-
I study guitar at a university college, and in the autumn of 2018 we had lectures on guitar setup and general maintenance. My Gibson ES was right next to me on the front row, so the technician asked if he could use it as an example - he did the frets and all the other stuff - but not the string height. He might not have bothered because I use a faber locking TOM.
I had been using Elixir's (relatively) new "Optiweb" 10-46 strings up until then, but he put slinkys on it.
Guitar felt good to play, didn't think too much of it.
In mid-late december, I went to my parents' on the other side of the country to spend the holidays and work at the local music shop. I stayed for nearly a month without my ES. While there, I was playing my 90s Epiphone Sheraton, which I had done a good setup on with the Optiweb strings.
Skip forward to when I landed on thursday, and finally got back to my beloved ES - I was mortified to find that I missed playing the Epiphone back at my folks' place, and I found the ES to be comparatively uninspiring to play. Could my beloved, never-ever-going-to-sell, and trustworthy ES fall out of favor???
With no other ideas, I started today with a quadruple espresso using my favorite bean, and sat down to adjust the guitar and go back to the optiwebs. I put some oil in the fretboard, tightened all loose screws and nuts, lowered the bass side strings, and tightened the truss rod ever so slightly, before putting my old favorite strings on.
Yeah, this guitar is it. It's back to being the best guitar I've ever played, and the inspiration after this very minor setup is even greater than what I felt with the sheraton. I never knew that minute details in the setup could make such a difference - especially not strings!
Anyone had similar epiphanies?
-
01-20-2019 10:02 AM
-
Strings are a huge factor. I changed strings on one of my acoustic archtops recently going from monel to bronze and it changed the sound quite a lot. Also going from 9, to 10s, to 11s on my solidbodies had a noticeable impact. Picks are a big factor as well. If then we factor in pickup height etc… yes, it’s my experience too that small adjustments and patience can dramatically alter a guitar’s playability and sound.
That’s why I smile when I read endless discussions about whether Pau Ferro will sound very different from Rosewood on a strat or tele fretboard. The impact of that is truly minuscule compared to the impact of e.g. a good vs sloppy setup.
-
Yes, the small adjustments make all the difference. I just traded for a Reverend Club King 290 ... sort of equivalent to a thinline tele, only larger body, spruce top, 2 x p90 pickups. Maybe 8 years old, had clearly been played little. Not too impressive a player at first. But I've been down this road before ...
Got it home and checked the setup. Has fret sprout. That I can't do. But the extra relief in the neck, that I removed (mostly) in increments. Relief is one of those critical little things. A little too much or too little can affect how easily the guitar plays. I then lowered the bridge on the bass side, slightly raised it on the treble. And got the P90s higher to the strings, with polepieces down.
The feel is already much better, as is the sound. Took it to a local luthier to have the fret sprout taken care of. He'll do a bit of nut filing (something else I'm not skilled enough to do) and most likely take out a touch more relief. When I get it back, it'll be quite different from how I found it. The differences aren't subtle. A proper setup can be the difference between keeping a good guitar or letting it go.
-
Here are some of My observations: Beyond the player, The set up will matter the most, next is Strings,next is the Nut or Bridge, then pick ups or Amp. I see a lot of players wanting to change out pickups a lot never giving the strings a thought in the sound equation or the type of amp they are using. the smaller adjustments make a difference to a small degree. I am about to change my stings on a arch top I have had for 6 months I am changing from flat 12 to round 10 nickel with a wound G, I am doing this because I am seeing which sound the best on this guitar I have tried 10 steel plain G at first{what came with it}, then I put flat 11 on, then the flat 12,and now am going to try the wound 10, after that I will try semi round 10, all to see what sound the best on the guitar. each time I change the strings I have to reset the action some, maybe adjust pickup height and poles. the small adjustments are last. Here is another thing I have noticed many new players don't know what style of frets do to playability or what fret board radius do to playing style or sound. Just my observations
-
Strings are massively important. Anything you are physically touching is very important IMO. Back woods, side woods, blah blah, strings matter more.
-
Everything matters, if your ears are good enough. Hell, Eric Johnson apparently can hear the differences in the screws holding the pickguard onto the Strat. Thankfully my ears aren't that good.
-
You don't actually have to know very much to teach this sort of thing in a college.
-
Aha! Finally the secret to unlocking great tone --- vintage, played-in pickguard screws!
Originally Posted by Cunamara
Your point being? Originally Posted by sgosnell
-
He certainly didn't seem to improve your guitar.
-
Well, I'm sure that can be debated. I won't fault him for my guitar being left unplayed in a flat with the heater on for a month due to the -10C to -15C climate Originally Posted by sgosnell
His course wasn't supposed to be "setting up students' guitars" as much as "teaching students how to take care of their instrument setups over time"!
He's a well-known tech, and he lives off of it - been on tour with well-regarded bands and artists as the road tech and whatnot.
I didn't want the thread to be about him or his work, but one thing is certain: I wouldn't have been so eager and confident in adjusting my ES today if it hadn't been for his tech course
(small but important side note: it's a university college, not a college - it is a bachelor of guitar performance)
edit: I forgot to say, he was using my guitar as an example, and the fret leveling job he did on the spot was superb. Frets haven't been this shiny in years!
-
I've found the 2 most important adjustments to be the truss rod - so that the neck is flat instead of being warped or bowed.
And the string height - so that you have an easy to play guitar.
Together they can make a huge difference in overall playability.
-
For me being a good tech includes asking people how they want their instruments setup, maybe watching them play, etc, cause there are many viable ways to go about it, and what may be hell to one maybe be perfect to another.
Generally, the moment you get one perfectly setup guitar you realize what you've been missing if you were playing on badly setup ones before. I m a big advocate of learning to do setups yourself, if so inclined.
-
Originally Posted by Alter
This above is wisdom wow!!!!!
-
I had a setup done some time back by Gary Brawer's shop in SF. He currently writes a monthly column in GP on guitar repair/mod.
It was a Godin Multiac Nylon and I wanted it set up with low action like an electric.
Somebody mentioned that one of his techs decided that nylons shouldn't be set up that low.
I should have complained -- and I assume had I done so, he'd have done the job over. That part is on me.
Instead, I agreed to a Plek, which, as far as I could tell, made no difference and was a waste of money.
But, I didn't. Later, I took the guitar to Hideo Kamimoto who reset the neck and gave me exactly what I was after.
So, even a well known luthier's shop can make the mistake of thinking *they* know what *your* guitar should be.
To be fair: Gary's shop did some other work for me and some friends -- all of which was fine.
My recommendation, as if anybody asked, would be to read the instructions on the Fender website about how to do a setup. This refers to a standard guitar with ordinary magnetic pickups. Watch a video or two on youtube. Buy the right screwdrivers, Allen wrenches, truss rod wrench (socket or allen) and a metal ruler. If you want to do electronics, you can get a soldering iron, a needlenose pliers that can cut and an alligator clip. A rubber bulb solder remover is nice to have. At some point, you might be forced to get a multimeter. You'll need an accurate tuner.
Unless the guitar has some kind of fundamental flaw, you should be able to do a decent setup yourself. You can't do much damage, other than scratches -- except with the truss rod adjustment.
At least, so this non-expert thinks. Maybe some of the actual experts (Deacon?) will chime in if I'm wrong about any of this.
-
guitar tweaking is an ongoing process...not set it and forget it..things change...just variations in humidity change things
have always said..when it comes to guitars..everything matters..
just the type of pick...and even how new or worn it is determines tone...fingernail length if your a finger picker...its neverending...but so much fun!!!
have to keep paying attention to what the guitar is lettting you know
cheers
Reply With Quote
$8500 - 2010 Moffa Maestro Virtuoso Archtop Black...
Today, 03:35 AM in For Sale