I am a novice guitarist and have a question about saddle height screws. Is it merely a personal preference to either keep each individual saddle flush with both height adjustment screws exactly even? My first instinct says this would be the most stable way of doing it rather than having uneven height screws on a saddle angling the saddle. Obviously you want a radius, but a stepped radius or semi-circle? Here is a pick of how my strat was set up. I'm just not sure if I agree with the method. You can clearly see the different height of the screws in this picture I took. Thanks in advance for the help.

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Johnny Funk~

I don't think it would matter enough for you to have to go and adjust these, but I would usually set up saddles so each one is parallel to the bridge plate, rather than angled like on your guitar. The sides of the saddles are square and meant to sit flush against one another, and I would expect even a slight angle would affect that.

Angling them might also cause the strings to slip about a bit more - although your saddles look quite 'deep' so I doubt that would be a problem. If/when you change strings, if you need to adjust the action then, then maybe square them up, but for now I'd just crack on and play it and not worry about it!

(I won't say it will affect tone... that might cause a long debate! )

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Mater tua criceta fuit, et pater tuo redoluit bacarum sambucus

Many thing could be a matter of taste, but generaly saddle should follow neck radius . That is your saddle look , the way Fender adjust them.

If you adjust saddles parallele to the bridge plate , some strings will be too close from the fret and will buzz or string will be too far from the neck . More difficult to play.

Adjust the saddles so that their undersides are evenly parallel to the bridge plate. Of course, allow for conformity with the neck's radius. This will facilitate each string to sit squarely in its respective saddle as it was designed for a more even push/pull weight distribution, thus enhancing sustain and minimizing abnormal saddle wear along with those annoying 'mystery' clicks and buzzes.

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You dig?

+1

That's the method I've always used.

Arjay

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"Here's why reliability is job one: A great sounding amp that breaks down goes from being a favorite piece of gear to a useless piece of crap in less time than it takes to read this sentence." -- BRUCE ZINKY

Thanks for the replies. And for confirming what I thought was the only logical way to do it. I will not be returning to that place.

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Johnny Funk~

That saddle configuration is not necessarily a bad method, JF. Everyone has their preference in that regard and if the set-up was otherwise satisfactory there's no reason for a boycott. Merely let the shop know how you prefer your saddles to be aligned next time you have occasion for guitar work. I'm sure they'll be happy to accommodate your wishes.

HTH

Arjay

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"Here's why reliability is job one: A great sounding amp that breaks down goes from being a favorite piece of gear to a useless piece of crap in less time than it takes to read this sentence." -- BRUCE ZINKY

It's not really a boycott. I had one setup there on the advice of a friend and it did fix the problem I was having with the high E muting out on bends around the 13-17th frets.
I've just decided I will work on my guitar from now on, at least on small things like this.

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Johnny Funk~

+1 EVERY guitarist should be learn to do a set up on for all thier guitars

T2

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What time is it? It's Fender Time.

It doesn't matter, both ways make the string heights follow the radius of the fretboard.

However, tilting the saddles like that might(!) but not necessarily pruduce strange vibrating sounds at the bridge if a saddle accidentally is lifted on one side, leaving one screw without contact to the base plate.

I personally prefer the saddles horizontally (parallel to the base plate) with both screws resting on the baseplate.

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Kindest regards from Germany, Dee
My recordings --> http://www.soundclick.com/bands/page_mu ... dID=564337
STRATS ROCK!!! but Teles and Firebirds, too!

I think that I get the gist of your post. You're concerned about the angle of the Saddles? Someone else may have told you already, but they are suppose to follow the radius of the neck.

It's not the saddles, it's the strings which are supposed to follow the radius of the neck.
Since the strings run over the middle of the saddles, it doesn't matter (regarding the radius) if the saddles are tilted or parallel to the baseplate of the trem. Tilting the saddles will change nothing regarding string position.

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Kindest regards from Germany, Dee
My recordings --> http://www.soundclick.com/bands/page_mu ... dID=564337
STRATS ROCK!!! but Teles and Firebirds, too!

Tilted saddles cause the angle of the string pressure to change from downward to slideways. I noticed an improvement in tone and tuning stability when the saddles are perfectly straight but in line with the radius of the neck. Keeping the strings at the same height across the board is following the radius of the fret used to make the measurement. Checking measurements at a few other frets up and down the board will confirm the radius at the fret used for the primary measurement.

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"The individual is handicapped by coming face to face with a Conspiracy so monstrous he cannot believe it exists. The American mind simply has not come to a realization of the evil which has been introduced into our midst." J. Edgar Hoover

I always have mine tilted as yours are, so that the saddles themselves follow the radius of the neck. Makes for a smoother feel as I rest the heel of my hand on the saddles, with just a slight move onto the string for palm muting. I don't have any problem with the strings moving on the saddle, and with the groove that you have on those block saddles the strings aren't going to move at all. The "stair-step" looks and feels weird to me. Personal preference is most important.

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---> "The amp should be SWITCHED OFF AND UNPLUGGED before you do this!" <---

Por favor, disculpe mi español, no se llega a la práctica con mucha frecuencia.

I agree the strings should follow the radius of the neck, but I wonder if tilting the saddles could make a slight difference to the string position, by increasing the gap between strings? It seems to me that the higher the screws and the more the tilt, the bigger the gap could become. If the E, A and D strings tilted one way and the G, B and e strings tilted the other, couldn't you end up with uneven string spacing and a bigger space between D & G strings than the others?

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Mater tua criceta fuit, et pater tuo redoluit bacarum sambucus