How to Adjust Intonation on an Electric Guitar

Adjusting your guitar's intonation is part of holistic tuning. It's a little more in-depth than just tuning up your strings. Working with the intonation falls somewhere in between the regular everyday use of the guitar and a "guitar technician" category. But knowing how to do this will help you maintain a guitar longterm.

Difficulty: Challenging

Instructions

1. Get an electric tuner. The precise sounds for checking intonation make it hard to operate without a tuning device. For an electric guitar, the tuner can be plugged right into the guitar for a more accurate reading.

2. Start with the low E string. Tune the string up to E, then check the octave (finger on the 12th fret).

3. Observe whether your octave note is sharp or flat. If it is either sharp or flat, you'll need to adjust the intonation on the guitar.

4. Release tension on the string by winding the peg out to tune the string down from E.

5. Locate the screw on the end of the guitar string by the bridge that connects to the "saddle." The saddle is the little metal piece that holds the string at its opposite end from the tuning peg, near where the string goes into the body of the guitar.

6. Turn the screw to move the saddle down, away from the fretboard, to correct a sharp octave. To correct a flat octave, turn the screw to move the saddle up toward the fretboard.

7. Tune your string back up and check the octave again.

8. Repeat as necessary until you have a tuned octave, then repeat with the other strings.

Tips & Warnings

• Use very small increments (maybe a 1/2 turn of the screw) when correcting the intonation. The measurements are very precise; if you're turning the saddle a lot, you'll probably just end up going back and forth between sharp and flat.
• Watch out for guitar types that have tension on the bridge. A "floyd rose" style is an example of guitar where the tension on the strings has to be very loose before messing with the saddles. Make sure you correct this problem before working with your guitar's intonation.