String tension- WTF? ES355 / Gretsch

[mixsit]

I've played a 355 for ever. But for accoustic, not much else really.
I recently picked up a used Gretsch G5120, set it up with my normal SkinnyTopHeavyBottom's. But I'm surprised how much lighter they feel on this guitar (more so the lower wound strings I guess. I thought it would just be that the Gretsch would have a shorter scale, and it does, but it turns out the diff is less than a quarter inch.
So I guess that little bit of scale has to be about all there is to it right? Are there other things at play?
Next stop ..12--56

 

[aaronaycox]

There could be several factors at play. If I am playing electric I use an ES335. The setup is where the difference is made. How is the saddle set? How is the neck, and is it set properly? Is there enough relief in the neck? Strings, and string guage make a difference also.

Have the 335 set up professionally and you should find a guitar that plays as good as anything else on the market.

To make my point; I own an OLP (Music Man Axxis copy) that I had set up by my luthier. That guitar plays better than most of my other high end solid bodies. I swapped out the pick ups and now I have a guitar that sounds and plays like a dream.