I bet you've all picked up a guitar and instantly felt that something was wrong? Was it that "F" barre chord that felt like you needed a hydraulic press to push your fingers down? Or was it that "G" chord that made your fingers feel like they'd done 10 rounds with Mike Tyson?

I'm going to bet it was this little critter that was the root of the problem!

Now... if I may be so bold... I find that 90% of the playability of a guitar ( or not as the case may be! ) is in the top nut...you see mass manufacture dictates that top nuts are generally left artificially high.. the reasons for this are many fold. Firstly leaving the top nut high saves money, that's an extra 10 minutes that the manufacturer has saved in production which relates to more profit for them! Secondly a high top nut can "hide" irregularities in fretwork...this is normally seen in conjunction with a tall bridge as well....its only when you recut the top nut and lower the saddle that you discover the frets are all over the place, this happens a LOT.

Its not just a high top nut that can be a problem, its even worse when its low....buzzing open strings and a wonderful sitar like tone can be evident, great!

So my advice is if you're going to have one job done to your guitar, get the top nut cut properly...your fingers and your guitar will thank you!