To Self Set-Up, or Not to, that is the question.

[boytbpc]

I got my first offset about a month ago, did a lot of research, and did my own setup. I took my time (new, heavier guage strings on day 1, truss rod adjustment day two, truss rod adjustment day three, finish setup on day four, fixed unfinished setup day 5, tweaked day six, and rested on the seventh day). Now I am super happy with the guitar, it plays like a dream, and I understand what each adjustment does and how it relates to my sound. Therefore, I highly suggest doing your own setup and really learning. I haven't had any of the problems with the bridge or my strings etc, because the guitar is setup by me for me.

[Bogo]

the holy grail order is : Neck Relief/ truss rod
String height/ radius correctness( neck to bridg)
Intonation

plenty of help out there for the starting point tolerences etc

you may need to go over this a few time till correct

then you may want to get into setting up a strat trem ot a Jaguar/Jazzmaster trem etc

Thumbs up to this, definitely helps. Out of curiosity, would anyone recommend any amendments or changes to this setup (since it is what I'll be working from)?

http://www.alphabetcityblog.com/2008/02 ... nance.html

[Telliot]

the holy grail order is : Neck Relief/ truss rod
String height/ radius correctness( neck to bridg)
Intonation

plenty of help out there for the starting point tolerences etc

you may need to go over this a few time till correct

then you may want to get into setting up a strat trem ot a Jaguar/Jazzmaster trem etc

Thumbs up to this, definitely helps. Out of curiosity, would anyone recommend any amendments or changes to this setup (since it is what I'll be working from)?

http://www.alphabetcityblog.com/2008/02 ... nance.html

That's really well done. One thing I'd amend is the bridge height and action. One of the most crucial aspects of a JM/Jag is the break angle of the strings over the bridge. If there isn't enough it causes all sorts of issues like excessive buzzing or strings popping out of their saddle. My preference is to shim the neck and adjust the truss rod before lowering the bridge. One other important step, just like a Strat, is finding the balance between string and spring tension. He has a link to a really good article on that in his post. Another good rule of thumb is to watch your pickup heights. Too high, and it can affect both your tone and intonation in a negative way.

[Bogo]

Two questions before I start my set-up in just a moment...
1) Is it safe to remove the neck completely to do a thorough fret cleaning along with the truss adjustment?
2) I believe the answer to this one is "Yes!", but just to be sure, should I do the Tremolo setup before string removal and the regular setup commences?

[DrOctagon]

You should be completely fine taking the neck off and I'd set up the tremolo after changing the strings.

[Bakesalee]

Out of curiosity, what is there to setup on the tremolo?

[Bogo]

Out of curiosity, what is there to setup on the tremolo?

http://www.webrocker.de/jaguar/cms/2007 ... lo-system/

[Telliot]

I find myself taking the neck off several times while I'm setting my JM up, putting a capo on the first fret to hold the strings on while I loosen them enough to get the neck off comfortably. I wouldn't set up the tremolo before getting your break angle, truss and bridge set up the way you like. Then I'd figure out the correct spring tension, then finally the intonation. That's just me. I, for one, have never understood how you can set a truss rod without having the guitar strung up to tension.

[pauljo1963]

the holy grail order is : Neck Relief/ truss rod
String height/ radius correctness( neck to bridg)
Intonation

plenty of help out there for the starting point tolerences etc

you may need to go over this a few time till correct

then you may want to get into setting up a strat trem ot a Jaguar/Jazzmaster trem etc

Thumbs up to this, definitely helps. Out of curiosity, would anyone recommend any amendments or changes to this setup (since it is what I'll be working from)?

http://www.alphabetcityblog.com/2008/02 ... nance.html

That's really well done. One thing I'd amend is the bridge height and action. One of the most crucial aspects of a JM/Jag is the break angle of the strings over the bridge. If there isn't enough it causes all sorts of issues like excessive buzzing or strings popping out of their saddle. My preference is to shim the neck and adjust the truss rod before lowering the bridge. One other important step, just like a Strat, is finding the balance between string and spring tension. He has a link to a really good article on that in his post. Another good rule of thumb is to watch your pickup heights. Too high, and it can affect both your tone and intonation in a negative way.

For my Jag, I have shimmed the neck , 4 layers of my business card, in the pocket closet to the body. I set my saddles high, at 7.25 to agree with neck radius( knowing that this correct), This allows me to set the bridge high to get the break angle right. I read all about this on this site before I received my CIJ Jag. I suppose i got lucky cos I've set it up with no problems, the so called bridge problem has no been a hassle for me, as to getting string v spring tension, compared to a Strat it's a piece of cake. it comes back to perfect pitch each time. I've been playing guitar for over 30 years, but only doing my own setups for the last 20, so I've had a bit of pratice.