Hi Guys,
Just starting my new Blog and I thought I would start with what to check when you are about to buy your first Guitar, some things you must watch out for! If you already have a Guitar do the check anyway and if you find a problem I will try and advise you as to how this can be remedied.
So do you have a Dud or a Babe!
Lets start by looking at the Guitar as a whole. ( *Left handed Guitarist just change left hand for right hand for the same result!)
Firstly, when choosing your Guitar, Acoustic or Electric, the neck of the Guitar should feel comfortable in your Chord hand (left hand). I prefer a thin but rounded back to the neck, others prefer a wider flatter neck, it's up to you!
So with that done lets look at what to check: Using layman's terms.
This applies to new and secondhand Guitars.
1: Are the tuning keys at the head of the Guitar loose or wobbly, are the covers at the back secured properly?
Are the strings all wound on the same way (clockwise) as you look down on them? (clockwise then anti-clockwise if your Guitar has 3 keys at the top and 3 at the bottom).
2: Are there any rough edges to the fret board (the face of the Guitar neck with the dots on it) as you run your hand down it? Cup your left hand round the neck and gently move it down the neck, you should feel a slight ridge as you pass each metal bar (fret) but it should not feel rough.
3: Do the strings all pass neatly and evenly spaced through the Nut (the white bit shown at the head of this Guitar in the photo) and is the Nut fixed seamlessly to the Guitar?
4: Is the back of the neck free from cracks or splits to the finish or to the neck itself? Also check there is no repair where the head of the Guitar might have been refitted at some point!
5: Is the front of the neck (Fretboard) badly worn or are any of the frets (metal bars) worn or uneven, this should be easy to spot if you look down from the neck and cast you eye over each Fret!
6: Tune the Guitar or get someone to tune it for you, then as you play a string open (without any fingers on it) listen to the note and then place your index (1st) finger on the double dot or 12th fret of that string ( you can see the double dot fret in the photo above) and the tone (sound of the string) should sound the same note but just a little higher in tone.
This is called an octave. Do this on each string if all is ok move on! If not see the how this might be able to be resolved later in this posting!
7: Are all the strings set out correctly at the Bridge (white bit shown at bottom of Guitar in the photo above) and are they all fitted neatly and correctly to the body of the Guitar, if they look untidy or worn chances are the are not!
8: Is the Bridge and string mounting area fixed correctly to the Guitar? Look out for repair work or surplus adhesive.
9: At the base of the Guitar you should have a stud for fixing a strap, most Guitars have a second stud on the top edge of the body or at the top of the neck for the the 2nd fixing for your strap.
10: Is the general body of the Guitar free from cracks and splits to the front, side and back?
Hows that for a start!!!! You mean there's more? Oh Yes!
Now this is very important!
You can see from this shot that I am looking down on the Guitar neck, what I am looking for is an even tapering gap between the strings and the neck all the way down from the Bridge to the Nut of the Guitar, when you have checked from the top as shown here turn the Guitar right over and check the same from the bottom edge of the neck.
Next hold the Guitar as if you were holding a rifle and look along the neck using the top string (big one) as a sight line, this with show any slight warps in the neck! Repeat the process by turning over the Guitar and using the bottom string (thin one) as your sight line.
Hope all is well so far!
You mean there's more?
Oh S**T! What now!
I could start a whole post on this Guitar alone, so I am going to keep to basics!
All of the above information applies here but here is some extra advice.
You need to have an Electric Guitar amplified to test these bits!
Turn the amp on and put in your jack lead so you can hear the sound from the Guitar, turn the amp about half way up! (no you are not going to play it yet!).
Turn all the knobs on you Guitar to full gain or all the way forward. You should now have volume on the Guitar.
If you have a selector switch shown here as the white knob, Flip the selector to each of its settings, you should feel a click as you get to each one, there should be no noise coming from this switch as it moves through the selection process, if there is I will come back to this at the end of the post!
Next turn each knob on the Guitar backwards and forwards, this should also be a silent movement!
Next return volume knob to full on, now as you move the selector switch through each setting gently tap each pick (shown under strings in photo above) this will serve two purposes 1: which pick up is selected by the selector switch setting and 2: that all the pick ups are working.
* On the Guitar above as I move the selector pick up 1 works then in the next setting pick ups 1 and 2 work. Next just 2 then 2 and 3 then just 3, so at some point one or two pick ups may not not be selected so will not sound when tapped!
Nearly done!
I am not going into how to set up a Bridge like the one shown as this is a lesson on its own.
Just to add if you have a tremolo arm (or whammy bar is most metal Guitarists call it! Flashy gits!) you need to check that it is set in such a way that it should be ready to move into or away from the Guitar smoothly and easily and resets its self back to the same position each time!
You will find the the cheaper range of tremolo arm may take you strings out of tune after a short while, this is not unusual and in most cases you can upgrade the set up if you find you use it a lot!
If you do upgrade your tremolo arm I suggest you get it done back at the shop or by a Guitar technician!
Heck now we are done!
Answers please! Do you have a Dud or a Babe? Hope you all have a Babe!
If you have found a problem with your Guitar from what I have shown you, you should take it back to the shop and get the things rectified by them, most of the first section are fairly easy to resolve, in answer to the section on the 12th fret (Octave) if this sounds out it could just mean an adjustment of the set up of the Bridge, take it to the shop and get them to do it, in most cases this can be done in minutes while you wait! Why is it important, well now matter how well you tune your Guitar as you start to play further up the neck it will always sound slightly out of tune!
If Your Fretboard has rough edges, is warped or badly worn take it back to where you got it and see if you can get them to repair it free of charge as the Guitar ( unless explained to you when you purchased it) may have be sold to you "Not fit for the purpose" Any problems E-mail me and I will see if I can help!
On the Electric Guitar set up, if you have crackles or strange sounds when using the selector or knobs this can usually be resolved by getting them all cleaned by a Qualified Guitar Technician! Do not spray clean them yourself as this can lead to more dirt building up and crating a bigger problem later on!
Hope you found that of interest!
Keep playing and enjoy the Guitar!
Just starting my new Blog and I thought I would start with what to check when you are about to buy your first Guitar, some things you must watch out for! If you already have a Guitar do the check anyway and if you find a problem I will try and advise you as to how this can be remedied.
So do you have a Dud or a Babe!
Lets start by looking at the Guitar as a whole. ( *Left handed Guitarist just change left hand for right hand for the same result!)
Firstly, when choosing your Guitar, Acoustic or Electric, the neck of the Guitar should feel comfortable in your Chord hand (left hand). I prefer a thin but rounded back to the neck, others prefer a wider flatter neck, it's up to you!
So with that done lets look at what to check: Using layman's terms.
This applies to new and secondhand Guitars.
1: Are the tuning keys at the head of the Guitar loose or wobbly, are the covers at the back secured properly?Are the strings all wound on the same way (clockwise) as you look down on them? (clockwise then anti-clockwise if your Guitar has 3 keys at the top and 3 at the bottom).
2: Are there any rough edges to the fret board (the face of the Guitar neck with the dots on it) as you run your hand down it? Cup your left hand round the neck and gently move it down the neck, you should feel a slight ridge as you pass each metal bar (fret) but it should not feel rough.
3: Do the strings all pass neatly and evenly spaced through the Nut (the white bit shown at the head of this Guitar in the photo) and is the Nut fixed seamlessly to the Guitar?
4: Is the back of the neck free from cracks or splits to the finish or to the neck itself? Also check there is no repair where the head of the Guitar might have been refitted at some point!
5: Is the front of the neck (Fretboard) badly worn or are any of the frets (metal bars) worn or uneven, this should be easy to spot if you look down from the neck and cast you eye over each Fret!
6: Tune the Guitar or get someone to tune it for you, then as you play a string open (without any fingers on it) listen to the note and then place your index (1st) finger on the double dot or 12th fret of that string ( you can see the double dot fret in the photo above) and the tone (sound of the string) should sound the same note but just a little higher in tone.
This is called an octave. Do this on each string if all is ok move on! If not see the how this might be able to be resolved later in this posting!
7: Are all the strings set out correctly at the Bridge (white bit shown at bottom of Guitar in the photo above) and are they all fitted neatly and correctly to the body of the Guitar, if they look untidy or worn chances are the are not!
8: Is the Bridge and string mounting area fixed correctly to the Guitar? Look out for repair work or surplus adhesive.
9: At the base of the Guitar you should have a stud for fixing a strap, most Guitars have a second stud on the top edge of the body or at the top of the neck for the the 2nd fixing for your strap.
10: Is the general body of the Guitar free from cracks and splits to the front, side and back?
Hows that for a start!!!! You mean there's more? Oh Yes!
Now this is very important!
You can see from this shot that I am looking down on the Guitar neck, what I am looking for is an even tapering gap between the strings and the neck all the way down from the Bridge to the Nut of the Guitar, when you have checked from the top as shown here turn the Guitar right over and check the same from the bottom edge of the neck.Next hold the Guitar as if you were holding a rifle and look along the neck using the top string (big one) as a sight line, this with show any slight warps in the neck! Repeat the process by turning over the Guitar and using the bottom string (thin one) as your sight line.
Hope all is well so far!
You mean there's more?
Oh S**T! What now!
I could start a whole post on this Guitar alone, so I am going to keep to basics!All of the above information applies here but here is some extra advice.
You need to have an Electric Guitar amplified to test these bits!
Turn the amp on and put in your jack lead so you can hear the sound from the Guitar, turn the amp about half way up! (no you are not going to play it yet!).
Turn all the knobs on you Guitar to full gain or all the way forward. You should now have volume on the Guitar.
If you have a selector switch shown here as the white knob, Flip the selector to each of its settings, you should feel a click as you get to each one, there should be no noise coming from this switch as it moves through the selection process, if there is I will come back to this at the end of the post!
Next turn each knob on the Guitar backwards and forwards, this should also be a silent movement!
Next return volume knob to full on, now as you move the selector switch through each setting gently tap each pick (shown under strings in photo above) this will serve two purposes 1: which pick up is selected by the selector switch setting and 2: that all the pick ups are working.
* On the Guitar above as I move the selector pick up 1 works then in the next setting pick ups 1 and 2 work. Next just 2 then 2 and 3 then just 3, so at some point one or two pick ups may not not be selected so will not sound when tapped!
Nearly done!
I am not going into how to set up a Bridge like the one shown as this is a lesson on its own.
Just to add if you have a tremolo arm (or whammy bar is most metal Guitarists call it! Flashy gits!) you need to check that it is set in such a way that it should be ready to move into or away from the Guitar smoothly and easily and resets its self back to the same position each time!
You will find the the cheaper range of tremolo arm may take you strings out of tune after a short while, this is not unusual and in most cases you can upgrade the set up if you find you use it a lot!
If you do upgrade your tremolo arm I suggest you get it done back at the shop or by a Guitar technician!
Heck now we are done!
Answers please! Do you have a Dud or a Babe? Hope you all have a Babe!
If you have found a problem with your Guitar from what I have shown you, you should take it back to the shop and get the things rectified by them, most of the first section are fairly easy to resolve, in answer to the section on the 12th fret (Octave) if this sounds out it could just mean an adjustment of the set up of the Bridge, take it to the shop and get them to do it, in most cases this can be done in minutes while you wait! Why is it important, well now matter how well you tune your Guitar as you start to play further up the neck it will always sound slightly out of tune!
If Your Fretboard has rough edges, is warped or badly worn take it back to where you got it and see if you can get them to repair it free of charge as the Guitar ( unless explained to you when you purchased it) may have be sold to you "Not fit for the purpose" Any problems E-mail me and I will see if I can help!
On the Electric Guitar set up, if you have crackles or strange sounds when using the selector or knobs this can usually be resolved by getting them all cleaned by a Qualified Guitar Technician! Do not spray clean them yourself as this can lead to more dirt building up and crating a bigger problem later on!
Hope you found that of interest!
Keep playing and enjoy the Guitar!
1 comment:
Nice Blog Bernie. Really useful and important information for the beginner.
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