Learn How to Adjust Your Bass Guitar - Everything You Need to Know

[@sosmooth7]

This is probably the best bass set up video that I've seen. Some of the angles of the pictures of the fret board is really great because you can see the difference. Thanks,I will be referring to video often.

[@ironDsteele]

Thank you, I'm glad this has helped so many.

[@someperson2530]

Great video. I just recently bought a $70 bass guitar on amazon. I've never played before so I thought I'd get a cheap one and see if playing bass is for me or not. The guy at the guitar shop wanted to charge me $45 to set it up. I was thinking damn that's over half of what I even paid for the thing! I decided I'll try to set it up myself. Very in depth video, thanks.

[@byrdrichards5299]

After 50 years of experience I have found that it is MUCH more accurate to also check the intonation at the 24th fret (or as high as your bass goes) because if you're the slightest bit off at the 12th fret it can be quite far off when you get up higher. I actually like to take the average of all the notes between the 12th and 24th frets because even on my $2,400 sr5000, the E string is about 3 or 4 cents sharp at the 24th fret and about 2 cents flat at the 12th fret.

[@SlashnKashmir]

I recently bought SR1205 for my birthday. I was getting a fret buzz on 15th fret. I huge thanks to your video I solved my issue, now I can play my bass happily.

[@rosie_band]

Thanks for making this video. It took away all of the voodoo and magic related to my bass setup. I am a DIY guy and am normally not afraid to take anything apart and fix it but my bass was somehow a black box until now. It is indeed very simple!

[@Liberty4Ever]

I appreciated that you don't like paying people to do what you can do yourself, but I hit the like button as soon as I heard, "Slow is smooth and smooth is fast." Great video. I had amassed most of this knowledge in a hodge podge and inefficient manner. It was great to see the complete information, all in one place, logically and succinctly explained. Thank you!

[@ironDsteele]

You're welcome! Thanks for checking out my video.

[@Liberty4Ever]

I saved your video on my computer, mostly so I could find it later in case KZbin gave you a community strike and pulled your video for the "slow is smooth and smooth is fast" comment, which everyone knows is gun toting hate speech. Also, after the zombie apocalypse, when we're rebuilding civilization, we'll need to know how to properly set up bass guitars. That's probably #2, after a safe source of potable water.

[@odarrien]

Very informative, and very clear instructions. I feel confident that I can now make these adjustments for the bass in my school's band. Thank you.

[@rickysreviewsandhowtos]

I appreciate the video, just bought an SR605 and noticed some fret buzz, this video helped eliminate the issue. Thanks

[@CM-ls8he]

This video is great man!! I changed my strings recently after 5 years (yeah yeah yeah....I know lol) and realized my action was higher than Bronson! Almost sprained my pinky lol. Well I've always been super nervous to mess with the truss and had no clue how to lower my action and this video really was in depth. I know it's 5 years old, but this stuff never gets old. Appreciate it.

[@feng125]

Your video is absolutely fantastic! Thank you very much for a very detailed step by step guide. I feel the same way about not paying somebody to do it when I can learn it myself, so I decided I want to adjust an old bass that a friend gave me as a gift. Once again you are awesome. You should be an educator!

[@ironDsteele]

Thanks for such an awesome compliment! Glad to help.

[@vmckameyjr]

Like others...much appreciated! Put my bass up on the table and followed along with you and my baby is primo shape. Thanks!

[@MTW5587]

a really really helpful and well explained video, thanks a lot!

[@LisaLisa-ln8sm]

Thank you... Great help--- I am going to try this for the first time and your video gave me answers to questions that were not addressed in the other videos I watched prior to finding yours. Please leave this up!! I can't so my adjustments until the week after next. Thanks again, a great help!

[@kieran0000]

This is the best video yet, on setting up a bass, cheers !

[@jamescammack6720]

This is definitely one of the best videos I’ve seen for giving instructions regarding trust right adjustments, thanks very much!

[@MrWarpgerbil]

Thank you! a nice clear demonstration!

[@wvoider09]

thank you, so thorough and taught at a good pace. it helped me a lot.

[@ironDsteele]

You're welcome, glad I could help.

[@Madniteowl269]

I have 2 Ibanez Basses. A 4 String Soundgear, it's my First and Favorite One and a 5 String Ibanez Good. I will Rewatch your Great Video again since I'm New to all of this. Thank You!

[@nataliepauls3757]

Best video I have seen so far on setting up guitars and basses. Thank you, I appreciate it.

[@dopamining7621]

You`ve got to be Canadian. I am, and your accent is music to my ears (been living abroad for 20 years). This video is so awesome - I have an Ibanez with the same bridge/trussrod set. Many thanks brother!

[@ironDsteele]

You are right, I'm from rural Eastern Ontario. Thanks for checking out my video!

[@bobbyrutts]

Bahaha. I'm from Eastern Ontario ish as well.. I was thinking the same! Either way, great video. Thank you!

[@milk2meatKJV]

Thanks for the info! I am a fan of Ibanez bass guitars.

[@emersonsrandomvideos248]

Yeah, i can see the neck straightened up after the truss rod adjustments. Nice demo!

[@andres.moore997]

Amazing video! Thanks. Lucky me, have the same bass, 5 strings. Thanks again for your great explanations .

[@JayA-kh9po]

Huge help

[@yourboysylas]

hey I don't even have a bass, and like the video. Learned a lottttt.... thanks.

[@tore-andregurandsrud1043]

This was very educational! Easy to follow, and having played bass for years, I still learned a lot! Thanks!

[@jameslanouette2221]

Awesome tutorial! I feel confident enough now to tackle setups on all my guitars and basses. Thanks!

[@ironDsteele]

Thank you, glad I could help!

[@thibodeaujim]

This is helpful. Thank you for taking the time to demonstrate these techniques.

[@ironDsteele]

You're welcome!

[@KrumzGaming]

That bass is absolutely beautiful. Thank you.

[@alauncomer4513]

very thankful for this straight-forward, down to earth approach. Very helpful to me! p.s. thanks for the Tool riff wrap-up! MY MAN!!!

[@jerrylee1717]

This was super helpful. Thanks for taking the time to create and share this!

[@Saliba00]

Ive been looking for a good set up tutorial on SD Gear 5 String Fretless basses & yours is by far the best. Thanks for getting right to each point.

[@Phicxtion]

Thats a really nice bass man! Thanks for the tips.

[@jimgordin4499]

Iv'e watched about a thousand Bass set up vids....... yours is the best sofar. i now feel comfy to do a set up on my Peavey Milestone BXP. ... im canadian also :D

[@bobbrown479]

Best video for bass adjusting, Thanks

[@marcjuras1623]

Thank you so much! By far the best explanation i've ever seen. 😎💪👍 take care

[@tobiaserdmann1614]

this is by far the best bass adjusting tutorial on youtube i've seen, thank you 😎👍🏼 i just started playing bass and got a huge fret buzz on the first string, i'm pretty sure that i can fix this now. greets from germany 😉

[@ironDsteele]

Thank you! Germany is such a beautiful country and it was an honor to march with your troops at Nijmegen in 2016.

[@danielwackerman7749]

Well done. I appreciate your work, great instructional video... and stoked to hear Tool at the end!

[@richardchalmers7609]

Helpful. I'll give it a whirl on my Ibanez SR300.

[@PedroDVC]

Beautiful bass!

[@Matt-ij5ic]

I must say, good show sir. thank you

[@Eklektos_Filandos]

This was very detailed and helpful. Thanks for the video!

[@ironDsteele]

You're welcome!

[@catboyzee]

The necks on these particular SR basses are made of Wenge; a really hard neck wood that isn't as susceptible to temperature changes as Maple. I have a SR 506 with a Maple neck that always moves with the change of seasons and needs periodical adjustments. Conversely, I have a Warmoth Gecko 6 string bass that has a Wenge neck; I haven't had to adjust its truss rod in years, its an amazingly stable neck.

[@Junbringer]

Thanks so much dude! You're a superhero!

[@What_If_We_Tried]

Excellent tutorial, and I'll start adjusting my own bass from now on. Thank-you...

[@cranberry5934]

Thank you for this video! I'm a new bass player, and just bought a low end Ibanez soundgear. I wanted to learn how to set it up correctly and this was very helpful. Thank you!

[@johnm3272]

Best setup video I've seen yet🎸👍

[@therealscarred2112]

Lovely SR-5006! My first “Great Bass” was a ‘92 SR-800, and if they gave me one of their high-end Basses, it’d be a 5005 with a set of Nordstrand Big Singles & Aguilar OBP-3SK/PP (like Sean Malone’s Custom Fretless).

[@greyskydawg5284]

Great video. I too like doing whatever work I need to do myself. This is an easy fix if you take your time doing it. I have not mastered the electronics end, so I usually take it to a professional.

[@ironDsteele]

That's a good idea if you're not sure. I've done work on less expensive models as far back as when I was a kid and it's pretty straight forward in a simple passive setup. I wouldn't go messing around with the electronics in this bass though. The components in there are quite complicated and very specific.

[@stevepethel6843]

Oil finish stays more stable than lacquered neck due to seasonal changes..ok. I learned something...thank you sir God bless you for sharing great video. Decrease string tension then pull bridge back. ...Yes great advice I broke strings and worked too hard trying to set intonation under tension. That is a great string. And stress saver.

[@marylewis3311]

Thanks for this 🙏❤️🙏 Love your bass.

[@recordlabeldao7820]

good job always using ibanez recommended settings- on my ibanez btb prestige bass 6 string also when u adjust the bridge it should match the radius of the fingerboard too

[@markbass354]

that was very informative , nice bass you have thanks .

[@mybrass41]

good tutorial, very clear instruction!

[@ironDsteele]

Thanks!

[@rinkoshirokane8263]

Thank you! It made sense expect I found checking the intonation park confusing, same with the pickup part.. the pickup was the most confusing..

[@danepaulstewart8464]

Nicely done, mate. 👍👍

[@orion_cliff]

I've been learning how to setup my own stuff and after dozens of videos this one really clarified how setting it up works. Very thorough, thank you very much!

[@zezerik]

Thank you very much for this video. I learned a lot, and you explained it well.

[@abdrahmanabdullah3113]

Awesomes thank you very much sir, straight forwad explaination really appreciate it.

[@christianhughes9873]

good helpful set-up video, especially the bridge adjustments- I was looking for something like this.

[@ironDsteele]

Thanks, glad I could help!

[@vodka1958]

Universal Steele xx

[@darkplanetmoon]

Great job, mate. I have the four string. Thanks.

[@SamuelSamurai2074]

Thnx 4 the Bass Video. I own an Ibanez bass, and this was definitely helpful.

[@dirkjanklijn9949]

Thnx for this video, much helpfull.

[@afadingstorm]

I wish I could say that this is the best bass setup guide, but the truth is I didn't need to watch others after this \m/

[@edgardoarroyo7418]

good video!! I couldn't set my E string to 2.5🤷🏽 buzz when playing fast

[@longsnapper5381]

Thanks boss. Well done.

[@colinvanwyk1658]

Fully agree, very informative and thanx a million for this video.............!!!

[@MarsRestorations]

Thank you man I needed this! I just got a brand new Sr 1346 and I was looking for a video to set up 6 string basses. I have 7 of them, and they need work.

[@ThunderousThrasher]

this was really helpful, thank very much.

[@ironDsteele]

You're welcome!

[@olivierjacquet]

Really cool video! thanks a lot!

[@ironDsteele]

You're welcome!

[@kevo4us]

Great video man, simple, straight forward with many good tips. I’ve needed to set my new bass up and I was going to pay someone, but I think with this video, I can do it! Thanks bro!

[@zezerik]

I agree. I bought a bass tonight and every adjustment is far from how I like it. Was going to pay guitar center $50 tomorrow but I will try it on my own after watching this. He explained it very well

[@thadlouviere6946]

Awesome video. I checked out a few others, which were short on useful information and long on incoherent rambling and self-indulgent time-wasting. You’ve got a beautiful instrument there; love to hear your playing if you’ve got any examples posted. Thanks again for an excellent video.

[@ironDsteele]

You're welcome!

[@stefaneduard8169]

THANKS *A LOT* !!!

[@clemdog76]

Radius gages actually can be used for a more precise action adjustment without having to measure so much. And the playability of your instrument will blow you away when you match your actions to the neck radius.

[@BottleneckMoses]

Thank you!

[@nesis93]

Finally some one who uses the metric system lol

[@ARMYStrongHOOAH17]

2:39 This guy looks like he's performing open heart surgery! 😂 Much respect! get it right the first time and you won't waste any time.

[@manuelquinones2689]

Good video. Thanks.

[@geraldjacobs7824]

My neck was mega bowed, and I slowly yanked it back over like 3 days. It's straight now, but I'm getting some fret buzz on the A string even though the action is pretty high, so I might let it bend forward a bit

[@ironDsteele]

That usually is necessary. Unless every single fret is exactly in line within a thousandth on an inch of each other; which on a peice of wood is impossible since it always moves to some degree, there will be buzz somewhere on a perfectly straight neck.

[@griz_ripz]

Very helpful video! what do i need to adjust to make my E string not so hard to press on the 1st fret?

[@ironDsteele]

Try lowering the bridge height on the string if possible, or you can try a thinner gauge string. That will reduce the tension.

[@franklintorres1440]

LOVED IT VERY PRECISE

[@WhackDaddy_Bannon]

Putting a capo on the first fret will prevent you from having to keep loosening and retuning the strings during the truss rod adjustment.

[@ironDsteele]

This is good to know, thanks for that tip!

[@SSG1445]

OMG MAN YOU SAVED ME SO MUCH MONEY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! THX

[@nobes2822]

You have a really nice bass, and the vid helped a lot btw, thanks!

[@ironDsteele]

Thanks a lot!

[@nobes2822]

Universal Steele No problem

[@brentinjapan]

Great video. Thanks. Question for anyone: how easy/hard should the truss rod be to turn? I have a new bass and it’s really hard. I put pressure, pressure, SNAP - 1/8 of a turn. Both directions. Advice?

[@hazybrain7]

Many Thanks..

[@MrTfuzz]

Great video.. My 6 string has 2 truss rods.. Same concept? Neck is straight as it is and I can get the action nice and low but just in case I ever have to mess with it I'd like to know.. Been setting up my basses for years with great success but this 2 truss rod setup makes me a little nervous.. The bass was too expensive to gamble on.. Again great video!

[@ironDsteele]

This bass also has two truss rods but they are both anchored at one nut and the process is exactly the same; there is only one adjustment point for both rods.

[@trimtek8020]

Well done. Can you recommend a good mechanic's ruler like the one your using?

[@ironDsteele]

Thanks man. I got this one off of amazon, they are all pretty good and inexpensive.

[@manndscho5347]

Great video, just wanted some advice on a small problem of mine. The A, D, G string all sound very smooth and warm (almost too smooth) whereas the E string has this extreme metallic clacky tone (when comparing with the others). I tried much yet it wouldn't change...

[@ironDsteele]

Could your E string be newer as in changed on it's own at one time? The way it sounds it's as if the others are well worn in. If not you could try raising the action up on the E string by raising it's saddle on the bridge, that should help with the clacky tone you describe.

[@manndscho5347]

Universal Steele Thanks for the advice, I'll try that. And no all strings are new, I put them in a few days ago.

[@andrewhigdon8346]

What about nut height? Pretty crucial stuff.

[@ironDsteele]

95% are non-adjustable. If you think it's worn out, take it to a qualified tech. Not rocket science.

[@Deff-lm7ex]

I was like tweezers why the hell oh nvm that’s super smart haha love the video thank you so much!

[@orkmad12]

Does anyone know what type of bridge this is (10:48)? Or what the multi-tool is at 1:43?

[@kurtdoowee9282]

Hey man! New subscriber here! Thanks for this awesome video of yours! I just had and Ibanez SR505 and i change my string gauge. So what happens is im getting a lot of fret buzz. And so happen that i saw this video of yours and i did everything myself for the first time!

[@ironDsteele]

Glad to hear that man and thanks for checking this out!

[@kurtdoowee9282]

Hey Man! Just wanna drop by again on this video of yours for i still cant believe that i was able to pull it off just by watching this video of yours and reading the manual that comes with my bass. Thanks again for this very helpful video of yours!

[@Upsetkiller456]

Funny you mention the yamaha never giving you trouble. Even after over 10 YEARS my beginner TRBX174 still has a straight neck after the set up.

[@bigriceburner]

Very well explained. Even I can understand it. Question, aside from excess fret buzz, what is the downside to having strings too low. I heard somewhere where the sound gets muddy if it’s too close. I’m thinking a slight bit of buzz is acceptable.... I call that sound “gliss”

[@ironDsteele]

Nothing wrong with gliss! Not really any downsides if you are comfortable with the low action and it doesn't kill the sustain.

[@bigriceburner]

And the kill of sustain would come if the strings are reacting too close within the magnetic field of your coils. So then in theory coils can only be made to a certain level of "magnativity" I'm guessing... lol

[@ironDsteele]

@@bigriceburner Pretty much sums it up. I've often found that it takes a quality instrument to get to this point without fret buzz in the first place.

[@billyho5150]

I have two truss rods and want to make it bow towards the the strings a bit. What do I do? Ibanez sr306eb

[@DokterRekt]

How do you adjust the string spacing on this bridge? I know not every bridge has that option but I think that bridge does. Thanks.

[@ironDsteele]

Only up and down reference the frets, that is covered. The spacing between strings is fixed and non-adjustable as with nearly all guitars.

[@sassycomrade5383]

My action is very low at the nut and very high at the bridge pickup is that just a trussrod adjustment?

[@Ronno4691]

I saw a six string Harley Benton bass in a thrift store recently. Then an Ibanez six string bass then some five string basses. Was this an omen? I only bought a cheapo Ibanez five string in the end.

[@ironDsteele]

haha you would wonder! Good choice, Ibanez are great instruments at any price range!

[@bassismath9118]

great video

[@ironDsteele]

Thanks! Happy New Year!