A healthy guitar is a happy guitar . And a healthy guitar is one that is clean , professionally setup , and always wearing a fresh set of strings . Think of a setup as the guitar equivalent of physical fitness . You wouldn ’ t run a marathon ( or a lowly 5K ) without training . A professional ( or amateur ) setup is the equivalent of training for your guitar . Comfortable ( to you ) action and accurate intonation are imperative to playing well . A good setup can make the difference between a guitar that you can ’ t stand to put down and one that you can ’ t stand to play . Cleanliness is next to godliness and every guitar enjoys good hygiene . Yes , the look of a wellworn guitar is cool but that doesn ’ t mean you shouldn ’ t wipe your guitar and strings down ( especially after gigs and rehearsals ). Oils and dead skin have a way of collecting on strings and hardware and can be harmful to the finish and just plain disgusting . Speaking of strings , for the love of God , man , change them at least quarterly ( every few weeks for a guitar that is seeing more than a few hours of playing time per week ).
No , I don ’ t change the oil in my car myself . Time is money , and my time is better spent playing guitar than working on a car . I learned that lesson years ago when I saved a few hundred
GET HEALTHY
A healthy guitar is a happy guitar . And a healthy guitar is one that is clean , professionally setup , and always wearing a fresh set of strings . Think of a setup as the guitar equivalent of physical fitness . You wouldn ’ t run a marathon ( or a lowly 5K ) without training . A professional ( or amateur ) setup is the equivalent of training for your guitar . Comfortable ( to you ) action and accurate intonation are imperative to playing well . A good setup can make the difference between a guitar that you can ’ t stand to put down and one that you can ’ t stand to play . Cleanliness is next to godliness and every guitar enjoys good hygiene . Yes , the look of a wellworn guitar is cool but that doesn ’ t mean you shouldn ’ t wipe your guitar and strings down ( especially after gigs and rehearsals ). Oils and dead skin have a way of collecting on strings and hardware and can be harmful to the finish and just plain disgusting . Speaking of strings , for the love of God , man , change them at least quarterly ( every few weeks for a guitar that is seeing more than a few hours of playing time per week ).
LEARN BASIC MAINTENANCE
No , I don ’ t change the oil in my car myself . Time is money , and my time is better spent playing guitar than working on a car . I learned that lesson years ago when I saved a few hundred
34 TONE TALK // 6 Ways To Step Up Your Guitar Game in 2017