Please settle this debate

[Medford Bassman]

Everytime I change strings, I intonate to make sure everything is kosher. Usually, it doesn't take too much tweaking.
One of my guitarists insist you do not have to intonate if you're replacing strings of the same gauge and brand.
I disagree.

please settle this once and for all.

thanks.

[J. Montgomery]

Personally, I agree with the guitarist.

But if you've got the time and the inclination to check your intonation every time you change strings (which is probably a lot less frequently than a guitarist) then more power to you. It can only help.

[RustyAxe]

With fixed saddles (like on an acoustic) that would be true. But I find that with electrics and most saddles, it's necessary. Not because of the new strings, but because the saddles may assume very slightly different positions when tension is brought up on the new strings.

[DeluxeRed]

Is is considered a rule-of-thumb by many that if you don't change the gauge, you don't have to re-intonate. It also depends a lot on the quality of the instrument. But it never hurts to check and shouldn't take too long to tweak. A lot of folks never check it. Some obsess over it. Tell your gp to get a life.

[Rickett Customs]

I think what you're doing is in good practice, whether or not it may or may not be necessary.

[5StringBlues]

My tech/luthier says you dont need to intonate unless changing gauges or brands.

I make him do it anyway.

[VroomVroom]

I always check intonation after changing strings, BUT...I do so after at least a few hours of playing. Learned this from reading an interview with Michael Tobias way-back-when. Setting intonation before the strings have stretched and settled in will only require you to set the intonation again.

In my experience, when I'm replacing one set of strings with an identical new set, I very rarely end up making an intonation adjustment. But I still check. OCD is as OCD does.

[Rickett Customs]

Originally Posted by VroomVroom

I always check intonation after changing strings, BUT...I do so after at least a few hours of playing. Learned this from reading an interview with Michael Tobias way-back-when. Setting intonation before the strings have stretched and settled in will only require you to set the intonation again.

In my experience, when I'm replacing one set of strings with an identical new set, I very rarely end up making an intonation adjustment. But I still check. OCD is as OCD does.

^^ Right or wrong, does not matter, OP, but Jerry is on point here ^^

[j.stemmler]

Originally Posted by Alembicplyr

I think what you're doing is in good practice, whether or not it may or may not be necessary.

+1

never to early for another good setup on your bass. it's not like it's going to hurt your bass, or bass playing. i do a complete set up everytime I change my srings.

[202dy]

In theory, no.

In practice, yes.

There are too many variables that can affect set up and intonation. Changes in the humidity or temperature, mechanical shock (just moving around with an instrument causes minute amounts), fret wear, strings that are out of spec, etc. Any one of these things can make the last setup or intonation null and void.

It takes almost no time at all to check intonation when changing the strings. Considering that the tuner is already plugged into the guitar, what could the reason be to ignore it? If it's o.k. that's great. If not, it will only take a minute or three to correct the offending string or strings.

Some folks keep fire extinguishers in their homes. Most will never have to use them. Which one do you want to be?

[Slowgypsy]

Some thoughts...

As a general statement, it would be fair to say that guitarists replace strings far more frequently than bass players. That said, most guitarists simply replace their string(s) and call it a day. There's neither the need or time to check intonation every time. In the groups I perform with, it's common for the guitarist to break a string during a rehearsal. We simply take a two minute break and then start up again. And for a guitarist playing on an acoustic instrument, the idea of re-setting intonation every time there's a string change... ain't gonna happen, no way, no how.

As a bass player who uses TI Jazz Flats on my instrument, I go many months between string changes. And the reason I change strings isn't because I broke one, it's because I think it's time to "re-new" my sound. So, being that so much time has passed since the last string change, I do re-intonate. It is necessary? I think so, cause so much time has passed, it's probably needed. If I changed strings with the frequency of the guitar players I perform with, I probably wouldn't do it with every string change.

So, is it necessary for a bass player to re-intonate after every string change? There is no "correct" answer. If you think your instrument needs it, then it does. If you think your instrument is sounding just fine and doesn't need it, then it doesn't. FWIW... the time spent re-intonating my bass is less then it takes to change the strings, so for me, it just seems like a simple, easy, relatively quick thing to do that makes sense, although in a "perfect world" might not be really necessary.

Peace...

[bassteban]

I say intonate every time, for a couple of reasons; one- in my experience, even same-branded/gauged strings will sometimes change the intonation(usually to a very small degree, & I likely wouldn't notice w/o a very accurate tuner), and two- it's a good habit(IMO)and will become quicker & easier for you w/practice.

[Thor]

How good do you want to sound? Better than your guitarist,
right?

[Mr. Mig]

Originally Posted by Alembicplyr

I think what you're doing is in good practice, whether or not it may or may not be necessary.

+1

[Yerf Dog]

If you consider how often you change strings and how long it takes you to adjust the intonation...

Why not?

[Zooberwerx]

By the time I get around to changing strings on any particular bass, the seasons have changed so I do a truss rod tweak and intonation.

I also re-wind the pickups....I don't know why.

Riis

[bassteban]

Originally Posted by Thor

How good do you want to sound? Better than your guitarist,
right?

That's why we play bass.

[JTE]

I say check it. You may or may not have to change anything, but it's still a good idea to check it. Why? Even using the same brand and gauge of strings, you're dealing with manufacturing tolerances that can vary. And some brands of strings aren't made by the same company every time- last month's may have been made by D'Addario, next month by GHS.

The point is that it's easy to check it, and after you check it it's real easy to fix it. So, why not just do it?

John

[bassteban]

I often look down to make sure I'm wearing pants. So far, I usually am. I think it's a pretty good habit.
[looks down]

[Pilgrim]

Simple solution. Don't change the strings.