guitar because everything else is perfect. I have had some Schecter guitars in the past and I know they can sometimes use the EBMM compensated nut, but it sounds like the AM6 and 7 use Graph Tech. The search continues.......
Is it possible the tilt on the headstock has something to do with it? I know Aaron wanted additional tilt on the headstock to avoid using a string tree. Shot in the dark I just can’t imagine what else it could be considering everything that was already tried.
it IS a new headstock design. So that was one of my thoughts too. The only thing schecter didn’t try is a new neck. I wonder if they had put a different neck on just to see, if it would have done anything.
In your last video, it sounded like the issue is more pronounced through the pickups and less acoustically, but both can be heard. This is quite strange since we know that for something like fret buzzing, even minor fret buzzing is annoying because it is heard "acoustically" but not as apparent through the pickups and amp. This is actually one way to prove that the sound you hear on an electric guitar acoustically or through an amp if often not correlated at all. Physics clearly explains this, though people still believe an electric will sound good if it acoustically sounds good.
The plinking sound heard at 2.4kHz is reasonably high and thus is likely metal-based (or the nut which is dense). Schecter did a lot of good things, but it would be good to try: 1. changing strings, even the gauge, 2. testing with *different* pickups -- not the same ones they said tested OK, AND also checking if it still happens with different pickup heights. Pickup pull might cause this, 3. Selectively dampening each metal contact and testing again. This includes each string before the nut and after the saddle. They did this with the trem springs, but I doubt those springs will resonate anywhere close to 2.4kHz. 4. Somebody mentioned the spring in the 5-way switch. That would be interesting to test. 5. Truss rod. Play the D string again, but have the metal adjustment tool in the truss rod to dampen it. 6. They didn't test the nut. A loose nut or something could be the issue. 7. Metal knobs and any set screws.
The fact that the AM-6 and AM-7 have the same issue seems to be a huge coincidence, so I would look at things which are similar to both of these guitars. The pickups which I assume are built the same except one is 6 and the other 7-string. Similar designs might result in similar issues. Maybe the pickups/height, nut, 5-way switch? Or the metal knobs?
Sorry to hear about your problem. But I have the same one :D
Just got Ibanez RG631ALF and apart from some cosmetic defects (yeah, regular neck pocket crack including) - I hear very harsh and strong harmonic when I am playing on bridge humbucker on 6th string with palm mute and picking near the neck humbucker... Closer to it - stronger the harmonic. When I move pick back a bit - it completely disappears. I will try to check nut and saddles as the last thing, because all other fixes did nothing...
I'm so tired of QC issues, that's my 6th guitar this year, 5 of them had issues (including this one). Even Korean made H3 had damaged tone knob, so it is pretty wobbly and cap could not be taken out without brute force. I guess this Ibanez goes back to the shop as well. I have started from 500-ish guitars and constantly added money, but seems like it does almost nothing for quality, omg :D Best guitar was the second Ibz RGIB21 (first one had broken strap pin and was scratched) O_o
Either I will start buying cheaper guitars or will build my own xD
oof that sucks. I suggest PRS SE if you’re looking for a cheaper guitar that doesn’t have any problems. Never played a PRS SE that wasn’t awesome.
@@Plant_Based_Riffs Thank you, but I just don't like the looks of PRSs :) I will try to order one more LTD, if not lucky - then will look again at Harley Bentons for 1/2 or 1/3 of the price, anyway most guitars have problems and need to be fixed, so why not to pay for the product less xD
So, I know this is really a simple one, but here's a question: did you try a different brand of strings that you usually use to see if it was the string itself, like that particular string in that gauge from the brand that you use to see if that was the issue? Not likely, but not ruled out...unless of course, you did that as well...thanks for the video...I'm just throwing this one out there, because I've had the string itself be weird...cause a weird thing...
Yep! Tried Ernie Ball and D’Addario
@@Plant_Based_Riffs OK, well there you go; you rules that one out...for sure something about that guitar then...I wonder if it is a resonance thing then in that design, or maybe in the neck? Like a truss rod thing? When I watched it, I was like "yeah, that would really bug me, too...a deal breaker if I couldn't figure out why it was doing that...such a well made guitar, too, based on the videos I've watched...pretty sure Schecter has someone on it to find the root cause of what is going on there...hey, thanks for getting back to my comment, and hope you and yours are doing great!
@@RobTackettCovers Thank you kindly, same to you! Yes, it's a beautiful guitar. It felt great in the hands, I just couldn't get over the "clank".
Is this happening to all the AM schecters? could it be a design/ factory defect?
I have been told by a few folks that their AMx guitars are fine, and I’ve been told by a few folks that they have the same issue. I am trusting that they do NOT all have the same issue, as Aaron messaged me saying that this issue was “very strange” and “very very rare,” and I choose to believe him.
With that information in mind, I said multiple times in my emails to the dealer and to Schecter “I would happily exchange these two for two that don’t clank like this,” and both the dealer and Schecter were non-responsive to that particular point. I didn’t think it necessary to include any of that in the video, because it doesn’t matter. I don’t know what their policy is about doing that kind of exchange - since it’s a new guitar, they may have simply NOT had any stock to exchange it with, or perhaps they were sick of spending time on this, understandably. I’m just a random customer after all, and a refund was satisfactory in the end for sure. I just wanted two “good” guitars or my money back haha. 🙂 I’m happy with how it went, and I feel very taken care of.
This is interesting, my Charvel DK24-7 has a similar 2.4k overtone too (although not as pronounced). What’s interesting is that this occurred AFTER I got it refretted (and PLEK’d, if that’ll maybe make a difference?). The nickel frets from the factory I had minimal issues with overtones outside of what I would consider normal resonant overtones, about a year-18 months after owning it I had it refretted with stainless, there was really nothing new to report besides maybe a SLIGHTLY louder (sharper?) resonance that I attributed to the stainless frets, however the workmanship on the fret job was poor so about another year later I had it redone, that’s when I really started to notice it more. Idk what might be causing this besides just something harmonically not jiving in the neck? Truss rod/truss rod nut issues?
who knows. i have a lot of stainless fret instruments and none of them have a super pronounced overtone on palm mutes.
I had similar overtone issues with my Sterling Majesty MAJ270 and I was able to eliminate it by removing the bank plate that covers the trem cavity.
Ah, I’m glad that worked! Yeah removing the backplate did not fix the issue for me, unfortunately.
Subbed - youre sick
and funny. Good video why tf do you have 1.24k subs only?? blasphemy
thank you kindly 🙂
Thank you for the review, man. It’s a pretty big costly mistake to order one of these.
I think it’s more of just a nuisance if it ends up not working out. But if you find one of these that doesn’t do this, I bet it’s a KILLER guitar. It would have been my main guitar. 🥲
Had this to and sold it. Beautiful guitar with excellent build quality but to me something...was off. I could never put my finger on it, but i do miss the guitar
sorry to hear that, but yeah, I definitely had to let them go :')
I wonder if it could have been something inside the pickup. Possibly a loose fit of the pole screws? It would make sense to be happening on both guitars if the pickup manufacturer got a poorly machined batch of screws or bottom plates.
pickups were tested and they checked out fine, and a bunch of things were done to the pickups themselves to help mute any mechanical resonance. That’s a good thought though.
@@Plant_Based_Riffs you've got me stumped. Im pretty good a trouble shooting guitars but between you and Schecter you've covered a few i wouldn't even have thought of. You said the switch felt gummy and thats something that would have been the same on both guitars and it also has a spring. Hmmmmmm
@@stevenpipes1555 that’s a good point! Though changing pickup position didn’t help, and that would change the characteristics of the spring’s tension and position,… so one would think that would help. But I hadn’t thought of that little spring.
@@Plant_Based_Riffs oh good call though on the tension, that probably would have at least changed it. Im gonna be very curious now to see if anyone else has the problem. I have an imported Schecter. I got mine used but its a fantastic guitar. I believe it can be compared to far more expensive guitars.
@@stevenpipes1555 I’ve had a few people send me a video of theirs with the same issue, but i’ve had other people tell me their AM guitar sounds perfect. I think it’s just a QC thing, or perhaps I have gas lit only half of the owners into hearing ghosts jk haha. No but… if you have the clank, you will know it 😂😂😂 It’s very obvious and horrible.
Did they put dense foam under both pickups like I said? I literally fixed the same issue with my guitar. Not the springs the pickup it self. Smh
they did.
I forget which YT channel reviewed a schecter artist/custom guitar recently, but they had the same issue as the AM6 and it ended up being that the ground wire was put in an awful place, and there was no copper shielding in any of the cavities. You'd think in a 1900+ Canadian dollar artist guitar with premium options such wenge and massacar and what not, that 2 dollars of copper shielding tape and proper placement of a ground wire wouldn't be that difficult to do. Pretty lackluster QA department but I've always had a problem with every schecter guitar I've played, maybe I'm just cursed with the ones I've purchased.
I'm in the market for a new guitar, this one was on my radar, (the 7 string). I pretty much only play schecters but now really looking into an ibanez prestige. They are sold out literally everywhere though :(
Maybe check out the Mark Holcomb PRS SE 7 string! There’s a demo model on sweetwater for $989! You can get the quilt top model for $1250
Did you try noisless springs? Sounds like trem spring noise.
Watch the video and you’ll see all the fixes attempted. Answer: yes
Well, I don’t know how I find this situation. On one side it is very cool from Schecter to have such a great customer service at least for you who has his RUclips channel. On the other hand I never would buy a guitar for nearly 2.000 bucks with high frets which also are poorly polished aaaaaand that so annoying d string. My very first Squier I got 30 years ago had a better quality than this AM6. But this is not a problem that only occurs on Schecter’s guitars. I see things like this from all Asia product lines from all brands. The big difference is nowadays we buy guitars with flaws for a lot of money as long as they stay more affordable than the expensive original lines from USA or somewhere else. For so much money, a guitar was supposed to be perfect some decades ago. Today you can be happy to not get a piece of firewood. This is my honest opinion.
I am so excited about the upcoming John Browne signature guitars at least to test on my channel. But something tells me to not order one for not being disappointed about cracks on the fingerboard, poor fretwork or other flaws I definitely cannot live with.
Yep. Very sound logic throughout. I agree on every point. I just cleaned and set up my $100 yamaha starter guitar that lives in my studio, and it absolutely rips. Money doesn’t get you as far as it used to. Just buy from a place with a good return policy I guess! haha
Agree 100% on this
You ..Should have your Own ,Signature guitar.. hmmm. why not..!
I have aMayones Aguila S6.. with BNK silos.. its awesome..
but now I want to build an Ormsby SX 6 Joe h ..with BNK Silo bridge and a BNK Trilogy .. Strat -neck.. pu.
( they will make them for you ..custom.. multi scale..)
just to get to know a multi scale..and for fun,
I can't wait ..
Also have a couple of schecters.. really like them but just slightly ..missing the magic..ha , but they are Very good for the price point..
Appreciate all your hard work and playing..
Haha I appreciate that!
Oh man I’ve never tried an ormsby, but I would love to sometime! That sounds like a killer spec.
@@Plant_Based_Riffs exactly..! I,m ordering those from Bare knuckles next week.. uk..
I also prefer EB Paradigm s..9 - 46 strings..nice an easy... see ormsbys on Rvrb
As strange as this sounds but I have a Dean guitar that had 9 strings on it when I got it and all was great. After a while I put 10s on it and it had the same sound as yours I was thinking WTF. I couldn’t get it to go away. I put a new set of 9s back on it and it went away. So ok that guitar will just always have 9s on it.
Interesting! I didn’t try a different gauge, but I wasn’t interested in a different gauge than 10 at the time.
ok update. Mine does it too. Same string but not as pronounced, only when using lots of gain and only when sharply hitting that single string. It isn’t there when playing chords even if the d string is open.
Makes me think it’s a string maybe touching the fret causing a harmonic. I’ll take it to my luthier to let him check it out.
🤷🏼♂️ idk man. The guitar feels good, but that D string overtone just… perplexes me so much. haha.
I know you don’t have them anymore but I’m curious if it did it when in a different tuning like half a step down or if that didn’t change anything?
I have a weird theory that the problem has something to do with the resonant frequency of the guitar body and the pitch of the D string.
Even with the strings loosened all the way and tremolo springs removed, I can hit the body with my knuckles and hear a very distinctive ringing sound.
It’s like the frequency of the body is fighting the frequency of the open D string and some bizarre harmonic is the result.
I’m probably way off but literally nothing else makes sense and even though it’s not nearly as pronounced as in this video, I can’t UN hear it.
@@FastRedPonyCar tuning a half step low changed the overtone to a 7th instead of an octave. So it was arguably more musical in standard… but the word musical I’m using lightly haha.
Sounds like a resonance issue. Curious if the sound would have went away if the D string was downtuned to something else. Could be wrong of course, but I don't think it is a workmanship or QC issue per say. Seems like just parts resonating with each other in an unpleasant way.
I tuned it a whole step lower and the resulting “clang” was a minor second instead of an octave
So, is this issue still prevalent in current releases?
good question. Michael, the president of schecter, never reached out to let me know that he found one that doesn’t have the issue. So I don’t know 🫨
I get this on a bunch of my guitars (mostly high end Japanese stuff) usually on the G string and just assumed it was me creating a harmonic with my palm
Did you take the pickups out? Is there a spring vibrating? well nvm, those guitars are gone
Schecter took the pups out and even put foam under them. Didn’t help. Put in noiseless springs. Springs weren’t the issue either.
I'm 99% sure that is the nut cut too low on the D-string and its hitting the first fret, with the assumption that the neck has next to no relief (which for this style of guitar should be normal) Was it only on the open D?
Apparently two of the USA custom shop luthiers worked on both the 6 and 7 models. I feel like this would have been the first thing they checked.
@@Plant_Based_Riffs If it was a spring issue/ rattling the frequency of that specific note would have set it off surely. Like, if you played the 5th fret A string you would hear the rattle again. I think it was the nut and the first fret. Could have been a high first fret, had the same issue on an Ibanez AZ, after the nut was replaced and cut correctly it went. Annoying as hell for you that it wasn't fixed, looks like a killer guitar!
how you recommend a strat shape body with that bad bolt-on joint as a first guitar? don't get me wrong it's not a bad guitar for what it is ( a modern strat) but first pro guitar? nah so many better options
Okay, what S type body with a gotoh 510 bridge is better in the same price range? 🤔
@@Plant_Based_Riffs in 1k range LTD guitars are so much better, neck tru, brand pickup locking tuner stainless frets ...Charvel dk pro mod is another good option for modern strat with better joint, but it's me I hate bolt-on guitars
Try a completely different brand of bridge and saddle tailpiece.
This happened to me on my KM-6 MKIII artist when I put a set of ernie ball cobalts on it. I’d get the same exact overtone except this time on the lowest three strings.
crazy. It bothers me so much haha 😆 I’m pleased to report the lack of overtones in all my other guitars.
@@Plant_Based_Riffs Yeah super annoying, it luckily went away after changing strings. I had major QC issues with 3 synyster gates signatures, the studs for the floyd rose were lose on all of the guitars causing major tuning instability. Schecter was really cool though and exchanged the guitars until i gave up and decided to return the last one for a KM-6 which was flawless
@@swarmer5 I got a KM-7 III Artist recently and it has a very metallic acoustic tone, enough to be audible in the amplified tone. Kinda similar to what Jared has experienced with these AM models but it doesn't cause any overtones, just more of a metallic clank. I practice acoustically a fair bit in the evenings so it's a bit annoying when the acoustic tone is worse than any of my other guitars (that are all significantly cheaper models). Seems to be most noticeable on the low B & E strings.
I've put it down to the brass block in the back, and the stock Ernie Ball strings. Always found Ernie Balls to have a bit more of a metallic snappy tone. The guitar is with a tech currently, will see if they can find the cause. I was speaking to another luthier recently about doing a pickup swap on the KM-7 if I'm going to keep it (replacing the bridge pickup for a Modern, the KM Fluence seems to compress easily and doesn't have the chunky growl that I would like). That luthier told me he'd been given a set of brass ferrules to play around with and apparently fitting them to a guitar made a huge difference to the acoustic tone. So it wouldn't surprise me if the brass block in the KMs has an effect. Not sure how easy it will be to replace with normal string through ferrules (usually zinc I believe). The tech is gonna have a look for me and try and work out if that would change things. He's also gonna put on some D'addarios to see if that will help a bit.
@@dreammachine86 Hmm that’s weird, I don’t have any metallic overtones on mine. As for the pickups, the KM voicing has a lot of low mid growl to my ears and sounds very chunky yet clear. The other voicing sounds even clearer but you lose some bottom end and gain alot of high end.
I’m pretty sure a string change would fix the metallic clunk you’re hearing if not there could be something wrong with the guitar. I do have alot of above the nut string noise though but I use a fretwrap to kill the noise.
The fact we don’t know what’s causing this is itching my brain so bad😭😭😭
haha saaaame. But as the bard once said: in the end 🎶 it doesn’t even maaaatteeeerrrr🎶 -Lincoln Park
Is this model a problem with all manufactured at all?
My experience was 100% of the time, but I have a lot of people reach out to me and say theirs is fine. Others say they have the same problem. So it's hard to know
I’ve gotten some resonance mostly with g strings (on an Ibanez and a Gibson).
I’d recommend playing acoustically when chasing it down. Each time it seemed to come from inside one of the pickups in a single pole piece at a given note. I found that I could drop the pickup height until it stopped. Then I dropped the other pickup to get a balanced output from each. This worked each time.
My thought is that the pole piece is reacting too strongly with the string at its resonance frequency so getting distance between the two keeps it from getting out of control.
Tried with truss rod resonance?
Good question. I mean,… I adjusted the truss rod when I got the guitars, my tech did as well I’m sure when he set it up, and surely schecter did too… but it’s not on the list. so 🤷🏼♂️
@@Plant_Based_Riffs honestly if the sound affects a single string, both plugged and unplugged, there are not many factors implied. Truss rod, nut, saddle and springs. Could eventually be a resonance made by one of the parts of the electronic cavity, at times switches or pots may cause this problem too. Not very often, but definitely seen in happen. Easy fix, but you gotta find the problem first, which is the painful part
so... theres any way to fix that problem?
Apparently not 🤷🏼♂️
Some timestamps would've been nice
I need to add them. I just literally haven’t had the time. 😂
I have added the time stamps! Thank you for the push haha.
@@Plant_Based_Riffs glad you added them bro
"we gotta cut corners somewhere" umm it's a 1500 euros guitar
exactly. Not expecting US custom shop quality for only 1500 bucks.
Unless you mean that’s too much to spend on a guitar that cuts corners, in which case, fair point. That’s a lot of money, but you’d be hard pressed to find a guitar that doesn’t have some concessions made at 1500 price point. Even my beloved strandberg boden ($1399 ish) has some flaws. All guitars should be purchased with a return policy from anywhere. It’s up to the individual what their tolerance is for a bad guitar. 🤷🏼♂️
@@Plant_Based_Riffs My apologies for no being clear, I meant to say that a guitar that costs 1500 euros is expected to go through some kind of quality inspection before shipping. This happened twice, which i find unacceptable as a customer, i do agree that the after sales experience was good for you although they already knew that you're a youtuber... (well that kinda makes them look even worse in my eyes now that i think of it). In my opinion it's not just a flaw, it makes it unplayable. I commented because I was thinking of buying a 7-string Schecter while facing challenges with money saving, as I have a family and a day job. Thanks for this video it made me think twice :)
i recently got a schecter that was "brand new from the factory" i paid £1300 and the condition was horrendous. it had dents and dings all over the neck and fretboard. the freboard had glue, grime and looked drier than -comment removed by youtube-, the 7th string was basically unusable, and every note after the 12th wouldnt play because of high frets and was extremly scratchy. not going to bother trying another schecter again. i got my esp for £350 less and its 100x better
Dang man, that really blows. Did you buy it from a dealer, or perhaps on reverb or ebay? Or straight from Schecter’s website?
@@Plant_Based_Riffs I got it "new" from one of the uk's biggest dealers, they said it mustve been a factory defect and they would return it, so they arranged a courier and collected it back from me, not sure how true that is tho
@@omgdisfunny4852 huh weird. Well, I hope all you’re out is some time and energy on the process. I’m glad they’re getting it fixed up somehow. Are you exchanging it or just returning?
Import guitars being imports guitars. You may end up with magnificent 200 usd instruments as well as garbage near 2k ones. That's the deal
@@taxo for sure. No shade on import guitars - they’re a valuable part of the guitar economy and putting tools in the hands of a huge number of players. But the AM6 and AM7 definitely feel like they were cut by a CNC, as the beveling and edges are all pretty square. A little more time sanding would likely make the guitar feel like a million bucks.
Those new reaper elite models that are coming out soon look about as secksi of a guitar ive ever seen. Have you seen them, they have 6 and 7 string models wenge necks. That is a fresh breathe of air from schecter since the majority of their guitars are just way too flashy amd gaudy for my liking. Although the deal break for me are those crazy complicated confusing line fret markers. I could do without the special fret markers and rather just use regular staggered dots. Have yet to see someone with one in hand and a live review so far. Im an ibanez prestige player but was looking at the reaper and reaper elite for their sustainiacs and specs. But Im now wondering if schecter guitars all have some major flaws like this though. A string clang to that extent would be immediately to shelf the guitar and play my ibanez. Unfortunate that there isnt an explanation for the clanging. It is obviouisly something defective, I was thinking its a nut cut issie but I guess not huh.
ooh I’ll have to check out these reaper elites! If it serves as any comfort, I’ve played several of my students’ schecters over the past few weeks and handed them back saying “mhmm… that’s a sick guitar.” 😂 I enjoy them! But generally, It’s not the brand, it’s the guitar. It always has been. I can play two different guitars that are the same model, one sucks, and one’s perfect. I just got really unlucky I think.
@@Plant_Based_Riffs theres a lot of truth in what you are saying but I mostly disagree. Ive played 3 gibson gothic sgs 1 of which i owned, the necks and playability were too similar to say they were different guitars only that needed to be set up with similar action. Ive played on a few JS prestige ibanezes 1 of which I own and other than the action height they were also all surprisingly so similar in feel and playability. But definitely small nuances in the wear of my frets where specific wear in the frets where i bend the most will end up having a slight overtone sort of played into the neck. But i find that you can get the same build in a guitar and if they are expertly crafted you can play and wear them into and adjust them to being practically the same necks. But I agree other than the highest quality crafted models ive owned, necks tend to have very nuanced varying feel. But this is just my experience with these two brands.
@@monitorlizard9971 As a teacher, I play a lot of squier strats when students bring them in haha. It’s astonishing the weight difference between some of them. But we’re talking pretty much bottom of the barrel starter guitars, so thats not where you’re going to find consistency haha. 😂
@@Plant_Based_Riffs youre right. Im probably wrong. Ive only owned prestige and usa models though. They all seem good enough where its hard to complain about the subtle differences. The weight differences in guitars of the same model is very striking. Ive seen some schecters online of the same model that are sub 7 lbs and then find the same model and its almost 9 lbs. I wonder how much paint and laquer adds to this variance. I believe most guitars are still hand painted and finished. If 1 painter holds the hplv nozzle close to the guitar while spraying or varnishing, it will have a much thicker coat than if the painter were to hold it further away. Idk.
@@monitorlizard9971 It’s crazy. These little blocks of wood - - why are we so ensnared by them all 😂😂 Guitars are great, weird little tools. But yeah it’s still amazing how consistent some brands are. Like PRS… I can pick up a PRS core model and know that it’ll have a perfect neck, great fretwork, etc. But these aren’t cheap, so it makes sense.
*life of a guitarist*
"I swear I wash my clothes, guys."
I can't believe Schecter can't find the problem, is not rocket science
Sometimes problems are elusive. If it was an Aristides (since it’s not made of wood) it would be weird that there’s no explanation or ease of diagnosing. But as long as there’s tree in it, there’s uncertaintree 🥁 🥁 I’ll see myself out. 🥴
Sucks that with all the hype with this guitar it holds a lot of issues. Schecter get your shit together
I only had the one issue 🤷🏼♂️ generally they are worth the hype. I just rolled the imported dice and got served. haha.
@@Plant_Based_Riffs a lot of tuning issues, along with the string noise. But yours had a fret issue which is my first time hearing. So small things keep piling up, not a good look for schecter and I love them
@@_iiconic_ I actually forgot about the tall fret haha. You’re right. The model still has potential with some better QC.
first?
Take a shower ya don't got to lie to kick it just kidding
boooooo basswood. booooooo Ibanez. boooooo anything other than MAHOGANY. TONE WOOD FOR LIFE!!!!
Haha basswood is a well balanced tone wood :) I love me some basswood in a guitar.
Yeah good customer service is cool. Know what's even cooler? Descent guitars lol schecter is a joke. I don't know if Gibson has customer service at all and I don't care. Literally gios are way better and they're $200 so what are you after buying a schecter?
Well, I have ordered 6 guitars this year and returned 5 of them: HB Amarok-7, 2*Ibanez RGIB21, Ibanez RGD61ALA, LTD H3-1000, Ibanez RG631ALF. All of them had either broken parts/electrical components or had problems with intonation, visual quality and so on. Few more guitars in such state I will just start making my own...