Want Your Guitar to Sound Better? Master These 6 Techniques!

[@TomoFujitaMusic]

Thanks so much for having me!

[@stewmac]

We love it when you visit us and make videos with us. 😎

[@lets-allplay]

Truly enjoy the lessons you post on your channel. Thanks TomoFujitaMusic & StewMac !

[@TomoFujitaMusic]

@@lets-allplay Thank you so much!

[@7guitarras326]

You're great Tomo, it is always a pleasure to listen to all your experience and considerations about the guitar's world, thank you very much!

[@TomoFujitaMusic]

@@7guitarras326 Thank you so much!

[@robertclarkguitar]

I absolutely adore Tomo. He is the kindest truly passionate guitar /music teacher. Equally player. Insane the man can play anything but usually jazzy blues. So clean and precise with rare effects at all. Amazing musician. He isn't about selling you anything but introducing you to the guitar. Amazing gentleman.

[@robertclarkguitar]

@@VanMan83 totally agree. Also says a lot about bringing his mom and dad in on calls. I know they are so proud.

[@TomoFujitaMusic]

Thank you so much!

[@kwpowell0412]

I've been a student of Dan for more than 30 years. The man is a legend. I bet he's forgotten more than most of us will ever know!

[@scottmulrooney3130]

I’ve had the privilege to spend a few weeks with Dan about 30+ years ago. An absolute legend and one heck of a great human being.

[@tjsponik]

Dan has never been afraid to show everyone his "how to do it" tips and tricks. Skills die when you hide them from the rest of the world!

[@replicated]

This is the best Stewmac video I've seen in quite a while. This is absolutely great. Hope to see more of these guys.

[@stewmac]

We definitely want to get Tomo back to Athens to visit us and help us make more content!

[@ronmorey3475]

These three together would make for a great regular show on the channel. Thanks!

[@KekmanForTheRestOfTheWorld]

Thank you so much for inviting Tomo Fujita!

[@richardlynch5632]

Dan's book "How To Make Your Electric Guitar Play Great" gives all the wisdom of how to do just that...! Invaluable 😉👍 Thanks Mr. Erlewine😎👍❤🖖

[@stewmac]

It’s true! Highly recommend that book as an essential guide.

[@thisperfectworld]

This video is going to become my go-to reference for every electric guitar student I have from now on! The tip about intonating not just to the octave, but to chords above and below the 12th fret, is gold!

[@derekclacton]

Hats off to Dan Erlewine!

[@dankyboi6483]

What I really liked about this is that you have 3 pros with different backgrounds in guitar basically saying "here's how this works, here's a rule of thumb but in the end you do you, have fun". Great video, there is always a little something to learn, especially from the little anecdotes

[@stewmac]

Cool, thank you for the comment! It was special to have those three guys in one room talking shop.

[@Bertdevries4865]

I am 57 years of age, and I am Dutch. So please forgive me if I make a mistake in spelling a word or sentence. OK, So I am a starting guitarist and have many things to learn. I am so glad there are a lot of learning and podcast like channels. I have my guitar for about 6 or 7 months. At first, I bought myself a semi acoustic guitar. I loved the sound of it. It was a guitar from BAX music shop. A local shop with his own brand. A wonderful piece of instrument it is. After a while, I wanted to have an electric guitar as well. So I bought a beautiful White single cut "Fazley" in the style of Les Paul. I noticed that playing a barre cord was much easier on my electric than it was on my semi acoustic. When I saw this video tutorial, my question was answered: "Why is my snare slipping after replacing the 2nd (B) string after replacing?" I did wind in the wrong way! This was because the string is without any structure. I mean, It was all flat steel with nickel. And winding it without putting it down after a whole turn, it will slip. Thank you for showing me that and also stretching the string 3 times. I bought a tool to stretch your strings easier. I also bought My equipment to measure the hide from the stings, a complete kit for maintenance of my guitar. Special oil for my fretboard and wipes to clean my strings and a stone to clean my frets. So I have everything to maintain and play my beautiful instruments. I learn a lot of these videos. Thank you for a thousand times. I just gave you a Big Thumbs up and subscribed to your channel. I am a fan of this KZbin channel. Really great. Sincerely, Bert from Hillegom, the Netherlands.

[@MichaelSotoCE]

So great to see these guys together

[@tacmason]

These guys are true “Guitar Lifers” , a real pleasure to see them pass that love forward !

[@embee1706]

I love the vibe the lads have going! There seems to be a lot of mutual respect and I just love them sharing their knowledge with us. Thank you!

[@Raggo12345]

Agree! I love that there is also a pro guitarplayer in the video, a fantastic guitarplayer, that is! To get a professional guitarist's view on these things is so refreshing. And StewMac is StewMac!

[@bisekibun]

We've learned a lot from Dan over the decades. Especially during the COVID shelter-in-place period, DIY guitar tune-ups have significantly improved our lives. As fans of StewMac, we would like to express our appreciation to Dan. We deeply value your passion and craftsmanship.

[@kennwan9917]

Dan seems like the sort of guy everyone would want to sit and have a coffee with. Some people really do emit an aura that makes them instantly likeable.

[@dannfeltrin]

I've been keeping my guitars clean and checked for about 15 years (would always spend money with pros before that afraid of screwing up my guitars), and the tips here were great! Glad I'm already doing most of it, so I had that moment to be proud of myself hehe Also, Dan and Tomo are legends! So great to hear from them directly. Great video!

[@stewmac]

Awesome, keep it up! And thanks for the comment 🙂

[@mikeposka5751]

For my Gibson guitars I put the strings over the top of the tailstop and wind the strings up the tuner post so the angle isn't as extreme as the headstock angle. For Fenders I wind them normally because of no headstock angle. For both styles I take a pencil and shave off a little bit of graphite to lubricate the string slots on the nut.

[@darko714]

I’m the opposite. I dust under the strings but that’s about it. Oh, and tighten that nut that holds the output jack in place when the connection starts to skip. I’m the guy who needs to watch the video.

[@RaccoonHenry]

I'm an "ok" player at best, nowhere near the levels of Mr. Fujita's students, but I know how to do all of these things pretty well and even do it for my guitar and bass player friends often. I can't fathom being enrolled at Berklee and not being able to do these things on your instrument!! it's worth mentioning that this channel, and Dan in particular, have taught me A LOT, so huge thanks are in order!

[@flashy5150]

When I put a new string on, I put it through the tubing peg, then, tune it roughly to pitch, then grab the string at around the 7th fret, pulling up about an inch or so, enough that it won’t break the string, then tune it to pitch again and rinse and repeat until the string keeps it’s tuning without falling flat. Stretching new strings is the most important to staying in tune. Then once it holds it’s basic tuning, then I start string height and intonation. It’s worked for me for over 40 years.

[@johnfeole1971]

Thanks Gene, Dan,, Tomo for the clear, useful info..

[@stewmac]

Our pleasure!

[@neilsmith9473]

What a pleasure to watch three such knowledgeable, friendly gentlemen and experts in their own fields talking guitars. The perfect combination of characters and know-how. I really enjoyed this; a genuine pleasure and I learned a great deal. Thank you, guys. Just subscribed to the StewMac and TomoFujitaMusic channels.

[@stewmac]

Thank you kindly! 🤘😎

[@kirkp_nextguitar]

Suggestion: Instead of pulling on the string to prestretch, tune the string about a whole step high, then return to standard tuning. That gives you much better control of how much the string is stretched and how evenly. There is less risk of damage to the string and it does no harm to the guitar. This method occurred to me a few years ago and it works great.

[@phillosopherguitarist2673]

Yep, that's my method.

[@joevaldivia6733]

I’ve been playing for 60 years and you guys are spot on👍

[@JoeandAngie]

Layman here, but my son is extremely good. Just got full ride to study music outside Nashvegas . I can more understand his language now! Thanks, men. Great presentation...we never stop learning. (You'll hear my son's name someday...dad speaking)

[@ross3818]

It's great to see Dan. All the best.

[@autodidacticprofessor869]

4:44 FINALLY somebody talks about string diameter and the post-post length issue!!

[@vayabroder729]

What a great video; love seeing Dan in his element along with a great player and educator and a great host. Thank you!

[@stewmac]

It was a fun shoot with these fellas. Thanks for the comment!

[@sirvicemanone]

@@stewmac you should do more videos like this about other topics .your collective knowledge and love of music and guitar is what made this video great 👍♥️

[@allabouttheU1662]

I like 8s

[@theo9789]

Wow the collective knowledge here, is priceless! Thank you gentlemen.

[@richarde3378]

I love any and all videos with Dan in it. Thanks for all your guitar wisdom, Dan! 😀

[@stewmac]

Glad you like them!

[@ppgwhereeverett4412]

Just goes to show you young folks. This guy's been teaching at one of the world's TOP music schools for Thirty years and even He is still leaning !! The wrench he's never seen. KEEP LEARNIN' !!!

[@ross302ci]

Gene is guitar repair Tom Hanks. Thanks for the great video! Really helpful to see experts talk about the essentials.

[@Lovell93]

Don't disrespect him like that. Tom is a creep.

[@michaelk5507]

Tomo is a really excellent teacher because he sounds like he's willing to learn as well, as he teaches. He isn't cocky or arrogant, pretending he knows it all already, which can easily demoralize students and make them feel like they know nothing.

[@gillesthibodeau7078]

Very interesting! Been playing guitar for 50+ years. Still learning from this good blog! Thanks to you 3! :)

[@myflyisopen.8732]

After stringing (bass guitar), tuning, stretching a few times, and re-tuning, I place my palm over the bridge saddles and press down. It creates the "witness point" on the saddles and helps with intonation, tuning, stability, and string action. It gets it nicely leveled.

[@TheFRiNgEguitars]

Great video.. but not mentioned is the string nut. The nut should be cleaned between string changes, and perhaps re-apply some nut sauce. The nut is essential to intonation, and tuning stability. The nut greatly affects the action.. String height too high at the first fret destroys intonation, and raises overall action with no benefit to clarity. String height too low at the first fret can cause buzzing open notes, and makes no allowance for gradual slot wear.. Sometimes the nut can be poorly cut out of the box, and require touching up by a tech. The Low E and A (gauges from .032 to .052 may sometimes not seat at the toe of the nut, so if anyone has an unresolvable intonation problem, the trouble may be at the nut. Slot cutting should be done by a tech, and when possible cut to the gauge of strings you are using.... in some cases nut replacement may be necessary.

[@carlkerkman7028]

Tons of great info - these steps took me years to learn (well prior to the easy access to info that the internet has provided). Thanks for sharing them in an easy to digest format - lots of good reminders and some "new" info for an old dog.

[@douglaschristine8387]

I love how easy Tomo plays his guitar. A true master. Did you ever have John Mayer as a student?

[@sirvicemanone]

Yes Tomo taught John at Berkeley and other well known guitarists. Tomos own channel is a priceless resource on many levels of both playing guitar and even developing life skills in thinking and applying myself . Highly recommended!

[@douglaschristine8387]

@@sirvicemanone thankyou ,I will. In know all you guys from you tube. Your all good at what you do.

[@The9thChord]

Thanks Stewmac and Tomo!

[@coreybagley5579]

Thank you gentlemen for going over those 6 things. They are very important.

[@itsianlol]

Great video, excellent chemistry between all 3 hosts, a real treat! Thanks for the tips!

[@stewmac]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@jd3410]

Great video! Thank you. FYI: I have a target humidity of 40%. Once 50% is reached, mold can start to grow and cause all sorts of health problems. I find that keeping the humidity and temperature stable, I rarely have to adjust my trust rod and my guitars stay in tune for days up to 2 or 3 weeks. This allows for more playing a less fussing.

[@yoping00]

There is so much wisdom in this session. Thank you!

[@KeritechElectronics]

Nice tips! I'm only taking my baby steps with a guitar, bought my first one (a secondhand Washburn X10 that I named "Rat-O-Caster") and the first thing I did was rusty machine head replacement, fretboard cleaning, fret polishing, restringing, electrical overhaul and a full setup. Learned tons of stuff!

[@stewmac]

That's awesome you are diving right in! Keep it up.

[@jinbyun]

There's one trick I picked up from youtube, which I always do to my bolt on guitars. After setting the neck up, tune the guitar to pitch and loosen the neck plate screws a quarter turn each. Tune the guitar again (can go slightly above) and tighten the neck plate. I don't know if it's a placebo, but to me, after this trick, the guitar becomes more resonant. It's worth trying since it's not so hard, unless the screws are too tight.

[@ArapuniWizard]

About pickup height adjustment, I usually set each pickup and listen to it individually until it sounds best, do that with all (or both) pickups, then listen to them in combination with the other(s). After that, I adjust for the best combined sound, also taking into account whether more bass or treble is required for a balanced sound. A good basic setup video.

[@keithcarter9396]

Thank you for this Tutorial, it was good to be reminded of the basics of guitar maintenance. It is good to have a prompt to care for our instruments,

[@sixslinger9951]

Two of my favs, Dan and Tomo.

[@eclecticexplorer7828]

I have played acoustic since I was a kid. I am now in my early 60s and just starting to get into electrics, so this was very helpful to me. Thanks.

[@stewmac]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@slakoff007]

im a beginner at guitar i changed my strings and cleaned and oiled the fretboard and it feel so good I recommend u do it as early as ur comfortable with it makes me feel as though I'm playing way better and also slides is easier too

[@migueldahlstrom]

Best part was Tomo playing in the end. Great video.

[@Hector-yl1kh]

This video should be standardised as a summary education piece used everywhere that explains these fundamental elements of setting up a guitar. The point by Dan about a kink in the string in front of the bridge depending on setting the saddles back was a revelation. I will add this vid to another of his videos on the logic of using locking tuners to remove string winds which impact the tuning. It's also nice to know I was already doing plenty of things the right way but there is always something new to learn. Fantastic guys. Thank you so much.

[@stewmac]

Thanks so much for watching and sharing! Dan always sneaks in some amazing tips 😎

[@waderinger7962]

Professor is right! About the connection of the string to the tuning key post. The method of wrap is important as it has to do with etherics and vibrational frequencies, spirals, duration, lubricity, etc.-etc.... Open your third eye by closing the other two..or one, if you are missing any!

[@benh9350]

@26:00 the guys share a thought about why the guitar is a great instrument! The guitar is more human than say a piano because of its imperfections and its ability to be adjusted to a player's own preferences. The whole video is great and helpful but I really liked that moment of philosophy

[@benirodriguez9516]

In Norway, newer houses are very dry inside (like 20-25% RH), after some years of havingt troubles with my guitars, I realized this, and got myself a Humidifier with Hygrostat, meaning that I can set how much $ humidity I want (45-50), and it regulates itself to keep at that. Only I have to fill it up all the time... it shuts down if its low on water though, which is a great safety precaution.

[@steveY2K1]

Thank you all for the info, I learned a lot and have some things to check on my guitar !

[@stewmac]

Great to hear it was helpful!

[@100roberthenry]

The best top tip was setting your saddles right back so when setting intonation they only need loosening...instead of tightening and screwing the string....excellent.

[@fmh357]

I learned a few things. Thank you.

[@LaMusicade4]

That stringing up an Epiphone was very cool. And the scanner wrench is now a must have for me

[@douglaschristine8387]

Thanks so much guys. Alot of excellent information. I've always had a problem with barring strings high up on the neck I can't get the b and high e strings to ring no matter how hard I push down because my neck is a little concave, not flat and I think I can fix it at the bridge now. It's bother me for four years. Most the time I'll only barre the first four high strings so I can still play the chords I need. Time to buy some tools. Great 👍 stuff. Cheers

[@geertverholen9382]

Thanks, nice overview! Tomo your always real practical!

[@reverberation_9]

This video is just gold. Thank you for sharing all this knowledge.

[@karl1949]

Much appreciation fellas, awesome stuff!

[@nuclearhotel2172]

Wonderful video. Great tips from seasoned techs. I learned a lot of things I wish I knew decades ago.

[@TheOlmecindian]

Coming home from a hard days work this makes my day a 35 min stew Mac video with tomo 😊

[@tjsponik]

Very good instruction for the players. It's amazing how many players are afraid to do simple adjustments.

[@MarcCarriage121]

Thanks for the great video. I tried to use 10's on my Telecaster and it didn't like it so I had to change back to 9's . Experimenting some times pan out , some times it doesn't.

[@ronstewart2871]

Thanks guys, this video was a BIG help to me and my Strat and Taylor!

[@Cayiguitar]

Dan’s humor is priceless, throughout all of StewMac’s videos. “…something with a truss rod hopefully 🤞🏼 “ 😹😹😹. 10:16 Thank you StewMac for making us better everyday.❤🎸

[@acdclexu6296]

Tomo is such a cool dude love watch his stuff

[@HughesandKettneramps]

excellent video - every guitarpalyer should have a look - thanks guys!

[@JHil35]

This video should shown with beginner lessons for students. Excellent source ! Thanks Guys !

[@1040ecapja]

Tomo would be amazed to learn that the spanner wrench he used to tighten the tuner was invented by ESP, a Japanese guutar manufacturer.

[@stewmac]

That is correct!

[@IainFrame]

Defo agree with using a tuner for adjusting intonation and don't press too hard when you're doing the fretted note.

[@rodneyfrothingham2579]

This overview is so helpful for understanding these basic features and areas of maintenance and or adjustment for the guitar player. I will be sharing this with others often.

[@stewmac]

So glad it was helpful - thanks so much for sharing!

[@DaringDan]

Tomo's the man!

[@robertstanley3253]

Thank you for this very informative and easy to understand video!

[@martyjones2679]

What a great video! I string my guitars the same way. Been playing a long time so I've mastered stringing and stretching my strings but I haven't really tried setups much. I leave that to my son. This video makes me more confident that I could do setups myself. Maybe I will buy my own gauges instead of bugging him. Dan and Tomo are legends! Thanks for always sharing great info with us! Well done guys!

[@JeremiahL]

Who ever edited this video did a huge disservice to the cohesiveness to the conversation. I can tell that there were some gems that got cut. I would have liked to hear the conversation in long form.

[@organism-gk9rj]

This is a masterclass, so simple to understand!

[@HRJ1411]

You can snip the end of a string off, but that does leave quite a sharp protrusion that you can catch yourself on when handling the guitar, what I tend to do, particularly on the thicker strings - once strung / in tune, I get the spare end of the string and wiggle a few times backwards and forwards right by the post and the fatigue in metal causes it to snap. This makes sure the protrusion of the string end is really really short, and the end feels quite blunt

[@martinlee6694]

One of the best video I have seen very informativ.😁😁😁

[@doyleallen3762]

Great information. Thanks!

[@rollomaughfling380]

As I've played for close to 50 years now, I knew I probably wasn't going to _learn_ anything particular from this video, but watched it through anyway. Just a delight to hear these 3 dudes talk. Gene is a great presenter, and if you didn't think of Tom Hanks while he was doing his thing, you need to adjust the saddles of your mind. L-R Avatars: David Attenborough of Guitar, Tom Hanks of Guitar, Hayao Miyazaki of Guitar.

[@jeffalbro4534]

I was sitting up my new guitar with a Floyd Rose, I was doing the intonation, and worked on that for a hour (on the large strings), and it just would not intonat at all. Then I read that if you have your pickups pretty high, you can get string pull, and your tunner strobe will wonder. Sure enough, I just backed off the pick-ups, and it then intonated just fine. Something I never thought about before.

[@doctoribanez]

I ordered a bunch of tools and practiced on a couple cheap guitars. Had to order extra nuts and burned up some switches in the process but it has paid off

[@LunarWolf]

That was extremely helpful. Thank you so much.

[@jlc904ubc]

Great video! Thanks guys!

[@chadnikolaus8793]

Glad Tomo asked about the guitar jack. That darn thing is always loose on my Strat, and it's very awkward to try and tighten it.

[@JohnOhkumaThiel]

21:31 I start with factory standard pickup height, and move them higher or lower to personal taste. Shop mechanics tend to set up guitars to their personal preferences, so it's best to learn how to do things yourself, especially in Japan.

[@theofficialdiamondlou2418]

The best strings are the strings you can get every time !!! I hate changing to a new size ,Or new brand because the stores can’t keep stock. That’s why I became an artist for GHS. Always my custom strings. 10/14/18/24/ 38/50 simiflat wound nickel . 🤠🎸🎶🤙 Hey Tomo

[@recordlabeldao7820]

i almost broke my trussrod in 2019 but ive learned alot to take care of my instruments and now i do the same if the screw dont wanna tighten i put maple tooth picks.

[@joshoptical]

Seen Tom for years and never knew he taught at Berklee. Looking forward to these tips.

[@JALNIN66]

Excellent video. That Jack the Gripper tool is something I never knew existed but it's so necessary for every strat player. Thanks. Nice to hear the toothpick trick is used by pros too.

[@rongroves9620]

That was such a fantastic video that I will be watching it again soon.

[@PhreddCrintt]

On the wound strings, it is best to put a 90° bend in the string before the cut point. This helps to stop the wind to unwind before the string is tensioned.

[@thehonestguitarist6543]

Great of StewMac to have Tomo on. He's quite the teacher!

[@matthewderosby713]

What a great video! Thank you! 😊

[@russtyruss_i-Invest]

Great video, informative for new and experienced guitarists. Cheers!

[@vivelaresistance3239]

About two months after I had a guitar in my hands for the first time, I learned about Joni Mitchell and her weird tunings and Brian May’s home built instrument. The possibilities seemed endless if you knew what you were doing.

[@nikolaki]

Very entertaining video. Thanks guys!