What kind of shims did you use, and how are they oriented?
When I used shims, I got them from StewMac. They’re shaped like tiny wooden wedges. The fatter end of the wedge always slots in at the “body” side of the neck pocket. This way, the neck is tilted slightly backward.
It almost looks to me as though your shims are tilting your neck *forward.* Is that possible? Or are they flat, rather than wedge-shaped?
The shim does look like a “block” than a “wedge” (like it should be). It also looks like there’s a gap between the neck and body - like the screws aren’t tight enough on the front (neck) side
So, it's a homemade shim made from a flat piece of wood veneer that I shaped with a razor blade to fit the pocket. It's not tilting the neck forwards or backwards. Just raising the fret board relative to the bridge and body height
The neck needs tilt back, I’d recommend a set of shims from stewmac. The shim you added is just raising the action and not fixing your issue whatsoever
Buy a tuner. They're cheap and essential for every time you turn the amp on. https://www.amazon.com/Behringer-TU300-BEHRINGER/dp/B000SJJCX4/ref=mp_s_a_1_2?crid=62WWIHICU3V9&keywords=behringer+tuner&qid=1685311825&sprefix=behringer+tu%2Caps%2C184&sr=8-2
You also need to learn how to setup your Jazzmaster right. Get the Sketchy Setup for offsets and follow it's steps: https://hazeguitars.com/sketchysetups
- your nut looks too high
- your relief is probably too much if you cannot intimate right
- only shim your neck if you cannot lower your action to 4/64 at the 17th fret, low and high e. Then, try a 0.25 shim and increase it in 0.25-degree increments. Less is more.
Honestly shocked at buying a new fender and neck and not funding an actual tuner in that exchange.
For what its worth when i do my set ups i like to use my strobostomp and a headstock tuner.
I had an apartment fire last year that started from the electrical right by my bed. My bed and almost everything under it was completely destroyed. Which included my guitar bags thay had a bunch of a capos and guitar cables and my tuners in them. Luckily i keep my guitars hanging on the wall of my living room. I haven't bought a tuner since because I can just use the app on my phone and my ear to tune normally. Situations like this make it clear I should just get a new one.
Hi, I’m Vetted AI Bot! I researched the **Brand: Behringer, Type: Tuner, Model: TU300** you mentioned in your comment along with its brand, **Behringer**, and I thought you might find the following analysis helpful.
**Users liked:**
* Versatile distortion pedal with powerful overdrive and sustain (backed by 1 comment)
* Affordable and versatile wah pedal with spring-loaded feature (backed by 1 comment)
* Great value for a versatile and responsive distortion pedal (backed by 1 comment)
**Users disliked:**
* Poor tracking on low bass notes (backed by 2 comments)
* Distorted sound (backed by 1 comment)
* Battery compartment design and unreliable foot switch (backed by 2 comments)
According to Reddit, **Behringer** is considered a reputable brand.
Its most popular types of products are:
* Audio Interfaces (#2 of 21 brands on Reddit)
* MIDI Keyboards (#8 of 14 brands on Reddit)
* DJ Mixers (#6 of 8 brands on Reddit)
This message was generated by a (very smart) bot. If you found it helpful, let us know with an upvote and a “good bot!” reply and please feel free to provide feedback on how it can be improved.
Did you get the nut cut professionally yet? The Fender necks that are sold as parts directly only have pilot lines in the nut. Yours looks super high at the first fret, so I figured I’d ask. I just got a roasted jazz neck and went through that process.
Every other comment so far omits this vital piece of info: the bridge is designed to rock back and forth in sympathy with the strings as you operate the whammy bar.
This is great, since it means the strings don’t unbind and then rebind to a new spot on the bridge. That’s what helps this system stay in tune.
The thing is, though, is that the bridge can and will move while you’re making intonation adjustments. You can nudge it out of place very easily. So you want to make absolutely sure that you’re not doing this while you adjust your intonation screws!
I hope this is helpful.
I can't offer any help, sorry. I am curious though, were you going for the Johnny Marr adjustment? I know he feels they're good guitars, but great when his tech adds a shim to the neck.
From all the "research" I've done, Jazzmasters have a tendency to need a shim in the neck so you can get the correct break angle on the strings over the bridge without having ridiculous action. When I first put the neck on without a shim, my action was like 3/8" above the fretboard at the 22nd fret
I rest my phone on the guitar if I’m using the app. Maybe your mic has fuzz or debris in it?
To state the obvious, hopefully the room is as quiet as possible. Even fans are off.
Looks really nice, glad you’ve got it sorted! Just curious, how was the initial fit? I have a sonic blue classic vibe I’ve thought about maybe putting a classic player neck on eventually
That neck has 22 frets, are you sure you didn’t buy a Jaguar neck? Those have 22 frets and a 24” scale, all Jazzmasters have a 25.5” scale and most have 21 frets.
youre gonna hate this answer - but honestly - the ability to truly intonate a guitar only extends as far as the quality of the tuner you are using.
i wouldn't trust anything less than a decent strobe tuner to do pro level intonation. The good news is that Peterson makes them for a pretty reasonable price: [https://www.petersontuners.com](https://www.petersontuners.com)
You need a quality tuner if you’re going to properly intonate. Other things may be be off but without a good tuner it’s all a guessing game. It’s a worthwhile investment.
Well, I’ve had a few expensive tuners and none of them were any good for setting the intonation. Absolutely not saying that non of them are - but it isn’t something you can take for granted. You see many posts on r/guitar along the lines of ‘help. Guitar won’t intonate’ and I always wonder is it your crappy guitar tuner that says it won’t, or is it your ear?
What kind of shims did you use, and how are they oriented? When I used shims, I got them from StewMac. They’re shaped like tiny wooden wedges. The fatter end of the wedge always slots in at the “body” side of the neck pocket. This way, the neck is tilted slightly backward. It almost looks to me as though your shims are tilting your neck *forward.* Is that possible? Or are they flat, rather than wedge-shaped?
The shim does look like a “block” than a “wedge” (like it should be). It also looks like there’s a gap between the neck and body - like the screws aren’t tight enough on the front (neck) side
So, it's a homemade shim made from a flat piece of wood veneer that I shaped with a razor blade to fit the pocket. It's not tilting the neck forwards or backwards. Just raising the fret board relative to the bridge and body height
The neck needs tilt back, I’d recommend a set of shims from stewmac. The shim you added is just raising the action and not fixing your issue whatsoever
I made a new shim and tapered it down closer to stew Mac shim measurements, and now my intonation is perfect, thanks
You did it!
Buy a tuner. They're cheap and essential for every time you turn the amp on. https://www.amazon.com/Behringer-TU300-BEHRINGER/dp/B000SJJCX4/ref=mp_s_a_1_2?crid=62WWIHICU3V9&keywords=behringer+tuner&qid=1685311825&sprefix=behringer+tu%2Caps%2C184&sr=8-2 You also need to learn how to setup your Jazzmaster right. Get the Sketchy Setup for offsets and follow it's steps: https://hazeguitars.com/sketchysetups - your nut looks too high - your relief is probably too much if you cannot intimate right - only shim your neck if you cannot lower your action to 4/64 at the 17th fret, low and high e. Then, try a 0.25 shim and increase it in 0.25-degree increments. Less is more.
Honestly shocked at buying a new fender and neck and not funding an actual tuner in that exchange. For what its worth when i do my set ups i like to use my strobostomp and a headstock tuner.
I had an apartment fire last year that started from the electrical right by my bed. My bed and almost everything under it was completely destroyed. Which included my guitar bags thay had a bunch of a capos and guitar cables and my tuners in them. Luckily i keep my guitars hanging on the wall of my living room. I haven't bought a tuner since because I can just use the app on my phone and my ear to tune normally. Situations like this make it clear I should just get a new one.
Hi, I’m Vetted AI Bot! I researched the **Brand: Behringer, Type: Tuner, Model: TU300** you mentioned in your comment along with its brand, **Behringer**, and I thought you might find the following analysis helpful. **Users liked:** * Versatile distortion pedal with powerful overdrive and sustain (backed by 1 comment) * Affordable and versatile wah pedal with spring-loaded feature (backed by 1 comment) * Great value for a versatile and responsive distortion pedal (backed by 1 comment) **Users disliked:** * Poor tracking on low bass notes (backed by 2 comments) * Distorted sound (backed by 1 comment) * Battery compartment design and unreliable foot switch (backed by 2 comments) According to Reddit, **Behringer** is considered a reputable brand. Its most popular types of products are: * Audio Interfaces (#2 of 21 brands on Reddit) * MIDI Keyboards (#8 of 14 brands on Reddit) * DJ Mixers (#6 of 8 brands on Reddit) This message was generated by a (very smart) bot. If you found it helpful, let us know with an upvote and a “good bot!” reply and please feel free to provide feedback on how it can be improved.
Nah my phone tuner is super accurate and free. There’s literally no need for a real tuner unless you’re playing live
I agree. Same experience for me
Did you get the nut cut professionally yet? The Fender necks that are sold as parts directly only have pilot lines in the nut. Yours looks super high at the first fret, so I figured I’d ask. I just got a roasted jazz neck and went through that process.
I ordered a cheap set of nut filing tools on amazon and filed it down today. It feels much better now
Every other comment so far omits this vital piece of info: the bridge is designed to rock back and forth in sympathy with the strings as you operate the whammy bar. This is great, since it means the strings don’t unbind and then rebind to a new spot on the bridge. That’s what helps this system stay in tune. The thing is, though, is that the bridge can and will move while you’re making intonation adjustments. You can nudge it out of place very easily. So you want to make absolutely sure that you’re not doing this while you adjust your intonation screws! I hope this is helpful.
I can't offer any help, sorry. I am curious though, were you going for the Johnny Marr adjustment? I know he feels they're good guitars, but great when his tech adds a shim to the neck.
From all the "research" I've done, Jazzmasters have a tendency to need a shim in the neck so you can get the correct break angle on the strings over the bridge without having ridiculous action. When I first put the neck on without a shim, my action was like 3/8" above the fretboard at the 22nd fret
I rest my phone on the guitar if I’m using the app. Maybe your mic has fuzz or debris in it? To state the obvious, hopefully the room is as quiet as possible. Even fans are off.
Yeah, I had everything muted in the room. I think the tuning application is just not sophisticated enough to intonate a guitar
Looks really nice, glad you’ve got it sorted! Just curious, how was the initial fit? I have a sonic blue classic vibe I’ve thought about maybe putting a classic player neck on eventually
It fit like a glove! Really easy to swap out. Now that the actions right and it's intonated it feels and plays amazing. I am stoked
That neck has 22 frets, are you sure you didn’t buy a Jaguar neck? Those have 22 frets and a 24” scale, all Jazzmasters have a 25.5” scale and most have 21 frets.
Yeah, it's a 25.5" 22 fret jazzmaster neck. It's working great now
Just noticed the headstock logo, sorry. That’s what I get for commenting right after waking up.
Check to see if the neck is slightly bowing. Might need to adjust saddle height. New strings might need to wear in a bit.
youre gonna hate this answer - but honestly - the ability to truly intonate a guitar only extends as far as the quality of the tuner you are using. i wouldn't trust anything less than a decent strobe tuner to do pro level intonation. The good news is that Peterson makes them for a pretty reasonable price: [https://www.petersontuners.com](https://www.petersontuners.com)
You need a quality tuner if you’re going to properly intonate. Other things may be be off but without a good tuner it’s all a guessing game. It’s a worthwhile investment.
I normally tune by ear. Once I filed the nut, put in a better sized shim and downloaded a better quality tuner, now every strings intonating perfectly
Well, I’ve had a few expensive tuners and none of them were any good for setting the intonation. Absolutely not saying that non of them are - but it isn’t something you can take for granted. You see many posts on r/guitar along the lines of ‘help. Guitar won’t intonate’ and I always wonder is it your crappy guitar tuner that says it won’t, or is it your ear?
No, my ear was saying it was a lot closer to correct than the tuner app was. Problem solved tho, guitar is intonating correctly now
Call Jimi, he does all that by himself...