set up
set up
All stringed musical instruments need a regular service and set up to make sure that it is playing comfortably, in tune with itself and other musical instruments and is in full working order.
There's more to it than a truss rod adjustment or setting the playing action at the bridge. There is also general maintenance, such as: polishing the frets to remove any tarnish; ensuring the nut slots are cut to the correct gauge and depth and also clear of muck (including pencil lead!); bridge saddles and height adjustment and intonation screws need cleaning to prevent rust build up; so too all screws and nuts need to be tightened.
It is essential that strings are fitted correctly - anchored at the tailpiece / tremolo unit / bridge pins, over the bridge saddle, along the length of the neck, through the nut slots and neatly and uniformly wound around the machine head capstan to ensure tuning stability. Badly fitted strings can lead to tuning issues, string breakages and string bounce in the nut slot.
Other types of stringed musical instrument use different methods for adjustment.
Smaller instruments such as, the mandolin and ukulele, tend not to have truss rods for neck adjustment, so long as the neck and fingerboard are in decent condition adjustments for playability can be made at the bridge / saddle end.
On instruments with no truss rod, if the neck is curved or twisted a repair will be necessary to rectify the problem.
The fingerboard is cleaned and conditioned; sweat, blood and tears polished from the paintwork; electrical components, solder joints and shielding are inspected; and pickups adjusted for output balance and maximum tone.
Once the strings are fitted, they are then tuned and stretched repeatedly to remove elasticity, guaranteeing tuning stability.
Now the intricate adjustments can begin, the truss rod to counter string tension and set relief in the neck, bridge and saddle height tweaked to eliminate fret buzz and each string is intonated to make sure it is in tune with itself and other musical instruments.
Acoustic guitars generally have a one piece saddle inserted into the bridge, which can have material removed to lower action and reshaped to improve downtension at the bridge, improving volume, tone and sustain.
Other bridges include the 'floating' type, held in position, on the soundboard, by string tension alone. These are generally found on arched top instruments, such as jazz guitars and violin family
After a professional set up your guitar should be the best it has ever played, with fresh strings, polished frets, perfect intonation, feeling great right up the neck including at the dusty end. you should notice more sustain and improved tone, a balanced output and new inspiration. Of course you can attempt to set up your own guitar, but when you go to a pro, you get years of experience, the right tools for the right job, a dedicated space and you won't be pulling your hair out attempting to adjust the truss rod with an 'that'll do' hex key.
There's more to it than a truss rod adjustment or setting the playing action at the bridge. There is also general maintenance, such as: polishing the frets to remove any tarnish; ensuring the nut slots are cut to the correct gauge and depth and also clear of muck (including pencil lead!); bridge saddles and height adjustment and intonation screws need cleaning to prevent rust build up; so too all screws and nuts need to be tightened.
The fingerboard is cleaned and conditioned; sweat, blood and tears polished from the paintwork; electrical components, solder joints and shielding need to be inspected; and pickups adjusted for maximum tone.
Strings need to be fitted correctly - anchored at the tailpiece / tremolo unit / bridge pins, over the bridge saddle, along the length of the neck, through the nut slots and neatly and uniformly wound around the machine-head capstan to ensure tuning stability. Badly fitted strings can lead to tuning issues, string breakages and string bounce in the nut slot.
Once the strings are fitted, they are then tuned and stretched repeatedly to remove elasticity, guaranteeing tuning stability.
Now the intricate adjustments can begin with, the truss rod to counter string tension and set relief in the neck, bridge and saddle heights tweaked to eliminate fret buzz and each string is intonated to make sure it is in tune with itself and other musical instruments.
Other types of stringed musical instrument use different methods for adjustment.
Smaller instruments such as, the mandolin and ukulele, tend not to have truss rods for neck adjustment, so long as the neck and fingerboard are in decent condition adjustments for playability can be made at the bridge / saddle end.
On instruments with no truss rod, if the neck is curved or twisted a repair will be necessary to rectify the problem.
Acoustic guitars generally have a one piece saddle inserted into the bridge, which can have material removed to lower action and reshaped to improve downtension at the bridge, improving volume, tone and sustain.
Other bridges include 'floating' ones which are held in position, on the soundboard, by string tension alone. These are generally found on arched top instruments, such as jazz guitars and violin family
After a professional set up your guitar should be the best it has ever played, with fresh strings, polished frets, perfect intonation, feeling great right up the neck including at the dusty end. you should notice more sustain and improved tone, a balanced output and new inspiration. Of course you can attempt to set up your own guitar, but when you go to a pro, you get years of experience, the right tools for the right job, a dedicated space and you won't be pulling your hair out attempting to adjust the truss rod with an 'that'll do' hex key.
Fender Telecaster Build and Sety Up
Acoustic Guitar Set Up
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