Do you remember when your guitar was new? The action was low, sliding up and down the fingerboard was a breeze, and fretbuzz was non existent. Then, the seasons change and so does your axe. Changes in temperature and humidity conditions throw your guitar’s setup all of whack. The action sharply rises, the frets start to stick out of the side (aka fret sprout) and the guitar buzzes and has dead-notes up and down the fingerboard. So, you search for “guitar repair near me” and get your rig setup only to have it all throw out of whack again once the seasons change.
In order to avoid this endless cycle, the guitar needs to be setup and kept within the relative humidity range it was setup in. That poses a challenge for both the gigging musician and for hobbyists who may find it difficult or flat out annoying to monitor the humidity in your guitar’s case or room and constantly adjust it. The unique climate of the northeast is subject to constant shifts in temperature and humidity. During both the summer and winter seasons, humidity levels can drop below 10% and then quickly rise above 60% throwing just about any guitar’s setup all out of whack. What that means for guitarists in and around NYC is seasonal changes in playability of their guitars resulting in the need for far more maintenance then their counterparts in temperatures that are almost exclusively wet or dry. Once a guitar is setup in a particular weather condition (such as a dry climate), the guitar will generally hold on to that setup for a number of years; However, once a shift in humidity occurs, the setup is thrown out of whack by the effects of shrinking and expanding wood. After all, it’s not any particular weather condition that causes issues like buzzing, fret sprout and high action. It is the change in humidity that requires tweaking. NYC is uniquely situated in this regard. Shifts in humidity levels are unpredictable and difficult to account for in your guitar setup on a consistent basis. You can search google for “guitar repair near me” or YouTube for guitar setup tips, but how can you really get a holistic view of your instrument’s setup and playability?
In order to keep your instrument playing at its best, we recommend a complete setup on your guitar at least twice per year to adjust for shifting woods, sharp frets, buzzing, and other relevant issues. Our Guitar Setup Checklist & 60+ Point Inspection Guideline provides a template you can use to record, in high-detail, your guitar’s setup parameters to make setting up your guitar in the future as easy as reproducing your guitar’s setup parameters after being logged. Upon completion of any setup, we record neck relief, string height at the nut & bridge and along the fingerboard, pickup height, bridge screw and tuning machine torque and other very specific measurements. Your guitar setup is now logged and can be easily reproduced at a later date. Because the vast majority of our customers are repeat customers, we keep these records on file for every guitar we work on. That perfect setup is then just a few tweaks away. Guitar repair near me.
Guitar Repair NYC is the city’s only guitar repair and guitar setup featuring such a meticulous and detailed setup process. We understanding that, as a performing musician, your guitar is your voice. We take pride in taking your guitar’s setup as seriously as you take your profession.