Comment

Comment by Fomhorach on April 25, 2016 at 7:54pm

Look for a crack in the soundboard under the saddle, the saddle sitting high on the soundboard under the high strings or loose materials on the bridge point of contact with the strings (this should be clean and able to hold the strings at a fixed point).

We can only make wild guesses at what went wrong without more info.
If the soundboard is too thick or loose or hindered by contact with something it will affect the sound.
Something else to think about, cbg's are rough sounding instruments by design. They are not as bright sounding or tonally enriched as guitars with 200 years of design behind them. Don't compare them to normal guitars.

Comment by JL on April 21, 2016 at 11:54pm

pictures would help, I've never had a problem with full contact between the lid and the box or neck, but I've had PLEANTY of nut and bridge issues with getting the sound right.

Comment by darryl kernaghan on April 21, 2016 at 12:52pm

just addressing the glued lid problem,you can still remove it with a bit of care,just use a hair dryer,heat it gently,and gradually slide a scraper or thin knife through the joint,you don't need to re buy a box

Comment by jeffrey ross on April 21, 2016 at 9:37am

I actually glue my necks to the lid on most guitars. It has never dulled the sound like you describe. Check the break angle of the strings coming from the tuner posts over the nut. if the strings are too flat that could cause strange sounds. Pics would likely help the more experienced builders here try to resolve the issue.

 

Comment by Murdoc_420 on April 21, 2016 at 7:58am

Hard to say without pics. Glueing the lid to the box shouldn't dull the sound.

 Is the top of the box touching the neck? My first was like that, I channeled out a little bit of the neck so the lid could vibrate and it was instantly twice as loud.