The setup IS the bass itself?

[marcopalla]

During years I've understood the importance of a well done setup:
simply essential. Another essential thing is that you can do it yourself.

When you try a bass, for the same reason, it is very difficult to understand if you'll able to adjust the action and everythig as you like, isn't it??

and another thing I have experimented is that many bass player can't do their setup (and there're many bad liuther too), so they express their opinion on basses only on the basis of bad setups...

one week ago I bought for a ridiculous price a warwick that has such a bad setup that you couldn't play and his owner was giving for a very low price....
In a week I've given something like 3 complete turns to the trussrod! so now the neck is quite straight, action is low and the instrument is pure butter
(so maybe is better in that way )

the question:
what you think about? I'm a setup maniac? you play everithing with every kind of action? to change instrument is not a big problem?

[jsingles]

its true that some people think a bass is terrible just because they really don't understand the concept of maintaining the instrument's playability.

[kevinmoore73]

I completely agree. I don't understand people that consider setups to be some kind of voodoo, or that truss rods are some kind of mystical device. A good setup makes all the difference in the world, and is something easily performed with a handful of simple and inexpensive tools.

I've encountered an embarrassing number of guitar players and bass players that can't even describe what the truss rod does or why one would want to adjust it.

[CapnSev]

I am a setup freak. My basses have to be perfect- meaning intonated dead-on, action as low as I can tolerate with the neck as straight as it will go, pickup height even etc...

I will accept nothing less, and no repairman can get it where I want it.

[bassrique]

Set-ups aren't that hard. Fret leveling is another matter.

[stflbn]

Same... after a year of playing Steels on one of my basses I've swapped it to Chrome flats. So now i'm back to tweak tweak tweak to get it back to where I'm most comfortable with.

[paganjack]

i finally got around to doing my own setups a few months ago. wow. it's so simple and it makes such a huge difference.

there are some things that i won't fix as readily, such as a warped neck. i might try sanding down a fret or two...carefully.

+1 to this thread

[bassteban]

There are also those guys who torque the truss rod w/the wrong tool, rounding off the nut, as well as other offences. I do my own setup, but I don't dog anyone who doesn't. Now if someone doesn't do it & doesn't even have a qualified repairperson/luthier do it, that's just ignint.

[CatfishStudios]

I hear the same thing from uninformed people. "I tried a fender jazz, but the action was way high , so fender jazz basses suck" These people are oblivious to what makes a good bass.

[Kgoodrich]

In my band I'm constantly adjusting things on my bass and cleaning my strings, oiling my fretboard and making sure the intonation is right.

I even do it to our guitar player's guitar, I'm the guitar tech in the band lol.

[JTE]

Knowing how to do one's own setups helps you understand what's inherent in an instrument's buidl, and what can be adjusted by a good setup. Without that, you're doomed to spending tons of money on buying basses that don't work for you, having people try to get them right for you, and then dumping them only to start over again.

jte

[mrjim123]

Anybody with at least average intelligence and mechanical aptitude can adjust the truss rod, action, and intonation if they simply first do a little research.

Understand the concepts first, then read and follow the step-by-step procedures. Don't get antsy when making truss rod adjustments - you WILL have problems (been there) if you don't make small adjustments and then wait for the neck to settle in.

[Hullaballoo]

Totally agree. Any bass can feel like crap if it's set up wrongly (or wrongly for YOU), and many cheapo basses can be surprisingly nice to play with a decent set-up. Good for you - I say, if you'r at all handy, give it a go. Even fret levelling is surprisingly easy if you do it properly, and the results can be amazing! Also, it's surprising how crappily the frets are left by some so-called high level manufacturers.

[fenderphil]

i prefer a well setup bass, but i dont get bent out of sorts when i pick one up with high action.

or if my neck flexes before a gig.

[Rickett Customs]

I knew a guy who thought he was a setup freak, torqued the truss rod about 3 1/2-4 turns in one day, at that point that bass became a piece of feces! The truss rod snapped!

But yeah seriously, I'm a setup freak, anytime I change my strings (even if they're the same) I check my intonation and action.

[skeptikal]

Does anyone have a good resource for learning how to do setups. My yamaha bass doesn't get played much so I'd like to experiment with it. I had a professional luthier set it up CGCF a few months ago and I'd like to put it back into standard tuning.

[RobertUI]

... I have to admit that I'm TOTALLY a setup freak. I love the feeling of getting a bass or guitar to play at the best of it's potential. The one thing that I'm STILL shocked about is how many guitars/basses come with nuts that are not properly cut or too high. I've spent HOURS upon HOURS of making nut adjustments to get the setup perfect.

Definitely worth learning how to do your own setup!

Good Thread!


BTW... here's a GREAT guide:

http://www.garywillis.com/pages/bass...tupmanual.html

[BartmanPDX]

I'll admit to having formed negative opinions on basses due to bad setup and/or dead strings. I once posted a thread/poll on how a bad setup influences people's buying decisions and was not surprised to find that while many TBers want to be able to look past a bad setup in evaluating a bass, they still have a tough time doing it. It's just plain hard sometimes to ignore a horrible setup.

A poor setup is a quick and easy fix.

Yet I still find myself forming negative opinions on basses with a bad setup in stores though, even though I know it could be quickly remedied. It's a psychological "first impression" thing. Fret sprout can have the same effect, even though most basses could be prone to it in certain circumstances.

[embellisher]

Originally Posted by skeptikal

Does anyone have a good resource for learning how to do setups. My yamaha bass doesn't get played much so I'd like to experiment with it. I had a professional luthier set it up CGCF a few months ago and I'd like to put it back into standard tuning.

I suggest that you start by doing research in our Setup forum, which is where I am moving this thread.

[SwamiRob]

I have to agree, I was going off my ATK majorly, really rattley and horrible. I didn't dare touch the truss rod due to what people said about it being very delicate (although I'm sure it's not as bad as some make it out to be if your the slightest bit careful) so I just raised the saddles making the thing uneven and horrible after installing some 110s, didn't exactly make me fall for it again. A few months later a got the courage to play with the truss rod, a little sceptical of how much difference it makes still, and shat myself after seeing how abrupt the turning motion can be, immediately thinking that I'd broken my neck. Was totally wrong but manage to get it reasonable, but after a bit of messing about I've debowed my neck, and got rid of the need to have my saddles stupidly high to get a high action on some parts of the neck and also having them pretty much fully extended toward the neck to get the intonation right.

Really glad I learnt how to do everything properly, the tone of the ATK is alot deeper and fuller with alot less noise and I've definitely fallen for it again cause of it (also slightly to do with the flashy new pickup too). Still makes me cringe every time I touch that bloody truss rod though.