This is dictated by string length. NEW Pro Series Signature Corey Beaulieu King V™. This is a handy guide to setting up your Fender Stratocaster guitar. If your guitar's output jack is recessed into the body, as with a Stratocaster, a straight plug will fit best. After you’ve adjusted your tremolo height and truss rod it’s time to adjust your Stratocaster string height. Fender string height specs are in the table below: Now that your string height, truss rod and tremolo are all in adjustment it’s time to adjust your pickup height. If you plan to change string gauges, you may need to adjust the specs somewhat to compensate for the changes in string sizes. Give the single-bucker sound a go. To check the adjustment make sure the guitar is tuned properly and then affix a capo behind the 1st fret of the guitar. Electronic Guitar Tuner, John Carruthers shows us the proper way to adjust the Tune-o-Matic Guitar Truss Rod, Bridge, Nut and Intonation. To level the front of the 6-screw tremolo pull the tremolo arm up until the back of the bridge is flush with the body. Time to get those old strings off. Fender American Ultra Stratocaster 2019-Current, Fender American Elite Stratocaster 2015-2019, Fender American Deluxe Stratocaster 2010-2015, Fender American Deluxe Stratocaster 2004-2009 Series, Fender American Deluxe Stratocaster 1998-2003, Fender American Ultra Stratocaster Service Manual. Setting up a guitar can be a daunting undertaking, even to seasoned players. That’s because your intonation is not set correctly. String height, or action, is highly customizable on the Fender Stratocaster. As the tension on each string changes it may alter the way your neck is sitting and may detune your other strings. ", Feeler Gauge .010" If it is on the face of the guitar's body or on the lower end, like with Telecaster, an L-shaped plug might fit better, even though you can still use a straight plug in those cases. It’s time to string up, pop on your new strings and tune the guitar up. After you make this adjustment you will see that the pickup will be angled closer to the 1st string and farther away from the 6th. Your Hagstrom guitars has an adjustable bridge which allows for string adjustment both horizontally and vertically. First of all you may be asking, “what is intonation”? You can go to our Factory Setup Adjustments page to look at what the adjustments were from the factory on a sample American Deluxe Stratocaster. This website uses cookies. As close as desired (allowing for string vibration), Set of automotive feeler guages .002″-.025″ or .05 mm-1 mm, Ruler with 1/32″ and 1/64″ increments or 0.5 mm increments. Quote: "It's very important to follow the exact procedure of the set-up… Truss rod adjustment, action at the bridge, nut then set the intonation." Here are a few tips for beginners to set up a practice space and make playing more fun: Keep your guitar in sight: Out of sight, out of mind. To perform the measurement simply take your ruler and measure the distance from the top of the pole piece to the bottom of the string on the first (high E) and sixth (Low E) strings of the guitar. If the action needs adjusting on an acoustic, you really need to take the guitar to a shop and have it set-up. Your ear, or tuner will tell you if the octave note is sharp or flat. I don’t like to have the front edge flush to the body as I don’t like it to dig into the finish of my guitar. “When you’re setting up the trem [aka vibrato unit], I would get your guitar … Trivium carries the metalcore torch high, making their guitarist Corey Beaulieu a natural choice for a signature guitar. GORE, ELIXIR, NANOWEB, POLYWEB, GREAT TONE • LONG LIFE, "e" icon, and designs are trademarks of W. L. Gore & Associates. Finishing Up. Truss Rod Allen Wrench, Phillips Head Screw Driver If you encounter excessive resistance during this adjustment your truss rod is maxed out. Let’s get started! Once you have completed all the above adjustments your Stratocaster should play very comfortably and stay in tune very well. Next you will want to adjust the truss rod. Time To Strip Off. Setting up the Pickups Hold down the fret closest to the pickups on the top string. So I had to move it back toward the starting point on the adjustments to get it to intonate properly. I spoke with Dave Johnson of Scale Model Guitars about the importance of getting your guitar set-up. If you would like to disable cookies, please view “How do I manage cookies” in the Policy. Before you adjust intonation make sure all your other adjustments are done. The adjustment specification is as follows: Most Fenders use the 9.5″ to 12″ radius so you’ll be shooting for a .010″ (0.25 mm) gap. Once your action is set, the last step is to adjust the intonation. If this happens you’ll have to take your guitar to an authorized Fender Service Center. John Carruthers will show you the best way to clean your electric guitar.Â. If you have your pickups too close to the strings the magnetic pull will cause the strings to vibrate in an elliptical pattern instead of a circular pattern which results in problems with the guitars tone and loss of harmonics. Check The String Height At The 12th Fret. Head for similar heights. I've found this setup easiest to achieve on 25.5” scale length guitars rather than shorter scale guitars. My result was a $125 guitar that plays as well or better than some damn expensive ones that I've owned. You will have to adjust the spring tension with the screws on the spring claw, re-tune the guitar and then check the gap at the back of the bridge. This is a 4 step series.Â, "It's very important to follow the exact procedure of the set-up… Truss rod adjustment, action at the bridge, nut then set the intonation. You may like them a little farther away from the strings. ©2009-2020 W. L. Gore & Associates, Inc. Fender recommends a 1/8″ (3.2 mm) gap between the body of the guitar and bottom of the bridge. Tools Step 2: Setting up your Hagstrom instrument Adjustable Bridge. To adjust the intonation tune your strings to standard tuning. We will go through the most critical adjustments that affect the playability of your Stratocaster. There’s no need to measure the distance of each pole piece as the pole pieces are not individually adjustable. This 10 part series on how to setup your electric guitar will take you through all the steps you need to set up your electric guitar - with Master Guitar Technician, Charlie Chandler. Be sure to check our YouTube channel for other DIY videos on how to setup a Les Paul and Telecaster, alongside finding the optimal time to change your strings and more. Stick with this step until every string is open tuned as close as possible to perfect. Put a capo on your guitar’s neck at the first fret. Remember, if you ever change string gauges you’ll have to perform this adjustment again. When you’re raising the action of an electric guitar for slide, aim to set all … Adjust the bridge saddle to compensate for flatness or sharpness until the note at the 12th fret is in tune with the open string note. If you hear the strings buzzing and vibrating a lot, then simply raise the action on that string. The following setup procedures and specifications are for your Stratocaster as equipped with the strings that come on the instrument as standard equipment from the factory. As we'll be setting the guitar up in … Then, use the allen screws in the bridge saddles to adjust the height of the string. In Part 2, we will fine tune your string height so your guitar is perfectly tailored to your playing style. Here’s a good performance enhancing tip for the 6-point Vintage synchronized tremolo. Get out your feeler gauges. To do this, remove the plate on the back of your guitar to access the tremolo springs. Then I back the pickups off until I can hear that they are no longer influencing the vibration of the string. On a Strat, you should have your tremolo bridge balanced/floating or set hard to the body as you normally would. On the Two-Point tremolo simply adjust the pivot screws until the front of the bridge is level with the pick guard. Even if your S-type isn’t a Fender there are plenty of important takeaways in this video that will apply to most Strat-inspired guitars. I have a guitar that I setup exactly to the following adjustments and after it was adjusted I could not intonate the low-E string. This will make the bridge pivot on the two outside screws while leaving the four inner screws in place for tremolo stability. Guitars, and wooden stringed instruments in general, are malleable. So, we have to adjust the intonation with a good tuner or you can simply use your ear if you have a good ear. Adjust The Truss Rod. How the stars set up their guitars An excerpt from Dan Erlewine's "How To Make You Electric Guitar Play Great", including celebrity setups from Jeff Beck to Jim Weider. Don't go crazy on tightening them as they can snap, but clearly if the tuner isn’t fastened all the way, your guitar won’t stay in tune correctly. If you do these adjustments with every string change your guitar will always play it’s best. This is where our Big Bends Nut Sauce comes into play. Los Angeles session guitarist, songwriter, teacher and endorsing artist, Tom Strahle, demos how something as simple and inexpensive as a guitar pick can have a big impact on your playing. John Carruthers shows us the proper way to set up your Bass. Bass side strings are the E-A-D string and Treble side strings are the G-B-E strings. Then loosen all six screws at the front edge of the bridge plate until they measure 1/16″ (1.6mm) above the top of the bridge plate. You will first want to adjust the front edge of the bridge so that it is level with the top of the pick guard. The better your guitar is set up, the easier it is to play ... and the more likely you are to play and practice with it, improving your musical talent as a result. The pitch should be the same. The truss rod is essentially a long metal rod that is inserted into the neck of … This video is step 1 of a 4 part series. Intonation affects how well your guitar plays in tune along the entire length of the fretboard. It may take several adjustments and tunings to get the gap right. … I am very aggressive with my lower strings when I play rhythm so I like my low strings set at a higher action to get rid of unwanted buzzing. After you have the front edge of the tremolo adjusted you want to adjust the back edge of the tremolo. But, if you do this adjustment by measuring with a ruler it will still sound off. Holding the guitar in playing position on your lap, with the body perfectly perpendicular to the floor, use a finger on your right hand (for right-handers) to fret the low-E string up the neck at the fret where the neck joins the body. Be sure that you take a measurement of all settings before you adjust anything. Leave any questions or comments in the comment section below. What strings should I use on my Stratocaster? This is a 4 step series.Â. This greatly increases tuning stability and makes the guitar smoother to play. So I set the front edge level with the top of the pick guard. This is a 4 part series. Your email address will not be published. Here’s the table with the Fender specifications for pickup height adjustment: Lace Sensor pickups have little to no magnetic pull on the string. The two most common types of tremolo found on Stratocasters is the 6-screw Vintage tremolo and the Two-Point Knife Edge tremolo found on the American series of Stratocaster. Most Stratocasters use a Bi-Flex truss rod which allows you correct neck curvature in either concave or convex positions. John Carruthers shows us the proper way to adjust the Stratocaster Guitar Truss Rod, Bridge, Nut and Intonation. With the capo set behind the 1st fret, hold down the low E-string at the last fret on the neck. If you want the best performance out of your Stratocaster you must lubricate. The Instructor Greg Voros , master luthier, has spent years working on guitars for the legendary George Gruhn of Gruhn's Guitars. If this comes up sharp or flat, you need to adjust your … Then re-tune the guitar and listen to it while you play. Tools Step 1: Feeler Gauge .010" Truss Rod Allen Wrench. After a fresh set of strings is installed - using your choice of brand, type, and gauge - your guitar's truss rod/neck relief is adjusted optimally. Then I use just a small amount of lubrication in each area. For all instruments: Tune the entire instrument several times. Another good thing to remember is to lubricate the pivot points on the pivot screws at the front of the tremolo. You want your pickups close enough to have good output but not so close as to affect the vibration of the strings. Your guitar is loaded into the Plek Pro machine, which scans the guitar's fingerboard and frets, evaluating the string positions and heights along the entire length of … To get a good view of this you can pull back on the tremolo until the bridge is flush with the body and then look at the front edge of the bridge. Your email address will not be published. If the note is sharp use a Phillips screwdriver and move the bridge saddle farther away from the nut or toward the back of the bridge plate. The core diameter and tension of your strings determine how the Strat’s spring claw must be set – which in turn carries over to saddle heights, intonation adjustment and truss rod tension. Got single-coil pickups but want to imitate fat ’bucker tone? One of the best ways to keep your head in the guitar game is to set up your practice space so you can get down to business and play without additional hassle. Just use your Big Bends Nut Sauce for that. This way I know I’m getting the highest output without any magnetic influence on the string. I like to move the pickups quite far away from the strings and listen to how the string sounds through an amplifier with0ut any influence from the magnetic pull of the pickups. In Part 1 of the Guitar Setup Series, we adjusted the truss rod to set the neck relief. 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