Set-Ups

Guitar action too high? Not a problem, My guitar setups offered for bass, acoustic and electric guitars will make your guitar play perfectly - often better than when it was new!

I understand that each player has their own favourite action and playing feel to go with each of their individual playing styles which is why I always talk in depth to my customers. You can also see your guitar's progress with my "Fret Files" workbench photostream

I work to your time schedules - if you have an important gig, birthday of recording session there's usually a way to make it happen for you.

How much needs doing?

I offer two levels of guitar setup Standard guitar setups and Advanced guitar setups to cover every aspect of getting your guitar to play better!

How do I tell if my guitar needs a set-up?

You may consider your guitar as needing a set-up if you're unhappy with it's playability, maybe the strings are too high from the fret board, maybe they're too low and they buzz or choke when you bend?

There's no rule to follow, each player has his or her own preference. The general rule is that if the player's happy, the guitar is fine.

Here are some general action measurements that your guitar should be at the 12th Fret.

Electric:

E – 2.2mm
e – 1.5mm

Acoustic:

E – 2.5mm
e – 1.75mm

Bass:

E – 3.0mm
g – 2.0mm

Spanish:

E – 3.0mm
e – 2.5mm

Contact me for more information, or check out my Setup Prices

“...thanks to Jack, the action on my guitar is so low all I have to do is think of a tune and it plays it. Wonderful :)”

Dave Soden - myspace.com/wifedivorces

12-string Takamine setup

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A little bit about action...

Adjusting the action might sound easy, you just tighten a screw and it'll lower the string - but its really much more complex. The measurement of your instrument's action is the result of many factors.

When adjusting action its very important to take these considerations into account.

Action is reliant on:

• Fret board being level
• Correct relief on the truss rod
• Correct Neck Angle
• Correct Nut slot heights
• Correct Saddle profile / radius

And finally:

• Correct saddle height

My instrument services can sort all these problems for you to get your guitar playing like it should – To its optimum! Many Guitars come out of the factory with a non-optimum set-up. It costs the manufacturers too much to complete a fine set-up on each of their hundreds of guitars/basses.

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“...I used to have a buzzing low B string and sharp fret ends! So I whipped it off to Jacks Instrument Services – now I have smoother access all over the neck and the low B growls as sweet as the devil dying!”

Johnty Aldridge - myspace.com/skankadelia

Ibanez 5-string bass

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