what does your shop charge for a setup?

[TelePaul]

I'm new to electric guitars. What are they changing or adjusting?

The height of the strings from the fretboard and the picth at the 12th fret (intonation). Welcome to the wonderous world of electric guitars.

 

[JerryD]

Thank you.

 

[muttley600]

The height of the strings from the fretboard and the picth at the 12th fret (intonation). Welcome to the wonderous world of electric guitars.

amongst other things.

A good electric setup will also take into account many other things. Neck relief, nut adjustment, saddle and tailpiece, pickup adjustment, smooth controls, machine heads, all screws and fixings. frets, neck angle, etc. Basically a good setup will examine everything on your guitar to make sure it is in good repair and a good shop will advise of any wear that needs attention or care. The aim of a setup is to get the guitar to play in tune as best as possible and with the best action possible or to the clients specification.

 

[Flamin Lip]

with the best action possible or to the clients specification.

This is VERY important as most techs will take your action to the lowest level w/out buzz, and alot of players prefer slightly higher action.. This is why i think if youre going to be a player for life, you either need to have a tech thats familiar w/ your tastes or learn to do it yourself.

 

[muttley600]

This is VERY important as most techs will take your action to the lowest level w/out buzz, and alot of players prefer slightly higher action.. This is why i think if youre going to be a player for life, you either need to have a tech thats familiar w/ your tastes or learn to do it yourself.

Its one of the first things a decent shop will ask you is what strings you like to use and how "stiff" you like the action. If you can get the guy or gal to play for a bit all the better because you can tell a lot about what suits people by watching them play. Having said that its a good idea to set the guitar up fast and low for the required strings and then raise the action to suit. That way you are getting things right in the first place and not storing up potential problems

 

[Flamin Lip]

Its one of the first things a decent shop will ask you is what strings you like to use and how "stiff" you like the action.

Yes a DECENT shop WILL ask you this, but unfortunately lots of shops use out of house techs and the work order from the retarded teen whos making $8 an hour... looks like this... "Setup w/ GHS 10s--- $60".

So its kind of like sending a steak back thats not cooked right, you feel like a dick doin it, but if youre paying a premium for a service/meal you should get your moneys worth. Dont be afraid to ask to have it readjusted to taste.

 

[Elton Bear]

I resent that... I happen to be the 'retarded teen' making £5 an hour working in a music shop, and I make sure that if the customer knows that much detail themselves, the tech does as well.
Otherwise yes, the receipt looks like you described, which is hardly my fault.

On topic, however, we charge £20 for a setup, which equals 1 hour labour. If the guitar has a Floyd Rose we charge £25 for the extra trouble with tension etc etc...

 

[marshall409]

Those all seem like high prices to me

My guitar is in the shop right now....

The place i go to has two setups, ones 25 bucks and ones 30 (plus strings of choice, which i like, in case they dont have what i want i can just give them my own) . i dont know the real difference but obviously its probably not worth it to settle for the cheaper one.

the 30 dollar one according to what they tell me includes "anything that isnt broken" persay.

so a neck thats way out of whack, but not really broken or damaged is included.

they do a great job. intonation, relief, pots cleaned, everything tightened up in general, new strings, action, even a quick fret polish and buff up on the body and neck if need be. sometimes they call and ask about stuff, whether i want it fixed and they always call if something might cost extra if it will cost more, which i really like, because maybe i like that duct tape just the way it is!

^not kidding. man i love duct tape.


Adam

 

[TelePaul]

Man your guitar shops rock....we have a few here, one is stupidly overstocked and the guitars are in dire condition. The other is smaller, but does too much business to really have time for set-ups.

 

[muttley600]

Man your guitar shops rock....we have a few here, one is stupidly overstocked and the guitars are in dire condition. The other is smaller, but does too much business to really have time for set-ups.

Just a word of advice if you find a shop that does setups for 20 bucks, 20 quid or 20 euros dont expect too much.

 

[TelePaul]

Just a word of advice if you find a shop that does setups for 20 bucks, 20 quid or 20 euros dont expect too much.

There's one Luthier in Dublin, he gets alot of business. He can also pretty much name his price. One time, shortly after I bought my Tele, I took it back to the place I bought it because the action was high. The two guys behind the counter were there jamming away, but told me they "didn't really do repairs at the moment" because they were crazy busy. Eventually, one of them looked at the guitar and just did the old 1/4 turn of the truss rod.

I know this goes against everything you say Muttley, but fuck it, I could have done that myself you know? And I know that nowhere near constitutes a proper set up to you, but 32-20 is handy at intonating and what not, I'd rather have him do it than some guy who couldn't care less about my guitar you know? I know a time will come when I will have to book it in for a decent tune-up though.

 

[crazydoc]

Eventually, one of them looked at the guitar and just did the old 1/4 turn of the truss rod.

I know this goes against everything you say Muttley, but fuck it, I could have done that myself you know?

Yeah, but the difference is, he knew which way to turn it.

 

[TelePaul]

Yeah, but the difference is, he knew which way to turn it.

so THAT'S how I was doing so well at slide!

 

[muttley600]

There's one Luthier in Dublin, he gets alot of business. He can also pretty much name his price. One time, shortly after I bought my Tele, I took it back to the place I bought it because the action was high. The two guys behind the counter were there jamming away, but told me they "didn't really do repairs at the moment" because they were crazy busy. Eventually, one of them looked at the guitar and just did the old 1/4 turn of the truss rod.

I know this goes against everything you say Muttley, but fuck it, I could have done that myself you know? And I know that nowhere near constitutes a proper set up to you, but 32-20 is handy at intonating and what not, I'd rather have him do it than some guy who couldn't care less about my guitar you know? I know a time will come when I will have to book it in for a decent tune-up though.

Thats my point exactly. Most high street shop setups are done by lads who think they are the business because they have a saturday part time job hanging about in a local music store. All you are going to get is a badly considered tweak carried out with some tools they have lying around. They'ed obviously rather get back to chatting amongst themselves about how much their little band is sooo much better than anything else in town cos they can play for free to a pub full of drunks.

Sound a bit familiar or a bit harsh? Well how do I know. Because everytime I interview for shop help I get at least 20 of them for every one decent applicant. Also most of my regular setup work comes from people who are sick to death of their rubbish service.

I know there is going to be a lot of shit flying around after I post this but hell If we are all really honest about it thats what happens most of the time. That is until you find a place that KNOWS what they are doing.

 

[TelePaul]

Thats my point exactly. Most high street shop setups are done by lads who think they are the business because they have a saturday part time job hanging about in a local music store. All you are going to get is a badly considered tweak carried out with some tools they have lying around. They'ed obviously rather get back to chatting amongst themselves about how much their little band is sooo much better than anything else in town cos they can play for free to a pub full of drunks.

Sound a bit familiar or a bit harsh? Well how do I know. Because everytime I interview for shop help I get at least 20 of them for every one decent applicant. Also most of my regular setup work comes from people who are sick to death of their rubbish service.

I know there is going to be a lot of shit flying around after I post this but hell If we are all really honest about it thats what happens most of the time. That is until you find a place that KNOWS what they are doing.

Nah I agree, I mean I've applied for jobs in music shops and I don't know enough about proper set-ups. I'll admit that. But I suppose they're catering for a niche really, a quick half-fix. And I can do that myself, as I said. It kinda sucks there aren't more dedicated vendors and repairmen.

 

[32-20-Blues]

Nah I agree, I mean I've applied for jobs in music shops and I don't know enough about proper set-ups. I'll admit that. But I suppose they're catering for a niche really, a quick half-fix. And I can do that myself, as I said. It kinda sucks there aren't more dedicated vendors and repairmen.

Derek Nelson is okay. 80 euro for a set up sounds cool, and he knows his stuff. The only problem with him is the waiting period after you drop in the guitar.

And yeah, the service provided in the shops is pretty poor. Except for Perfect Pitch, but then they're a Martin dealer, so maybe that has something to do with it.

 

[Light]

$75-125, depending on the guitar and what it needs. An acoustic or a non-trem electric will generally be in the lower range. Trems will bring it up a bit, and Floyds bring it up even more.


Light

"Cowards can never be moral."
M.K. Gandhi

 

[Dani Pace]

One for free, if they bought it from me, otherwise... $35 for my students, $50-$60 for most acoustics, $60 for electric with stopbar/tunomatic bridge, $70 for electric with tremelo, $90 for electric with Floyd Rose (Floyds are a pain in the ass to set right!) Any parts that need replacing cost extra and are discussed before they are installed. Prices include all adjustments (neck, bridge, pups) general tightening of everything, cleaning (including pots) and polishing, new strings. I also tell people if they aren't satisfied within a couple of weeks, bring it back and I'll readjust whatever bothers them for no extra charge, so far only a few have come back and only for a higher action. Most shops in my area charge more ($80-$100) for a set up but since I don't depend on set ups as a main source of income I do them for a little less.

 

[beezelbubba]

There's nothing they can do in the shop that you can't do yourself with a screwdriver, and allen wrench and google!

 

[Crumbles]

There's nothing they can do in the shop that you can't do yourself with a screwdriver, and allen wrench and google!

And there's things you can do with those things that they can't do