I'm an old hand at stringing the guitar, so I don't think the problem is in my technique. Besides, they sound great apart from the 12th fret thing. (3) I replaced the strings on it a few weeks ago, and bought a brand that I've never tried before, but the salesman assured me that they were quality strings, comparable to the John Pearson's I usually buy. Could it be that the guitar has always done this and I just never noticed it, because I usually just play open chords? Any Takamine owners out there? (2) I just started soloing this summer, so this is the first time that I've actually ventured up around the 12th fret in a hammer-on kind of way. So the neck could be warped, but I don't see visible signs of it. It's been in a cheap case that's not a good fit and even this case has been broken by my kids so I've had to use a wadded-up cloth for neck support.

(1) It's a Takamine, about ten years old, and it's never had a high quality case for a home.

There is a slight noise playing regular notes in this area of the guitar, but not nearly as bad as the hammer-ons, which sound like rattling paper or something. I can work all the way up to the 12th fret, hammering, and the noise begins exactly there at 12. (Hammer-on with an acoustic? Yes, sometimes it's necessary). I'm getting an annoying buzzing sound from my strings at the 12th fret and higher, but mostly with hammer-ons.

Buzzing past 12th fret