Can you do a setup from scratch on your bass?

[jamro217]

Yes. Blindfolded with hands
And feet tied behind my back.

Don't sneeze or you'll drop the screwdriver. D'oh!!

 

[jamro217]

I don’t do it. I rarely buy a used bass that doesnt need a setup... so i am assuming that most people don’t know to do it either... i am sure a lot of people can, but i don’t know them. Wonder why most pro tours have a guitar tech? Just wasting that money i suppose.

If you can afford to tour, chances are in your free time you've got better things to do than a setup.

 

[Phildevoid]

You should learn to tie a tie. It's not hard, and it's one of those grown-up things we should all learn, like driving a stick shift and changing your oil. Even if you only wear a tie to weddings and funerals. Clip-on ties are like the auto-tune of men's clothing, a crutch for the fashionably weak.

I like the "driving a stick shift", thing to learn. I have never owned a car that is an automatic. I was poor growing up so there were times I needed to push start my car. Those days are long gone but I still enjoy driving manual transmission vehicles. I joke about kids my oldest daughter's age, college, about how the best anti-theft device for cars these days is a manual transmission. I think out of all her friends, only one knows how to drive a manual car.

 

[Alkali Ike]

I like the "driving a stick shift", thing to learn. I have never owned a car that is an automatic. I was poor growing up so there were times I needed to push start my car. Those days are long gone but I still enjoy driving manual transmission vehicles. I joke about kids my oldest daughter's age, college, about how the best anti-theft device for cars these days is a manual transmission. I think out of all her friends, only one knows how to drive a manual car.

Same here re automatic vs manual.

I’ve always been interested in how things work, how they’re put together, how to take them apart. I’ve been told that as a toddler I tried to disassemble my crib, apparently with some degree of success. As a kid our neighbor had a Willys 4WD that I begged them to let me ride in so I could watch them shift gears. In grade school I prayed each day that the bus would be the full-size Crown diesel with manual transmission and the big fat air brake pedal. I liked to watch how it had to be driven. Not the stupid wimpy Blue Bird with the automatic.

In high school a friend had an Oldsmobile with a manual and a tachometer, the tach which fascinated me. A neighbor ran a restaurant/lounge and when they brought home a broken pinball machine from the bar (a Williams Dew-Wa-Ditty) , I bought it from them for $10 and got it mostly working again. Later I bought dozens of old pinball machines, refurbished them to as new, and sold them for a profit. Pinball machines are a mix of mechanical, physics, and electronics that make for an interesting challenge to keep them running well.

 

[arbiterusa]

Suppose someone dinks with the intonation, action, truss rod, and tuning machines on your bass. Everything is out of whack (but nothing is broken).

Can you fix it on your own?

Fifteen minutes tops including the string change. Five without one. I've worked in four different music stores and done several thousand setups, time is money.

Takes me a bit longer if I'm not working on a dedicated bench, like doing a string change in the living room while watching TV. Helps to have your tools exactly where you expect them.

 

[FLAT4]

Does anyone besides Stew-Mac sell that?

If you have a small problem the fret buzz eliminator on Ebay is good and is only about $12 I think there are some inexpensive crowning files there too which might be better.

 

[Cowboy in Latvia]

Sorry - but I don't see the link. Thanks.

Whoops, link didn't take. I hate it when I mean to attach something but I forget to actually attach it. I put it into the other post and I'll put it here too.

Link

 

[JoeWPgh]

Unless you're using a hammer and a crowbar, it's pretty hard to wreck anything on a bass. The worst you can do is get it out of whack enough to take it to a pro. But you've likely learned enough to give it a shot next time.

 

[Gravedigger Dav]

I check it every time I change strings.

 

[JRA]

i do everything except fretwork: if it has frets = i take them out...then i do everything except fretwork.

 

[EatS1stBassist]

Don't sneeze or you'll drop the screwdriver. D'oh!!

Nah!! I just take my teeth out. !!!lol

 

[EatS1stBassist]

Unless you're using a hammer and a crowbar, it's pretty hard to wreck anything on a bass. The worst you can do is get it out of whack enough to take it to a pro. But you've likely learned enough to give it a shot next time.

Add a screwdriver and you have what is known as the Oklahoma tool kit. Lol

 

[tedious1]

Yes, but any bass I've acquired generally goes to the Luthier for it's first setup. I just like having a professional eye go over the new stable member...

 

[Tom Bomb]

Suppose someone dinks with the intonation, action, truss rod, and tuning machines on your bass. Everything is out of whack (but nothing is broken).

Can you fix it on your own?

I'm gonna to have nightmares now — confounded interwebs.

 

[J-Bassomatic]

For what it's worth go for it. You probably won't get it right the 1st time or the 2nd. If you keep going back to it you will eventually zero in on what works for you, you'll know it when you get there. Baby steps. No one setup works for everyone (well, there might be exceptions) but when you get it to where YOU want it there's nothing like it.

 

[rtslinger]

Suppose someone dinks with the intonation, action, truss rod, and tuning machines on your bass. Everything is out of whack (but nothing is broken).

Can you fix it on your own?

Yes no problem

 

[ThudThudThud]

I'd probably not do any extensive fretwork (more than a high fret, or sprouting end), but on basic set up - intonation, relief, basic nut filing etc. I'd be just fine.
I think it's a skill that every bass player (and guitar player) should invest the time in learning.