New Shawn Lane Sig owner, praises and questions!

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Speedyone
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07 May 2022 05:21

Hello, this is my first post as a Shawn Lane Signature Model owner!

First, the praises of this guitar, then, questions I have.

Praises:

The craftsmanship truly is exquisite!
The fretwork is wonderful.
The extremely light weight alder body is great for my back, and the natural wood color is lovely.
The trem system is THE BEST I have ever used. It is amazing that it stays in tune so well WITHOUT a locking nut!
The neck is a joy; the perfect width and thickness, and it feels wonderful to hold.
The action truly is unbelievably low, and allows for effortless legato  playing.

Now, my questions/observations:

1. Much to my dismay, the high E string sits MUCH too close to the edge of the fretboard. As a result, it is nearly impossible to play sweeps/arpeggios with the high E, as it pushes right off the fretboard. I have played nearly 40 years, and never have I experienced this problem on ANY other guitar. I did not want to believe that my technique could be the problem, so I asked other Shawn Lane Sig owners if they had the same issue. Much to my surprise, they ALL did. Everyone I talked to had the same problem!

Even the virtuoso guitarist Marshall Harrison told me that he had the same problem with his Shawn Lane guitars.

If you do not know him, here is a video:

https://youtu.be/CfEJ-Rc0abo

I tried different string gauges just to see if it would lessen this problem. Much to my dismay, it does not.

Sweep picking is integral to my playing, and if I cannot do this with my amazing new guitar, I would have to sell it.

:(

My questions then are this:

Is Patrice aware of this perceived “flaw”?
Can ANYTHING be done about this, to move the high E further away from the edge of the fretboard? For example, slightly widening  the neck pocket, and shifting the neck very slightly to make the Low E closer to the edge of the fretboard and the high E further away?

Would this void the warranty?

This guitar is for me, PERFECT in every other regard.

Thanks everyone for reading, and I hope there is a solution to my problem.
marcwormjim
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08 May 2022 21:43

With any other guitar, you could just shift the nut over a little bit. But Vigier installs a post for the nut to sit on, for the sake of both consistent installation on the production line and ease of replaceability. So you may have to tweak the neck in the pocket as you would with any other strat (no widening necessary - Just unscrew the neck bolts until you can torque the neck to the angle you want, then hold it there while you drive the bolts back in). Note that doing this will likely void any warranty you may have. Alternatively, you could have a new nut cut to your preferred spacing; which Vigier is more likely to endorse.

For the record, neither of the two SLs I’ve owned had this “issue” (or any other defect requiring warranty service) - But then again, you and I likely play with different techniques. I do feel your pain, though - I had a different brand of guitar that was perfect in most ways, except for the high e falling off the board (which I fixed by shifting the neck and nut). 

It sounds like Shawn just preferred the high E closer to the edge than you do (Note that Shawn avoided sweep shapes because he had his own crazy arpeggios and patterns he invented). I know Holdsworth’s signature guitars specified the high E be moved in away from the edge, because this issue of yours was a big pet peeve of his.
carlos
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01 Jun 2022 00:45

I have an SL too and find the E sits perfectly fine where it is but to each their own. You can always try shifting the neck slightly? Loosen the screws a little bit and push down on the neck from a playing position. This - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Sj9OkMYkg4
VV1977
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02 Jun 2022 09:37

I have an 2019 SL which has spoiled me rotten as far as playability goes since I've never had a guitar which plays as well. Initially I experienced the the same problem when playing it, that is the pushing the high e over the edge on the fretboard.
From the photos of other SL's I've seen online they all seem to have the high e placed quite close to the edge of the fretboard as well.
It is however something I got used to fairly quickly, mainly by playing 2 string legato runs on the e and b string up and down the neck. With the low action you can focus on applying lighter touch, reducing the finger movement when playing (having the fingertips closer to the strings when you you are not pressing the note)  as well as pressing the string at a straighter vertical angle when pressing the note. For me this has improved my playing technique with the left hand being more relaxed and reducing up and down finger movement. So I really consider this aspect of the guitar a benefit for the overall playability.
I would definitely recommend playing the guitar more and trying to get used to the string placement before considering modification on the neck.
best regards
V
 

 
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Speedyone
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09 Jun 2022 17:44

Yea I 
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Speedyone
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09 Jun 2022 17:47

Very frustrating…I have no text box to type a post in…maybe an international issue? Anyhow, the frets are filed at a very sharp angle. I am just going to refret the guitar, and then it WILL be perfect! I DID have the neck moved slightly, and now, the high E is not so close to the edge. The guitar really is amazing.
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