107 replies to this topic

[Cedric01]

raybaro said:

what if i have a floyd rose?
i am getting the buzz only on my low E string and it is around the 15 to around 19 fret

Raise the bridge until the buzz is gone. Check your intonation.

[tonedeaf]

Ultimate Garage Band said:

Truss rod adjustment

TIGHTEN the truss rod to REMOVE relief

LOOSEN the truss rod to ADD relief.

How to do it? First, to do it alone you'll need a capo. Even if you never use a capo to play, it's worth getting one just to make these kinds of adjustments. It will pay for itself the first time you use it to set up your guitar. Don't get the cheapie capos that have an elastic strap with metal eye holes in the strap, or if you do, make sure you put a protective cloth between the metal eye holes and the finish on the back of your neck. They can and will scratch your finish. If you don't have a capo then you need a friend with at least one hand.

Tune your guitar to 440 concert pitch. Capo the first fret. Fret the 6th string at the 15th or 16th fret. yada, yada, yada...

Hello all,

I was wondering about how do you actually tune your guitar to 440 hz concert pitch? I have a metronome with a 440 hz signal but what on the guitar gets set to this frequency? I also have an electronic tuner with the same signal. Just wondering

[eXperiment63]

Setting the guitar up really isn't that hard at all. I just did my own last night, and I am a newcomer to the guitar. Just follow the instructions and be patient, don't do anything too hastily. My action is so low i barely have to put any pressure on the strings now, I love it!

[Ultimate Garage Band]

tonedeaf said:

Hello all,

I was wondering about how do you actually tune your guitar to 440 hz concert pitch? I have a metronome with a 440 hz signal but what on the guitar gets set to this frequency? I also have an electronic tuner with the same signal. Just wondering

your A string should be tuned to 440. 440 is 'normal' tuning for a guitar; not drop D, not DAGDAD, etc.

[Stratrat]

I've done the setup on two of my guitars now - have never touched a truss rod adjustment before, but the instructions here made it easy. Thanks, UGB!

[mattz196]

Thanks UGB, Lowered the action on my Maton with confidence thanks to your great info . I had to order a special truss rod tool from Maton to do the job and the result is fantastic:yes:

[Ultimate Garage Band]

gald to hear it!

[jeansen]

Hi..glad having UGB post this thing...i’ve read some other articles about it n it made me confuse..thx UGB …but I want to ask you…because of my confusions about adjusting the truss rod, I have rid away my strings off from my guitar because I want to change my string also and now, i really wanted to set-up my guitar : the truss rod, the action, the intonation and the pickup height….but I have a question:

1) is the string height ( and bridge height ) has an effect to do your trick? if it is so, how much height is needed to do your trick magnificently?

2) I’ve read an article that said that we can sight a neck is bowed or not just by putting the headstock pointed to us and then just sight the neck from the headstock to the body.. but it seems really hard for me to do that…how can they do that? Is it need a lot of experience?

And 2 most important question :

3) in the post, you’ve mention how to know if a neck is bent or not with the strings on…but, as I’ve told you, I have rid off the strings.. so , how can I know if my neck is bent or not (without the strings on)?

4) Oh ya, and I want to change my string gauge to a higher string gauge: from 9-42 to 10-46 .., (just for information , my guitar has a floyd rose bridge)…I know that the string gauge and the bridge weight will effect a lot to the truss rod too.. so, what should I do?

Could you give me a step by step instruction to do this special neck adjustment ( I call it special because I want to change my string gauge also and it is a floating bridge ) ?

Thx u a lot…
Sorry for bad English..hope you do know what I mean…

Best regard,Jeansen

[allthumbs]

First you have to restring your guitar. You can't adjust the truss rod without knowing the string height when it is properly tuned.
Here is a vid on how to restring your floyd.
http://www.guitarfor...read.php?t=7451

Then follow UGBs instructions on whether to raise or lower the strings
"
How to do it? First, to do it alone you'll need a capo. Even if you never use a capo to play, it's worth getting one just to make these kinds of adjustments. It will pay for itself the first time you use it to set up your guitar. Don't get the cheapie capos that have an elastic strap with metal eye holes in the strap, or if you do, make sure you put a protective cloth between the metal eye holes and the finish on the back of your neck. They can and will scratch your finish. If you don't have a capo then you need a friend with at least one hand.

Tune your guitar to 440 concert pitch (A string is tuned to A. Standard tuning; no alternate tunings.) Capo the first fret. Fret the 6th string at the 15th or 16th fret. Take 2 business cards and slip them between the 6th string and the 7th fret. Do the cards actually lift the string up to squeeze in? You need to add relief. This means that your guitar probably had low action but buzzed pretty badly when you played. Do the 2 business cards slip inbetween the 7th fret and the 6th string without touching either? This means you need to take away relief. Your guitar probably has high action and no buzzing.

The more complicated adjustment is to remove relief/tighten the truss rod. The first thing we need to do in this adjustment is to detune the guitar to remove string tension. You do not want to adjust this truss rod fighting the pulling energy of the strings. This is a major and common mistake by inexperienced technicians and can quickly lead to stripped nuts or wrenches or worse."

There really is no basic way to put it than what UBG has said. If that is too complex for you then take it in to be setup.

[jeansen]

Allthumbs:great link ..thx u a lot!!

Quote

First you have to restring your guitar

i've got an idea last night: instead of restringing my guitar...how about using a ruler and put it over the frets at a 90 degrees (upright position) to the fretboard and then do exactly the same as the UGB instructions?can i do that?i mean, the string is for giving a straight line,right?so..it is ok to substitute the string with a ruler,right? btw,i've heard some opinions that telling me to use a ruler that made of from steel ( a steel ruler) ? is it a must?why?
and how long ? will a 30 cm ruler do the work? or i do need a longer one?
thx u a lot...
again,sorry for bad english...hope you all know what i mean..btw,almost all of My questions haven't been answered yet,please take a look at it,cause i need those answers badly... thx u

best regards,

Jeansen

[jeansen]

Allthumbs:great link ..thx u a lot!!

Quote

First you have to restring your guitar

i've got an idea last night: instead of restringing my guitar...how about using a ruler and put it over the frets at a 90 degrees (upright position) to the fretboard and then do exactly the same as the UGB instructions?can i do that?i mean, the string is for giving a straight line,right?so..it is ok to substitute the string with a ruler,right? btw,i've heard some opinions that telling me to use a ruler that made of from steel ( a steel ruler) ? is it a must?why?
and how long ? will a 30 cm ruler do the work? or i do need a longer one?
thx u a lot...
again,sorry for bad english...hope you all know what i mean..btw,almost all of My questions haven't been answered yet,please take a look at it,cause i need those answers badly... thx u

best regards,

Jeansen

[allthumbs]

Nope. The strings help you see how much of a bow is in the neck caused by string tension. No strings, no tension on the neck, no way to measure string height. No way around it. Put the strings on first. It is the way it's done.

[eddiez152]

UGB,

Do you have an illustration of the truss rod in an acoustic neck ? I would like to understand its purpose. What happens when its tightened or loosened.

eddiez152

[eddiez152]

Artical on Guitar Buzz
Here is a link.

http://guitar.about....rdryseason.html

eddiez152

[Ultimate Garage Band]

I'm not sure that link has a visual of the truss rod and I've yet to find one but this at least shows how relief affects the neck:

http://www.athensmus...geneimbody1.php

[jeansen]

hi,just wanna ask you..how can i know if my guitar have a single way truss rod or a 2 two way truss rod?is there any different physical thing between them so i can recognize them easily?i've noticed that my truss rod nut has a yellow color(a brass maybe?,i don't know)..is it mean anything?

oh ya, same as Eddiez's question..how about acoustic's truss rod adjustion? is it just the same as UGB instructions? and which truss rod they (acoustic or classical) usually used?is it 2 way or single way truss rod?
thx u

[jeansen]

oh ya, another question..one of my truss rod cover's screw have been stripped..how can i fix it? it is very small and i have no idea how to unscrew it now cause the screwdriver i used doesn't fit with that one screw again...please help..thx u

[Ultimate Garage Band]

99% of acoustics have the truss rod adjustment nut located inside the body of the guitar coming out of the neck just an inch or two from the sound hole. Some have it on the headstock like an electric. Most classical guitars don't have an adjustable truss rod.

Double way just requires LESS adjustment than a single, that's why you don't do too much when making the adjustment in the first place. To my knowledge, you can't tell what you have by the nut sticking out at the end.

Try a variety of screwdriver sizes and shapes, ie go with a straight/flat blade as opposed to a phillips, and try to get it out that way. You can also drill it out or carefully use superglue to glue another screw on top of the stripped one and then back them out. Once you get enough of the screw head showing, you should be able to grab it with needle nose pliers to finish turning it out.

[eddiez152]

UGB,

I started a thread on the setup of the fretboard. To see a clearer picture of this went to Taylor's site and found a PDF file on this issue. I have read your thread on the subject and was hoping you might show up on mine.
For a moment I thought that my guitar was out of wack. I could not understand why we would want a relief on the neck. Now, I do know that we certainly don't want the neck bowing back. But that valley in the middle ? I
Just trying to understand this. If you got a valley, then the board it going uphill with the strings on each side of your finger from the 5-6-7 th fret.

eddiez152

[eddiez152]

UGB,

Thanks for this link. I have been struggling with this theory for some time. I looked at the NT neck system on Taylor's site. The referance to the straight neck was beginning to bother me. I understand string angle from nut to saddle, but that slight curve was killing me.

eddiez152