Lunch Report - Tuesday March 1st

[astutzmann]

I really enjoyed all the posts yesterday, thanks everyone!

Three years ago, my wife and I bought a 45 year old home in original condition and we spent 8 months designing, then gutting and rebuilding the entire home. This was done with the help of some wonderful, skilled people!

My wife got her dream kitchen and I got a Home Theater, with 6 zone audio distribution inside and outside the home, as well as some home automation.

(side note, I am still thinking of putting a wifi output from my guitars to the home theater audio input and therefore making the entire house my amp, lol)

When I was looking for a contractor to do this Home Theater work, I really did my research and selected a company who normally does commercial A/V and security work for places like restaurants. The sales guy was over at the house and his sales line was...........

"I will sell you the hardware for the same price as everyone else, but you will pay for the design and you will pay double for the installation and any service that's required, and it will be worth it!"

The reason, seasoned, trained, certified specialists doing the work and he was right, it was worth it. He had a designer create the system tailored to my thoughts and layout of the house and the installer was a meticulous 45 year old audio EXPERT. You should see the cabling job, wow. They charged me for 40 hours of programming, but actually did about 100 hours.

The sales guy is still a good friend and we do lunch about once a month.

LUNCH

I am going out for lunch with that sales guy today and we have selected a Vietnamese restaurant in town and I know I'll have one of my favourite lunches, Chicken PHO soup and a couple of spring rolls.

At 6 foot 3 inches tall and 240 pounds, can you tell that I LOVE to eat?

G&L QUESTION

About a month after my Home Theater was up and running, I had a number of issues with it and thenmy plasma tv blew. These guys were here the next morning with a new TV and resolved all my issues, did some programming improvements (about 2 days worth) from the suggestions I had, no charge. That's service!

My 2008 Bluesboy was having issues, the neck needed adjusting a couple of times (could be humidity problems in this area), I have had nut issues and setup issues (intonation). I have all of these resolved by a local luthier (who's outstanding). My bluesboy is perfect right now, no issues and plays fantastic. I was falling out of love with it, but the love is back.

I thought these issues were with adjustment and setup so I never went back to the dealer or G&L for service work, so I went to the luthier (the best for the best, right?). My goal of course was to make the bluesboy setup perfectly. My legacy has no such issues.

So, my question is twofold. First, when you received your G&L, did it need a good setup for intonation, elimination of buzzing, fretting out, etc? Not sure I needed a new nut, but I did it anyway.

Secondly, have you gone back to your dealer and specifically needed G&L to resolve issues with your guitar and how was their service? Was it easy to get a hold of them and have them react to your issues?

NON G&L QUESTION

Along the same lines, when I was working, I strived for myself and my staff to give the customers the best possible service and support that we could. The customer pays the bills and our salaries. The customer is NOT always right, but should always come away from a situation winning or feeling like they've won. They need to get value for their money.

As a consumer of these wonderful guitars, I feel its up to me to learn as much as I can to become a knowledgeable consumer and to seek help from the experts as needed. My luthier is wonderful but he is a 45 minute drive away and the guitar is then gone for the time it takes for him to work on it (he's also expensive, but I am willing to pay for great service). I am wondering how many of you do your own setups, cut your own nuts, adjust the truss rod, etc, all the general maintenance that goes with your guitar and how many of you took formal training for that. While I don't want to take a luthier program, I think I would like to take a guitar setup and repair course.

I feel like I want to do constant tinkering (raise/lower pups, etc) but without really knowing what I'm doing, its just that, tinkering.

Thoughts?

Thanks,

Alf

[sam]

Sounds like an awesome Home Theater setup, let us know when the wifi output comes together.

G&L QUESTION

First, when you received your G&L, did it need a good setup for intonation, elimination of buzzing, fretting out, etc?
Only bought two new and they came good to go as far as set up. My first new one had a slight blemish on the headstock, but at the time I was about to move and was just too lazy to do anything. Should the dealer have said something, should I have done something?... that was so long and so many guitars ago it is just a character mark now.

NON G&L QUESTION

As far as set ups, nuts, rods etc. I am a trainwreck with tools and soldering gun so I have to rely on quality guitar guys.

[westsideduck]

[quote="astutzmann"]I really enjoyed all the posts yesterday, thanks everyone!

Three years ago, my wife and I bought a 45 year old home in original condition and we spent 8 months designing, then gutting and rebuilding the entire home. This was done with the help of some wonderful, skilled people!

..........................That's a fun job and a lot of work! I finished a re-hab on a 1880's home I bought for investment last year, it's a rewarding process.

(side note, I am still thinking of putting a wifi output from my guitars to the home theater audio input and therefore making the entire house my amp, lol)

I'd go for that Drive the wife nuts !!

When I was looking for a contractor to do this Home Theater work, I really did my research and selected a company who normally does commercial A/V and security work for places like restaurants. The sales guy was over at the house and his sales line was...........


G&L QUESTION


My 2008 Bluesboy was having issues, the neck needed adjusting a couple of times (could be humidity problems in this area), I have had nut issues and setup issues (intonation). I have all of these resolved by a local luthier (who's outstanding). My bluesboy is perfect right now, no issues and plays fantastic. I was falling out of love with it, but the love is back.

......................................................I've been tweaking the truss rods for two months now, I am located near you and you are right, it's the Humidity, or lack of it I should say, I have a large humidifier in my music room and it can't keep up the levels properly. Which luthier do you use?


So, my question is twofold. First, when you received your G&L, did it need a good setup for intonation, elimination of buzzing, fretting out, etc? Not sure I needed a new nut, but I did it anyway.

............................................................I've gone through a lot of guitars, new and used, and rarely found one that didn't need some set up work.

Secondly, have you gone back to your dealer and specifically needed G&L to resolve issues with your guitar and how was their service? Was it easy to get a hold of them and have them react to your issues?

....................................................never need any service on the few new G&L's I've had but heard the service is very good.

NON G&L QUESTION

Along the same lines, when I was working, I strived for myself and my staff to give the customers the best possible service and support that we could. The customer pays the bills and our salaries. The customer is NOT always right, but should always come away from a situation winning or feeling like they've won. They need to get value for their money.

As a consumer of these wonderful guitars, I feel its up to me to learn as much as I can to become a knowledgeable consumer and to seek help from the experts as needed. My luthier is wonderful but he is a 45 minute drive away and the guitar is then gone for the time it takes for him to work on it (he's also expensive, but I am willing to pay for great service). I am wondering how many of you do your own setups, cut your own nuts, adjust the truss rod, etc, all the general maintenance that goes with your guitar and how many of you took formal training for that. While I don't want to take a luthier program, I think I would like to take a guitar setup and repair course.

I feel like I want to do constant tinkering (raise/lower pups, etc) but without really knowing what I'm doing, its just that, tinkering.

Thoughts?


.......................................................I do most of my set up work and set up guitars for friends, I don't do any fret work and I've cut a few nuts and they are a pain in the ass to do properly so I'll have my luthier do that work and also I'll have him set up my main players and then just tweek the settings from there.

gary

[astutzmann]

Hi Gary:

My luthier is in Niagara on the Lake, his name is Freddy, he's a luthier and is also in charge of Sound and Sound Production with the Shaw Theater in town. I know he has restored some very very valuable guitars, some from Alex Leifson of Rush.

His website is:

www.freddysfrets.com

[sickbutnottired]

G&L Question -

I have not bought a new G&L, so I can't comment on the setup in detail. I did play a few new G&L's in a store, hmmm...In Portland I can't exactly remember when, and I can't remember the store at all. But they were all set up great.

I have bought some fairly new G&L's, about a year old, or one at least--and other new guitars. I think that for several years guitars can change quite a bit, and require tweaking the setup. Of course one setup change often requires others as a follow on. Also changing climates and even weather can have some effect. When you import a guitar to MT, you have to be ready for some changes due to the extremely dry air.

Non G&L Question -
I have never had to take a G&L to a luthier, or a dealer--knock on wood. I do most of my own setup, with good success. I have taken broken guitars to be fixed. If it requires glue, I am usually out....

Your house project sounds very enjoyable. I have done three big remodels. But all on lower end homes. When I build by final home, I am going to quite doing everything and bring in the some real craftsmen. When I did my current basement (it was unfinished when I bought it) I did my own media room. It is OK, but if getting it done by a pro is way worth it. And the situation is the opposite, the media room is for my wife--the dream kitchen would be for ME!

cheers, jeremy

[zapcosongs]

Nice week you have going here Alf. Much appreciated.

Q1: I've only bought one G&L new, a Legacy, and it came perfect, right out of the box. Good thing too, because I bought it online and my "dealer" was far, far from being local.

Q2: I'm too much of a moron to even want to tinker with my fine instruments. On the rare occasion that one of my guitars need attention, I go to a professional. Our very own Bassman actually sets up my low-end lumber. Does a nice job too. - ed

[Philby]

It's a pity I live about 20,000 km away Alf, otherwise I'd be around to your house for a beer and movie! I'd like to learn more about home DIY. Due to a skills shortage, Australian tradesmen charge more than most people can afford so it's well worth doing your own home improvements if you have time. My wife has started nagging about getting the bathroom done, so I can see some self education on tiling and shower installation in my future. A friend just did his bathroom on his own, and a darned fine job it was too. He reckons you can afford to completely screw up 3 times before it becomes more economical to use a pro. He screwed up once and learned about the pitfalls of renovating a bathroom as a bonus

On the topic of G&L setups, I purchased 2 Tribute guitars new and they both had scratchy pots. The dealer was pretty hopeless and said he couldn't help because the Tribbies used mini-pots (which he didn't stock) instead of standard CTS pots. So I rang the national distibutor who said contact the dealer (grrrrr). I decided to fix the pots myself. I e-mailed G&L a few times about sourcing their mini pots and heard nothing. So I ended up buying some Mighty Mite mini pots off E-Bay and put them in myself. My USA built S-500 was purchased second hand and there wasn't a thing on that axe that was set up to factory spec! By now I'd joined the forum and had a much better time getting the information and parts I needed to do the job.

Re. luthiers, I try not to use them where possible. Not because I don't respect what they do, but I believe a large proportion of guitar maintenance can be done by owners with the right tools and a willingness to understand how guitars work. Guitar electronics don't scare me anymore, nor does cutting nuts, tweaking truss rods, setting up bridges and intonation etc. It's important to know your limitations though. I would never attempt a re-fret, or a pickup rewind, or fixing a warped neck, or even aggressive fret dressing. I am very wary of anything that could not be easily undone. It's straight to a pro for that stuff. Having said that, I've been far happier with my own setups that any luthier job because I know exactly what type of action I'm shooting for rather than having to describe it to a luthier.

Cheers, Phil.

[astutzmann]

Thanks for the reply. Last time I was in Melbourne was 2001, really enjoyed the city. WIshed I had more time there. Wanted to go to Tasmania, never did. We went to NZ for 6 weeks, that was great as well.

My wife and I started out 30 years ago buying a dump of a house, fixing it ourselves, I had to make the furniture, all cause we were broke. The first furniture I made, wound up in the fireplace, made good fires.... BUT, eventually there is not a job I couldnt tackle in a home project. I wouldn't make kitchen cabinets and stuff like that, but the rest is easy.

Plumbing is easy, all you have to know is three things, Crap flows downhill, the Hot goes on the left and its payday every friday (hope there are no plumbers on this site, no offense meant)

This last house we did, was our 10th, this time we designed it, hired out the pros to do it. My wife designs her own kitchens now...fun. We paid time and materials to trades that I could trust and so since the clock was ticking, I did most of the destruction myself, ripping the house apart and had them rebuilt it. More fun that way, ha.

[blargfromouterspace]

Your house sounds great, Alf. Sounds like you know what your doing. I worked on several complete renovation projects over the last 4 or 5 years as a tradesman and have seen first hand how stressful it can be for the client. The most important thing is to treat your tradesmen well, not like they're slaves. Although we'd never set out to mess with someone, if they weren't treating you well then the desire to turn up for work on a 40* day slips away, as does a lot of the drive to do a good job. If there's a toilet inside the house, let them use it rather than the port-a-loo. We had to work for some real arseholes who would not even say 'good morning' to you.

I loves me some Pho, we have a large Vietnamese community in Melbourne and the food they serve in their restaurants is cheap, plentiful and sooooooo good! Though I tend to steer away from the 'congealed pigs blood Pho'.


New G&Ls: I've bought two new, and both of them have been shipped to me in Melbourne from Kansas. They have arrived in tune and well set up. The Plek machine is doing a good job, I'd like to buy him a pint of oil.


Luthiers: I do my own set ups. Guitars aren't all that complicated to work on and most of the things involved in a set up are easily reversible (except maybe the truss rod, if it's not dual acting). I don't measure anything, I go purely by feel. And that's the beauty of doing it yourself - with practice you can get it set up perfectly for yourself. It's definitely worth messing around with action, pickup heights, ummm what else?

[blargfromouterspace]

On the topic of G&L setups, I purchased 2 Tribute guitars new and they both had scratchy pots. The dealer was pretty hopeless and said he couldn't help because the Tribbies used mini-pots (which he didn't stock) instead of standard CTS pots....

Hey Phil,

Who was the dealer? He sounds like a jerk - why couldn't he just give you a couple of CTS pots to replace the mini ones?!?

[Philby]

Who was the dealer? He sounds like a jerk - why couldn't he just give you a couple of CTS pots to replace the mini ones?!?

Hi Jamie, the dealer was Frontier Music in Fitzroy. They've since changed management (surprise?) and sell mainly 2nd hand gear. I haven't seen any G&L stuff in there for ages, but they have some nice 80s and 90s MIJ instruments these days.

Believe it or not, CTS pots won't fit in Tribby ASAT's! The routing is not deep enough to accommodate them, as I found out when I tried to put some new CTS pots in there. You actually need mini-pots for the control plate to fit back on properly. The holes on the control plate are also not wide enough to accommodate the thicker shafts on the CTS pots. I opened up the holes so the CTS shafts would fit through, only to find the routing ultimately wasn't deep enough

[Sprinter 92]

G&L QUESTION

So, my question is twofold. First, when you received your G&L, did it need a good setup for intonation, elimination of buzzing, fretting out, etc?

G&L, does a good job on factory setups, but I still make changes to them. I always tweak the setup to my preference.

Secondly, have you gone back to your dealer and specifically needed G&L to resolve issues with your guitar and how was their service? Was it easy to get a hold of them and have them react to your issues?

Yes, I've had to send a guitar back to G&L. I'm going to refrain from answering the second part of your question.

NON G&L QUESTION

I am wondering how many of you do your own setups, cut your own nuts, adjust the truss rod, etc, all the general maintenance that goes with your guitar and how many of you took formal training for that.

I do my own work. I learned how to repair guitars on the job while working at Bass & Treble Music in the early to mid 80's! I work on cars for a living so guitar repair seems simple to me.

Sprinter 92

[darwinohm]

Alf, finally have time to ponder the questions today. I have always been a do it yourself guy. As a kid we were too poor to hire anything done and my dad fixed everything. We got to help and almost drove him nuts. As we grew up everything we got our hands on would get torn apart and put back together.

I have never had issues that required warranty work on any of my guitars. The factory tour CD that was part of the F-100 Return package was resolved quickly by Craig. I adjust them at least a couple of times a year due to climate change here. I do all my own work and have setup tools and gauges. I used to do it by look and feel but you know exactly where your are at using calipers and radius gauges. Yesterday I did work on the Bluesboy Bigsby after the gig. The locktite really fixed it up. Today, I replaced a vintage style bridge on my new Tele with an American Deluxe bridge. It required fitting, drilling and it looks great but the sustain is noticeably better. Fenders vintage bridge looks cheap and is. I almost put the ASAT Classic bridge on it but decided to drill and fit the American Deluxe bridge, It has chrome plated stainless saddles and is a piece of art in itself. This is what us retired guys do! I will be ordering fretting tools in the next month or so. That will be a fun experience. Missed lunch today as I get too excited about projects. Lots of project ahead and hope to get most of them done.-- Darwin

[zapcosongs]

Darwin -

Ever (after a beer or six) consider putting a saddle-lock on a "Fender?"

In the couple of times I pondered something like this, I eventually realized it would risk the waste of a perfectly great bridge.

Ha! - ed

[bassman]

All of my G&Ls, along with the rest of my guitars and basses, require periodic tweaking of truss rods, bridges , etc.
I do all of this work myself. I have had very good results and I have repaired a few warped necks and broken truss rods along the way.

I have resurrected several basket case instruments and I am now planning to restore a Gibson EB-3 bass to its former glory.
This project will require a complete fret job, so I am studying up on re-fretting techniques. I will need a few additional tools to do this job.

I work on basses and guitars for fun and I can't see paying someone else to have my fun. Paying high guitar repair costs is certainly no fun, so I don't do it.

I have one Tribute G&L an L-2000 and I like it a lot. I have sprayed cleaner into its pots and I have changed the tuners back to stock. It came with Hipshot tuners installed but the shafts were too small for the holes in the neck.