Getting your guitar serviced

davylee

i was recently in I'm In Music in Carlow and the lad behind the counter was servicing a guitar changing the strings and that.
But can anyone tell me is that all it is, a string change?
And if so is it more expensive for bass.
Will they change action or intonation or is that more
I'm extremely clueless on this subject:(

Saruman

Im going to Hijack this thread as its a similar question.
Approx how much should it cost to have strings lowered on a guitar? And where would do it, Waltons?

Quillo

I've always regarded things like setting string height (through either an adjustable bridge or truss rod) and setting intonation as part and parcel of playing the instrument...... it's really not that difficult (though truss rods should be approached with caution !) and there are loads of websites and books out there for anyone new to these processes.

You can even buy tuners now that allow you to check intonation if your ear isn't up to it yet (the BOSS TU-15 for example).

Dord

Quillo wrote: »

You can even buy tuners now that allow you to check intonation if your ear isn't up to it yet (the BOSS TU-15 for example).

Any tuner will check the intonation... all you gotta do is fret the note and check what it is. I usually check my intonation at the 12th fret and the 5th fret.

Rigsby

Quillo wrote: »

I've always regarded things like setting string height (through either an adjustable bridge or truss rod) and setting intonation as part and parcel of playing the instrument...... it's really not that difficult (though truss rods should be approached with caution !)

+1. Here is a detailed link to setting up a bass.




http://acapella.harmony-central.com/showthread.php?t=2067718&highlight=kindness+set+up

davylee

nice link.will spend some time on that - should sort me out
But is that what they do in a service?

Rigsby

davylee wrote: »

But is that what they do in a service?

Yes. Unless something more specific is required.

cullend2

change strings, clean fretboard, set action, intonation, and truss rod if necessary.
but these are all things you could do yourself if you had a little bit of spare time, and all it would cost you is the price of strings! and maybe the price of some cleaning product for the fretboard...

_Arctic_

cullend2 wrote: »

change strings, clean fretboard, set action, intonation, and truss rod if necessary.
but these are all things you could do yourself if you had a little bit of spare time, and all it would cost you is the price of strings! and maybe the price of some cleaning product for the fretboard...

Ya, all these things could be done easily by yourself, except maybe the truss rod because if you mess that up you could seriously damage your guitar. Theres good guides for this stuff on the web, look it up. I'd say you're better off not messing with the truss rod yourself though.

-Chris-

+1 to all the above - OP, teach yourself to do all this stuff. You'll enjoy it and you'll save some cash.

rcaz

Can anyone give some truss rod advice? Is it supposed to be dead-straight, or is a little bit of bowing acceptable? I asked some questions in Music Maker, and got appropriately patronised - apparently "there are no rules", and "if you like it, it's right" - I know that, but I like my tuning to be stable and my necks not to break.

I just got a Tele two days ago, setup with 10s, and I'm considering switching to 11s or 12s (I'll give the 10s a few weeks and see how I like them). Something in the region of a quarter-turn tighter on the truss rod would be needed, right?

ball ox

the rule of thumb I go by is to stick a cappo on the first fret & hold the string down on the last fret. This way the string acts as a straight edge. Then check the distance btween the top of the 8th fret & your low E. It should be a small gap, enough to fit a business card through. People say that "some" people like this gap bigger/smaller but TBH I've yet to meet a guitarist that sways dramatically either way unless they play slide or something. I would imagine a quarter turn would compensate well if you were to move from 10's to 11's. It did when I switched gauge on my Jag anyway. One thing I'll say though is that changing from 10's to 11's IMO has a pretty big impact on your sound, especially if you have been playing with 10's for a long time, you'll notice it straight away. I even had to lower my pups slightly.

Rigsby

El Pr0n wrote: »

Can anyone give some truss rod advice? Is it supposed to be dead-straight, or is a little bit of bowing acceptable? I asked some questions in Music Maker, and got appropriately patronised - apparently "there are no rules", and "if you like it, it's right" - I know that, but I like my tuning to be stable and my necks not to break.

I just got a Tele two days ago, setup with 10s, and I'm considering switching to 11s or 12s (I'll give the 10s a few weeks and see how I like them). Something in the region of a quarter-turn tighter on the truss rod would be needed, right?

Take a look at the link I gave in post #5.

rcaz

ball ox wrote: »

the rule of thumb I go by is to stick a cappo on the first fret & hold the string down on the last fret. This way the string acts as a straight edge. Then check the distance btween the top of the 8th fret & your low E. It should be a small gap, enough to fit a business card through. People say that "some" people like this gap bigger/smaller but TBH I've yet to meet a guitarist that sways dramatically either way unless they play slide or something. I would imagine a quarter turn would compensate well if you were to move from 10's to 11's. It did when I switched gauge on my Jag anyway. One thing I'll say though is that changing from 10's to 11's IMO has a pretty big impact on your sound, especially if you have been playing with 10's for a long time, you'll notice it straight away. I even had to lower my pups slightly.

I've been playing my Jazzmaster with 12s for about a year, that's what's encouraging me to up the guage. The only reason my Tele has 10s on it now is because that's what the previous owner had set it up with.


And thanks for that link, Rigsby. I foolishly ignored it the first time when it said "bass" :rolleyes: