The Correct Guitar Setup Order
Setup is a chain of dependencies. Skip ahead and you'll undo your own work.
Most setup problems aren't caused by doing an adjustment badly — they're caused by doing adjustments in the wrong order. Every step changes the measurements downstream of it. Set your action before your relief, and adjusting the truss rod will throw the action back out. Set intonation before either, and it'll be wrong twice. Here's the sequence, and why it can't be shuffled.
| # | Step | Why it's here |
|---|---|---|
| 0 | Fresh strings, stretched in | Specs assume new strings at playing tension — this is your baseline |
| 1 | Neck relief (truss rod) | The neck's curve affects every other measurement |
| 2 | Action height | String height depends on neck curvature — must follow relief |
| 3 | Nut slots | Checked after action, since saddle height changes how the string sits at the nut end |
| 4 | Intonation | Relief and action both change the string's effective length — must be last of the playability steps |
| 5 | Pickup height | Pure tone/output — measured against the final string position |
Les Paul-style guitars add a step between 2 and 3: stoptail (tailpiece) height, which sets the string break angle over the bridge — lower for sustain and snap, higher for easier bends.
Step 0 — Strings first
Install fresh strings of your preferred gauge and stretch them in: tune up, gently pull each string away from the fretboard at the 12th fret, retune, repeat until they hold pitch. Every spec assumes the guitar is at playing tension with strings that behave. And if you ever change gauge, the whole setup gets redone from step 1 — different tension means a different neck curve, different action, different intonation.
Step 1 — Neck relief
The slight forward bow in the neck. Capo the 1st fret, hold the string at the last fret, and check the gap at the 8th: target 0.25mm (0.010"). Adjust the truss rod in quarter turns, waiting 10–15 minutes between adjustments for the neck to settle. This comes first because a wrongly bowed neck corrupts every measurement after it. Full method: truss rod & neck relief.
Step 2 — Action height
String height at the bridge. Strat-style: 1.6mm at the 17th fret via individual saddle screws. Les Paul-style: 2.0mm bass / 1.6mm treble at the 12th fret via the two thumbwheels. Specs and steps: action height guide.
Step 3 — Nut slots (mostly: check, don't file)
Capo the 3rd fret and look at the gap between each string and the 1st fret — you want barely visible daylight (about 0.02mm). A clear gap means slots are too high (open chords feel stiff and play sharp); string-on-fret means too low (open string buzz). Diagnose yourself, but think twice before filing: a slot filed too deep can't be un-filed — the fix is a new nut. This is the one setup step where a beginner can do real, hard-to-reverse damage, and a pro nut job is cheap.
Step 4 — Intonation
Saddle position, so the guitar plays in tune up the whole neck, not just open. It must be last of the playability steps: both relief and action change the string's effective vibrating length, so setting intonation earlier guarantees redoing it. Method: intonation guide.
Step 5 — Pickup height
Distance from pole pieces to strings, measured with the string fretted at the last fret. It doesn't affect playability, only output and tone — closer is hotter and more midrange, further is cleaner and more open. Too close and the magnets physically pull the strings into warbling "wolf tones" (wound strings first). It's last so you're measuring against the final string position — and it's the most forgiving adjustment of the lot.
Rules that save you redoing work
- Tune to pitch before every measurement — specs assume playing tension.
- Quarter turns on the truss rod, then wait 10–15 minutes before re-measuring.
- Changed relief later? Re-check action. Changed action? Re-check intonation.
- Work in good light with the guitar flat or in a neck cradle.
The workshop enforces the order for you
GuitarDoc's step-by-step setup workshop walks the full sequence for Strat-style and Les Paul-style guitars — specs, animated turn diagrams, and progress that saves so you can pause mid-setup. Free, offline, no account.
Coming soon to the App StoreMore guides: Truss rod & neck relief · Action height · Fix fret buzz · Intonation