'62 Jazz Reissue intonation issues

[P-oddz]

Hey guys, hopefully someone can shed some light on this subject, as I'm kind of at my wits end. And apologies prior if this has been addressed, I searched and couldn't quite find my problem, so here goes:

'62 Jazz Reissue. Setup is great (well other than the fact that I can't get a proper intonation on the E and A strings). The neck relief is ideal, action is adjusted just where I like (not too low, not too high), and as mentioned the D and G are on.

Both the E and A strings are pulling sharp at the 12th fret. The E more so than the A. Saddles are as forward as they can be before I lose tension and the saddles springs rattle, or where the screw length doesn't have any teeth in the saddle anymore. As anyone familiar with the '62 knows that its a pain in the a** to do any neck adjustments on the fly due to the position of the truss rod adjustment (having to completely remove strings and neck just to make adjustment and replace neck and strings), and at this point I don't think it is much the neck coming into play.

So... any suggestions? Does the stock vintage bridge just tend to suck? Am I completely off-base? Please help - I've got some tracking I was going to do on Friday, and was hoping to incorporate the Jazz.

[fenderhutz]

I would add a Leo Quan BA bridge. But I do that for all my Fender jazz basses I have ever owned

[snyderz]

I'm afraid I'm confused. You say you are sharp at the 12th. Shouldn't you be tightening the intonation screw?

[silvertones]

Originally Posted by snyderz

I'm afraid I'm confused. You say you are sharp at the 12th. Shouldn't you be tightening the intonation screw?

Well the screws should be tightened moving the saddles back if sharp but it should be done by someone who can teach him cause he doesn't seem to understand. Do not mess with your truss rod.

[P-oddz]

Guys - this is a stupid and humbling moment, so please go easy.

Apparently I have been under the wrong impression about adjusting intonation up until now. I always thought that it was the opposite way- If it was sharp the string needed to sit closer to the neck.

Reading just the first comment makes me realize, that that train of thought makes no sense, as you would be shortening the length of the string.

Sorry for being such a dumba**, - I will try to better research before I accidentally pose a stupid question again.

Consider this thread a non-issue - and if mods want to delete before I get raked over the coals for a novice question, that would be very much appreciated.

[snyderz]

Not raking. Just trying to help. Search set-ups, and you'll get some good instruction.

[P-oddz]

Originally Posted by snyderz

Not raking. Just trying to help. Search set-ups, and you'll get some good instruction.

Thanks Snyderz. Will do.

[grrrr!!!!]

+1. Not raking either. This is, after all, TALKbass and not SEARCHbass.

[silvertones]

You set your string height first then do the intonation. If the note is sharp at the 12th the string needs to be longer. Move the saddle back. if the note is flat it needs to be shorter .Move the saddle forward. String height doesn't affect your intonation unless you have them real high. Remember intonation will never be perfect up and down the board. If you're a player that never goes beyond the 7th fret you may want to tweak the intonation for optimization in that area if needed.

[Pilgrim]

I'll bet there is no one here who hasn't made the same mistake at one time or another. I keep a Dan Erlewine book handy and refer to it before I start moving saddles. I often forget which way to move them.

[JTE]

Here's the logic, which I find helps understand how to do it. Setting intonation is adjusting the fretted note to be the same as the 12th fret harmonic (or an exact octave of the open string- the harmonic and the open string ARE an exact octave if your strings are in good shape). The open string/harmonic are your reference.

If the fretted note is too high (sharp) that means the string is too short from the 12th fret to the saddle. Just like fretting a note makes it shorter and hence raises the pitch. So, if the fretted note is sharp, and that means your string is too short, you need to make the string LONGER. You do that of course by pulling the saddle further from the 12th fret.

If the fretted note is too flat, the string is too long so you need to make it shorter. You do that by decreasing the distance between the saddle and the 12th fret, and that's done by moving the saddle towards the neck- loosening the screw.

While there are occasionally times when there's not enough adjustment room on the stock bridge, there's no good reason to slap a BA on a VS '62 Jazz unless you're after the potentially different sound that might happen with a BA. But if you, like thousands of others, like the way a VS '62 Jazz sounds, the stock bridge is a goo part of that sound and there's really no good reason to change it.

John

[P-oddz]

Originally Posted by JTE

Here's the logic, which I find helps understand how to do it. Setting intonation is adjusting the fretted note to be the same as the 12th fret harmonic (or an exact octave of the open string- the harmonic and the open string ARE an exact octave if your strings are in good shape). The open string/harmonic are your reference.

If the fretted note is too high (sharp) that means the string is too short from the 12th fret to the saddle. Just like fretting a note makes it shorter and hence raises the pitch. So, if the fretted note is sharp, and that means your string is too short, you need to make the string LONGER. You do that of course by pulling the saddle further from the 12th fret.

If the fretted note is too flat, the string is too long so you need to make it shorter. You do that by decreasing the distance between the saddle and the 12th fret, and that's done by moving the saddle towards the neck- loosening the screw.

While there are occasionally times when there's not enough adjustment room on the stock bridge, there's no good reason to slap a BA on a VS '62 Jazz unless you're after the potentially different sound that might happen with a BA. But if you, like thousands of others, like the way a VS '62 Jazz sounds, the stock bridge is a goo part of that sound and there's really no good reason to change it.

John

I absolutely DON'T want to change the tone of my '62 Jazz - it's the reason I bought it as opposed to an American Standard Jazz.

That being said, thanks guys for all the helpful advice and not throwing me under the bus for asking what I realized at once was a really silly question. Good to hear that maybe I'm not alone in making that mistake as well. I actually have done adequate setups on my basses before - but apparently I confused the biggest part this time around, and boy is my face red because of it!

Thanks again for not pummeling me, gents. I will pay my debt forward by kindly treating others as well.