Guitar Whisperer: Guitars and Stuff That Interests Me
GW – Engineering Per 1st Principals. Listen To The Data
NAVIGATE THIS SITE
My GOTO Guitar: Partscaster
Song Arrangements
MY GOTO GUITAR: Partscaster
NOTE: For a Les Paul or Gibson guitar string length 24.75″ use D’Addario 10-46 strings. Everything else is generally the same.
TELECASTER 25.5″ STRING LENGTH INSTRUMENT IS SETUP, WHAT STRINGS ARE USED. Use D’Addario 10-46 strings. I installed a Wilkenson three saddle compensated bridge utilizing through top string feed, not through the body string feed.
On a Stratocaster I use D’Addario 10-46 also and setup is generally the same as a Tele.
I believe this is physics based (string length versus string dimensions and composition, string height, neck relief, how the guitar is built, how everything resonates, etc.
I don’t have any data numbers to support this assertion, only ad hominum a posteriori trial and error results from doing this and that and playing and iterating. Try these recommendations and see if they work for you.
CORRECTLY SETTING UP A GUITAR IS AN ABSOLUTE CARDINAL RULE!!
If you have a valued instrument, and you don’t want to chance screwing it up, stop right now and take it to a qualified guitar tech.
If you are bold and want file the nut slot height yourself you will need a good set of nut slot files.
OR pay a luthier to file the nut slot. NOTE: Filing your nut slot can cause a lot a problems to sort out and fix if you don’t do it correctly.
THIS SETUP SHOULD WORK FOR ANY FENDER WITH 25.5″ FRETBOARD LENGTH.
D’Addario gauge EXL120 electric strings 10-46
Neck Relief: We need to set this up with some neck relief, not too much, not too little relief.
Use about .2-.3 mm/ (notecard thickness, maybe a little more) at the fifth fret measured on the E sixth string.
Use your truss rod tool, don’t overtighten.
RULE: Righty Tighty/Lefty Loosy
Set up string height at the 22nd fret (use your appropriately sized hex key):
E 6th string 5.5/64″
A 5th string 5.5/64″
D 4th string 5/64″
G 3rd string 4.5/64″
B 2nd string 4.25/64″
E 1st string 4.25/64″
Individual nut height from 1st fret for all strings should be as close to 1st fret to 2nd fret height as you can make it. If the nut slot is too high for any string, you will immediately start out with intonation and playability problems.
Intonation: Match the 12th fret harmonic to the fretted twelfth fret on each string.
Now, fine intonate:
Tune all 6 strings with your tuner.
Basically, you will intonate each string past the 12th fret to an open string harmonic on the 12th fret as is available.
Using screwdriver, adjust each string intonation set screw:
Intonate: fret E string at 19th fret, match to B string harmonic at 12th fret
Intonate: fret B string at 17th fret, match to 1st E string harmonic at 12th fret.
Intonate: fret G string at 16th fret, match B string harmonic at 12th fret
fret G string at 21st fret, match E string harmonic at 12th fret
Intonate: fret D string at 21th fret, match to B string harmonic at 12th fret
fret D string at 17th fret, match to G string harmonic at 12th fret
Intonate: fret A string at 19th fret, match to E string harmonic 12th fret
fret A string at 17th fret, match to D string harmonic at 12th fret
Intonate: fret 6th E string at 15th fret, match to G string harmonic 12th fret
fret 6th E string at 19th fret, match to B string harmonic at 12th fret
Check:
Play your open C D A F D cowboy chords in open position and then one octave higher.
Play skip string octaves on all strings as low as you can and as high up the fretboard as you can.
Play triads D F C A in all positions.
They should all sound reasonably in tune from open to as high up the fretboard as you can play. NO SOUR NOTES! (Nothing in even temperament tuning is perfect, but this one way to get the best possible (least worse) compromise for tuning and intonation. (Note: Your milage may vary. But, if this doesn’t work for you, there may be something else going on. I have sold guitars based on failing multiple times this intonation process.)
If your guitar does not pass this acid test:
Check your relief, you should have some relief, no flat neck relief, the guitar won’t sound or play in tune, and likely will not stay in tune either.
Check your string heights. Make sure you turn both hex keys equally so that the saddle is always level. Find the sweet spot string height for all strings. Dial it in iteratively. A fraction of a turn with your hex key on the string height screws can make a world of difference. String height is something you feel works for you or against when you play different things. You want the guitar to feel like butter and be able to play anything without struggling technically to play. Play all the things you want to, testing how it feels. Keep working on all this back and forth until you dial it in. Voila! Like Magic It Will Come Together. Patience and being meticulous will pay off.
Be sure that you did not buy counterfeit strings online.
Rinse, repeat all the setup steps and try again.
If you don’t have the patience for all this- then punt, take your guitar to a qualified luthier for setup. Hopefully, they can figure it out. Send them this link.)
If you are still with me, put the guitar down today and come back tomorrow and try again.
Stretch tune your strings and set up the nut so the string does not bind.
Apply some sort of string conditioner, make sure you apply also in the nut slot and bridge.
These two come to mind:
Music Nomad String Fuel
GHS Fast Strings
Set up your pickup heights
Pickup Heights From Strings After Setup (starting point, adjust to your ear):
Bridge Pickup 10/64″ low E side 8/64″ high E side
Neck Pickup 8/64″ low E side, 7/64″ high E side
These setup guidelines gets you to or ought to strongly move your guitar setup in the direction of:
Comfortable, playable guitar action that works with you whatever genre you are playing and you do not feel you have to “fight the guitar action” to play what you hear in your head.
Nice resonant string vibration on all strings, good, respectable, usable tone that will sit well in the mix and carry authority played with other instruments.
Optimal intonation from open chords to the highest note on any fret on any string.
Very decent playability all the way up the neck.
Open chords sound nice full and in tune.
Pickups have optimal/balanced output avoiding pickup magnet proximity intonation issues.
You can finger pick, thumb pick and plectrum pick pretty well making the instrument very versatile.
Overall this approach is a win, balancing all the elements we are trying to manage in guitar setup and playing.