A bit more more whining, re: ES string ground fuses (they blow)

[3Fors]

2012 314ce. I'm a big fan of (almost) everything about the guitar - a real workhorse, live or in studio. Sweet tone, great tuning stability, excellent workmanship - all good. But there's one thing that pisses me off.

In a dry winter climate (U.S., New Hampshire), with the associated static electricity that goes along with it, the ES-system string ground fuses blow. And I am convinced that it's caused by static electricity - not the standard-issue excuse of "you must be playing out at venues with marginal grounding" etc. It's happened on my guitar twice this winter, and the latest time it's occurred within a month-long hiatus of not playing out (meaning it's quite apparently not venue-related - unless my studio power is suspect, which I don't buy).

I understand why they designed the fuse in to the ES system; for safety against shock in badly-grounded situations and all that. Not a problem. But my issue is that I seemingly only have 2 choices:
- Continue to pay the ridiculous price from taylorware.com, for a 2-pack of specialized 10mA fuses. Nice profit margin...
- Defeat the fuse internally with a wire, which I have no interest in doing.

I've seen similar posts on this subject - but I still had to chime in. Taylor support doesn't want to acknowledge that static can blow the ES fuse, - but I beg to differ...

$

[Earl]

I don't know that much about the Taylor fuse system, but in theory:   Static electricity is very high voltage (think water pressure in psi) but very low current (think gallons per minute).  Static electricity often has 100,000 Volts or more, but almost zero current.  An electric chair has relatively low voltage (~400 V) but with very high currents, which is why they are deadly. 

It should take high currents to heat up and blow a fuse than would normally occur with static electricity, but high voltage could conceivably fry something in the fuse.  I won't argue with your experience.  Something does not seem right here.

[jerrytubes]

Hmmm.  All I can say is, life time warranty if you're the original owner.  Problem with this situation is, anyone trying to fix it would have to have it occur in their presence, and that might be hard to duplicate.

Do you have an authorized Taylor dealer near you?

[MikeB]

I would think you've got something wrong with the circuitry, definitely bring it in for a checkup.   Plenty of static here (but less this year with a whole house humidifier) and no fuse issues.

[3Fors]

Um, err, well, let's see..
Oh sorry, I was temporarily distracted by Jerry's thumbnail photo....

As far as a local Taylor dealer: The 'guitar tech' in my area that I took it to the first time (whose name I got from Taylor support btw) was only interested in arguing with me about how the audible hiss emanating from my Taylor when plugged in couldn't possibly be the fuse (said it was quieter than most). He couldn't even be bothered to pull the fuse and check it with a multimeter. Even though when this occurs, I can stop the hissing at will by touching the 1/4" jack on the endpin, but not by touching the strings. So I verified it with a meter at home (blown fuse), ordered new ones from taylorware, and replaced it. Voila, no more hiss. Until now, a couple months later - I'm back to the same scenario.

I do have the name of another (I think more) reputable luthier/guitar tech, about an hour away, that I may have to consult with if this continues. It's more of an annoyance than anything, now that I know how to fix it - I love the guitar otherwise.