General Setup overview info.



About all you need to know about guitar setup.Mr Dan Erlewine, a legend.


First things to set are the bridge saddle heights,I assume you know where the adjusters are as you're reading this.Please slacken the strings before raising any bridge/saddles as some strings are strong and some bridges are not!
Next set the intonation.

Intonation.

. If it defeats you or you are unsure GO TO THE SHOP and ask for a setup..it's worth the money.. Don't feel bad if you cannot do this right at first or,even, at all. Would you imagine Eric Clapton or [insert guitar megastar] doing this?,probably not. Playing it is what is important, this process just saves you some money.




After you've read and noted Dan's words thoroughly,you may like to take notice of that thing your strings run over. It's called the nut and there are ,at least, five important aspects to it.


They are listed for convenience as DistanceX,DistanceY,DistanceZ and DistanceA in the picture below.


And this is just a brief overview of the intricacies of them.

Nut problems can play up your intonation so it MAY be that setting the intonation alone might not solve any tuning or playing problems. The fifth is the nut slot's (back) angle.

All the distances (dimensions) in a nut are very important.

Possibly the MOST crucial is Distance A - slot to fret height- this sets the height from the bottom of the string to the top of the fret - microscopically too low and you get fret buzz or "ring" too high and you get intonation problems.

What do I mean by Intonation problems?
Basically "intonation" means the ability ..to sound correctly (at the right pitch),..eg,the note G.

If the DistanceA is too high then you have to stretch the string too far just to fret it and will be playing an inexact form of the note G sharp (AKA, A Flat).

Too high slots also mean that the higher Barre chords will be ,literally, a pain to play..witness my Les Paul copy,upon which I could barely hold an F chord as the string "resistance" was too high through having a high nut.

Some DistanceA specs from GTR&D - Fender from fenderforum.com. FDP.

"The nut height spec for guitars in our set up specifications is .020" +/- .002" for strings 1-3 and .020"+.002" - 0 for strings 4-6. This is measured from the bottom of each string to the top of the first fret - best done with a feeler gage. Optimum for the greatest variety of playing styles and techniques is the low end of the specs - .018" for 1-3 and .020" for 4-6. This is with a neck relief of about .010" measured at the 7th fret..., all other specs should be set first." Obviously these will NOT suit ALL guitars. These and more specs are listed in Dan's setup info above.





DistanceX (depth of slot) is important as it is what sets DistanceA,cut too deep and you've mucked it. [It is reparable by using some nut "dust" and superglue,but,takes practice to fertle about with it and get it looking and playing nice(ly)]
Note that the profile of the slot should be half rounded NOT, as some cheaper guitar shops cut, bloody TRIANGULAR.
A rounded slot means the string won't be inclined to bind,triangular will bind and a square slot will allow the string to slop and rattle.

Triangular nut slots exist only because small triangular section files are cheap and easy to find,whereas,good nut slotting files aint.

It is most crucial on Strat type guitars (with tremelo/vibrato) that you have a half rounded profile..or you'll probably never be able to use that bent knitting needle.

Frets.Com,excellent nut info.



DistanceY should be cut according to the string gauge you are using,ie, if you use 0.010" (10 thou) first string,then the slot should be cut about 0.011 to 0.013" wide to stop friction problems,etc.

DistanceZ is usually set correctly on most production guitars.

If cutting your own nuts, be sure you calibrate these distances correctly.

Slot angle should be about the same as the angle the string makes with the nut..see frets.com for the detail on this.

I suggest that you go back and read the info in the two links again carefully, I know I do,often :)

Each guitar is an individual and it takes practice to get this sort of stuff right.