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Do my own setup, or pay?
- Thread starter mdsmith
- Start date
The stock answer is pay for a professional setup.
That being said, I think every bassist should know how to set up their own basses.
Here's a good site :Invalid Link Removed (Just ignore the stuff about the ramp).
I've never seen a pro setup that was better than I could do myself.
That being said, I think every bassist should know how to set up their own basses.
Here's a good site :Invalid Link Removed (Just ignore the stuff about the ramp).
I've never seen a pro setup that was better than I could do myself.
I know I'll be in minority here, but that's OK. I've been playing guitar for 20+ years and bass for a about 18 months. I can't do a PROPER setup to save my life. I can restring a guitar/bass, in about 5 minutes flat, no problem, classical nylon string included. I can solder pots/jacks, no problem. But when it comes to the delicate balance b/t saddle height and neck adjustment I'm almost completely lost.
"Doing a setup" is easy. Doing a PROPER, THOROUGH, AS GOOD AS IT CAN GET setup is difficult at best. Take it to someone who knows what they are doing, pay the money ONCE and you should be good for a couple of years barring a string gauge change or damage to the instrument. My two pennies.
"Doing a setup" is easy. Doing a PROPER, THOROUGH, AS GOOD AS IT CAN GET setup is difficult at best. Take it to someone who knows what they are doing, pay the money ONCE and you should be good for a couple of years barring a string gauge change or damage to the instrument. My two pennies.
Look up some instructional stuff on how to do it yourself and slowly learn how to do it. Careful with that truss rod! It's not as scary as it may seem, but the first few times you make an adjustment you'll probably be on the edge of your seat. I would say attempt to do it yourself the best you can, then take it to a trusted tech and have him do a setup for you and try to pay attention to what he changed.
In the end it's not that hard. Figure out how straight you like your neck, how to match your neck's curve radius, how to get good intonation, how high/low string action you like and how to obtain it without fret buzz, and you're pretty much golden! Easy with experience, but difficult with none. The only way you'll learn is practice. If you don't know what you're doing there is definitely a huge difference in having an experienced tech do one for you.
In the end it's not that hard. Figure out how straight you like your neck, how to match your neck's curve radius, how to get good intonation, how high/low string action you like and how to obtain it without fret buzz, and you're pretty much golden! Easy with experience, but difficult with none. The only way you'll learn is practice. If you don't know what you're doing there is definitely a huge difference in having an experienced tech do one for you.
You have to be patient with the truss rod. A quarter turn at a time. Let the neck settle. If you go cranking away on the truss rod like you're changing a tire you ARE gonna regret it.
This is not a difficult thing to learn.
Understand that to set you intonation the basic concept is string length.... longer is lower (flatter)
If you tune your bass, then fret the 12th fret (octave) and take a tuner reading, if its flat, the string is too long, move the saddle towards the nut, retune, retest, opposite if the string is sharp, move the saddle back towards the bottom of the bass (make the string longer), repeat on each string. Open string should match the fretted 12th fret on each string, your bass in now intonated.
Neck relief is controlled by the truss rod, tune the bass sight the edge of the finger board at the g string side of the neck, if you have a bow then then you need to tighten the truss rod, quarter turn at a time, re-tune. A very slight bow is OK, too flat you may get some buzzing. If the neck is bowed up or the neck is too flat, release the truss tension 1/4 turn at a time (counter clockwise), re-tune
Wood is an elastic material, go slow, do not over tighten your truss rod and all should be good. You will learn how a little tweak makes a big difference.
Saddle height controls action. Low is good if you have a light touch.
All of these elements have an effect on the overall way the instrument plays, so you will have to reset saddle heights after a truss rod adjustment possibly.
If you need fret leveling or dressing, take your bass to pro. Set up anyone can learn.
Understand that to set you intonation the basic concept is string length.... longer is lower (flatter)
If you tune your bass, then fret the 12th fret (octave) and take a tuner reading, if its flat, the string is too long, move the saddle towards the nut, retune, retest, opposite if the string is sharp, move the saddle back towards the bottom of the bass (make the string longer), repeat on each string. Open string should match the fretted 12th fret on each string, your bass in now intonated.
Neck relief is controlled by the truss rod, tune the bass sight the edge of the finger board at the g string side of the neck, if you have a bow then then you need to tighten the truss rod, quarter turn at a time, re-tune. A very slight bow is OK, too flat you may get some buzzing. If the neck is bowed up or the neck is too flat, release the truss tension 1/4 turn at a time (counter clockwise), re-tune
Wood is an elastic material, go slow, do not over tighten your truss rod and all should be good. You will learn how a little tweak makes a big difference.
Saddle height controls action. Low is good if you have a light touch.
All of these elements have an effect on the overall way the instrument plays, so you will have to reset saddle heights after a truss rod adjustment possibly.
If you need fret leveling or dressing, take your bass to pro. Set up anyone can learn.
I do have a pro locally who I trust. I have also encountered many I don't. I bought the tools and have a strobe tuner. If you get a setup done for a specific string brand set and stay in that mode, very little additional tweaks are needed unless you are very anal retentive on setup (Which sadly I am! LOL).
I dunno. I used to BE the "proper set up guy" in town, and I can't really understand why people paid me to do what they could do themselves. I think it's important for any bassist to understand and know how to do set up work themselves. There are two main reasons for this view. One is that only YOU know what feels right for you. The best I can do for you is get it pretty close, but to really have your action dialed in, you have to play it and tweak it. It's also expensive to pay me to do things to your bass, only for you to discover that you don't like 'em that way, so you need it done again.
Now, there are a couple of things I wouldn't recommend if you don't have the experience working on instruments. For the first proper set-up take it to a good set up tech (I hate the term "luthier" for people who don't build instruments, and bolting a neck and hardware on a chunk of wood isn't "building" in my book") with experience in basses. You want them to make sure the frets are level and crowned correctly, that the nut is cut properly. Almost no mass production instrument in my 30+ year history has had the nut cut acceptably- exceptions being Takamine acoustics, Guilds (at least the Rhode Island ones, I haven't seen many Corona ones, and no Tacoma nor Connecticut ones), Laklands (both US and Skyline) most Ovations and Hamers. Also make sure the neck is stable with no twists, and the truss rod works evenly across its effective range. If those things are in place, then any bassist who can figure out how to play a gig without killing either the drummer or the guitarist is smart enough to learn how to do their own set up work.
See, a lot of set up stuff is about trade-offs, not absolutes. There isn't a "correct" amount of relief, action height, etc. And most people need to play with the difference between a flat neck/higher action and slight relief/lower action to determine which they prefer.
Second reason for knowing this stuff on your own is that it gives you a much better understanding of the differences between a good instrument and a great one. At some point, the limits of set up are determined by the bass. And understanding these things allow you to play something, look it over, and determine whether what you don't like is an issue of set-up or an issue of construction. I've seen too many people pass up a great bass because it wasn't set up the way they like, and I've seen too many people trying to turn a pig's ear into a silk purse when the wood and hardware just wasn't ever going to be a great instrument. And that's across all price levels.
So, my advice is to do this.
A. Buy a copy of Dan Erlewine's "Complete Guitar Repair", and augment that with the great on-line set-up instructions available (there's a much better one than Willis' out there, but I don't recall the author's name).
B. Lock your basses up in the cases, sit down with the book and read through it. Pay special attention to when Dan talks about trade-offs. Just read through it, study the illustrations (great book because he uses a combination of photos, line drawings, and charts- whichever conveys the knowledge most effectively).
C. Repeat this process with your bass in your hands, but no tools. You just want to see how things go together, what your options are, how the specific hardware on YOUR bass matches to the examples.
D. Then get some GOOD tools- don't buy your screwdrivers at the drug store, get some decent ones. There's a list in the book, but at a minimum you'll need screwdrivers, a 6" metal machinist's ruler, some allen keys/hex wrenches (SAE and metric)- go for the smaller sizes, a good tuner, and some patience. All except the patience are available at "home improvement" stores, real hardware stores, and Sears.
E. Now and only now, go through the process of doing some set-up. Don't do everything all at once, and make small adjustments. See what happens if you make the neck perfectly straight and adjust the action so you can play without buzzing. You like that, or do you prefer it with a little bit of relief? Write down what you do, like "turned truss rod 1/4 turn CW" so if you DON'T like what you did, you can get back to square one.
Enjoy your new-found relationship with your bass!
John
Now, there are a couple of things I wouldn't recommend if you don't have the experience working on instruments. For the first proper set-up take it to a good set up tech (I hate the term "luthier" for people who don't build instruments, and bolting a neck and hardware on a chunk of wood isn't "building" in my book") with experience in basses. You want them to make sure the frets are level and crowned correctly, that the nut is cut properly. Almost no mass production instrument in my 30+ year history has had the nut cut acceptably- exceptions being Takamine acoustics, Guilds (at least the Rhode Island ones, I haven't seen many Corona ones, and no Tacoma nor Connecticut ones), Laklands (both US and Skyline) most Ovations and Hamers. Also make sure the neck is stable with no twists, and the truss rod works evenly across its effective range. If those things are in place, then any bassist who can figure out how to play a gig without killing either the drummer or the guitarist is smart enough to learn how to do their own set up work.
See, a lot of set up stuff is about trade-offs, not absolutes. There isn't a "correct" amount of relief, action height, etc. And most people need to play with the difference between a flat neck/higher action and slight relief/lower action to determine which they prefer.
Second reason for knowing this stuff on your own is that it gives you a much better understanding of the differences between a good instrument and a great one. At some point, the limits of set up are determined by the bass. And understanding these things allow you to play something, look it over, and determine whether what you don't like is an issue of set-up or an issue of construction. I've seen too many people pass up a great bass because it wasn't set up the way they like, and I've seen too many people trying to turn a pig's ear into a silk purse when the wood and hardware just wasn't ever going to be a great instrument. And that's across all price levels.
So, my advice is to do this.
A. Buy a copy of Dan Erlewine's "Complete Guitar Repair", and augment that with the great on-line set-up instructions available (there's a much better one than Willis' out there, but I don't recall the author's name).
B. Lock your basses up in the cases, sit down with the book and read through it. Pay special attention to when Dan talks about trade-offs. Just read through it, study the illustrations (great book because he uses a combination of photos, line drawings, and charts- whichever conveys the knowledge most effectively).
C. Repeat this process with your bass in your hands, but no tools. You just want to see how things go together, what your options are, how the specific hardware on YOUR bass matches to the examples.
D. Then get some GOOD tools- don't buy your screwdrivers at the drug store, get some decent ones. There's a list in the book, but at a minimum you'll need screwdrivers, a 6" metal machinist's ruler, some allen keys/hex wrenches (SAE and metric)- go for the smaller sizes, a good tuner, and some patience. All except the patience are available at "home improvement" stores, real hardware stores, and Sears.
E. Now and only now, go through the process of doing some set-up. Don't do everything all at once, and make small adjustments. See what happens if you make the neck perfectly straight and adjust the action so you can play without buzzing. You like that, or do you prefer it with a little bit of relief? Write down what you do, like "turned truss rod 1/4 turn CW" so if you DON'T like what you did, you can get back to square one.
Enjoy your new-found relationship with your bass!
John
These will show you how;
http://www.talkbass.com/forum/showthread.php?t=125382
http://www.talkbass.com/wiki/index.php/Setup
http://www.talkbass.com/forum/showthread.php?t=695259
http://www.talkbass.com/forum/showthread.php?t=125382
http://www.talkbass.com/wiki/index.php/Setup
http://www.talkbass.com/forum/showthread.php?t=695259
Gather the right tools together & go slow & careful to begin. To avoid the confusion & frustration of following the instructions & not getting a good result, I find it best to set up with the bass on it's strap on my shoulder. Resting the head & body on a workbench can add relief to the neck that goes away when you pick the bass up. YRMV
FWIW, you can always try it, do it badly & take it to someone else, later.
Thanks for all of the advice guys. I think I might have a go at it myself, and if I can't seem to get it right, then I'll take it to someone. I have adjusted the truss rod since I put the string on, but that's it. I was mainly concerned with the nut grooves since the LaBellas are heavier than what was on there before.
- Sep 9, 2007
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The only times I had a pro set up my bass (who's a good friend and great luthier in town) was if I didn't have the time/inclination to do it. I had a full six week run (7 shows in 6 day weeks) where in the middle, I had two weeks I wasn't playing electric. It was easier to just pay my buddy to do it for me.
But normally, it's easier to do it myself. And really, it's kind of fun.
But normally, it's easier to do it myself. And really, it's kind of fun.
I've always wondered if there was a preferred 'order of operations' when doing a setup.
when I've done my own It's been
1.)Relief
2.)Action
3.)Intonation
usually with some repetition/back and forth...
Is there a logic to pursue them in a particular order,
or to isolate one form another (Relief, to give it 'settling time' perhaps?)
when I've done my own It's been
1.)Relief
2.)Action
3.)Intonation
usually with some repetition/back and forth...
Is there a logic to pursue them in a particular order,
or to isolate one form another (Relief, to give it 'settling time' perhaps?)
nut grooves = special tools & craftsmanship. If the strings are in the slots & respond well to tuning, the grooves are probably OK as they are.
Good luck & Happy Holidays
wow...great advice here! I know this kind of post comes up a lot and im very impressed with how it was treated!
I've never setup my bass before but the action on mine has been a problem for a while now. Now that I know its just the saddle height that controls this and not the truss rod, I may have a try at doing that myself today
I've never setup my bass before but the action on mine has been a problem for a while now. Now that I know its just the saddle height that controls this and not the truss rod, I may have a try at doing that myself today
