This is spot-on. The neck relief is what I always check first. I also like a neck that is almost dead straight. If the relief is how I like it, i know that I won’t have to do much with anything else.
Absolutely, setup 101. The best necks I've played are on Shijie S and T type guitars, owner is a luthier with a deep love for those models. Some necks are just wanky, even on old Gibson and Fender guitars, others are totally stable forever.
I’ve only been playing guitar for 6mos and I’ve already learned to check the neck relief first if action has changed. It was all very intimidating 6mos ago but now it seems basic.
Exactly. I'm a bender and need a bit of relief... 0.010 at the 8th while capo on 1st, and holding down string at last. I have seen that I like the relief to be equal to the gauge the little E string is. Using 10s, its 10... using 9s, its 9. I havent tried it with 8s or 11s... lol. So i dont know if that trend continues tho. Haha.
A neck that is almost dead straight the strings will buzz like crazy, the bow in the neck should be the deepest at either the twelfth fret or half the scale length of the guitar.
Right on man it's absolutely ridiculous how much media influences people into thinking that they need stuff or need to do stuff that they don't need to do
I just went through this with a new to me Knaggs. I was going crazy chasing intonation and action height and one saddle was maxed out in one direction and wasn't in tune. I wound up adjusting the neck and normalizing the bridge height and it's now perfectly intonation and plays better than ever. Spent 2 days on a 2 minute fix. Thanks for sharing Dylan!
I knew that it mattered (I guess) but I honestly had no idea that neck relief affected everything *that* much - like, to the point that saddles could be maxed out and STILL the intonation is off. I've had that problem before as well, on my first ever guitar and never would have thought to adjust the truss rod. I was also scared to do it, if I'm honest lol. I was told not to mess around with it!!
This supports the order of operations when checking the setup of a guitar. 1. Chosen string gauge at the chosen pitch. 2. Truss rod adjusted to have chosen relief for #1. After these 2 steps are performed to the desired goal, one can… 3. Start futzing with other adjustments to the saddles/bridge/neck angle/nut height/etc… One has to follow these steps. Jumping ahead to #3 before confirming #1 & #2 is a waste of time and guaranteed frustration. When the neck relief shifts with the seasons, the string pitch changes. For example: it gets dry, the neck bows a little, the string is still straight and level , but the distance between the nut and bridge is now shorter, therefore the strings are now flat. Just giving a little tightening to the truss rod back to the predetermined relief will find the strings back in their desired pitch.
I got a Bullfighter neck-through off Amazon recently and fully expected the setup blues. I got it into the house and let it sit for a few days while playing it, then adjusted the truss rod a tad bit to flatten the fretboard. Suudenly, she played like a dream -- did NOTHING else. You just told me why that worked. Thanks!
Dude, I live in the Phoenix, AZ area, and my necks have been moving all over the place! I wish I saw this about a week earlier. It has been VERY humid out here lately - unusually so. I did not realize necks could move so much, because here, necks are pretty stable. God Bless!
I can't eyeball 1/100th of an inch so what I do is capo the first fret and fret the low E at around the 16th fret. Then adjust the neck relief while tapping the string at the 8th fret. No relief or convex you won't hear the string tap on the fret. I just adjust it untill I get the slightest tap so the neck will be as straight as it can be but still have a tiny bit of relief.
I agree, for years I had heard, don't adjust your action via changing your neck relief. Then I watched a highly respected luthier in my town do just that for my vintage LP. He also didn't stick to the commonly echoed technique of turning the tension rod only a quarter turn at a time for days on end. He said you only do that for very old and valuable guitars as a precaution For all guitars, if it is not easily moving then proceed with caution but within reason. You should always be careful not to strip the nut, but in most cases the" quarter turn at a time, wait a day repeat rule" isn't necessary .
The key part of your sentence is "if it is not easily moving" because unless the truss rod was never adjusted before, and was slack like it appears it is in this video, with bad action and needed a turn, it will always feel tight even when OK to turn it. It's the same as it will feel when not OK to turn it if it is not lubed occasionally. Dan Earlwine is the best at showing the tricks of the t
Dylan, you are perfectly right! 👍 As a beginner I adjusted every seasonal change of neck relief and action on ny 3 guitars to the lowest possible (E about 1,2mm-1,4mm) and had to constantly adjust a tiny bit in between. Stopped doing this after 3 years, letting it settle ones for good. After (7 y. later) I don't have to adjust absolutely nothing (on meanwhile 9 guitars), accepting the little 0,2 mm differences of action height, and have peace of mind.😊
PRS is known for processing their necks to make them more ridged. There's a great factory video in Maryland where they focus on that. If I find the link I'll post it 😊
A great point in this video. Thanks for making it. As neck relief changes you may also hear a difference as the strings move away from the pickups. I have also found that bridges don't move, except, for Fender offset style bridges. The string down force on the two screws takes its toll over time. I have found multiple Squier Jazzmasters and Jaguars that strings hitting pickups just from hanging on a guitar shop wall too long. Locktite can help fight this
Great video Dylan, most guitar usually just need a Truss Rod adjustment, especially if you live where you have all 4 seasons, A humidifier is your best friend, ever since a started to run a humidifier in my music room in the winter months I find almost all my guitars need way fewer adjustments.
Humidifier is a must. I try to keep my room humidity between 45 to 55% relative. Good for those acoustic pianos too! I think some of the higher end (Steinway, Bosendorfer) pianos have humidifiers installed?
I did, in fact, wear out nickel frets on a guitar. I played probably 3-5 hrs every day for a good 5 years. Some days I definitely got more than 5 hours. And I noticed after about 5 years I could see 6 indentations in most of the frets (right where the strings sit). I could feel them too.
Vincent, let's take your low figure of 3hrs a day. Every day for 5yrs, that's nearly 1,100hrs a year or the equivalent of 2-1/2 to 3yrs at a full-time job. This is not unusual for a dedicated, enthusiastic musician (or whatever) to become just a journeyman at our craft. And less than half of what 'masters' have spent to be playing at an expert or professional level. To beginners reading this, guitar is a way of life. It may not be for you, or maybe you're not trying to be among the best. Even if it's just for fun, it always makes you better to practice and jam and challenge yourself. Don't get too frustrated, put in the time and work, and realize you can ALWAYS get better. And realize nobody ever really masters anything.
@@markpell8979 bro, playing guitar is my only job. I’ve definitely played more hours than most players ever will. I was talking about one guitar that I played 3-5 hrs. a day. I’ve got guitars that I wore the finish off the neck. I’m 40 now. But, back in high school, when teachers couldn’t think of my name, they called me “guitar.” I’d say I’m an expert and a professional.
@@VincentPeer No sweat, no apology needed. After summarizing the math and rounding down to be conservative, I was kinda saying to beginners, "Here's what it takes if you're serious about becoming a real musician. If you're really not, have fun with it but don't expect to get good without doing the work." I also see now you were talking about playing just one guitar that much. You're right, most people never play enough in a lifetime to wear out even one guitar. Btw I think a naturally work-worn guitar is beautiful, and fake relics are a kind of 'stolen valor.'
I have a PRS Custom 24 with a torrified maple neck/fingboard. This is an SE model and was made in Korea. I have owned this guiitar for about 5 years or so and have not had to adjust the neck until just last week. Incredible.
My Fenders never need an adjustment after I’ve set it to what I like initially. The weather affects them so little it’s within tolerance of my preference. My Gibsons have needed adjustments far more but certainly not excessive.
If the guitar has been in a case for weeks, when it's usually out of its case, I don't even bother to check the neck relief, or any of the possible adjustments, until it's been out of the case for 24-48 hours.
spot on! In some cases, the strings can slightly oxidize, which also changes intonation. Used strings as well will change intonation. In both instances, simply change the strings with the same gauge and brand!
Bull, even Joe Walsh's perfect pitch ear won't detect the small frequency change caused by surface corrosion. If so you could just tune by wiping the syrings clean. I personally set my string heights to my playing. The length between nut and bridge determines intonation. Over 60 years on the guitar. No a novice needs to learn how to fine adjust their instruments to them and their playing. Make it personal to you. I'll bet Gilmore does, and Knopfler, Gary Moore, et. al. many others. Bet none of them tossed those allen wrenches, Gibson truss nut tools or other things that let them personalize their instruments and style.
i have a '91 USA Stratocaster Ultra Plus with a maple neck, an ebony fingerboard, and a Wilkinson roller nut. Apparently, there are three different-sized Wilkinson types for, i think three, different string gauges (so i've heard) and i am not sure which one i have on this Strat. I bought it 2nd hand in December 2023 and it played like a dream until recently. It seems to have an. 08 high E string. I normally use .09 high E strings on my other guitars so i am estimating it was strung with a set of .08s. My issue with the '91 Strat is the B string started buzzing when played open and on the 1st and 2nd frets. . About a month ago, my high E string did the same thing around the 5th fret and i didn't know what to do, so i detuned the one string and raised the action a few times and on the last attempt, the string snapped. So, i installed a new .08 high E and re-tuned the string and it was okay. I even had to lower the high E saddle to where it was before the buzzing started. And now the B string is buzzing on the 1st and open. The only tool i have purchased is a string action ruler but i don't know how to use it yet. Standing in front of the headstock and looking down the neck towards the guitar body, would i need to turn the truss rod to my left (to increase the bow) or to my right (to decrease the bow) to fix this problem? All the other frets are fine. Or maybe i should just change the B string? I don't want to waste the string if it's still good though so I'm trying to leave a string change as my last option. I have already tried raising the B saddle and it doesn't do much to remove the buzz at the nut and "1st' frets, and the B-string's height is getting too high. Any advice on how to solve this buzz? Thanks...to anyone.
@JerseyMiller The growth ring lines on a flatsawn neck are in the same direction as the glueline that attaches a fingerboard to a neck. The growth ring lines on a piece of quartersawn lumber are perpendicular to the glueline. Flat sawn is more flexible to the tension of the strings. Quarter sawn is stiffer. More resistant to string tension.
Dylan here's a idea for a show or a series maybe. What you said about quality guitars not needing to be tweaked all the frickin time is right on. My Clapton Strat never needs to be adjusted my " cheap" Strats always have to be messed with, this caused me to realize I have spent more time and money upgrading and paying for set ups than on my quality guitars, thus the title..." Why Cheap Guitars are More Expensive" Thanks for all your great content
Great info; Much appreciated! As a guitar player that suffers from GAD(guitar acquisition disorder), i know what it’s like to play a guitar after it's sat in the case a while. First thing i do after i free it from the case is….nothing! I let it acclimate for a day or two out in the open before i adjust anything. Sometimes they settle back all by themselves. If there is an adjustment, you’re spot on…. It’s usually a minor neck relief tweak. Thanks for your video! -LA
Very good point about wood quality and stability. I have a 1998 PRS McCarty Model that I bought new in 1998 which is an excellent guitar. I remember doing the initial set-up after having it home for a while and I cannot recall doing any kind of adjustments to it since then. It is the most stable guitar I've ever owned. Gibson USA guitars almost always need 2 neck relief adjustments per year. Gibson Custom Shop guitars rarely ever need a neck relief adjustment. This is after the initial set-up, of course. Better Fender guitars' necks are usually pretty stable because they are maple. I've found most maple necks to be more stable than most mahogany necks.
The wood on cheaper guitars isn't dried as long as expensive guitars before shaping and so they change as they dry. In my experience, after two years they are as stable as any and if not, get rid of them. I think necks get blamed for cheap tuner instability as well. I put Gotoh locking tuners on everything. Every string is has the exact same temperature drift in tuning on hot days. That's the strings changing length, not the neck. Good stuff Dylan - thanks!
I agree with that, but I exclude Gibson Nashville from that I think that’s why they have so many QC issues. I love my Gibson guitars, but I think they’re more in to cost savings
@@dlmyrs KKR owns Gibson. And is only concerned about investment returns. Cost cutting and revenue increases are a must to meet their WACC, ROIC and EBITDA measurements. And while all companies are concerned about earnings and cash flow, PE's are a lot more aggressive and cutthroat about it. Large PE's have the clout of large public companies but far less oversight. I'm speaking with experience as I have to deal with these types daily.
When I buy a guitar (new or used), I generally restring it and do an initial setup. I might try a couple different gauges the first few re-stings and tweak the setup if needed for the different gauge and string type. After that, I do the usually string changes and seasonal truss rod adjustments if needed. I rarely swap parts. I look at a guitar as either I like it as is or not. That applies to my Squiers, Fenders, etc. I've seen too many folks spend more on parts than the initial guitar which is ok it that's your thing, it's just not mine. The story is different on guitars/basses that I build from either parts or raw wood. That is where I experiment and spend my time experimenting.
Pretty much the same for me except I only have Squiers, no Fenders. And I’ve never built a guitar, not even a kit. Agree about parts replacement. I usually only replace parts that have failed. (Squier Strat 5-way switch was begging to be replaced by the proper Fender part. When one of the pickups “stopped working” that switch was outta there!) My Squier Classic Vibes haven’t needed setup adjustments since I first did them.
@@steveg.3022 I love my Squiers. The Classic Vibes are great. The Paranormal series are my favorites because Fender seems to have fun with that series doing more non-traditional things with it. I actually play my Squiers the most.
One thing I don’t understand is why you wouldn’t be checking the neck relief with the guitar in side position rather than on its back. Reason being, you play your guitar in side position (not on its back). The position does seem to affect the amount of relief (at least that’s what I’ve found). So while your method is giving you a level neck reading with the guitar on its back, it’s likely going to be slightly off when you turn it on its side (playing position). Curious your thoughts on this. Thanks.
@@DylanTalksTone Understood… thanks for the reply. So would you recommend making relief adjustments with a guitar on its side? And should setting intonation also be done this way?
One thing that you didn't mention: The truss rod will respond instantly to adjustment but the wood will not. That is why I always adjust less than is needed and wait a few days to see how things settle. Especially when loosening the truss rod. One would think that a more stable wood would take longer to react. Here's a story. An old house where one end had sunk down a good few inches. We put posts with screw jacks in the basement. Fortunately, we talked to an old hand that explained that it took a hundred years for that structure to sag like that and that we weren't going to restore its height in a day. So once a week, or whatever, we would give the jack screws a few turns, and eventually that old hard pine was restored back to level.
Here's what I do to help the truss rod after adjusting: I massage for 2 minutes the neck, pushing/pulling it in the desired direction. From time to time inbetween slapping lightly the back of the neck with the palm to losen tensions. Works so good! Not much happening in the settling time afterwards. 😊
OMG, finally someone covering this. I live in a house at 1100 ft ASL, with a wood burning stove. I have constant guitar nightmare, which I finally figured out was due to wide temperature and humidity swings. I finally stopped pulling my hair out. this actually came to my mind because my wife started learning to play cello, very beginner level but she brought this issue up. it was definitely a, I should have had a V8 moment.
make sense! thamk you, never thought about it in that way, just be a bit confuse what to do first, try it in the bridge nut height, etc, specially about intonation more than distant between string and neck. Sometimes is not easy get to easier facts :) so helpful!
I have discovered that the same neck relief (after confirming the minimal string clearance at the third fret) used as a basis for the same string height (regardless of sting scale length or even diameter of strings) leaves only the need for intonation adjustment. Once all that is done once, the neck bow is the major variable subject to environmental conditions. Returning the "action' to my "feel" is done without gauges. That way I only need to carry the correct tool for that adjustment on the guitars taken to the gig. Each tool is labeled to correlate with however many guitars it fits.
Depends where you live, living in New York with wild temperature variations I stay on top of neck adjustment as they change with humidity. I have 3 guitars in los Angeles that I play every 6 months and are always good.
This kind of advice is GOLDEN, & it's something that you learn from experience - the NECK it the keystone of so many other factors, & super easy to change! What I've seen is that most folks are scared to turn the truss rod, but there's NO REASON not to. When they end up takin' it to "a setup guy", what's gonna be the FIRST THING he looks at?!?! NECK BOW/FRET BUZZ. EVERYTIME. 9 times outta 10, that's the only real issue, & once THAT'S back to where it should be, like MAGIC - the other variables "right themselves" too! 🤘😁🤘
thanks for this maestro! at 11:20, I'm with you about my PRS guitar, it has been THE benchmark for all my other guitars. (Arrived perfectly set up*, and remains so).
The title is provocative, so l was ready to rage-watch the video. But this is spot on. Every adjustment you make on a guitar is important, but neck relief and pick up height are, in my opinion, the two most important when it comes to being a happy camper.
My strat lives in my van as i practice on my work breaks here in the UK, I lost a few weeks leaning to play as it wasnt set up when I got it but did gain leaning set up skills, I've had to go for a standard set up and action and just go with the day to day changes. Nothing worse than fret buzz in a van so the action can't be low. I've also fitted a zero glide zero fret nut because my nut was cut to low, this seems to help with intonation.
Right-on. If any-one knows how-to it is you Dylan. Now, I have a 335 with P90 dogears( yes 335). It is a custim shop and it sounds fantastic un-plugged, is there a way to get closer to a Humbucking bridge tone without putting a new pixkup in, like maybe stuffung the cavity under the pickup with some-thing( metal, wood, rubber)? Thankyou.
I'm in humid Central FL, same thing for environment, set it up once, seasons change, check it periodically to see where it may have moved. These are $ 100 new & preowned Inconesian/Chinese guitars. This is over 5 years (2019-present) of same guitar ownership for the Epiphone LP Soecial & Squier Strats. My Telecaster are 2021's, so they are 3 years old new Monoprice guitars. Same thing, they don't move enough that tuning the strings doesn't cure. What do I think is responsible for his stability ? The HVAC system for cooling & heating the house is that accurate & good for regulating the interior humidity & temperature. That as stable and there is minimal expansion & contraction. I also oil the fretboards as necessary and that keeps the fretboard form drying out/dehydrating. Any set up adjustments I'd make, that's because what I thought may have been perfect, probably weren't, maybe I'd like to try the neck relief, string action or saddle heights a little lower or even higher. To date, I've never had to adjust the nut slot depths, and these are nothing special $ 100 Chinese guitars. I can't have gotten the only perfectly cut nut slots from China ? They did a fine job on the production line at the factory or wherever the set up for nut slots happened, and it's the rest of my set up that has to be tweaked to work with the original set up.
This is good info. IMO, the first thing I would do to a guitar that hasn't been played in 6 months or more is to change the strings. Strings lose tension and get worn over time so that affects intonation. This shouldn't affect the action as that is caused by humidity changes primarily as mentioned in this video. But again, starting with fresh strings is the best first step to setting up a guitar if the strings havent been changed in a long time.
Neck relief is my issue. Low humidity in the summer, high in the winter. Once or twice a year, a small neck relief adjustment is required on a few of my guitars. Once I setup a guitar, other adjustments are almost never necessary.
Here in the Central Valley of California, we get high humidity sometimes in the summer if clouds come to us through Arizona from the Golf of Mexico in the summer. But mostly we have dry heat. If I use the heater in the house in the winter, it dries out the air, but I run a humidifier. I’m don’t run the humidifier in the summer because I can’t stand it.
I actually just adjusted my relief yesterday, funny this video comes up. The queues I got were the action coming up a little, slight intonation drift, and strings starting to fret out towards the middle of the board. Checked the relief and sure enough it was a little too high. Little bump to flatten it out and it fixed EVERYTHING!
I intonated my 2 guitars during winter, they're still ok. It's kind of a struggle with the premium Ibanez Jem because it doesn't have intonation screws.
Thanks Dylan! I was just about to do all the things you said not to do (again), tweaked the truss rod instead. Sorted action and intonation in one go, champion.
Yep, you can think of the neck/body combo as a bow (as in bow and arrow). If the bow part expands/contracts (straightens/bends), or the tension of the string changes, the distance between the string and the bow has to change correspondingly. Adjusting the truss rod just lets the bow-part bend less/more. The tuning of the strings is like when you draw the bow's string, just more or less permanent. So if your guitar has gone flat while sitting, you likely need to tighten the truss rod. If it's gone sharp, you probably need to loosen it.
Definitely the wood quality matters I rarely have to do adjustments, so even my cheaper ones seem to be well made. It’s been years since I needed to do that, other than a guitar I swapped out the bridge on. (So of course I had to set the intonation and action, but I took measurements.) Years ago looking for a fretless bass I kept seeing some cheaper models that all had serious neck bow. This was at different times of year, different cities, different stores. At one store they told me they kept adjusting them, but they kept bowing. Guess what I didn’t buy? Yet one guy who did buy one was getting all worked up, and taking it personally whenever anybody pointed out that flaw. I guess he likes doing adjustments. Oh well, that’s his choice. The fretless I do own is the instrument that I spent the most on, and the neck’s been great.
i think the prs i have is a 594 anyways the only help that guitar needed was the nut to be filed down a tiny bit it's been fine through this past winter and spring and so far this summer all guitars are different you could have a lemon with any brand i just changed the strings on my washburn for the last week i found it just didn't play right so i checked the neck relief turned the truss rod not even a quarter turn and it plays awesome again yeap don't touch anything else check the neck first
If the guitar reacts to the seasonal changes, yep… only the trussrod really needs a little adjustment. It would be interesting to see if that pink PRS will be the same in 6 months when the season is different than a year ago 🤔 quite possibly not a lot. Maple neck also kind of helps 😅
Thanks a lot for sharing this valuable logic, it’s thought provoking and is even helpful in decision making about what guitar to purchase in terms of how much one would like to spend for more possible insurance that the wood is more stable. When I first started playing, I thought I wanted the lightest possible guitar because there was now way I wanted to deal with a weighty instrument, but in terms of stability, weighty probably has a better chance of being more stable so now I don’t mind a heavier guitar.
Absolutely agree with you. Ninety percent of the time it's just a truss rod adjustment and I'm good to go. Sometimes I've found that I can simply play a guitar again for a short while and it'll settle/vibrate back into playing shape. Taking it out of the case and getting the wood used to vibrating and being played again... (could it be placebo effect?)
Thanks for that. Over the years it has become clear that the straighter the neck the better. A little relief actually robs string energy because it it pulling against a bowed piece of wood, not a straight pillar that has no flex. Guitars actually ring out better when the neck is straight. If a guitar needs relief, it probably needs fret work.
Thank you, Dylan. I have always struggled with guitar setup and things like neck relief. I don't know why it's so hard for me, but this video helped me.
You are correct. The only thing that can change itself is neck flatness... not action, not pickup height (though I did have an old guitar that would lower the bridge pickup on the bass side, due to sympathetic vibration).But, I find myself tweaking intonation on practically every string change. Typically on the B & G strings. I think that tolerances in manufacturing create this delta, even to the point that I have had brand new strings that were wildly out of tune... only to mount a new string to find the problem eliminated. Granted, I play a lot of upper register triads (with extensions) while using the lowest note I can find in that neighborhood. The upper register stuff really reveals and sharpness or flatness, because the frequencies are very close together, but also, high enough that you can hear the 'beating' between non-consonant intervals ( I didn't say dissonant, because a M3 isn't dissonant... unless out of tune.). Otherwise, great video. I had some guitars that used to punish me if I left them in the case... high action, or buzzing everywhere.... My response was to let them go. WIth all the gigs and sessions, and a family.... I don't want to console my guitar.... Kind of like a carpenter consoling his hammer.
I’ve noticed some times The truss Rod will not loosen on older guitars it will only tighten or straighten the neck. I Have a couple of 80s Ibanez Roadstars and the truss rods will turn but will not give any more relief they will only tighten. But the necks on these guitars are almost perfectly straight. I just put 10s on for a while then I can go back to 9s eventually. I’m guessing the wood in these necks have muscle memory.
That's what I do to.. I only check my intonation when changing strings after adjusting my neck relief. It's just strange that some of your strings are intonated and some are not.. It would make more sense if all are bad intonated if the neck relief is changed unless the neck is somewhat twisted.
I always go straight to the truss rod, I rarely adjust the action at the saddles. If anything I'm a little too trigger happy with the neck adjustments, but I really like play my neck with an exact relief and when it changes it's the only thing I can think about when playing. It's a slippery slope.
I love it ... "don't touch it" and then proceeds to do a set up. I like "Epies" because, with some TLC, you can make them sound better than their 5 x(s) the quality priced brothers. My latest guitar purchase needed tweaking in the relief, string height and intonation. I like a flat neck and low string height. My adjustments were correct and it now sounds better than its pricey Gibson brother hanging on the wall. That said, you do get more weight when you buy lower quality (chuckles). Awesome video.
I do all my own setups including some other stuff, fret leveling for one. I own a 1974 Guild D35 Dreadnaught that I bought new in 1975 when I was 19 years old, in those days all Guild guitars were made in the USA in Westerly RI,....... ..........and I have never had it set up since I bought it almost 50 years ago! I don't play it much, I play my electrics almost exclusively these days, but I took it out just yesterday to play, because the power went out and I had nothing to do,..... and t's still perfect, it's almost completely unbelievable!
Living in the northeast US with cold dry winters and hot humid summers I run humidifiers and dehumidifiers in the room where my guitars stay. Even with that I still get a difference of 20% from the lowest in the winter to the highest in the summer with occasional larger swings on extreme days. With a collection in the neighborhood of +/- 2 dozen I find that once I have them set up I don't really have to do anything to them. Even seasonal changes don't seem to make a difference. Once every few years I might have to give one truss rod a small adjustment. The only time I have to mess with the hardware is if I take all the strings off and manage to bump something out of place.
I'm always surprised some of mine drift a little and others are solid as a rock and we don't have anywhere as much issues with humidity as you guys. Big argument for roasted necks to get all those pockets of moisture out before the build.
I'd say the why the intonation is off when the neck relief is not correct is not due to the difference in the scale lenght caused by the bow on the neck but rather, as seen, the strings are higher so to when checking the intonation you have to fret the string much deeper so it goes sharp.´becasue you sort of micro bend it to get to the fret.
Shouldn't you lower the string tension before adding tension to the truss rod? I believe I read that somewhere. Great video thanks for the info, I totally agree
Where should you place a capo? I've always placed it closer to the fret wire, but seeing where Mr. Dylan places it, and depending on the pressure it applies, I'm thinking I may be pushing sharp. What do you all recommend?
I would recommend checking your tuning after you add the capo and then giving a push or a pull where needed. Especially if playing with other players or a track.
All what you say makes sense because the only thing that changes is the humidity and I experience this every winter with forced air heating about 5 months of the year.
Totally agree. Simply don't do what you don't have to do. Always follow this instruction and you'll be good:: T - tune R - relief A -action I -intonation N -noodle
Aaahhh, yep! I tune my guitar, check the intonation, and then play it. The only time I’ve ever had an issue with set up after initially done was when I put a completely different gauge of strings on it. And mainly it was neck relief because of different tension (and I probably should have done the nut slots but 🤷♀️). Great video. Just play the damn thing.
Yeah,. Heard about a violin player who told his violin had suddenly a bad crap sound in it..well, the answer was he didn't play his instrument enough! A unhappy instrument sound...
I had this experience once a while. A pefect Intonation as i got my Guitar, a month or two later, Action too high, Intonation gone, another Month later perfect... Now i know why, cheers. And about Epiphone and Gibson: I own a Epiphone, actually 2 Epiphones and my Mate owns a Gibson Les Paul, well...it is a complete different Story with the Gibson, you can feel the difference and if i ever get enough money i will try to get an really old Gibson.
Dylan - do you notice PRS truss rods being particularly sensitive. Same goes for PRS neck. Not sure if it’s also neck joint design that adds to necks going out of whack more frequently? Mine are all pretty unstable unlike your Silver Sky.
Get a string height gauge and the hex wrench to adjust the truss rod a 1/4 turn at a time...check saddle heights as well... and use a room humidifier in the dry months... and finally entonation....the essential setup process....fret files and a crowning file would also be good.
Temperature does matter for neck relief. Wood will,expand and contract over temp I would even argue more than humidity. Example: constant temperature, with variable humidity, movement of neck is minimal. Example to : constant humidity but extreme temperatures changes. Eg hot to very cold will make the neck move more than constant temperature variable humidity situation.
Dylan sets neck relief from the first fret to the highest fret. He does not mention the slight "fall away" of fret height above the 12th fret. "Fall away" from the 12th fret to the highest fret can be 3 thousands of an inch. This will make end to end relief fret out around the 12th fret. If your neck is completely flat with no fall away then Dylan's technique can work but "neck flex is only consistent where neck width and thickness is constant. at the heal of a neck the neck flex is almost non existent. Why is there "neck relief"? To allow for maximum string vibration without buzz. Why is there neck "fall away? Maximum string vibration without buzz above the 12th fret. 40 years ago Dan Erlewine taught me a neck fingerboard shape should have relief, level out, and fall away from the first fret to the highest fret. Mike Mcconville from String Tech addresses this in one of his oldest videos as he levels frets above the 12th fret on a white SG.
Truss rod adjustment is the first part of the setup. People should worry about their setup, what you probably mean to say is 'always adjust the truss rod first'.
When I get a guitar I check the intonation and string height, and set them to my liking, then...rarely touch it again. I've also almost never had to adjust the truss rod in any guitar I've owned (after my first setup that is, I've had to adjust a few used guitars once). I've had tuning go in and out due to humidity, but never neck relief. I mean there's a steel rod running through the middle of the neck, so it shouldn't go anywhere, unless it's extremely dried out. I also keep all my guitars hanging on the wall and in a humidified room. The only issues I've ever had with guitars is by leaving them in the case, and that was an acoustic and the top cracked (too dry). So I keep everything out in the open to allow the humidifier to do it's work.
3:47 my acoustic sounds and feels horrible when it’s too dry. The strings sound dead. There’s no resonance. I know the humid is right when the strings ring nicely
This is spot-on. The neck relief is what I always check first. I also like a neck that is almost dead straight. If the relief is how I like it, i know that I won’t have to do much with anything else.
Well done
Absolutely, setup 101. The best necks I've played are on Shijie S and T type guitars, owner is a luthier with a deep love for those models. Some necks are just wanky, even on old Gibson and Fender guitars, others are totally stable forever.
I’ve only been playing guitar for 6mos and I’ve already learned to check the neck relief first if action has changed. It was all very intimidating 6mos ago but now it seems basic.
Exactly. I'm a bender and need a bit of relief... 0.010 at the 8th while capo on 1st, and holding down string at last. I have seen that I like the relief to be equal to the gauge the little E string is. Using 10s, its 10... using 9s, its 9. I havent tried it with 8s or 11s... lol. So i dont know if that trend continues tho. Haha.
A neck that is almost dead straight the strings will buzz like crazy, the bow in the neck should be the deepest at either the twelfth fret or half the scale length of the guitar.
Right on man it's absolutely ridiculous how much media influences people into thinking that they need stuff or need to do stuff that they don't need to do
I just went through this with a new to me Knaggs. I was going crazy chasing intonation and action height and one saddle was maxed out in one direction and wasn't in tune. I wound up adjusting the neck and normalizing the bridge height and it's now perfectly intonation and plays better than ever. Spent 2 days on a 2 minute fix. Thanks for sharing Dylan!
I knew that it mattered (I guess) but I honestly had no idea that neck relief affected everything *that* much - like, to the point that saddles could be maxed out and STILL the intonation is off.
I've had that problem before as well, on my first ever guitar and never would have thought to adjust the truss rod. I was also scared to do it, if I'm honest lol. I was told not to mess around with it!!
Theres a reason they come with an allen wrench
Yea to stick up your nose, everyone knows this. Best bugger scraper
Best. Advice. Ever. I now understand the relationship between intonation and neck relief. Thank you so much.
This supports the order of operations when checking the setup of a guitar.
1. Chosen string gauge at the chosen pitch.
2. Truss rod adjusted to have chosen relief for #1.
After these 2 steps are performed to the desired goal, one can…
3. Start futzing with other adjustments to the saddles/bridge/neck angle/nut height/etc…
One has to follow these steps. Jumping ahead to #3 before confirming #1 & #2 is a waste of time and guaranteed frustration.
When the neck relief shifts with the seasons, the string pitch changes. For example: it gets dry, the neck bows a little, the string is still straight and level , but the distance between the nut and bridge is now shorter, therefore the strings are now flat. Just giving a little tightening to the truss rod back to the predetermined relief will find the strings back in their desired pitch.
Can you elaborate steps one and two? Or just like, link to an article or video.
@@HeyNostradamus There are lots of pages online about setting up a guitar.
😊😊😊😊😊
I have to adjust all my guitars relief twice a year. Everything else was adjusted once. Spot on video.
I got a Bullfighter neck-through off Amazon recently and fully expected the setup blues. I got it into the house and let it sit for a few days while playing it, then adjusted the truss rod a tad bit to flatten the fretboard. Suudenly, she played like a dream -- did NOTHING else. You just told me why that worked. Thanks!
Dude, I live in the Phoenix, AZ area, and my necks have been moving all over the place! I wish I saw this about a week earlier. It has been VERY humid out here lately - unusually so. I did not realize necks could move so much, because here, necks are pretty stable.
God Bless!
Living in the humid southeast you get accustomed to regular tweaks. Carry your tools and gages where you go!
I can't eyeball 1/100th of an inch so what I do is capo the first fret and fret the low E at around the 16th fret. Then adjust the neck relief while tapping the string at the 8th fret. No relief or convex you won't hear the string tap on the fret. I just adjust it untill I get the slightest tap so the neck will be as straight as it can be but still have a tiny bit of relief.
I agree, for years I had heard, don't adjust your action via changing your neck relief. Then I watched a highly respected luthier in my town do just that for my vintage LP. He also didn't stick to the commonly echoed technique of turning the tension rod only a quarter turn at a time for days on end. He said you only do that for very old and valuable guitars as a precaution For all guitars, if it is not easily moving then proceed with caution but within reason. You should always be careful not to strip the nut, but in most cases the" quarter turn at a time, wait a day repeat rule" isn't necessary .
The key part of your sentence is "if it is not easily moving" because unless the truss rod was never adjusted before, and was slack like it appears it is in this video, with bad action and needed a turn, it will always feel tight even when OK to turn it. It's the same as it will feel when not OK to turn it if it is not lubed occasionally. Dan Earlwine is the best at showing the tricks of the t
Dylan, you are perfectly right! 👍
As a beginner I adjusted every seasonal change of neck relief and action on ny 3 guitars to the lowest possible (E about 1,2mm-1,4mm) and had to constantly adjust a tiny bit in between.
Stopped doing this after 3 years, letting it settle ones for good.
After (7 y. later) I don't have to adjust absolutely nothing (on meanwhile 9 guitars), accepting the little 0,2 mm differences of action height, and have peace of mind.😊
this was good info thanks a lot
PRS is known for processing their necks to make them more ridged. There's a great factory video in Maryland where they focus on that. If I find the link I'll post it 😊
A great point in this video. Thanks for making it. As neck relief changes you may also hear a difference as the strings move away from the pickups. I have also found that bridges don't move, except, for Fender offset style bridges. The string down force on the two screws takes its toll over time. I have found multiple Squier Jazzmasters and Jaguars that strings hitting pickups just from hanging on a guitar shop wall too long. Locktite can help fight this
Great video Dylan, most guitar usually just need a Truss Rod adjustment, especially if you live where you have all 4 seasons, A humidifier is your best friend, ever since a started to run a humidifier in my music room in the winter months I find almost all my guitars need way fewer adjustments.
Humidifier is a must. I try to keep my room humidity between 45 to 55% relative. Good for those acoustic pianos too! I think some of the higher end (Steinway, Bosendorfer) pianos have humidifiers installed?
I did, in fact, wear out nickel frets on a guitar. I played probably 3-5 hrs every day for a good 5 years. Some days I definitely got more than 5 hours. And I noticed after about 5 years I could see 6 indentations in most of the frets (right where the strings sit). I could feel them too.
Vincent, let's take your low figure of 3hrs a day. Every day for 5yrs, that's nearly 1,100hrs a year or the equivalent of 2-1/2 to 3yrs at a full-time job. This is not unusual for a dedicated, enthusiastic musician (or whatever) to become just a journeyman at our craft. And less than half of what 'masters' have spent to be playing at an expert or professional level. To beginners reading this, guitar is a way of life. It may not be for you, or maybe you're not trying to be among the best. Even if it's just for fun, it always makes you better to practice and jam and challenge yourself. Don't get too frustrated, put in the time and work, and realize you can ALWAYS get better. And realize nobody ever really masters anything.
@@markpell8979 bro, playing guitar is my only job. I’ve definitely played more hours than most players ever will. I was talking about one guitar that I played 3-5 hrs. a day. I’ve got guitars that I wore the finish off the neck. I’m 40 now. But, back in high school, when teachers couldn’t think of my name, they called me “guitar.” I’d say I’m an expert and a professional.
@@VincentPeer oh man, hope you got that I was respecting your dedication and saying it's a good example!
@@markpell8979 oops! I did not. I’m more used to the cesspool side of the internet. My apologies.
@@VincentPeer No sweat, no apology needed. After summarizing the math and rounding down to be conservative, I was kinda saying to beginners, "Here's what it takes if you're serious about becoming a real musician. If you're really not, have fun with it but don't expect to get good without doing the work." I also see now you were talking about playing just one guitar that much. You're right, most people never play enough in a lifetime to wear out even one guitar. Btw I think a naturally work-worn guitar is beautiful, and fake relics are a kind of 'stolen valor.'
I have a PRS Custom 24 with a torrified maple neck/fingboard. This is an SE model and was made in Korea. I have owned this guiitar for about 5 years or so and have not had to adjust the neck until just last week. Incredible.
My Gibson Les Paul didn’t need adjustment until its 5 year either during a very dry spell.
My Fenders never need an adjustment after I’ve set it to what I like initially. The weather affects them so little it’s within tolerance of my preference.
My Gibsons have needed adjustments far more but certainly not excessive.
If the guitar has been in a case for weeks, when it's usually out of its case, I don't even bother to check the neck relief, or any of the possible adjustments, until it's been out of the case for 24-48 hours.
Dylan, I have a Heritage H-575 from 2005 that has not once needed a neck adjustment or re-setup. Super high-quality woods.
spot on! In some cases, the strings can slightly oxidize, which also changes intonation. Used strings as well will change intonation. In both instances, simply change the strings with the same gauge and brand!
Bull, even Joe Walsh's perfect pitch ear won't detect the small frequency change caused by surface corrosion. If so you could just tune by wiping the syrings clean. I personally set my string heights to my playing. The length between nut and bridge determines intonation. Over 60 years on the guitar. No a novice needs to learn how to fine adjust their instruments to them and their playing. Make it personal to you. I'll bet Gilmore does, and Knopfler, Gary Moore, et. al. many others. Bet none of them tossed those allen wrenches, Gibson truss nut tools or other things that let them personalize their instruments and style.
i have a '91 USA Stratocaster Ultra Plus with a maple neck, an ebony fingerboard, and a Wilkinson roller nut. Apparently, there are three different-sized Wilkinson types for, i think three, different string gauges (so i've heard) and i am not sure which one i have on this Strat. I bought it 2nd hand in December 2023 and it played like a dream until recently. It seems to have an. 08 high E string. I normally use .09 high E strings on my other guitars so i am estimating it was strung with a set of .08s.
My issue with the '91 Strat is the B string started buzzing when played open and on the 1st and 2nd frets.
.
About a month ago, my high E string did the same thing around the 5th fret and i didn't know what to do, so i detuned the one string and raised the action a few times and on the last attempt, the string snapped. So, i installed a new .08 high E and re-tuned the string and it was okay.
I even had to lower the high E saddle to where it was before the buzzing started.
And now the B string is buzzing on the 1st and open. The only tool i have purchased is a string action ruler but i don't know how to use it yet.
Standing in front of the headstock and looking down the neck towards the guitar body, would i need to turn the truss rod to my left (to increase the bow) or to my right (to decrease the bow) to fix this problem? All the other frets are fine.
Or maybe i should just change the B string? I don't want to waste the string if it's still good though so I'm trying to leave a string change as my last option.
I have already tried raising the B saddle and it doesn't do much to remove the buzz at the nut and "1st' frets, and the B-string's height is getting too high.
Any advice on how to solve this buzz?
Thanks...to anyone.
Look up reseating frets. Changes in humidity can push frets out of the fingerboard.
@@j6nighttrain Good tip. Thanks, i just saw a video, and there is no rocking and the fret is not loose. It's seated well.
A quarter sawn neck never needed re-adjusting in southern new england. A flat sawn neck on my fenders needed a spring and a fall adjustment.
What is the difference if you don't mind?
@JerseyMiller The growth ring lines on a flatsawn neck are in the same direction as the glueline that attaches a fingerboard to a neck. The growth ring lines on a piece of quartersawn lumber are perpendicular to the glueline. Flat sawn is more flexible to the tension of the strings. Quarter sawn is stiffer. More resistant to string tension.
Your thought and advice are invaluable. Thanks 👍
Dylan here's a idea for a show or a series maybe. What you said about quality guitars not needing to be tweaked all the frickin time is right on. My Clapton Strat never needs to be adjusted my " cheap" Strats always have to be messed with, this caused me to realize I have spent more time and money upgrading and paying for set ups than on my quality guitars, thus the title..." Why Cheap Guitars are More Expensive"
Thanks for all your great content
Great info; Much appreciated! As a guitar player that suffers from GAD(guitar acquisition disorder), i know what it’s like to play a guitar after it's sat in the case a while. First thing i do after i free it from the case is….nothing! I let it acclimate for a day or two out in the open before i adjust anything. Sometimes they settle back all by themselves. If there is an adjustment, you’re spot on…. It’s usually a minor neck relief tweak. Thanks for your video! -LA
Very good point about wood quality and stability. I have a 1998 PRS McCarty Model that I bought new in 1998 which is an excellent guitar. I remember doing the initial set-up after having it home for a while and I cannot recall doing any kind of adjustments to it since then. It is the most stable guitar I've ever owned. Gibson USA guitars almost always need 2 neck relief adjustments per year. Gibson Custom Shop guitars rarely ever need a neck relief adjustment. This is after the initial set-up, of course. Better Fender guitars' necks are usually pretty stable because they are maple. I've found most maple necks to be more stable than most mahogany necks.
Totaly agree it's always the neck with humidity who moves. Very good video 👍😉
The wood on cheaper guitars isn't dried as long as expensive guitars before shaping and so they change as they dry. In my experience, after two years they are as stable as any and if not, get rid of them. I think necks get blamed for cheap tuner instability as well. I put Gotoh locking tuners on everything. Every string is has the exact same temperature drift in tuning on hot days. That's the strings changing length, not the neck. Good stuff Dylan - thanks!
I agree with that, but I exclude Gibson Nashville from that I think that’s why they have so many QC issues. I love my Gibson guitars, but I think they’re more in to cost savings
@@dlmyrs KKR owns Gibson. And is only concerned about investment returns. Cost cutting and revenue increases are a must to meet their WACC, ROIC and EBITDA measurements.
And while all companies are concerned about earnings and cash flow, PE's are a lot more aggressive and cutthroat about it. Large PE's have the clout of large public companies but far less oversight.
I'm speaking with experience as I have to deal with these types daily.
this must be why the low e on my new MiM strat started buzzing at every fret after 2 hot days lol
Locking tuners aren't for tuning stability. It's for string changes
It only takes 15 days to dry most woods
When I buy a guitar (new or used), I generally restring it and do an initial setup. I might try a couple different gauges the first few re-stings and tweak the setup if needed for the different gauge and string type. After that, I do the usually string changes and seasonal truss rod adjustments if needed. I rarely swap parts. I look at a guitar as either I like it as is or not. That applies to my Squiers, Fenders, etc. I've seen too many folks spend more on parts than the initial guitar which is ok it that's your thing, it's just not mine. The story is different on guitars/basses that I build from either parts or raw wood. That is where I experiment and spend my time experimenting.
Pretty much the same for me except I only have Squiers, no Fenders. And I’ve never built a guitar, not even a kit. Agree about parts replacement. I usually only replace parts that have failed. (Squier Strat 5-way switch was begging to be replaced by the proper Fender part. When one of the pickups “stopped working” that switch was outta there!) My Squier Classic Vibes haven’t needed setup adjustments since I first did them.
@@steveg.3022 I love my Squiers. The Classic Vibes are great. The Paranormal series are my favorites because Fender seems to have fun with that series doing more non-traditional things with it. I actually play my Squiers the most.
reading the Peavey owner's manual from the 80s. for guitars equipped with tilt or micro-tilt. they say to adjust that instead of the saddles.
One thing I don’t understand is why you wouldn’t be checking the neck relief with the guitar in side position rather than on its back. Reason being, you play your guitar in side position (not on its back). The position does seem to affect the amount of relief (at least that’s what I’ve found). So while your method is giving you a level neck reading with the guitar on its back, it’s likely going to be slightly off when you turn it on its side (playing position). Curious your thoughts on this. Thanks.
Because it’s hard to shoot it that way
@@DylanTalksTone Understood… thanks for the reply. So would you recommend making relief adjustments with a guitar on its side? And should setting intonation also be done this way?
Thanks for the good tip on keeping track of each guitar!
One thing that you didn't mention: The truss rod will respond instantly to adjustment but the wood will not. That is why I always adjust less than is needed and wait a few days to see how things settle. Especially when loosening the truss rod.
One would think that a more stable wood would take longer to react.
Here's a story. An old house where one end had sunk down a good few inches. We put posts with screw jacks in the basement. Fortunately, we talked to an old hand that explained that it took a hundred years for that structure to sag like that and that we weren't going to restore its height in a day. So once a week, or whatever, we would give the jack screws a few turns, and eventually that old hard pine was restored back to level.
Here's what I do to help the truss rod after adjusting: I massage for 2 minutes the neck, pushing/pulling it in the desired direction. From time to time inbetween slapping lightly the back of the neck with the palm to losen tensions. Works so good! Not much happening in the settling time afterwards. 😊
@@lone-wolf-1so basically you give it a hand jo? You're obscene
@@JerseyMiller 🤣🤣
You are 100% correct. Always start with the relief.
OMG, finally someone covering this. I live in a house at 1100 ft ASL, with a wood burning stove. I have constant guitar nightmare, which I finally figured out was due to wide temperature and humidity swings. I finally stopped pulling my hair out. this actually came to my mind because my wife started learning to play cello, very beginner level but she brought this issue up. it was definitely a, I should have had a V8 moment.
make sense! thamk you, never thought about it in that way, just be a bit confuse what to do first, try it in the bridge nut height, etc, specially about intonation more than distant between string and neck. Sometimes is not easy get to easier facts :) so helpful!
I have discovered that the same neck relief (after confirming the minimal string clearance at the third fret) used as a basis for the same string height (regardless of sting scale length or even diameter of strings) leaves only the need for intonation adjustment. Once all that is done once, the neck bow is the major variable subject to environmental conditions. Returning the "action' to my "feel" is done without gauges. That way I only need to carry the correct tool for that adjustment on the guitars taken to the gig. Each tool is labeled to correlate with however many guitars it fits.
what is the electronic tuner you used?
I just started watching your channel and I feel like I've learned so much
Very well informed and sound advice as always, thanks Dylan!
Depends where you live, living in New York with wild temperature variations I stay on top of neck adjustment as they change with humidity. I have 3 guitars in los Angeles that I play every 6 months and are always good.
Yes, the wood moves definitely. Do strings lose tension over time?
When you tune the guitar the strings have the original tension…. Otherwise they would be out of tune
Great video and spot on. Hope that a lot of guitar playing people out there can learn from this.
Dylan…I’ve been guilty of grabbing wrenches and hogging away until I’m so deep in the weeds I can’t get out…but I learned my lesson 👍
Well some have it and some don't! Dylan was a songwriting God not a Guitar God!
After you adjust the truss rod shouldn't you let the guitar sit maybe overnight for the wood in the neck to pull back?
That’s what I do. I usually set it to have the slightest buzz, than after a few days the buzz is gone.
This kind of advice is GOLDEN, & it's something that you learn from experience - the NECK it the keystone of so many other factors, & super easy to change! What I've seen is that most folks are scared to turn the truss rod, but there's NO REASON not to. When they end up takin' it to "a setup guy", what's gonna be the FIRST THING he looks at?!?! NECK BOW/FRET BUZZ. EVERYTIME. 9 times outta 10, that's the only real issue, & once THAT'S back to where it should be, like MAGIC - the other variables "right themselves" too!
🤘😁🤘
thanks for this maestro!
at 11:20, I'm with you about my PRS guitar, it has been THE benchmark for all my other guitars. (Arrived perfectly set up*, and remains so).
The title is provocative, so l was ready to rage-watch the video. But this is spot on.
Every adjustment you make on a guitar is important, but neck relief and pick up height are, in my opinion, the two most important when it comes to being a happy camper.
Glad you liked it!
Very practical and good. Good point on the stability issue. Most players probably don't consider that!
My strat lives in my van as i practice on my work breaks here in the UK, I lost a few weeks leaning to play as it wasnt set up when I got it but did gain leaning set up skills, I've had to go for a standard set up and action and just go with the day to day changes. Nothing worse than fret buzz in a van so the action can't be low. I've also fitted a zero glide zero fret nut because my nut was cut to low, this seems to help with intonation.
My neck on my AZ Ibanez does not move at all. It has no moisture in the wood since its roasted...very cool!
Right on! I even wear out stainless steel frets when over playing one guitar, lol
Right-on. If any-one knows how-to it is you Dylan. Now, I have a 335 with P90 dogears( yes 335). It is a custim shop and it sounds fantastic un-plugged, is there a way to get closer to a Humbucking bridge tone without putting a new pixkup in, like maybe stuffung the cavity under the pickup with some-thing( metal, wood, rubber)? Thankyou.
An EQ pedal
I'm in humid Central FL, same thing for environment, set it up once, seasons change, check it periodically to see where it may have moved. These are $ 100 new & preowned Inconesian/Chinese guitars. This is over 5 years (2019-present) of same guitar ownership for the Epiphone LP Soecial & Squier Strats. My Telecaster are 2021's, so they are 3 years old new Monoprice guitars. Same thing, they don't move enough that tuning the strings doesn't cure. What do I think is responsible for his stability ? The HVAC system for cooling & heating the house is that accurate & good for regulating the interior humidity & temperature. That as stable and there is minimal expansion & contraction. I also oil the fretboards as necessary and that keeps the fretboard form drying out/dehydrating. Any set up adjustments I'd make, that's because what I thought may have been perfect, probably weren't, maybe I'd like to try the neck relief, string action or saddle heights a little lower or even higher. To date, I've never had to adjust the nut slot depths, and these are nothing special $ 100 Chinese guitars. I can't have gotten the only perfectly cut nut slots from China ? They did a fine job on the production line at the factory or wherever the set up for nut slots happened, and it's the rest of my set up that has to be tweaked to work with the original set up.
This is good info. IMO, the first thing I would do to a guitar that hasn't been played in 6 months or more is to change the strings. Strings lose tension and get worn over time so that affects intonation. This shouldn't affect the action as that is caused by humidity changes primarily as mentioned in this video. But again, starting with fresh strings is the best first step to setting up a guitar if the strings havent been changed in a long time.
Neck relief is my issue. Low humidity in the summer, high in the winter. Once or twice a year, a small neck relief adjustment is required on a few of my guitars. Once I setup a guitar, other adjustments are almost never necessary.
Here in the Central Valley of California, we get high humidity sometimes in the summer if clouds come to us through Arizona from the Golf of Mexico in the summer. But mostly we have dry heat. If I use the heater in the house in the winter, it dries out the air, but I run a humidifier. I’m don’t run the humidifier in the summer because I can’t stand it.
I actually just adjusted my relief yesterday, funny this video comes up. The queues I got were the action coming up a little, slight intonation drift, and strings starting to fret out towards the middle of the board. Checked the relief and sure enough it was a little too high. Little bump to flatten it out and it fixed EVERYTHING!
I intonated my 2 guitars during winter, they're still ok. It's kind of a struggle with the premium Ibanez Jem because it doesn't have intonation screws.
Thanks Dylan! I was just about to do all the things you said not to do (again), tweaked the truss rod instead. Sorted action and intonation in one go, champion.
100% correct. The truss rod is the first and sometimes the only thing to adjust
Plain and simple advice. That is what knowledgeable and honest people give. I thank you for that.
Yep, you can think of the neck/body combo as a bow (as in bow and arrow).
If the bow part expands/contracts (straightens/bends), or the tension of the string changes, the distance between the string and the bow has to change correspondingly.
Adjusting the truss rod just lets the bow-part bend less/more. The tuning of the strings is like when you draw the bow's string, just more or less permanent.
So if your guitar has gone flat while sitting, you likely need to tighten the truss rod.
If it's gone sharp, you probably need to loosen it.
Definitely the wood quality matters
I rarely have to do adjustments, so even my cheaper ones seem to be well made.
It’s been years since I needed to do that, other than a guitar I swapped out the bridge on.
(So of course I had to set the intonation and action, but I took measurements.)
Years ago looking for a fretless bass I kept seeing some cheaper models that all had serious neck bow. This was at different times of year, different cities, different stores.
At one store they told me they kept adjusting them, but they kept bowing. Guess what I didn’t buy?
Yet one guy who did buy one was getting all worked up, and taking it personally whenever anybody pointed out that flaw. I guess he likes doing adjustments. Oh well, that’s his choice.
The fretless I do own is the instrument that I spent the most on, and the neck’s been great.
i think the prs i have is a 594 anyways the only help that guitar needed was the nut to be filed down a tiny bit
it's been fine through this past winter and spring and so far this summer
all guitars are different you could have a lemon with any brand
i just changed the strings on my washburn
for the last week i found it just didn't play right
so i checked the neck relief
turned the truss rod not even a quarter turn and it plays awesome again
yeap don't touch anything else check the neck first
If the guitar reacts to the seasonal changes, yep… only the trussrod really needs a little adjustment.
It would be interesting to see if that pink PRS will be the same in 6 months when the season is different than a year ago 🤔 quite possibly not a lot. Maple neck also kind of helps 😅
Thanks a lot for sharing this valuable logic, it’s thought provoking and is even helpful in decision making about what guitar to purchase in terms of how much one would like to spend for more possible insurance that the wood is more stable. When I first started playing, I thought I wanted the lightest possible guitar because there was now way I wanted to deal with a weighty instrument, but in terms of stability, weighty probably has a better chance of being more stable so now I don’t mind a heavier guitar.
Thank you Dylan - you've illuminated some great points for a guy who's been playing for 50 years....now subscribed too!
Absolutely agree with you. Ninety percent of the time it's just a truss rod adjustment and I'm good to go. Sometimes I've found that I can simply play a guitar again for a short while and it'll settle/vibrate back into playing shape. Taking it out of the case and getting the wood used to vibrating and being played again... (could it be placebo effect?)
Thanks for that. Over the years it has become clear that the straighter the neck the better. A little relief actually robs string energy because it it pulling against a bowed piece of wood, not a straight pillar that has no flex. Guitars actually ring out better when the neck is straight. If a guitar needs relief, it probably needs fret work.
Thank you, Dylan. I have always struggled with guitar setup and things like neck relief. I don't know why it's so hard for me, but this video helped me.
You are correct. The only thing that can change itself is neck flatness... not action, not pickup height (though I did have an old guitar that would lower the bridge pickup on the bass side, due to sympathetic vibration).But, I find myself tweaking intonation on practically every string change. Typically on the B & G strings. I think that tolerances in manufacturing create this delta, even to the point that I have had brand new strings that were wildly out of tune... only to mount a new string to find the problem eliminated. Granted, I play a lot of upper register triads (with extensions) while using the lowest note I can find in that neighborhood. The upper register stuff really reveals and sharpness or flatness, because the frequencies are very close together, but also, high enough that you can hear the 'beating' between non-consonant intervals ( I didn't say dissonant, because a M3 isn't dissonant... unless out of tune.). Otherwise, great video. I had some guitars that used to punish me if I left them in the case... high action, or buzzing everywhere.... My response was to let them go. WIth all the gigs and sessions, and a family.... I don't want to console my guitar.... Kind of like a carpenter consoling his hammer.
I’ve noticed some times The truss Rod will not loosen on older guitars it will only tighten or straighten the neck. I Have a couple of 80s Ibanez Roadstars and the truss rods will turn but will not give any more relief they will only tighten. But the necks on these guitars are almost perfectly straight. I just put 10s on for a while then I can go back to 9s eventually. I’m guessing the wood in these necks have muscle memory.
That's what I do to.. I only check my intonation when changing strings after adjusting my neck relief. It's just strange that some of your strings are intonated and some are not.. It would make more sense if all are bad intonated if the neck relief is changed unless the neck is somewhat twisted.
I always go straight to the truss rod, I rarely adjust the action at the saddles. If anything I'm a little too trigger happy with the neck adjustments, but I really like play my neck with an exact relief and when it changes it's the only thing I can think about when playing. It's a slippery slope.
I love it ... "don't touch it" and then proceeds to do a set up. I like "Epies" because, with some TLC, you can make them sound better than their 5 x(s) the quality priced brothers. My latest guitar purchase needed tweaking in the relief, string height and intonation. I like a flat neck and low string height. My adjustments were correct and it now sounds better than its pricey Gibson brother hanging on the wall. That said, you do get more weight when you buy lower quality (chuckles). Awesome video.
I do all my own setups including some other stuff, fret leveling for one. I own a 1974 Guild D35 Dreadnaught that I bought new in 1975 when I was 19 years old, in those days all Guild guitars were made in the USA in Westerly RI,.......
..........and I have never had it set up since I bought it almost 50 years ago!
I don't play it much, I play my electrics almost exclusively these days, but I took it out just yesterday to play, because the power went out and I had nothing to do,..... and t's still perfect, it's almost completely unbelievable!
Good guitar wisdom. Thanks for sharing.
Living in the northeast US with cold dry winters and hot humid summers I run humidifiers and dehumidifiers in the room where my guitars stay. Even with that I still get a difference of 20% from the lowest in the winter to the highest in the summer with occasional larger swings on extreme days. With a collection in the neighborhood of +/- 2 dozen I find that once I have them set up I don't really have to do anything to them. Even seasonal changes don't seem to make a difference. Once every few years I might have to give one truss rod a small adjustment. The only time I have to mess with the hardware is if I take all the strings off and manage to bump something out of place.
I'm always surprised some of mine drift a little and others are solid as a rock and we don't have anywhere as much issues with humidity as you guys.
Big argument for roasted necks to get all those pockets of moisture out before the build.
You just saved me trying to do a fret level on my strat. Half a turn of the truss rod an it's playing sweet. Thank you. +1 subscriber ;)
I'd say the why the intonation is off when the neck relief is not correct is not due to the difference in the scale lenght caused by the bow on the neck but rather, as seen, the strings are higher so to when checking the intonation you have to fret the string much deeper so it goes sharp.´becasue you sort of micro bend it to get to the fret.
Set up wise, this is the video I’ve always needed.
Shouldn't you lower the string tension before adding tension to the truss rod? I believe I read that somewhere. Great video thanks for the info, I totally agree
Where should you place a capo? I've always placed it closer to the fret wire, but seeing where Mr. Dylan places it, and depending on the pressure it applies, I'm thinking I may be pushing sharp. What do you all recommend?
I always teach my students:
Kaa poh
In the mid dull
Stays in tune
I would recommend checking your tuning after you add the capo and then giving a push or a pull where needed. Especially if playing with other players or a track.
I always need to tune after mounting the capo because it pulls the strings sharp. Middle of fret leaves more room for fretting cowboy cords
All what you say makes sense because the only thing that changes is the humidity and I experience this every winter with forced air heating about 5 months of the year.
Totally agree. Simply don't do what you don't have to do. Always follow this instruction and you'll be good::
T - tune
R - relief
A -action
I -intonation
N -noodle
Aaahhh, yep! I tune my guitar, check the intonation, and then play it. The only time I’ve ever had an issue with set up after initially done was when I put a completely different gauge of strings on it. And mainly it was neck relief because of different tension (and I probably should have done the nut slots but 🤷♀️). Great video. Just play the damn thing.
Yeah,. Heard about a violin player who told his violin had suddenly a bad crap sound in it..well, the answer was he didn't play his instrument enough! A unhappy instrument sound...
Thanks so much. I never knew this!
I had this experience once a while. A pefect Intonation as i got my Guitar, a month or two later, Action too high, Intonation gone, another Month later perfect...
Now i know why, cheers.
And about Epiphone and Gibson: I own a Epiphone, actually 2 Epiphones and my Mate owns a Gibson Les Paul, well...it is a complete different Story with the Gibson, you can feel the difference and if i ever get enough money i will try to get an really old Gibson.
Dylan - do you notice PRS truss rods being particularly sensitive. Same goes for PRS neck. Not sure if it’s also neck joint design that adds to necks going out of whack more frequently? Mine are all pretty unstable unlike your Silver Sky.
Get a string height gauge and the hex wrench to adjust the truss rod a 1/4 turn at a time...check saddle heights as well... and use a room humidifier in the dry months... and finally entonation....the essential setup process....fret files and a crowning file would also be good.
Temperature does matter for neck relief. Wood will,expand and contract over temp I would even argue more than humidity. Example: constant temperature, with variable humidity, movement of neck is minimal. Example to : constant humidity but extreme temperatures changes. Eg hot to very cold will make the neck move more than constant temperature variable humidity situation.
Dylan sets neck relief from the first fret to the highest fret. He does not mention the slight "fall away" of fret height above the 12th fret. "Fall away" from the 12th fret to the highest fret can be 3 thousands of an inch. This will make end to end relief fret out around the 12th fret. If your neck is completely flat with no fall away then Dylan's technique can work but "neck flex is only consistent where neck width and thickness is constant. at the heal of a neck the neck flex is almost non existent. Why is there "neck relief"? To allow for maximum string vibration without buzz. Why is there neck "fall away? Maximum string vibration without buzz above the 12th fret. 40 years ago Dan Erlewine taught me a neck fingerboard shape should have relief, level out, and fall away from the first fret to the highest fret. Mike Mcconville from String Tech addresses this in one of his oldest videos as he levels frets above the 12th fret on a white SG.
Excellent, comprehensive explanation of precisely why. Thank you for sharing your wisdom & energy.-All the Best!
Excellent video. Thank you.
Truss rod adjustment is the first part of the setup. People should worry about their setup, what you probably mean to say is 'always adjust the truss rod first'.
When I get a guitar I check the intonation and string height, and set them to my liking, then...rarely touch it again. I've also almost never had to adjust the truss rod in any guitar I've owned (after my first setup that is, I've had to adjust a few used guitars once). I've had tuning go in and out due to humidity, but never neck relief. I mean there's a steel rod running through the middle of the neck, so it shouldn't go anywhere, unless it's extremely dried out. I also keep all my guitars hanging on the wall and in a humidified room. The only issues I've ever had with guitars is by leaving them in the case, and that was an acoustic and the top cracked (too dry). So I keep everything out in the open to allow the humidifier to do it's work.
Excellent advice, thanks!
3:47 my acoustic sounds and feels horrible when it’s too dry. The strings sound dead. There’s no resonance. I know the humid is right when the strings ring nicely