3rd string (E) sounds too high on the 12th fret. Do I need a compensated bridge?

Ukebyo

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My tenor ukulele has intonation problems on one string only.
I checked the fret positions with Stewmac's fret calculator and all frets seem to be exactly in right places.
When I play chords up the neck they don't sound quite good so today
I had an electronic tuner and checked the 12th fret.
G E and A were fine but 12th fret C jumps up quite much.

The bridge is straight and the nut is filed so that all strings touch the edge of the nut. Bridge heights are ok.
Any advice friends?
 
It would be worth checking the C string (for pitch) along the length of the fret board. I don’t play Tenor, just Soprano normally and sometimes Concert. My Soprano’s have been ‘good enough’ without a compensated saddle but I wouldn’t expect a Tenor to be.

(Ref Data. Strings rest on a saddle and the saddle fits into the Bridge. String height at the 12th fret should be under 3mm, I aim for 2.75mm.)
 
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Pretty common to have untrue strings. They can be defective to begin with (inconsistent diameter) or wear that way from playing. I'd go through a few C strings before messing with the saddle. With that said, none of my tenors have a compensated saddle and intonation is normally fine at the octave, save for the occasional bad string.
 
Different people have different tolerances for intonation by ear. If it sounds bad to you, you should certainly fix it. It's common for a thicker string (such as your C) to need a longer speaking length (i.e. the point at which it crosses the saddle, called the witness point, is further back). As others have mentioned though, it's also possible you just got a wonky string. Uke strings seem to be out of whack more commonly than other instrument strings, probably on account of the short scale lengths for ukuleles which magnifies any defect. If a new string doesn't fix it, you can either buy a premade compensated saddle and cut it to the correct height for your action preference, or just file the saddle you have if it has enough meat front-to-back to compensate that string.
 
My tenor ukulele has intonation problems on one string only.
I checked the fret positions with Stewmac's fret calculator and all frets seem to be exactly in right places.
When I play chords up the neck they don't sound quite good so today
I had an electronic tuner and checked the 12th fret.
G E and A were fine but 12th fret C jumps up quite much.

The bridge is straight and the nut is filed so that all strings touch the edge of the nut. Bridge heights are ok.
Any advice friends?

Is this a new instrument that has always been like this or is it a new problem that has occurred after changing strings?

If your going as far as using the Stewmac fret position calculator (which I do use), what you should realise is that the first things you check for are the positions of the nut and the saddle. That's where the likely error really is. Error in the frets, which is unusual will see errors for the one fret that may be wrong which leads to the next matter. When using a tuner to check/test for intonation errors you need to check for errors all the way up and down the fretboard. Testing the 12th fret only, is a common mistake that's made by many people and it doesn't really tell you that much at all. It may tell you that you have an error but provides you will no information at all as to where the error is.
 
Thanks you all,

I'll have to test different strings with it before making any dramatic changes.
The strings are original (Worth) and may be dirty but the problem has been there from last Aprile when I got the instrument.
You can hear it on this video when I go up the neck.
https://youtu.be/_0eI3QObXsk
 
I watched and listened . I have old ears , I could not hear the problem . I thought the uke sounded great .
 
Thanks you all,

I'll have to test different strings with it before making any dramatic changes.
The strings are original (Worth) and may be dirty but the problem has been there from last Aprile when I got the instrument.
You can hear it on this video when I go up the neck.
https://youtu.be/_0eI3QObXsk

Nice tune and great playing. I cannot hear anything out of tune though I am used to my ukes that really have bad intonation. But if it hurts your ear try thicker strings or change saddle compensation. I changed saddle height on one of my ukes and that changed intonation as well.
 
If your being fussy, and I know how you feel, then your going to have to be very precise, and personally I would try a new set of strings first.
If you really want to know what's going on with your intonation, then what you need to do is to fully map out the intonation on each string at each fret up the fretboard to produce a map that will give you full information.
Just testing the intonation at the 12th fret does not provide enough information to really know what's going on, despite some people who should know better, claiming that it does.
 
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