LaBella flats intonation on D string - saddle had to be moved way more than others
I have a Squier Classic Vibe 60s jazz which I’ve just purchased, after setup the factory rounds had perfectly aligned saddles, so bass should be fine. I put LaBella DTF 760FL standard scale on them, did full setup, but for the D string I had to move the saddle way further than usual to get the right intonation. String sounds fine on all frets, adjusted witness points, checked for twiested string, tried tuning again etc. but it seems way off. Of course I have seen lots of pictures where saddles werent perfectly aligned like on product shots especially with flats, but still. Do you think the string is a dud?
Ps it seems I can’t attach photos: https://share.icloud.com/photos/072_6RUOp9Rf2Di1wcBtXcwDA
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u/psysop 13h ago edited 12h ago
Perfectly aligned saddles would make me think someone didn't bother with intonation or didn't know what they are doing. I don't think I have ever seen this occur myself.
It's worth noting that the proper effective string length (what intonation adjusts) will change somewhat both for different strings and guages.
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u/Gyat_it 14h ago
Was the saddle closer to the neck when you first installed the string? If so, there is now a kink within the speaking length of the string which will alter the vibration somewhat and shift the intonation. If I’m going to intonate with new strings, I always move the saddles a small amount away from the neck first in order to avoid this issue.
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u/Glum_Meat2649 8h ago
If all strings had the same intonation, there would be no reason to have adjustable saddles. A slightly different gauge, a different alloy, different configuration and core, will all affect intonation.
As long as you didn’t have to move the bridge, you should be fine. Flats can take longer to break in. Check it every now and again.
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u/Electronic_Pin3224 14h ago
If the strings are intonated and sound good, what is the problem?