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Setup Woes

#61
noiseguy said:
Don't pay for any work you didn't agree to. If they won't give you back the bass, call the cops and tell them they stole your bass and are demanding payment for return.

BTW, you still haven't said what shop this is. Shop name, city, please. So we can avoid in the future.
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The shop is Howren Music in Gastonia, NC. :scowl: Never. Again.

I really hope the pickup goes smoothly. I'm of course imagining the worst.

I technically agreed to a setup+new strings when I first brought it in. I have since told them to halt all work on it, and was quoted $25 for the work they've done already. I'm worried I'll get there and they'll charge me for new strings too, despite being told the old strings were still on it yesterday when I told them to stop.

Essentially looking at a $25 charge (which I'll pay to get my bass back), a $45 charge if they added strings (which I will protest), or $45+ if they add on other incidentals (which I will RAGE about) :scowl:
 
#63
noiseguy said:
Don't pay for any work you didn't agree to. If they won't give you back the bass, call the cops and tell them they stole your bass and are demanding payment for return.
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I agree you shouldn't pay for any work that you didn't agree to. The key, of course, is that you probably agreed to the work at the time you dropped it off unless you specifically asked for an estimate before any work is to be performed. In that case, you just owe them for the estimate.

As for calling the police and reporting a stolen item, this is horrible advice. The law simply doesn't work like that.
 
#64
funkmaru said:
I can adjust the action alright, but I admit I'm afraid to to mess with the truss rod. Figured I'd take it to a pro to look at, but...

...now I've got some homework to do on set-ups. :bassist:
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Yeah. Don't let a store push you around, and don't assume that any hump behind the service counter at a shop really knows much about what they're doing. For the most part, truss rod adjustments which need to be done fairly regularly for most production instruments are one of the easiest adjustments to make. It often doesn't take more than an eighth or quarter of a turn to get it right. I have a couple basses which make truss rod adjustment so easy and accessible that I can do it on stage if I need to (not that I have had to, but I've tweaked it that way in less than 5 minutes in practice before to make up for a very humid hot week).

You shouldn't have to mess with saddle height more than once, after its set up correctly the first time. In fact, several of my basses came with correct saddle adjustment and I've never had to change the height. If you're using the same kind/gauge of strings regularly, you don't even need to adjust the saddle location to change the intonation.

bassmalone4 said:
See..that's the thing. Most people that frequent this site are endorsed..or are "trying to help the bass community" by steering you into spending money. The endorsed aren't allowed to say the truth about a product. Then, there's the actual luthiers of the board, pretty much advertising. Talkbass is too biased on many subjects.
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lol. bs. Time to go back to lurking again until you figure it out for real, from the look of it.
 
#65
I'll echo what everyone has said here- learning to do your own setups pays for itself in a very short amount of time. I had one bass setup for me one time... it was $50. the guy was very reputable, and he did an outstanding job, but I can't afford $50 on a semi-regular basis. It took some time, and some trial and error, but now, I can set up pretty much any instrument to my standards. I've had others play my basses and comment on how good they feel and play. Realistically, I should start charging others for setting up their instruments, but I would rather teach them how to do it, so they can save money in the long run. Once you get over the fear of ruining an instrument, it gets much easier.
 
#67
BurningSkies said:
The bonus of doing your own setup work is that YOU are there to test it and tweak it, not some random guessing about what action you like. Everyone plays with a different hand action and everyone likes a different feel.
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Very true. Don't be afraid to experiment with different settings, until you get what feels right to you. I used to beat the crap out of my basses, and used fairly high action. I finally realized I prefer low action, and to use a lighter touch, and can now set up a bass to my preference in about an hour, intonation included.
 
#68
I just got back from the store and my bass is safely in my hands again :hyper:

Neither one of the original guys was at the counter when I got there, this may have been the guy in the back that was looking at a catalog when they were trying to figure out the infamous "tuner replacement" price.

Anyway, I came in and said I was there to pick up my bass. The guy nodded and wondered off and came back with it.

He explained that "the guy" adjusted the truss rod and bridge (the receipt reflects this). It was $25, as quoted the night before.

The transaction was very quick, and professional, as he didn't have much to say the whole ordeal. I was prepared to have to defend my position in the matter, but thankfully didn't have to.

I'm still not sure how "the guy" managed to adjust the truss rod and bridge in the 5 minutes it took me to call up and cancel. Upon closer inspection and some quick playing, there is only slight buzzing on the 9th+ frets on the D&G strings, but the action is high....and there is significant buzzing on...pretty much all the frets on the E&A strings. :mad:

I don't know if this legitimately normal for a setup, and I just stopped them in the middle of it, or if the jerks just adjusted the bridge real quick before giving it back to make it look like they actually worked on it.

Doesn't matter. Either way, I've got homework to do and I'm going to set this bass up myself. :bassist:

I'll have more time to look it over later this evening and get started.

I'd like to thank everyone again for all the helpful suggestions and links. I'm so appreciative!
 
#69
funkmaru said:
I just got back from the store and my bass is safely in my hands again :hyper:

Neither one of the original guys was at the counter when I got there, this may have been the guy in the back that was looking at a catalog when they were trying to figure out the infamous "tuner replacement" price.

Anyway, I came in and said I was there to pick up my bass. The guy nodded and wondered off and came back with it.

He explained that "the guy" adjusted the truss rod and bridge (the receipt reflects this). It was $25, as quoted the night before.

The transaction was very quick, and professional, as he didn't have much to say the whole ordeal. I was prepared to have to defend my position in the matter, but thankfully didn't have to.

I'm still not sure how "the guy" managed to adjust the truss rod and bridge in the 5 minutes it took me to call up and cancel. Upon closer inspection and some quick playing, there is only slight buzzing on the 9th+ frets on the D&G strings, but the action is high....and there is significant buzzing on...pretty much all the frets on the E&A strings. :mad:

I don't know if this legitimately normal for a setup, and I just stopped them in the middle of it, or if the jerks just adjusted the bridge real quick before giving it back to make it look like they actually worked on it.

Doesn't matter. Either way, I've got homework to do and I'm going to set this bass up myself. :bassist:

I'll have more time to look it over later this evening and get started.

I'd like to thank everyone again for all the helpful suggestions and links. I'm so appreciative!
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That's not normal, at all.
Read up & do your setup. You'll be impressed with how much better it will be than that shoddy job they did.
 
#70
The fact that they've traded buzzing all down the neck on the A/E side to fix some backbow that was making buzzing on the 9-12 of D/G tells me that they don't know what they're doing. If you had one or two frets that were giving problems no matter the setup I'd write it off as a couple high frets, but not so much here.
 
#72
funkmaru said:
To clarify, it is the 1st through 7th fret on the E and literally the entire A string.
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Definitely not right at all. The fact that your action is high and you're still getting buzzing could mean the neck has too much back bow.

Have you ever sighted your neck? It's similar to looking down the barrel of a gun in order to aim. I usually look at the bass edge of the fingerboard (where the thickest string is), down from the headstock. You can see whether the neck is bowed forward or backward very easily this way. Hopefully that makes sense!
 
#73
NicJimBass said:
Definitely not right at all. The fact that your action is high and you're still getting buzzing could mean the neck has too much back bow.

Have you ever sighted your neck? It's similar to looking down the barrel of a gun in order to aim. I usually look at the bass edge of the fingerboard (where the thickest string is), down from the headstock. You can see whether the neck is bowed forward or backward very easily this way. Hopefully that makes sense!
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Its easier to hold the strings down at the first fret Capo if you need to) then hold them down at the fret that meets the body, see if there's any 'light' between the strings and the frets or if they just lay against the neck. You WANT some light between them, especially in that 4 to 10th fret range.
 
#74
BurningSkies said:
Its easier to hold the strings down at the first fret Capo if you need to) then hold them down at the fret that meets the body, see if there's any 'light' between the strings and the frets or if they just lay against the neck. You WANT some light between them, especially in that 4 to 10th fret range.
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And by some, he means about a business or credit card's thickness worth.
 
#75
awilkie84 said:
And by some, he means about a business or credit card's thickness worth.
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True. Something like that. Honestly, I've never been able to site down the neck and see much of anything. holding the strings down at each end of the neck and using the strings as a 'straight edge to compare the neck to gives me a much easier visual representation of what's going on.
 
#76
BurningSkies said:
True. Something like that. Honestly, I've never been able to site down the neck and see much of anything. holding the strings down at each end of the neck and using the strings as a 'straight edge to compare the neck to gives me a much easier visual representation of what's going on.
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Agreed. My neck ALWAYS looks like it curves UP at the end, when I sight it.
I use the capo & last fret method, too.
 
#78
A straight edge is the best way. Once you're set up, a 1/4 turn is usually all that is needed for annual tweaks. I haven't had to adjust the Ric in a couple years though. lol

Fret buzz and high action is not normal. Your bass still needs a set-up.

While I sure do like the electrical tape fix for the tuners, I still think I would go with the Schallers. They aren't top of the line, but they are very good and definitely better than stock MIM Fenders. And for $44 it's a no brainer.
 

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