Thank you so much for this video. This is really going to help me at church. My bass was so out of whack and I didn't know what to do but thanks to this video, it is fine now, even better than before. Thank you again and May God bless you!
Thanks for the info Dave, I just got an Evil Twin-5 a couple of days ago, and I was curious about the setup. I really lucked out finding this expert video. Great content as always.
This was an extremely clear and concise step by step process- the best I've come across. It would be helpful for me if a future video discussed "back buzz." I am unclear if this can be tamed with normal setup procedure or if it requires a particular repair. My '75 Gibson Grabber seems much better after following this procedure to the letter. However, I cannot lower my action anywhere near the specified level without frets buzzing at the top of the neck. Using a straight edge, it does not appear that any one fret is higher than the others- it seems to be an across-the-board phenomenon. Even so, it plays better than it ever has, by far. So thank you!
Thanks for watching! It's so hard to offer a solution without having the bass on my bench but if the bridge is as low as it will go and the nut is set at it's proper height and the action is still too high... you might need to shim the neck. Again, hard to say for sure.
You didn't mention it but should you tune the bass first before you make any adjustments? If a bass isn't inntonated and you know it will need adjustments does it make a difference?
Hey, Adam, thanks for watching. Yes, you should be tuning your bass up to whatever pitch or tuning you'll be using. Even detuning your E down to D can throw off the intonation so it's important to setup the bass to the pitch you'll be playing at. Thanks for the comment!
HolyMolly man! 0,75 to 1 mm is a very HUGE amount of neck relief! Are you sure about that? That’s like bow with arrows. 0.3 mm is standard, but you can easily go with less
This is the first setup I've ever seen that starts with the nut. Wouldn't relief adjustments in the next change this distance? I was always under the impression you want to do the neck first.
It's a debated subject for sure but IMHO, neck relief really just affects the middle of the neck and wouldn't make a difference to the straight line created by the string from the bridge to the nut. I guess you could do the whole bass setup and and come back to the nut but I find it usually needs a bit of filing so I tackle it first. Great question and thanks for watching!
Thank u alot i have a warwick corvette bubinga 6 string i press down tge 17 fret then i have 0.50mm at 7 fret. Then i have 0.30mm at the nut height :) and low action. Thank u alot i always thought 0.50 or 1mm was way too much relief when people told me that was wayy too much.
Cool video, it definitely should help folks out 👍 When you say intonation is affected by string height, I find it as like this- When I set the intonation perfectly at 12th fret, I then check and see if the notes are sharp when on 24th fret (or your highest if you dont have 24), If theyre sharper, you have to set string height lower, then reset the intonation. Its a pain to do but makes all the difference when chords ring true on the 12th fret and above🤘😜
I'm having trouble with fret buzz on 4th string at 6th fret. Nowhere else buzzes, just that. Tried measuring the fret bars on each side, but looks the same. I'm visually impaired, so it's really difficult to see what it might be. I thought it'd be the fret bars, because no other notes are affected. Should I leave the nut and bridge alone then?
The 4th through 6th frets could be buzzing if the neck is too straight. Without seeing the bass I'm guessing those frets might be too high and need to be filed and crowned. It's a process that does require the right tools so it may be worth a trip to your local music shop. Thanks for watching, Rob!
I watched your video, maybe my TH-cam app is problematic, but I think at 3:25 the video skipped. So the truss rod adjustment part wasn't completed yet, it jumped abruptly to the action settings part. I didn't get the part about the neck relief measurements that people talked in the comment section. Maybe it is in the place where the video skipped. Can you check your video?
Thanks, Dave! This will come in handy. I have ordered the Schecter SLS Elite 5 evil twin. I did check out your review of this bass. ( very well done!) was curious does the fingerprint come off the Satin color over all what do you think of this bass any major or minor issues?
Thanks for watching, Tony! Yeah, satin finishes (especially black) tend to fingerprint a little easier but they wipe off easily. That Schecter has become one of my favorite basses in the studio because it's so easy to play and it sounds amazing! Looks very metal but it can handle anything... I think it slaps really well. Hope you enjoy yours when it comes in!
I bought a supercheap bass a while back to try and get back into playing. But the setup is so far off it's almost unplayable. Doesn't feel too bad near the nut, but at the bottom of the neck you can almost fit a finger under the strings. I don't know if I can lower the bridge enough to fix it. Would this require shimming the neck?
Hi John, thanks for watching. It sounds like the neck has too much relief (back bow) and you'll want to tighten the truss rod to straighten the neck. If that's been done and you still have high action in the upper register (and the bridge saddles are at they're lowest point) then yes, shimming the neck may be the only way to fix the problem. I'd start with a small adjustment. Although they're expensive, I prefer Stew Mac shims because they're full contact between the heel of the neck and the neck pocket. Good luck!!
Hi Dave! I have a buzz only on the 12th fret, what could be the cause? Especially the 2nd, 3rd and 4th fret. My tuning is B-F#-B-E and im using 55-110 Thanks
Without having the bass in my hand it's hard to know but you're tuning down pretty low which would cause less tension on the neck and possibly a back bow. But I think all the notes above the 12th fret would be buzzing in that case. I'm going to just guess that either the 13th or 14th fret is a bit high. You could take it to a local shop or purchase a fret rocker. That would let you know for certain. Thanks for watching!
I got a problem, I set up two basses, and when I plug both into an amp it sounds like the amps speaker is about to blow out, like there’s a distorted tone, is that due to the pick up height?
If it's two separate basses, I'd suspect the amp is bad. You can get the pickups too high but I don't think it would add enough level to start distorting. Are they active? Maybe the batteries are going bad or it's a bad cable. Thanks!
Depending on the complexity of your bass, I would recommend not to DIY unless you have like every tool you need, clamps and new fresh screwdrivers, everything. I took my bass neck off and was about give a little neck relief, bottom truss rom and the screws are too hard to turn back in by hand. I need a good clamp for this one bass, just to get the neck back on because the screws are so tight in this rock or sugar maple neck. It's really hard to put back on, so I am, taking it to the most reputable tech I could find in my area, hopefully this will be the last neck adjustment ever.
Very informative and humble video, no useless ego flashing, just the facts and how-to infos. Thank you very much 😊
Thank you so much for this video. This is really going to help me at church. My bass was so out of whack and I didn't know what to do but thanks to this video, it is fine now, even better than before. Thank you again and May God bless you!
Awesome, thanks Julius!
Drill bits of the correct diameter work great too.
Great video. Gives specs you can’t find anywhere else. Thanks bud. I appreciate your help
Thanks for the info Dave, I just got an Evil Twin-5 a couple of days ago, and I was curious about the setup. I really lucked out finding this expert video. Great content as always.
Thank you!🙏
This was an extremely clear and concise step by step process- the best I've come across. It would be helpful for me if a future video discussed "back buzz." I am unclear if this can be tamed with normal setup procedure or if it requires a particular repair. My '75 Gibson Grabber seems much better after following this procedure to the letter. However, I cannot lower my action anywhere near the specified level without frets buzzing at the top of the neck. Using a straight edge, it does not appear that any one fret is higher than the others- it seems to be an across-the-board phenomenon. Even so, it plays better than it ever has, by far. So thank you!
Thanks for watching! It's so hard to offer a solution without having the bass on my bench but if the bridge is as low as it will go and the nut is set at it's proper height and the action is still too high... you might need to shim the neck. Again, hard to say for sure.
Great hack at the end. I usually use my ears but the meter is more accurate. Thanks.
Thanks for watching!
Thanks! 😀
Thanks Dave! Very helpful video!
Great, thanks for watching! 🙏
very helpful, thank you
You didn't mention it but should you tune the bass first before you make any adjustments? If a bass isn't inntonated and you know it will need adjustments does it make a difference?
Hey, Adam, thanks for watching. Yes, you should be tuning your bass up to whatever pitch or tuning you'll be using. Even detuning your E down to D can throw off the intonation so it's important to setup the bass to the pitch you'll be playing at. Thanks for the comment!
HolyMolly man! 0,75 to 1 mm is a very HUGE amount of neck relief!
Are you sure about that? That’s like bow with arrows. 0.3 mm is standard, but you can easily go with less
I was also surprised at that. Fender recommends 0.25 -0.35mm, basically 0.05 more than guitars, so a business card is about right.
This is the first setup I've ever seen that starts with the nut. Wouldn't relief adjustments in the next change this distance? I was always under the impression you want to do the neck first.
It's a debated subject for sure but IMHO, neck relief really just affects the middle of the neck and wouldn't make a difference to the straight line created by the string from the bridge to the nut. I guess you could do the whole bass setup and and come back to the nut but I find it usually needs a bit of filing so I tackle it first. Great question and thanks for watching!
Thank u alot i have a warwick corvette bubinga 6 string i press down tge 17 fret then i have 0.50mm at 7 fret. Then i have 0.30mm at the nut height :) and low action. Thank u alot i always thought 0.50 or 1mm was way too much relief when people told me that was wayy too much.
Cool video, it definitely should help folks out 👍
When you say intonation is affected by string height, I find it as like this-
When I set the intonation perfectly at 12th fret, I then check and see if the notes are sharp when on 24th fret (or your highest if you dont have 24),
If theyre sharper, you have to set string height lower, then reset the intonation. Its a pain to do but makes all the difference when chords ring true on the 12th fret and above🤘😜
I'm having trouble with fret buzz on 4th string at 6th fret. Nowhere else buzzes, just that. Tried measuring the fret bars on each side, but looks the same. I'm visually impaired, so it's really difficult to see what it might be. I thought it'd be the fret bars, because no other notes are affected. Should I leave the nut and bridge alone then?
The 4th through 6th frets could be buzzing if the neck is too straight. Without seeing the bass I'm guessing those frets might be too high and need to be filed and crowned. It's a process that does require the right tools so it may be worth a trip to your local music shop. Thanks for watching, Rob!
@DavePorterBand luckily, I got a guitar toolkit for Xmas. I suspect you're right, but a pair of eyes with better vision definitely wouldn't go amiss 😂
Everything you taught worked,thank you. Cant seem to get good sound out of the g tho?
Hey, thanks for watching! I'm not sure what could be happening with the G. Maybe it's a dead string? Good luck!
@@DavePorterBand thank you so very much. I had no idea this was a thing
@@BarefootViking it is
@@jpjay1584 I'm new at it. I appreciate it. So new set is only solution?
I watched your video, maybe my TH-cam app is problematic, but I think at 3:25 the video skipped. So the truss rod adjustment part wasn't completed yet, it jumped abruptly to the action settings part. I didn't get the part about the neck relief measurements that people talked in the comment section. Maybe it is in the place where the video skipped. Can you check your video?
Thanks, Dave! This will come in handy. I have ordered the Schecter SLS Elite 5 evil twin. I did check out your review of this bass. ( very well done!) was curious does the fingerprint come off the Satin color over all what do you think of this bass any major or minor issues?
Thanks for watching, Tony! Yeah, satin finishes (especially black) tend to fingerprint a little easier but they wipe off easily. That Schecter has become one of my favorite basses in the studio because it's so easy to play and it sounds amazing! Looks very metal but it can handle anything... I think it slaps really well. Hope you enjoy yours when it comes in!
@@DavePorterBand thanks for the response. Now I really can't wait!!
I bought a supercheap bass a while back to try and get back into playing. But the setup is so far off it's almost unplayable. Doesn't feel too bad near the nut, but at the bottom of the neck you can almost fit a finger under the strings. I don't know if I can lower the bridge enough to fix it. Would this require shimming the neck?
Hi John, thanks for watching. It sounds like the neck has too much relief (back bow) and you'll want to tighten the truss rod to straighten the neck. If that's been done and you still have high action in the upper register (and the bridge saddles are at they're lowest point) then yes, shimming the neck may be the only way to fix the problem. I'd start with a small adjustment. Although they're expensive, I prefer Stew Mac shims because they're full contact between the heel of the neck and the neck pocket. Good luck!!
Hi Dave! I have a buzz only on the 12th fret, what could be the cause? Especially the 2nd, 3rd and 4th fret. My tuning is B-F#-B-E and im using 55-110
Thanks
Without having the bass in my hand it's hard to know but you're tuning down pretty low which would cause less tension on the neck and possibly a back bow. But I think all the notes above the 12th fret would be buzzing in that case. I'm going to just guess that either the 13th or 14th fret is a bit high. You could take it to a local shop or purchase a fret rocker. That would let you know for certain. Thanks for watching!
I got a problem, I set up two basses, and when I plug both into an amp it sounds like the amps speaker is about to blow out, like there’s a distorted tone, is that due to the pick up height?
If it's two separate basses, I'd suspect the amp is bad. You can get the pickups too high but I don't think it would add enough level to start distorting. Are they active? Maybe the batteries are going bad or it's a bad cable. Thanks!
Depending on the complexity of your bass, I would recommend not to DIY unless you have like every tool you need, clamps and new fresh screwdrivers, everything.
I took my bass neck off and was about give a little neck relief, bottom truss rom and the screws are too hard to turn back in by hand. I need a good clamp for this one bass, just to get the neck back on because the screws are so tight in this rock or sugar maple neck. It's really hard to put back on, so I am, taking it to the most reputable tech I could find in my area, hopefully this will be the last neck adjustment ever.
You could go thru this process several times if your frets aren't leveled first