Is my guitar broken?? I need really urgent help with my acoustic guitar

[edgreenmusic]

I am a guitar player of 2 years. I have used the same Yamaha F310 throughout. It is an acoustic guitar. Today, my low E string randomly ‘popped’ and unwinded itself near the bridge pin... more accurately it almost stretched itself out. The change in tension made the string completely loose. When i decided to restring it, i noticed the tuner felt loose, and took some labour to turn. It slipped a few times before getting into tune. After noodling for a bit, i went for a full bend on my B string and it dropped 2 whole tones in tune. This continued on the same string. Is my guitar broken?? It could be placebo but the action felt a bit funny after i restringed too. For context, i am a very ambitious player. I play percussive fingerstyle guitar, and i bend excessively. I do all my bends on the B string generally. I am in need of urgent advice as i practice non stop and do not want to take a break from my passion. All support is very appreciated.

Edited August 15, 2020 by edgreenmusic

[Dad3353]

How are you stringing up these strings..? I presume there are bridge pins holding the string in place..? You'll notice that there's a groove in these pins. The idea is to feed the ball down through the bridge hole, then slide the pin down with the string in that groove. Before pushing the pin down hard, pull the string back up, so that the ball comes up between the pin and the bridge. It can't come any further, of course, so the pin may now be pushed firmly down (without undue force; it's not needed...), whilst maintaining tension on the string. As the string is tuned up to pitch, the ball wedges the pin in place; the more tension, the more the pin (and, of course, the string...) are held firm.
Sometimes, in stringing up, the ball remains under the pin; if that happens, string tension can, and often does, pop the pin up, and tuning is lost. The pin may even pop out completely (to be lost forever on a dark stage..!).
Does any of this ring a bell..? Maybe a photo of the bridge and pin could shed some light..? 

[edgreenmusic]

6 minutes ago, Dad3353 said:

How are you stringing up these strings..? I presume there are bridge pins holding the string in place..? You'll notice that there's a groove in these pins. The idea is to feed the ball down through the bridge hole, then slide the pin down with the string in that groove. Before pushing the pin down hard, pull the string back up, so that the ball comes up between the pin and the bridge. It can't come any further, of course, so the pin may now be pushed firmly down (without undue force; it's not needed...), whilst maintaining tension on the string. As the string is tuned up to pitch, the ball wedges the pin in place; the more tension, the more the pin (and, of course, the string...) are held firm.
Sometimes, in stringing up, the ball remains under the pin; if that happens, string tension can, and often does, pop the pin up, and tuning is lost. The pin may even pop out completely (to be lost forever on a dark stage..!).
Does any of this ring a bell..? Maybe a photo of the bridge and pin could shed some light..? 

Thank you for your reply! I do usually aim to put my strings in like this, yes. Often, restringing is not a difficult ordeal and may only take -5 minutes. Admittedly, though, i dont think i did pull up much while putting in the new E string as i was very panicky at the time. It might also be useful to note that my D string’s bridge pin has always been much higher than the others, but im yet to have any problems with it, luckily. Im just very uncertain about why my B string is so temperamental at the moment. I’m worried that i may have caused some permanent damage to the head of my guitar

[edgreenmusic]

I dont know if this helps clear anything up but i just tried bending the B string again and though it does lose tune it isnt as drastic as before

[Dad3353]

The low 'E' pin is a bit high, too. Probably nothing; maybe the holes have been reamed differently (although that would surprise me of a Yamaha...). The holes are actually tapered. Next time you re-string, try swapping the 'D' pin for the high 'E', for instance..?

As for the tuners, they're very rarely an issue, with any guitar. Most of the time it's just a question of how to put the strings on. Here's what we do at our house...
I'll assume that the bridge pin is now firmly holding the ball end in place, as described above ^^. I thread the string through the hole in the tuner. For the skinnier strings, I loop around and pass through the same hole again. In doing this, I keep some slack in the string, enough to hold it about an inch or so above the fretboard. I'll wind the tuner, keeping the string taut above the fretboard until it's settled into the nut slot. My first turn, I'll guide the string to below the tuner hole. The next turns I'll guide progressively up the tuner post. There should be about three or four turns, if the amount of slack has been guessed correctly. Repeat for the other strings.
Once all the strings are fitted, I'll tune up to pitch (I start with the 'A', then tune 'em all relative to that...). Once they're all up to pitch, I'll seize each string at its mid-point, and gently lift the guitar up, solely by the string. There's no fear of the string breaking in doing this; it settles them and tightens up any slack anywhere, just by the guitar's own weight. Once I've done this for each string, I'll tune up again, more precisely. This way, new strings are pretty much bedded in from the outset. Maybe a tweak or so the next day, but all will be stable from then on, until the strings wear out through aging or intensive playing.
If there's anything not clear in my description, feel free to ask for more. If you have your own method that suits you, carry on, of course..! 

[edgreenmusic]

I will definitely check next time :) i had never thought about the pins being allocated for different strings. I have restringed my low E as you have described and for now everything seems okay! Thank you ever so much i think that my B string lost tune so quickly as i didnt have the low E on, and there was very different tension on the guitar! Thank you again

[Dad3353]