How to Set Up a Guitar

Co-authored by wikiHow Staff|Reader-Approved |19 References

In this Article:Setting the Truss Rod Raising and Lowering the Bridge Changing String Length by Adjusting the Bridge Setting up the Pickups Community Q&A 19 References

Sometimes a new guitar needs to be set up to achieve a smooth sound.

If you notice that your strings are difficult to hold down or buzz while you play, you’ll need to change the action and intonation of the guitar. To do this, you can adjust different parts of the guitar like the truss rod, bridge, and pickups to alter string height, length, and how much the neck bows. This should eliminate any unwanted buzzing or feedback and make the guitar easier to play.

1 Hold down the fret closest to the body on the top string. The frets are the square or rectangular spaces on the neck. Hold down the fret that’s closest to where the neck and body of your guitar meet on the top string, otherwise known as the 6th string.^[1]
- This fret is usually the 12th fret on your guitar.
2 Hold down the first fret on the 6th string. Hold down the first fret with your other hand while continuing to hold down the fret closest to the body of the guitar. Doing this will allow you to see whether there is a gap between the strings and the neck of the guitar.^[2]
- You can also hold down the first fret with a capo, which is a guitar tool used to hold down strings on the neck.
- Using a capo will make it easier to examine your guitar while holding down the strings.
3 Look and feel for a gap between the string and neck.
Look at the string and the neck of the guitar. There should be a gap about the width of a business card between the frets on the…