Guitar Chasers

Now that your guitar’s neck is straight and you have put on new strings, it’s time to adjust the string height (action) and intonation (note accuracy).

#1.Heavier gauge strings stay in tune better, last longer and permit a more comfortable action without fret rattle. However, with heavier gauge strings you’ll probably need to add an extra spring onto the whammy bar setup. This is necessary to maintain the proper bridge plate angle.The bridge plate should rise about one eighth of an inch above the guitar body on Strat style bridges. With lighter gauge strings you might only have to tighten or loosen the two tremolo spring anchor screws a turn or two to achieve the proper bridge plate angle.

#2.It’s a good idea to loosen the tension of each string individually as you make these adjustments. If the relative height of the strings feel about equal to each other then action adjustment is just a matter of adjusting each bridge saddle screw the same amount of turns. To raise the action turn IN each of the twelve bridge saddle screws one sixteenth of a turn. Retune and play a little while. If that wasn’t enough, turn each screw another one sixteenth of a turn. Do the opposite to lower the action. Always adjust in small increments.

#3.The higher the action, the more rearward (away from the neck) you must adjust the bridge saddles to maintain proper intonation. Each string’s intonation should be set so the harmonic at the twelfth fret is equal to the fretted note at the twelfth fret. If the fretted note at the twelfth fret is sharp compared to the harmonic, adjust the bridge saddle rearward (away from the nut) one half turn of the adjusting screw. If the fretted note is flat when compared to the harmonic, adjust the bridge saddle toward the nut. After making any adjustment to the bridge saddle check to be sure the screw head and the height adjusting screws are making proper contact with the bridge plate. Retune after every small adjustment until you zero in on the same note value for the harmonic and fretted note. An electronic tuner can simplify this procedure. Often the g string and the low e string are adjusted farther back than their neighboring strings. This is not unusual. The g string action should be raised slightly more to obtain a proper relative height (moving the bridge saddle back also lowers the action of that string).

#4.Now that the neck is straight, the strings are new and the action and intonation are correct, the only remaining adjustment is to set the pickup height.If you’re a lead player or if you use a thin pick then you probably prefer that the pickups are very close to the strings (1/32 to 1/16 in. clearance when fretted at the highest fret). If you’re a rhythm player or use a thick pick then you probably prefer the pickups deeper down into the guitar body. Different string / pickup clearances change the relative volume, tone, and dynamics of your sound. Experiment.

#5.Be sure to check the straightness of the neck every month and eventually you will fine tune the variables enough so that all your axe’s pieces work in harmony.

Stability is the foundation for consistent, reliable axe performance.