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Post subject: Question Re: Intonation & Pre-Set Bridge Saddle Pattern
Posted: Tue May 13, 2008 7:33 am
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I will soon be trying my first setup, and I'm confused about the "rough" intonation steps mentioned by Fender.

Fender says, "Proceed with the 5th and 6th saddles with the same method used for strings 2 and 3."

Does this mean that the 5th string saddle should be back from the 4th string saddle by the diameter of the 2nd string or by the diameter of the 5th string?

Any other Strat setup hints or help would be appreciated.

Thanks.


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Posted: Tue May 13, 2008 7:49 am
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You place your saddles so that the string is in tune open and when fretted at the 12 fret. Where the saddles end up in relation to one another is incidental to this.

Pluck a note on the open string and tune to pitch using a decent tuner: your ears likely ain't good enough for this. Fret the string at the 12th fret, not pressing harder than necessary to get a clear note. If the ocatave is sharp you will need to move the saddle away from the neck, lengthening the string. If it is flat it needs to go closer. Detune the string right off before moving the saddle. Retune and try again. And again... Then move on the the next string.

The best advice for learning set-ups is to buy a book on the subject; there's several good ones out there for small bucks. With the greatest respect to the Fender owner's manual I'd not want to be learning this stuff from scratch just out of the handbook.

A decent book will cover most of the other bugs and issues your are likely to come across too.

Cheers


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Posted: Tue May 13, 2008 8:21 am
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Excellent advise.

Look for books by Dan Erliwine. He has several that are great.

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Posted: Tue May 13, 2008 12:06 pm
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Ceri wrote:
You place your saddles so that the string is in tune open and when fretted at the 12 fret. Where the saddles end up in relation to one another is incidental to this.

Pluck a note on the open string and tune to pitch using a decent tuner: your ears likely ain't good enough for this. Fret the string at the 12th fret, not pressing harder than necessary to get a clear note. If the ocatave is sharp you will need to move the saddle away from the neck, lengthening the string. If it is flat it needs to go closer. Detune the string right off before moving the saddle. Retune and try again. And again... Then move on the the next string.

The best advice for learning set-ups is to buy a book on the subject; there's several good ones out there for small bucks. With the greatest respect to the Fender owner's manual I'd not want to be learning this stuff from scratch just out of the handbook.

A decent book will cover most of the other bugs and issues your are likely to come across too.

Cheers



Actually, I already have a copy of Dan Erlewine's Guitar Player Repair Guide.

Regarding setups, I compared Fender's specs to the Guitar Player Repair Guide and while both are similar, there ARE some noteworthy differences.

For example, the book recommends first removing the trem springs and blocking the trem. Fender just says to use the trem bar to push the bridge to the body surface, then adjust the two screws holding the bridge so the bridge lays flat on the body, then adjust the claw so the bridge raises 1/8" off the body.

Who's correct? My tendency is to err toward Fender's side, since they ought to know a little bit about their own guitars!


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Posted: Tue May 13, 2008 12:17 pm
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FenderGuy53 wrote:
Actually, I already have a copy of Dan Erlewine's Guitar Player Repair Guide.

Regarding setups, I compared Fender's specs to the Guitar Player Repair Guide and while both are similar, there ARE some noteworthy differences.

For example, the book recommends first removing the trem springs and blocking the trem. Fender just says to use the trem bar to push the bridge to the body surface, then adjust the two screws holding the bridge so the bridge lays flat on the body, then adjust the claw so the bridge raises 1/8" off the body.

Who's correct? My tendency is to err toward Fender's side, since they ought to know a little bit about their own guitars!


Ah-ha! The plot thickens.

That's an interesting question. On the one hand, yes, Fender definitely know their own instrument; on the other, Dan Erlewine knows more about set-up, maintenance and repair than most of the rest of us put together.

I'd tend to go with Dan - 'cept on this particular point I happen to do it the Fender way, and it works fine.

Take your choice: sounds like you are very sensibly working to make it an informed choice.

Good luck!


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Posted: Tue May 13, 2008 12:23 pm
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FenderGuy53 wrote:
Ceri wrote:
You place your saddles so that the string is in tune open and when fretted at the 12 fret. Where the saddles end up in relation to one another is incidental to this.

Pluck a note on the open string and tune to pitch using a decent tuner: your ears likely ain't good enough for this. Fret the string at the 12th fret, not pressing harder than necessary to get a clear note. If the ocatave is sharp you will need to move the saddle away from the neck, lengthening the string. If it is flat it needs to go closer. Detune the string right off before moving the saddle. Retune and try again. And again... Then move on the the next string.

The best advice for learning set-ups is to buy a book on the subject; there's several good ones out there for small bucks. With the greatest respect to the Fender owner's manual I'd not want to be learning this stuff from scratch just out of the handbook.

A decent book will cover most of the other bugs and issues your are likely to come across too.

Cheers



Actually, I already have a copy of Dan Erlewine's Guitar Player Repair Guide.

Regarding setups, I compared Fender's specs to the Guitar Player Repair Guide and while both are similar, there ARE some noteworthy differences.

For example, the book recommends first removing the trem springs and blocking the trem. Fender just says to use the trem bar to push the bridge to the body surface, then adjust the two screws holding the bridge so the bridge lays flat on the body, then adjust the claw so the bridge raises 1/8" off the body.

Who's correct? My tendency is to err toward Fender's side, since they ought to know a little bit about their own guitars!


Both will net you the same result. Dan just uses a simpler, easier way to do what Fender recommends.

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I didn't Lose my mind, I traded it for this guitar.


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Posted: Tue May 13, 2008 12:36 pm
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I agree with Chet, Dans book goes into a lot more detail. Fender is a good starting point but it is just the basic info you need . Their book covers several different close models (generic, but good)


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