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Why Does My Guitar Need To Be Set Up? All I Did Was Change Strings?

Why Does My Guitar Need To Be Set Up? All I Did Was Change Strings?

Why Do I Need A Guitar Set Up?

image results for a custom shop semi-hollow body guitar from Haywire Custom Shop

No, of course not!  We offer free repair evaluations at the Haywire Custom Guitars-Custom Shop.  Because, electronics need to be accessed to troubleshoot a problem, as a result, we need to examine an instrument internally for structural issues.  It won’t cost you. Need a Guitar Set Up?  We’ll let you know.

Since, there’s nothing fun about playing guitar with a poor Guitar Set Up  therefore we’ll take care of it.  First of all, if the strings hurt your fingers, it won’t be comfortable.  If there’s buzzing, you can’t play with others very well   A bad set up is one of the key reasons new players give up playing guitar. Don’t give up!  Because, there is lots that can be done. That is why there are Setups!

   

Why does my guitar need to be set up?

When you buy a new car don’t you need to adjust a car’s seat, mirrors and seat belts?  A guitar is like any other instrument will need several adjustments too. If it’s brand new it will need adjustments and a Guitar Set Up,  for sure!  A Guitar Set Up? It addresses the instrument’s play-ability and  adjusting many areas to give the guitar a broken in familiar feeling of sheer comfort that makes you want to play it all day!  It’s simply an extension of YOU, the musician. You want it in top shape!

All I Did Was Change Strings?

Even a simple thing such as changing your strings or gauge can alter the guitar’s play-ability, so it may just need a quick tweak. Find a great old guitar at a garage sale or a hand me down from a family member?  We’ll tweak it to make sure it’s playing as well as it possibly can. If you’re purchasing a guitar from us, we’re happy to set up your instrument exactly the way you’d like. If you’re not sure, we can get you going in the right direction and ask a few questions and get it set up well for your comfort and style.

We’ll check the: neck relief, nut slot depth and height of the nut, saddle height, intonation, pickup height on electrics, loose and rattling hardware and tighten it back up.

A Guitar Setup-Neck

Your neck setup must feel comfortable and consistent all the way up the neck for you to get comfortable with your best playing. You absolutely need to be pleased, surprised and very comfortable with the feel, action and performance of your instrument setup.  Are you thrilled with it?  You should be.  Find out what you’re missing and go get a great setup for your guitar to match your style,playing comfort and level of expertise.

How We Set Up a Guitar at Haywire Custom Guitars

The truss rod is the first item we look at. If it’s bowed or humped it gets straightened. Next is the string margins all the way from the head stock area to the last fret. Are margins correct on both “E” strings. Do you have the same amount of space from the strings to the edge of the fret board? If not we correct it. Is the nut cut properly? Are the strings too high at the first fret? If so, it makes for action too high and hard playing. We’ll re-cut the nut. Are the string slots in the nut cut too low allowing the strings to “buzz” at the first fret when forming open chords? We’ll fix that too.

After Checking the Neck Alignment on Your Guitar…

The next step is to add your favorite strings and set the action as low as possible. Why, because it can always go up without any buzz if it plays great “low”. If low action cannot be achieved then we’ll level the frets. That will get it super low.

However once frets get leveled they must be crowned and then most importantly, polished. They need to be smooth for perfect glass-like string bending. At this point we can set the string heights and action. Why? Simply because in a great guitar setup, all strings must be the same distance from the top of each fret underneath and the action must be “custom fit” to the player. Next, the guitar is tuned and the intonation is checked and adjusted. Only after all of these operations have been performed in the exact and correct order can we now attempt a trial play and test for comfort, tone, overall in-tune and no buzz playing.

 

image results of Rick Mariner CEO of Haywire Custom Guitars, performing a Guitar Set Up

Need a Guitar Set Up? Get one here!

Ordering From Haywire Custom Guitars

If you would like to order this or any other custom guitar, please contact us and we will be happy to discuss your guitar needs.

About the Author:

Mr. Rick Mariner Owner and Founder and CEO of Haywire Custom Guitars Inc. He is a member of The Association of Stringed Instrument Artisans (A.S.I.A.) as well as a guitar player. Rick holds a bachelors degree from University of Md. and a Masters degree from George Washington University. Rick developed his exclusive 8 – Point “Gig- Ready” guitar process that allows for Custom Guitars that are “GIG-READY”. With Rick’s many years of development and guitar set-up experience, Haywire Guitar shop “Builds satisfied players… one Haywire guitar at a time”.

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