19
votes
Accepted
What does 'Setting Up' my guitar actually mean?
The Set-Up your guy is talking about usually involves three points:
Adjusting the truss rod - neck relief
Adjusting the action
Adjusting the intonation
The truss rod is a metal bar of some sort, ...
- 6,763
12
votes
Accepted
New guitar nut when changing to a lighter gauge?
In all the guitars onto which I've put much lighter strings, (dozens, if not more) there's not been a problem. The tension will pretty well keep the strings from rattling round in the slots. Should ...
- 184k
11
votes
What are your steps for setting up a guitar?
Change strings, bring it up to tune, leave it or a couple of days.
Check neck relief, change using truss rod if necessary.
Change action height to preferred, by adjusting bridge/saddles height.
...
- 184k
10
votes
What does 'Setting Up' my guitar actually mean?
The range of what you can do in a "setup" is quite wide. A basic setup can be as simple as adjusting the truss rod and minor adjustments of the action at the nut and bridge. Electrics with movable ...
- 7,341
10
votes
New guitar nut when changing to a lighter gauge?
You don't normally need to worry about the nut slots being a little wide - usually the break angle of the string over the nut plus the tension on the string is sufficient to keep the string in place. ...
- 45.7k
8
votes
Accepted
Connecting multiple instruments into 2 headphones?
You have a few options depending on how much you want to spend and how you might use the equipment in the future.
The ideal product that was invented for just the scenario you described is the ...
- 27k
8
votes
One of the tuning pegs is at the end of its range on my Floyd-Rose guitar, what can I do?
It makes sense for the bridge tuners to be about in the middle of their travel (a couple of turns in from the top is recommended) while the new strings are being tuned using the head machine heads. ...
- 184k
8
votes
Accepted
Upgrading from 0.009 to 0.010 string gauge. Do I have to do a guitar setup?
Upgrading to a slightly heavier string gauge (as you have proposed) will not always necessitate a new set up. Upgrading to a much heaver gauge will increase the likelihood that adjustments will be ...
- 27k
8
votes
Audio Interfaces: How to determine minimum requirements?
Your 'minimum requirements' are "Does it have enough plugs, sockets & knobs to do what I need?"
After that you tend to get what you pay for, but on a logarithmic scale… ie twice as good ...
- 25.3k
7
votes
Accepted
Should I pay to setup a cheap guitar or buy a new one
Why not try it yourself. If the difference between a professional tune up and a new similar guitar is negligible you have little to lose. The experience will be priceless.
Reading your Question again ...
- 645
7
votes
Should my fret be buzzing on my recently bought guitar?
Ahhh the old "it's your faulty playing technique" response from the guitar tech who did the set up. I've heard that one before too - but did not fall for it. You should not have to alter otherwise ...
- 27k
7
votes
A second-hand guitar pitch sounds weird
It appears that the top string has a problem on fret 14. The fretwire is too high. Or - fretwires 12 and 13 are too low. Either way, the string is sounding from 14 when pressed at 12, 13 and 14. ...
- 184k
7
votes
Accepted
Should guitar strings be evenly spaced?
It seems as if some of the strings are coming off the pins at a slight angle. Notice the two E’s and the G string are straight. By loosening the strings, pulling the pins and adjusting the strings to ...
- 22.1k
6
votes
Accepted
Should my fret be buzzing on my recently bought guitar?
While @RockinCowboy's points are all good, in reality you do need to play close to the fret - playing your finger in the middle between frets is not going to work.
Your fingers should all be tight up ...
- 36.7k
6
votes
Truss rod adjustment had no noticable effect
Many folks think it's a rather simple operation of just tightening the nut on the truss rod, but actually it is recommended that the neck be clamped in a jig that causes the neck to be bent backwards ...
- 7,712
6
votes
Floyd Rose in Standard Tuning with .011 gauge strings
Any vibrato is set up as a balance between the strings and the springs. So once that balance is achieved, it shouldn't make much if any difference whether they're .008s or .013s. Obviously the ...
- 184k
5
votes
Accepted
Problem with choosing the right string gauge - switch from medium to extra light?
The short answer is that lighter gauge strings will be easier to play and easier to get clear tone when you fret the notes. Most beginners and even many seasoned guitarist prefer lighter gauge ...
- 27k
5
votes
Does 12-54 to 13-56 gauge change require a re-setup?
Your guitar will tell you the answer. It will respond with action changes, and those may be within your realm of "normal", or they may exceed that and become undesired.
With the lighter (original) ...
- 2,659
5
votes
Should you change the strings on a brand new guitar?
A new set of strings will never be a bad idea - unless it's a couple of hours before a gig or an exam. Replacing like for like should mean the intonation stays as is, but it's always worth checking ...
- 184k
5
votes
Should you change the strings on a brand new guitar?
Is there a benefit to using fresh strings on a guitar that arrived pre-strung out-of-the-box?
At the risk of stating the obvious, it depends if there's a problem with the strings - or if the strings ...
- 45.7k
5
votes
Should you change the strings on a brand new guitar?
It depends
It's not always necessary, but is a good idea if any of the following are true:
The guitar has been sitting in the store for a long time and has been played by many shoppers and its ...
- 53.7k
5
votes
Will lighter strings extend an acoustic guitar's life?
Okay, here's your answer from a luthier. Yes, if you change from .10 gauge to .12 gauge strings, assuming that all strings are thicker in this proportion, then there will be 44% more tension on the ...
- 6,324
5
votes
Accepted
Avoiding small, beginner amp problems
Even a really cheap guitar and cheap amp these days should work consistently, from new. If not, back to the shop! If second hand, you don't know its history - it may have been dropped, have a dry ...
- 184k
5
votes
Truss rod adjustment had no noticable effect
I see now in the comments that the OP has now mentioned a specific, special guitar, and @leftaroundabout has answered with the appropriate information for that guitar. This is answer is applicable to ...
- 6,763
5
votes
Accepted
Best practise for setting up a home studio
I don't like that I have to switch out my guitar every single time I want to play over my amp or audio interface
You might look into getting either an ABY unit or a direct box that has a "thru" ...
- 4,103
5
votes
What are your steps for setting up a guitar?
Depending how far you might want to get into this, there are some books by author-guitar tech Dan Erlewine on guitar maintenance and setup that explain in detail, step by step, along with what tools ...
- 7,712
4
votes
Should I pay to setup a cheap guitar or buy a new one
Eventually you might want to get a better guitar. But your Fender should be easy enough to set up yourself. The two fattest strings are more prone to buzzing because the oscillation pattern of those ...
- 27k
4
votes
Accepted
Is It OK to use smaller gauge strings than those that came from the factory for an electric guitar?
The guitar will need to be fettled after changing strings by more than about 5%. This means the truss rod MAY need adjustment, and the intonation more than likely will too.
About 35 yrs ago, I put ...
- 184k
Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible