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Personal Setups

My dad is great at many things, but setting up guitars isnt one.

I checked out that YouTube video and looked straight down my neck.. Wow! Jamerson couldnt have even done it!

Took about 2 turns total to get it semi flat! Its incredible, the bass feels 10 times better already!

Now, the bridge and pickup pose a thread.
 
Just an FYI, I have said it before and Ill say it again, Madbassplaya is the man. Either we are bickering in a thread, then are buddies in the end, or backing each other up.

Im watching those videos as I adjust!
 
Personally I'd let it sit overnight to allow the wood time to adjust. It all depends how large the turns you made are. As madbassplaya just said, overtightening it would make it either straight or back bowed.
 
The neck doesn't need to be completely straight. There should be a slight, and i mean slight curve in it.

Over tightening it would be completely straight as a board or back bowed.

Personally I'd let it sit overnight to allow the wood time to adjust. It all depends how large the turns you made are. As madbassplaya just said, overtightening it would make it either straight or back bowed.

Its not perfectly straight, still a bit of curve to it. Concave curve, not convex curve, that is.

Ill adjust the bridge next.
 
If the setup was fine and is not good now, it's very likely that you have to adjust the neck first. The neck reacts to change in humidity and temperature first. I have a setup twice a year with my P-Basses, a summer and a winter setup (Germany). The Alembic needs more adjusting. But if you're used to do it, it's a matter of 5 minutes…

Gruesse, Pablo
 
I adjusted the bridge. I have touched the pickup, but even without, this bass is incredible!

Im just astonished. I thought this bass was incredible, but now its surpassed that.

To think its a Squier. Never again will I diss, or make fun of, a lower class bass. Ever.
 
Two full turns :eek:

The strings must have been a mile high!

Good setup is about finding a balance of neck relief and bridge saddle height. Too much or too little of either and strange things will start happening.

+1 for letting things settle overnight. Wood has memory to it and will take a while to "catch up" with the adjustment.

http://www.tunemybass.com/bass_setup/

This was my favorite resource when I was getting started doing setups.
 
I always recommend Fender's site for bass setups, works well for most brands:

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As said earlier, take it slow and you should be fine.

At worst, the Fender setup works great as a starting point, first thing I do with any(well, most) bass is work it to the Fender setup.


Suprisingly, I tried the Sadowsky setup specs, and it was terrible, way too high....