How to Adjust Pickups on an Electric Guitar

The pickups on an electric guitar are essentially electromagnets that "pick up" the mechanical vibrations of the strings. The pickups convert the vibrations into electrical energy that is converted back into sound by the amplifier. The following steps will show how to adjust pickups on an electric guitar.

Instructions

Difficulty: Challenging

1. Identify your guitar's pickup adjustment method. The most common types of pickups use screws, but some types use dials or other methods. Tighten the screws (turn them clockwise) to lower the pickups and loosen the screws (turn them counterclockwise) to raise the pickups.
2. Study the benefit of raising the pickup height. Bringing the pickups closer to the strings increases the sensitivity of the amplification (makes the pickups hotter). Some heavy metal guitarists will raise the pickups as far as possible without the strings actually sticking to the pickups.
3. Examine the disadvantage of raising the pickup height. The increased magnetic field pulls on the strings more strongly, causing them to stop vibrating more quickly (reduces the sustain).
4. Move the pickups to about ¼ inch from the strings and fine tune the pickup height with the guitar plugged in and the amplifier turned on. The change in sound on an electric guitar is extremely sensitive to small changes in the pickup height so the adjustment should be made "live."
5. Adjust each side of the pickups separately. The sides of the pickups will generally be of equal height but better guitars allow the string height above the pickup to be adjusted individually.