People ask what a guitar setup actually involves. It is a fair question. Here is exactly what I do during a professional electric guitar setup, in plain English.
Clean
First the guitar gets a proper clean. Body, neck, fingerboard. The fingerboard in particular collects a lot of grime over time, especially if you do not wipe down after playing. It gets cleaned and conditioned. The electrics (pots, jack socket) get treated too. This is not just cosmetic. Dirty pots crackle. It all gets sorted.
Truss rod
The truss rod runs through the neck and controls how much bow it has. Too flat and you get fret buzz. Too much bow and the action gets high in the middle of the neck. I set it to the right amount of relief for the string gauge you are using and how you play. This is the bit most people do not want to attempt themselves.
Action
Action is the string height at the bridge. Too high and the guitar is hard work. Too low and you get buzz. There is a sweet spot that varies by guitar and by player. I set it low enough to play easily, high enough to ring out cleanly.
Nut
The nut at the headstock end controls string height at the first fret. If the slots are too high, open chords feel stiff and the guitar plays sharp. If they are too low, you get buzz on the open strings. A lot of guitars come from the factory with a nut that is too high. It is one of the most overlooked parts of a setup and one of the most noticeable once it is done right.
Intonation
Intonation is whether the guitar plays in tune across the whole neck. I check it with a tuner at the 12th fret on every string and adjust the saddles until it is accurate. If your guitar has never had its intonation set, you might be surprised how much better it sounds.
Loose parts
Finally, everything gets checked and tightened. Machine heads, strap buttons, jack socket. The things that work loose over time and cause rattles or intermittent faults. Small things, but worth doing while the guitar is on the bench.
How long and how much?
The whole thing takes a good few hours of work. Turnaround is about three days. Cost is £65 plus strings. If you are in Sittingbourne, Kent or the surrounding area and your guitar could do with the above, get in touch here. Re-stringing on its own is £20 plus strings if that is all you need.