Do you set-up your own bass?

[Supernaut]

Reading around the forum, it seems to me that a lot of players cannot do a basic set-up.

 

Adjusting the truss rod, action at the bridge and nut, intonation. I guess you could also include pickup heights. 

 

Would like to hear some thoughts on this! 

[Steve Browning]

I have always shied away from doing anything (lack of confidence) but I invested in the Fender Bass Haynes Manual and that enabled me to tackle things. I have used a tech on a couple of occasions since, but certainly tackle things I didn't used to.

[Geek99]

I fixed a ski ramp on the neck of my p bass with help from others here

i also roll my own neck edges and do fret work

[4000]

Yes, but I don’t do fretwork or some nut work on expensive instruments. That’s something I’m hoping to learn and rectify at some point. 

[acidbass]

I do everything except fret work, but bought four neck blanks recently to practice on.

[Grimalkin]

I leave frets or skimming to someone else but I've set-up for years with the rest. One of the first things I look at if I'm interested in a bass is to see how much travel is left in the bridge compared to the action I'd like. Especially on fretless, mass producers don't drop the neck pocket by 1.2mm to accommodate the lack of fret height from my experience. So that has to be accounted for too. Anything that's close to bottoming out and still needs lowering, I'll look for another one.

[Paulhauser]

I do except for fretwork and electronics. I don't have the patience for the first and don't have the means for the second.

Other than that I do everything.

[nilebodgers]

Yes, everything up to nut making and level and crown frets.

 

I hope to progress on to refrets when I get a workshop again. I have a couple of guitar necks I defretted ready to practice on.

[Lozz196]

Basic set up is fine, but fret work, nut work & electrics (other than installing a KiOgon loom) I leave to the professionals, which in my case is our very own @gary mac (sadly minus the curly perm & Capri).

[Doctor J]

Yep, I do it. I see it as a fundamental part of being a player. If you don't understand the basic nature of how your instrument works, well... that's not very good at all.

[mowf]

I did do a setup course with Jon Shuker, fret levelling and everything, it was great and I learned a lot. But I'd still rather take my basses to him for any servicing works, partly for peace of mind because he's very good but mainly because he's got a lovely dog.

[Steve Browning]

6 minutes ago, Doctor J said:

Yep, I do it. I see it as a fundamental part of being a player. If you don't understand the basic nature of how your instrument works, well... that's not very good at all.

 

Impressive. I guess you are capable of designing and building all your own amps and loudspeakers?

[Doctor J]

Basses are not complicated at all, your comparisons are very wide of the mark.

[Steve Browning]

1 minute ago, Doctor J said:

Basses are not complicated at all, your comparisons are very wide of the mark.

So that's two things we disagree about then. 🙂

[Naigewron]

Yes I do, at least normal day-to-day setup (saddles adjustments, truss rod, neck shimming, etc). I've set up my own guitars and basses for 3-4 years now, but I was never sure I did it properly.

 

Last october I handed my main bass off to a professional tech and told him to set it up for me, expecting to really feel a difference now that a "proper" tech got his hands on it.

 

£110 later, I got it back. It felt nice and all, but there was nothing notable about it, and it didn't really feel any different. So as a result, I trust my own abilities a lot more now, and I know that my setups are good enough, at least for me and my hands.

 

I'm not brave enough to file the nut on my own (yet), and I don't have the tools or know-how to do fretwork. Maybe some day though.

Edited January 28, 2022 by Naigewron

[Steve Browning]

I am too conscious of the damage I could do by getting it wrong (however easy others find it).

Edited January 28, 2022 by Steve Browning

[Reggaebass]

I used to pay for all my basses to be set up and the main requirement I asked for was for the action to be as low as possible, very few came back lower than 2.5 - 3mm  , and I ended up doing it myself ,so I now do all my own setup’s with the exception of fretwork or work on the nut, which I’ve never had to do 

[40hz]

I learned to do all of mine out of necessity, not having a pot to p*ss in as a teenager. it was really good fun learning what to do (and not!). The thing that strikes me, aside from fretwork and electronics, is just how easy it is, really. Get a good tuner to intonate and you're golden!

[uk_lefty]

I'm the guy who measures out things twice, drills hole in the wall and STILL things don't line up. So I've only recently started to do neck adjustments myself. I'm happy doing intonation. But overall string height, neck relief and so on I just don't have the confidence or patience with.

[4000]

21 minutes ago, Doctor J said:

Yep, I do it. I see it as a fundamental part of being a player. If you don't understand the basic nature of how your instrument works, well... that's not very good at all.

I think for many it’s simply a confidence thing, not necessarily not knowing how to do it. 

[thodrik]

I have two Vigiers (no truss rod) and two Sadowskys (truss rod wheel), so set ups on those are really easy. 

Work requiring actual tools like slotting a nut, soldering, electrical work is all via a tech. Also I will use a tech to set up the truss rods on my 70s P bass and Gibson EB3. 

Even after a 'pro' set up though, I will generally adjust the action to my personal taste (not super low but usually lower than what I get).

[Reggaebass]

A good learning curve for me about how the bass went together was stripping a few to have the body re sprayed , I had to put them back together 🙂

[rushbo]

Yep - I'm happy to do the basic stuff. I've replaced a fret or two, swapped pickups and a few other more "serious" bits and pieces, too. My basses are far from "boutique," so I'm happy to wade in, knowing I'm not going to slash thousands off the kids' inheritance if I put a dink or a scratch on one of them.

 

I think it's more to do with having the confidence to do it, than having the skill.

 

Edited January 28, 2022 by rushbo

[Guest]

38 minutes ago, Doctor J said:

Yep, I do it. I see it as a fundamental part of being a player. If you don't understand the basic nature of how your instrument works, well... that's not very good at all.

 

Be sure to keep that self admiration in the fridge, it curdles really fast

 

[fleabag]

Like a few here, i'll  do everything except fret crowing, shaping levelling.

 

Nut slots, intonation, truss rod adjustment, bridge saddles setting, ... these are ok for me