A setup is like a tune-up, except that you change strings and not oil...

I had started writing this blog entry on my iPhone earlier, but the entry got lost somewhere and I had to start over again (thanks, Apple!) ANYWAY, setups...

So I'm sure you've heard that it's good to have your guitar setup once in a while (especially beween seasons), but what is a setup, anyway? It's just like a tune-up for your car (the car analogy is a really good, so you'll hear me use it pretty often.) Before I start explaining setups in more detail, though, I'll save you some money by sharing a few little trade secrets with you:

1. If your guitar feels/sounds fine, it's probably fine. Since you are the one to (I assume) actually play the thing, who better to know if something's amiss? Nothing rattling, buzzing, falling off? If you play an open chord and then play its barre variant at the 12th fret and it doesn't sound all different and weird, then chances are, you're fine.
2. If your guitar starts to go out of intonation (the open string note should be exactly one octave higher at the 12th fret), try changing the strings. With grime and sweat collecting on the strings, they start to vibrate differently, and that will mess up the intonation. A lot of times, a fresh set of strings will remedy this. 

Totally gross, ACTUAL CUSTOMER'S GUITAR.

Still want to know about setups? Ok. Most shops will offer the same basic services, with a few variants at their discretion. The basics, though, will include:

• String change (probably)
• Intonation adjustment
• Neck adjustment
• Action adjustment
• Tightening any loose nuts or strap pins
• Oiling sticky tuning keys
• Checking the top nut and adjusting it as necessary
• Verifying electronics and batteries (if applicable)

When you speak to the technician (or whoever will sign your guitar in), make sure you specify what strings you'd like, what tuning you want to use, and mention any problems you'd like to have looked at (on the instrument, duh!) Oh, also, leave a real phone number where you can actually be reached (trust me, customers sometimes omit this slight, very important detail)

I hope I haven't left anything out...Got any questions? Leave a comment!

Winter's a killer!

If you live in a northern climate, winter can be fatal for your guitar. I'll explain: when it's cold, we turn on the heat. When the heat's on, the air is dry and, in turn, your guitar becomes dry. A lack of humidity causes the wood to contract and eventually crack. In my line of work, I see this all too often.

Dried-out instruments will exhibit some symptoms that are fairly easy to spot: frets will stick out on the sides and feel sharp, any nuts (like on certain tuning keys) will become loose and rattle around, and on an acoustic guitar, the top will sink down. You'll find that your action is lower and there might be buzzing where there wasn't before.

What can you do? It's easy: humidify! Your guitar (or bass, or mandolin, or oud, or whatever...) likes about 50% humidity in the air. In the winter, it's a good idea to keep your instrument inside its case, and to stick a humidifier (or "dampit") in there with it. This brings me to my next topic: humidifiers!