ASAT Deluxe Tribute setup problems

I just got my new ASAT Deluxe Tribute and found out that the strings were not aligned correctly. I fixed the issue according to this thread:

viewtopic.php?f=13&t=3488

It worked well, but now the action is higher than before. What would the next logical step be to lower the action: adjust the truss rod or lower the saddles? Thanks for your input.

Try the saddles first. Avoid adjusting the truss rod unless the neck has too much of a bow in it.

Adjust saddles first to get proper action on the upper frets (12th and above). Then adjust truss rod to required amount of relief to keep action as low and buzz-free on the rest of the neck. And check the nut for proper depth/width of the slots, a thing where most Tributes can be improved w.r.t. action at the lowest frets and tuning stability.

or a neck shim if the saddles go too low

I don't understand in the first place why the action got higher after I aligned the neck. It was perfect before.

My guess would be debris (wood chips or shavings from the screw holes) or the neck screws are not seated properly but feel tight. Is the neck perfectly tight to the body when looking at the cutout side? There is no mystery here as something has changed, a question of what. If you look closely you will find it. Sometimes splinters will fall into the pocket when you remove the screws. -- Darwin

My guess would be debris (wood chips or shavings from the screw holes) or the neck screws are not seated properly but feel tight. Is the neck perfectly tight to the body when looking at the cutout side? There is no mystery here as something has changed, a question of what. If you look closely you will find it. Sometimes splinters will fall into the pocket when you remove the screws. -- Darwin

I want to echo what Darwin said. Also, don't over-tighten the neck screws, that can cause the neck heel in the pocket not to align properly.
Get the neck and body seated properly before any other adjustments.

I didn't take the neck off, just losened the screws as described in this thread:

viewtopic.php?f=13&t=3488

So I don't think there could be any debris in there. Neck looks tight to the body. I guess I will just have to take the whole neck off to see what happened. I'm kinda scared though, I have never done it before.... Should I try a shim at the back end of the neck pocket (as shown in the picture in this thread) as first measurement? I am starting to think it might have someting to do with the fact the guitar had just been delivered. It was on the way from Germany for four days and possibly exposed to pretty extreme temperature changes.

I think you will find something under the neck. I actually use my shop vac to clean the neck and neck pocket and have also used a razor blade as a scraper to make them smooth. I have removed many necks and they are usually quite easy to remove. Romove all the tension from the strings and I would suggest putting masking tape around the neck just upward of the nut before removing the screws to keep the strings from falling out of the tuners. Remove the neck carefully, especially if it is tight in the pocket so you don't chip the paint around the pocket. They normally are not that tight but I have seen it. After checking everything in the pocket and neck base you may want to record the build date before reassembling. I usually put the screws back in and screw all the way in just before the screw gets snug. I leave them like that and then tune the guitar. At that time I align the neck, tighten the screws and as Craig mentioned, do not overtighten. Hope that helps and works for you. -- Darwin

Thank you all for your advice. I will try to fix the issue on the weekend by trying to put a shim in the neck pocket.

[Craig]

Seems to be a problem with the Tributes. Got mine last week too and the action was too high. Tried to shim the neck pocket with a small piece of sandpaper at the bridge end of the neck pocket, but that made the strings practically lay on the frets. So my next step would be to lower the saddles, right?

Last edited by Craig on Mon Dec 15, 2014 2:34 pm, edited 2 times in total.
Reason: This post was moved from another thread to the correct existing thread.

Catawompus wrote

Seems to be a problem with the Tributes. Got mine last week too and the action was too high. Tried to shim the neck pocket with a small piece of sandpaper at the bridge end of the neck pocket, but that made the strings practically lay on the frets. So my next step would be to lower the saddles, right?

You shimmed the neck because the saddles were too low with high action. You now have the strings almost touching the neck , exactly what you should do. You can now raise the saddles to get the action you want. If that doesn't work, use a thinner shim. -- Darwin

Seems to be a problem with the Tributes. Got mine last week too and the action was too high. Tried to shim the neck pocket with a small piece of sandpaper at the bridge end of the neck pocket, but that made the strings practically lay on the frets. So my next step would be to lower the saddles, right?

I don't think that there is a setup problem with the Tributes. Some folks like there action lower than the factory setup.

I suggest that you start with the factory setup, see: Current Factory setup for G&L guitars with hardtail bridges.
Then dial it to your own preference.

Also, instead of using sandpaper, I suggest using a different material for your shim, such as a business card or playing cards.

Just my $0.02.

Catawompus wrote

Seems to be a problem with the Tributes. Got mine last week too and the action was too high. Tried to shim the neck pocket with a small piece of sandpaper at the bridge end of the neck pocket, but that made the strings practically lay on the frets. So my next step would be to lower the saddles, right?

You shimmed the neck because the saddles were too low with high action. You now have the strings almost touching the neck , exactly what you should do. You can now raise the saddles to get the action you want. If that doesn't work, use a thinner shim. -- Darwin

There's a misunderstanding. The action was so low that I took the shim out again and put the guitar back to the original state. In the next step I will try to lower the saddles to lower the action. Is that correct?

Absolutely.
You only ever use a shim if you can't get the setup to where you want by adjusting the saddles.
Be sure to slack off the saddle-lock grub screw at the side before adjusting saddles (about a half to three-quarter turn should free it), and to retighten it afterwards (just snug; don't welly it up super-tight, you won't do the bridge any good).
I find saddle-locks set up best with all the saddles parallel to the top of the guitar, rather than angled into an arch. The locking works better, and there's no reason or benefit to arching them. As ever, ymmv but I would strongly suggest it.