Does My Guitar Need Servicing?

A guitar is a lot like a car, without a regular check-up you’re not going to get very far.

There are many signs that your guitar isn’t up to standard anymore;

You may notice that it’s not staying in tune as it once did, or perhaps the further up the neck you go the more out of tune it seems to sound. Maybe the action has changed when you put new strings on and now you find it difficult to press the string down. Has the output jack has become loose or is there is a horrid crackling noise when you use a switch or tone pot?

Below we are going to touch upon some of these issues, starting with the action.

What is the action? The action of a guitar is the space between the string and the fretboard. A lower action is preferred as it requires less pressure to fret a note, allowing easier playability. A lot of musicians starting out on cheaper instruments will often complain about a higher action as often the guitar is not set up correctly. Action on electric guitars is usually adjusted at the bridge, using the pins to heighten or lower the saddle for the string, although sometimes you’ll need to adjust your neck (which we will touch upon soon).

The neck of the guitar is also a key part in guitar maintenance. A guitar neck should ever so slightly curve forwards due to the tension in the strings. However, too much can cause it to become harder to play. You can adjust the neck via the truss rod, by making slight adjustments to add more relief to the neck or take a bit off. If this is something you are going to DIY, only make small adjustments, a quarter turn at a time.

Another common issue, and sure fire sign you need your guitar servicing is when the guitar seems to be out of tune with its self. You’ve tuned each string to pitch, but when you play a chord it seems to sound out of tune. This is often due to the intonation. The best way to check your intonation is by using a tuner to tune an open string to pitch, and then fretting the 12th fret. If the note and pitch are the same, then you have nothing to worry about. However, if the note at the 12th fret is sharp or flat, then you’d need to adjust the intonation. On acoustic guitars, these are usually preset and will not need adjusting. On electric guitars, you can use a screw on the bridge to adjust the length of the string and adjust your intonation accordingly.

Crackling on a guitar is usually an easier fix, as the connections can get dirty. Nothing a little switch cleaner can’t fix! Other times it could be a case of an incorrectly wired guitar.

If all this sounds a bit too complicated for you, worry not, as here at Rimmer’s music we can offer a full guitar service set up and fix all of these issues and more!

All guitars purchased with us receive a FREE £45 set up! Check out our range of electric, acoustic and bass guitars over on our website. We have a fantastic range of world known brands including Fender, Gibson, Martin, Taylor, Yamaha and many more.