Guitar intonation

[fullbirdmusic]

Good points, mojo. I never thought of it being the nut. I've never had that issue, so maybe that's why I hadn't considered it. I like a bit more relief in the neck on my tele - keeps the strings where I need 'em. But I do a complete setup every 2nd set of strings - about once a month, so I'm constantly reviewing what my axe looks like. It's important to know what you like and don't like about the way your axe is set up so you know when something is off. The truss rod advice is good. Many folks are intimidated by adjusting the truss, but in reality, a quarter to half-turn usually does the trick. If it's a playable axe to begin with, that is.

[jh]

Quote:In my neck o' the woods, a complete fret job, even with a partial refret, is under $200.Well... The guitar is worth maybe $175 (tops), so I´ll try to figure out if there´s too much bow or relief. Thanks!!- JH

[mojobone]

Suggestion: get thee to Rondo and buy another, and use your current axe to learn to do your own setups/fretwork/mods. If you get good at it, it's a fun and sometimes lucrative set of skills. I'd bet the farm there's a YouTube series on how-to.'Course if it's a bolt-on, there's a much cheaper fix; jes' buy a new neck.

[jdhogg]

Sept 29, 2009, 11:56am, jh wrote:Thanks for the responses!The repair would probably cost more than the guitar is worthso I don´t know...Quote:A twist or warp in the neck is also more likely to cause bad intonation than simple fretwear. Improper truss rod adjustment is another likely culprit.Oh... That´s gotta be it. I just remembered that a few years ago the strings were buzzing and my friend told me to tighten the truss rod...(or was it vice versa )Any advice with that? (it can´t get much worse, right? )- JHI wonder how much your friend knows? Hard to say without looking at the guitar. You should of looked at the action at the bridge first? Fiddling with a truss rod is not to be done lightly.Its virtually always sorted with new strings, nut slot depth, action at the bridge and intonation by varying the string length at the bridge.I always buy the same strings so 1 setup is all they ever need unless I want to try a different set for some reason.As mojo said go on youtube and set it up properly, if it goes wrong get another.

[jh]

The neck has too much relief, so I might be able to fix itif the neck isn´t warped. Thanks again for the tips !- JH

[orest]

If you really love your guitar and think it's worth rebuilding it, do so. I have rebuilt my electric guitar for 350$This is what the guitar technician did: * replaced the machine head with new tuning keys (even if you buy a very expensive electric guitar, these are almost always bad quality)* did a new special intonation nut* This is difficult for me because I don't know the English word for it. But, the western acoustic guitars always have this type of G string, and the electric guitars usually doesn't. But I recommend to use the same type of strings on the electric guitar, because the intonation of the G string is hopeless on the electric one.

[ddusty]

Sept 30, 2009, 8:28am, orest wrote:* This is difficult for me because I don't know the English word for it. But, the western acoustic guitars always have this type of G string, and the electric guitars usually doesn't. But I recommend to use the same type of strings on the electric guitar, because the intonation of the G string is hopeless on the electric one. Orest, I think what you are referring to is a wound G string. I use these on my Arch tops, but prefer the unwound G's on solid body (strat/tele)JH, To me the "worth" of a guitar has no bearing on what i would pay to set it up. If you like the guitar, it's worth it. I have an old Yamaha acoustic i payed $100 for about 20 years ago. I would b=pay 5X's that to fix the guitar if necessary, because i just love that guitar.$200 will get you a good playing guitar (if there are no major problems with the neck)Can you get a better guitar for that money? I doubt it.Just about every guitar I buy (new or used) get's about $50 to $300 worth of work done to it before I take it home.Rob

[waltzmastering]

Sept 29, 2009, 5:16am, jh wrote:My friend is a guitar tech and he said the only wayis to sand the frets, but I don´t like the idea...A guitar tech could mean any number of things.It's probably best to take the guitar to a well respected person who sets up and repairs guitars for a living. It would probably cost $30 including strings to get your guitar in good working order if the frets aren't showing to much wear.Trying to do it yourself, if you have no experience can be a crap shoot.A good guitar repairman is well worth with the mula spent.

[orest]

Well, Guitar tech may not be the right word. The one I left my guitar to builds his own bass guitars and has worked with rebuilding guitars for 40 years! I really trust him, and he explains in small details what he is doing with the instrument. The thing is, if you are using bad tuning machine, well than you have to tune the guitar more often, and sometimes it won't keep the intonation at all. Today it's very common that some guitar manufacturers uses the Buzz Feiten system. It's a system that keeps your guitar more well tuned and the intonation is great.

[jh]

I tightened the truss rod yesterday and it´ a little better.If the tightening isn´t helping much, then the neck is probablywarped. We´ll see