Set-Ups & General Guitar Repairs

You may consider your guitar as needing a set-up if you're unhappy with it's playability, maybe the strings are too high from the fret board, maybe they're too low and they buzz or choke (cut out) when you bend?

There's no rule to follow, each player has his or her own preference. The general rule is that if the player's happy, the guitar is fine.

For those of you not in the know, a ‘set-up’ consists of the sometimes minor, sometimes extensive tweaks and adjustments that influence the overall playability and feel of an instrument.

These adjustments can include:

• Setting the truss-rod/neck relief….
• Cutting the nut slots to the correct shape, size and height….
• Shaping and polishing the fret ends and dressing (levelling and profiling) the frets…
• Setting the action and bridge saddle heights to suit….
• Setting the intonation….
• Correct pickup height adjustment….

Without these adjustments even a £2,000 guitar can feel cheap and unplayable. 

set-ups guitar repairs London Croydon

We understand that each player has their own favourite action** (** Action refers to the overall height/distance measured between the bottom of the strings and tops of the frets..) and playing feel to go with each of their individual playing styles which is why we always discuss in detail, customer’s specific requirements.

We endeavour to work to your time schedules - 95% of our work is turned around inside of one week..

What is included in a Standard Set-Up?
Every instrument needs a set-up of some sort in its lifetime. Regular set-ups and maintenance will actually prolong the life of your beloved instrument. Whether it requires work to improve its ‘out-of-the box’ feel or needs more extensive adjustment to suit your specific playing needs, dramatic improvements are possible with a standard set-up. This standard set-up includes.

• Truss rod adjustment
• Frets cleaned and polished – fret ends rounded and smoothed if needed
• Fingerboard nut slots cutting and adjustment
• Pick-up and pole piece height adjustment
• String playing height/action set to suit
• Intonation setting. 
• The guitar will be setup with your preferred gauge of strings to ensure tuning stability and consistency.

Standard electric and acoustic instruments- from £65.00 plus strings (setups for Guitars fitted with a Locking Tremolo such as "Floyd Rose" are priced from £75.00 plus strings) All prices quoted include VAT @ 20%

If your guitar suffers from ‘fret buzz’ or string rattle which compromises your tone or desired action setting (or there is significant wear in the frets) then your guitar requires a fret dress. This is the preferred job for most (even brand new) guitars and allows us to set any action that you can play to. This job includes:

• Initial leveling of the frets to remove any wear or uneven fret height
• The frets are then re-crowned (profiled), smoothed and polished
• The guitar is then set-up as per the Standard Set-Up menu above. This is included in the Fret Dress price.

All standard electric and acoustic instruments- from £95.00 plus strings. 

Bass Guitar & Locking Tremolo equipped instruments such as "Floyd Rose"

are priced from £105.00 plus strings.  All prices quoted include VAT @ 20%