Dealer setups

[Musician78]

I have to agree. It is what I keep going back to... what works for someone might not work for someone else. Perfect setup is subjective. A guitarist friend of mine doesn't like the way I set them up (for me) because the action is too low for him. Clearly my perfect setup is not his perfect setup. Of course now that I know I am doing it incorrectly, that is probably where the problem lies.

[Argos]

PLEK? There isn't one within 200 miles of me, I bet. So, I have no way of knowing if my fret work is "better" or "as good" or "worse." I know it's good, better than anything I've seen on any production guitar, because I take the time to get it just right.

I'm a competent guy, there is no communication barrier between myself the player and myself the "setup guy" and so yeah, I can say that I will do a better job.

I wasn't really talking to you in particular, if you like your setups, that's great. I'm not playing your guitars, so I don't really care how good or terrible of a job you do.

There isn't a PLEK machine near me either, but that hasn't stopped me from sending a few guitars out to have it done. And any fret job/setup should be better than what comes out of the factory, so I wouldn't be too quick to make a comparison to that, since most production setup/fretwork is pathetically awful. I'll include the vast majority of Jacksons I've played in that category. If it isn't, the guy doing the job sucks.

Going back to the original poster and his setup: I agree that you should know how to do, at the least, a basic setup. It's as elementary to being a guitarist as is knowing how to change your strings. That said, if someone would rather have a tech do it for them because they don't have the time, aren't comfortable, or just think that they won't do as good of a job, what's wrong with that?

If I don't want to do my own work for whatever reason, a cavalcade of dudes telling me how awesome their internet gleaned setup skills are isn't going to change anything. More than likely someone will either read all that, be inspired by you, learn how to set up their own guitar using whatever resources they've got, and they'll be happy. Or they'll totally fuck their guitar up because they weren't comfortable doing it, and it'll end up either on a techs bench somewhere, or in the case sitting in the closet because it plays like shit and they can't figure out why.

I'm not sure why you're all being so hard on this dude.

[unknown]

I don't need to start a thread about how to do a setup because I already know how to do them. You didn't lose money YET, I was referring to the future, the money that you could save by doing your own setups.

You shall get down on your knees and thank your lucky stars that I am not a moderator here because I would have already banned you and sentenced you to 5 years at the ESP forums.

I only started this thread to get a recommendation for a dealer to order a guitar through who could check it out and set it up. Not to get in a trash talk debate on how to set up a guitar.

So, why don't you go start up a thread on guitar setup where your points would be relevant instead of continuing to hijack?

I would have banned you for taking part in hijacking and derailing a thread when you could have started your own thread about your own topic.

[unknown]

I wasn't really talking to you in particular, if you like your setups, that's great. I'm not playing your guitars, so I don't really care how good or terrible of a job you do.

There isn't a PLEK machine near me either, but that hasn't stopped me from sending a few guitars out to have it done. And any fret job/setup should be better than what comes out of the factory, so I wouldn't be too quick to make a comparison to that, since most production setup/fretwork is pathetically awful. I'll include the vast majority of Jacksons I've played in that category. If it isn't, the guy doing the job sucks.

Going back to the original poster and his setup: I agree that you should know how to do, at the least, a basic setup. It's as elementary to being a guitarist as is knowing how to change your strings. That said, if someone would rather have a tech do it for them because they don't have the time, aren't comfortable, or just think that they won't do as good of a job, what's wrong with that?

If I don't want to do my own work for whatever reason, a cavalcade of dudes telling me how awesome their internet gleaned setup skills are isn't going to change anything. More than likely someone will either read all that, be inspired by you, learn how to set up their own guitar using whatever resources they've got, and they'll be happy. Or they'll totally fuck their guitar up because they weren't comfortable doing it, and it'll end up either on a techs bench somewhere, or in the case sitting in the closet because it plays like shit and they can't figure out why.

I'm not sure why you're all being so hard on this dude.

I've done some setup work on my Jackson. I got tired of having to adjust the Floyd every time when changing string gauge and tunings. I ended up settling on a string brand/gauge and tuning and quit messing with it.

[Musician78]

Your smartass responses keep bringing me back, son.

[MakeAJazzNoiseHere]

I wasn't really talking to you in particular,

Right, I didn't say you were. You were talking to everyone who does their own setups, which includes me, and I was responding to you.

And any fret job/setup should be better than what comes out of the factory, so I wouldn't be too quick to make a comparison to that, since most production setup/fretwork is pathetically awful. I'll include the vast majority of Jacksons I've played in that category. If it isn't, the guy doing the job sucks.

But, I don't suck. I do nice fret work. I think anyone who calls the fret work on USA Jacksons and Charvel Custom Shop guitars "pathetically awful" is grossly exaggerating in an effort to make a point. Hey, if you can't actually use facts and logic, why not use hyperbole and veiled insults, right?

I would have banned you for taking part in hijacking and derailing a thread when you could have started your own thread about your own topic.

:ROTF:

It's a JCF Tradition.

Pretty soon Rsmacker is going to come in her posting about wiping his shit-covered dick on someone's curtains or something.

[Argos]

But, I don't suck. I do nice fret work. I think anyone who calls the fret work on USA Jacksons and Charvel Custom Shop guitars "pathetically awful" is grossly exaggerating in an effort to make a point. Hey, if you can't actually use facts and logic, why not use hyperbole and veiled insults, right?

I didn't specify custom shop guitars or another particular line, so try to not insert words into my post. And if you haven't seen some of the particularly awful examples that have been posted here in the last eight years like I have, try looking them up.

[toejam]

So, why don't you go start up a thread on guitar setup where your points would be relevant instead of continuing to hijack?

I would have banned you for taking part in hijacking and derailing a thread when you could have started your own thread about your own topic.

Why don't you chill out? He's trying to give you some advice. And even if you buy a guitar from a certain dealer and they set it up, by the time it gets to you, it might be out of whack due to climate change anyway, and you'd probably complain it was a bad setup. You should learn to do things on your own, like setting intonation, raising/lowering action and truss rod adjustment.

[MakeAJazzNoiseHere]

I didn't specify custom shop guitars or another particular line

I know you didn't, but I just did, because of what you posted.

I said that I could do better fret work than "any production guitar I've seen" and without even knowing what kinds of guitars I've seen or own, you say that isn't saying much because most of the fretwork on production guitars, including the vast majority of Jacksons you've played, is "pathetically awful."

So, to be fair, I'm not putting words in your mouth, you are putting words in mine (implying that I have only seen JS/cheap imports, etc.) or more accurately, you are defining my experience as not including USA Jackson and whatever else is not "pathetically awful."

By the way I don't believe that my fret work is great because I have skill or talent that the Jackson guys or Charvel Custom Shop or any other guys don't have, although I do have some talent and good attention to detail, especially I have the willingness to take the time to do the job right, where a guy getting a flat $80 rate for a setup isn't going to.

[unknown]

Why don't you chill out? He's trying to give you some advice. And even if you buy a guitar from a certain dealer and they set it up, by the time it gets to you, it might be out of whack due to climate change anyway, and you'd probably complain it was a bad setup. You should learn to do things on your own, like setting intonation, raising/lowering action and truss rod adjustment.

I think the thread hijackers need to chill and start their own thread about their agenda. I don't consider someone trying to insult you and force feed their unsolicited off topic agenda over and over again as giving advice.

I understand the intonation, etc. can change when I get the guitar, and I never said I believed the guitar would perfectly stay the same when I got it. But maybe I don't really care about it being 100% perfectly setup either.

I don't see why you think I'd complain about getting a bad setup when all I was looking for is a dealer to check it out and set it up before it got shipped vs. getting it unchecked from Guitar Center. I've already discussed with the shop about them setting it up and needing to tweak it after I get it. So, no point in guessing what I may or may not do when I get the guitar.

If I was looking to debate the best method to learn how to setup a guitar, then I'd have started a thread about it. I know about setting intonation, raising/lowering action and truss rod adjustment as I've done that many times on my current Jackson. But I wouldn't consider myself a setup technician.

But that isn't what this thread was for. This thread was posted for a dealer recommendation. I've got my guitar ordered which fulfills this threads starting topic. So why not lock the thread so the hijackers can start their own thread to discuss their agenda?

[Grim]

Cutting to the point, depending on where you buy it, you can get a good setup from a dealer.

Musiciansfriend vs guitar tech at a music store, obviously you would go for the music store.

[jacksonpc1]

I know a great Music store that will set the guitar up as to how the buyer explains what type of action he/her wants. All you have to do is listen to the buyer & wa-la!!!! It is a free setup with every purchase! However, they are right in the sense that if you live near the North Pole the setup could suck once it leaves the 100+ degree mid-west. It all depends on where you live & where the guitar is coming from.

[Trussrod]

I know a great Music store that will set the guitar up as to how the buyer explains what type of action he/her wants.

Where's Ron? :think:

[jacksonpc1]

Ron???

Where's Ron? :think:

[Trussrod]

Ron???

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