3 Saddle Bridge Setup Tutorial - Harley Benton TE20
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- Опубліковано 16 лип 2024
- It's time for a setup of my HB TE20, which means we'll tackle the string action and intonation of a 3 saddle telecaster-style bridge!
Harley Benton TE-20 Midnight Blue:
Thomann: bit.ly/HBTeles
Download the sound samples here:
www.bandforge.net/
Squier by Fender Affinity Telecaster in Lake Placid Blue:
Thomann: bit.ly/SQteles
Disclaimer
Some of the product links are affiliate links. If you make a purchase after following one of these links, I will receive a small commission without any additional charge to you. This helps me to advance the projects for the channel and purchase gear for modding and reviews. Thank you very much for your support!
This time in a really odd setup through the camera's input, which sounded horrible, sorry you guys!!
= Audio recording gear =
Thomann: bit.ly/RecGear
Discontinued Gear:
Jet City JCA50
Recording DAW:
Apple Logic Pro
= Video production gear =
Camera1:
Panasonic AU-EVA1 amzn.to/3b9WDCf
with Canon 24-70 mm amzn.to/3vvBBFJ
Camera2:
Panasonic GH5 with Leica 12-60 mm amzn.to/2LEwe5I
Microphone: Sennheiser AVX MKE-2 bit.ly/3nAtcPB
Keylight:
Apurture 120d II amzn.to/3aTDwfj
Ambient lights:
2x Colorspike LED Lights colorspike.com/
Rina's fingers are far less hurt since filming this video!
Timecodes
00:00 - Intro
00:17 - Why to set up the guitar?
01:00 - What is special with a 3 saddle bridge?
01:41 - Preparation
02:17 - String action - tools
03:50 - String action - low E string setup
06:34 - String action - high E string setup
07:28 - String action - setup test
08:29 - String action - fine adjustment
11:15 - String action - why is there string buzz?
12:21 - String action - the other strings
15:31 - String action - check for fret buzz
16:05 - String action - final thoughts
16:39 - Intonation - why to setup?
18:07 - Intonation - the issue with 3 saddles bridges
18:47 - Intonation - tools
19:08 - Intonation - walkthrough
24:10 - Intonation - test the result
24:34 - Question of the day
25:05 - Quick playing test
25:33 - Conclusion
26:08 - Live streams: next week!
B
Thank you for the tutorial. I would have one remark - the HB TE-20 neck does not have a 9.5" radius (like a Fender), but a more flat radius (350mm ~ 13.7" according to the specs)
You're perfectly right! I'm sorry for the confusion! If you're using my print out tool, please try the 12" Gibson setting. That's at least a bit closer and I will provide another tool for this exotic spec, soon.
Harley Benton guitars are awesome.
Brilliant stuff, thank you, and great playing.
Once again a great info video!
I just got an old Tele for xmas and your vids were very helpful getting the thing set up. (it was a mess). So, Thanks! 💜
Thank you! This was very helpful. You are very clear!
Very clear and methodical. This has helped me a great deal and by the way, your English is perfect. Many thanks for your help. 👍
Excellent information! The longer you play the more you develop a setup personal preference. It pays dividends to be able to dial in a guitar yourself instead of having a setup done by a local "tech" to standard specs. Also, researching actual trained, qualified and experienced Luthiers in your area for more in depth adjustments, such as nut and fretwork when required, is essential. I do all my setup work in playing position, standing with the guitar on a strap. A tech won't normally do that. I love what you do on this channel. Keep up the great work and stay safe. Cheers!
I've started taking on those more advanced tasks, too. It takes me way longer than it would someone who knows what they're doing, but I find that even in something like cutting a nut, my preferences are slightly different than what the book says to do. I would encourage you to give them a try, even if you need to pick up a pawn shop special to try it on.
@Johnny M Thanks for your kindness! It took me quite a while to dare even touching the basic setup and this is why I want to encourage anyone to try it out. Back then, I even chose guitars over their current state of setup in a store and not over whether it suited my needs or not. I don't know any luthier but my father-in-law is a passionate hobby guitar builder who used to do all the 'difficult' things. Now, I really want to learn this on my own and I think guitars like the Affinity Tele or the Harley Benton TE-20 are perfect for this type of training. Even if I happen to mess up terribly, I will have an interesting journey to report and the opportunity to learn how to replace frets (in case of fretwork). I'm really looking forward to mastering a new skill! :)
@Arfonfree Thanks for your input! I was wondering, how does one determine if they want something different than what's in the book? I'm often too insecure to really tell the difference. I'd love to experiment more, though.
@@Bandforge I found out by buying a new guitar from my local store that offered a free setup after 3 months. I really enjoyed playing the guitar for 3 months. After the luthier at the store set it up, though, I no longer loved it. I checked the specs on the action and it was right on spec. But it was higher than it was out of the box. I lowered it back to where it had been (or close) and fell back in love. That's when I realized that the book isn't a bible, it's a guide. And some of the specifications have to be generous to allow for variation between guitars as well as variation in playing style. So if, like me, you start by making changes that are reversible, you rapidly gain confidence.
@Arfonfree One's own fingers are always right, I guess! :) I think your experience is quite inspiring. And these preferences sure change over time. As a beginner, I hated everything Fender for its 'uncomfortable' necks. The combination of the neck profile, fretboard radius and scale weren't right for me at the time, I guess. Now I really like playing Strats and Teles.
Thank you, Rina. Your instructions are amazingly well-explained. Best on UA-cam and maybe in the universe.😊
Great info!!
Good Job! Appreciate the tips.
Originally on my MIJ Fender 60's Tele Custom, I had the stock vintage style 3 saddle bridge with the sharp, string-snappy grooves. I immediatlely swapped the bridge to a Wilkinson w/ 3 brass saddles. A much brighter and richer sound and brings out that authentic Telecaster twang. As regards intonation, I actually find it easier to dial in my preffered action on the 3 saddle as opposed to my American Standard Telecaster w/ 6 saddles. Might have something to do w/the flatter fretboard profile on the former as opposed to the modern c on the latter? Great to see you back again!
You have really nice guitars! 😄 Sharp, string-snappy saddles are a real nightmare. My first super cheap guitar, a strat-clone, had very sharp saddles. Eventually, I sanded them flat with an old wound string. That did the trick. Can you recommend the Wilkinson bridges? I bought one for the P-Bass DIY kit, which I will be building in the live streams, also with brass saddles. Is the string action on both Teles the same? Maybe this has an influence. Also, do you play both guitars with the same brand / gauge of strings?
Super useful thanks a mil !
You're very welcome!
Great vid, I learned a couple of things, congrats to get thru the marathon, with your piece of mind intact, I hope:-) PS: In the section of adjusting the action in the between strings, I just try to configure an arch with the saddles just by seeing, and then readjust every string height if demonbuzz shows around. Yeah, I'm lazy:-7 PS2: When it comes to uneven frets (god forbid refretting) I leave that to a professional.
Thank you! We'll see if my mind is still intact… ;) Your suggestion is brilliant! I will definitely give it a try next time. I think, sometimes hammering high frets with a rubber mallet can do the trick. Until now, I didn't encounter frets that were that bad, though. ;)
Awsome thanks so much ❤
I used to let a pro setup my guitars, but when Covid hit I got bored. I still have my first electric guitar-a Fender Starcaster-which is, in my case, a cheap big-box store combo pack guitar that was probably authorized by Fender. But at $200 for guitar, amp, and accessories, not what you would expect of a Fender (it's an HSS Strat). It served it's purpose, though, and got me interested in playing guitar and led me to spend way too much money on other instruments.
Anyay, me... bored... and with a guitar that I wasn't worried about ruining. I spent a lot of time setting up that guitar, learning the basics of setup and repair. I set the string height and intonation-ruining the cheap stock bridge and replacing it with a better slightly-less-cheap Musiclily bridge. I can therefore confirm from experience that yes you should detune the strings before adjusting the saddles! In addition to setting the pickup height, I even reset the polepieces on the pickups. And then I learned to dress the frets.
Talk about making a difference! From a guitar that was barely playable, and certainly not much fun to play, it turned into a darned nice guitar. It might not be much to anybody else, but it has a place of pride in my collection now.
That's really cool! Are the Musiclily bridges better than the stock, let's say, Squier ones? I've seen them on Amazon but a bit reluctant to purchase something from them, fearing to get the same quality I already had. How did you approach dressing the frets? I'm still unsure about which files to get for the process and any advice is highly appreciated! :)
Also, how did you manage to adjust the pole piece height? I tried once (that's more than a decade ago), accidently pushed the whole pole piece out of the pickup and damaged the coil when trying to push it back in.
@@Bandforge I think so. The chrome plating is better, the trem bar uses an O-ring and friction fit rather than screw in, and the tone block is 13.3mm, up from 6.5mm on the stock bridge. I think I paid $13 for mine, which is much cheaper than any alternative. It is $17 on ebay now. When I was checking that, I noticed that they also sell brass and steel tone blocks... They cost more than the whole bridge, but... hmm...
danke schon
I’m so glad to see you back. Good topic to. I know some people struggle with the 3 barrel saddles.
Musiclily or Wilkinson makes some amazing affordable compensated brass saddles.
1mm string height at the 12th seems very optimistic. I usually set my action to 2mm at the low e string, and 1.75 - 2mm on the high. I know Phil McKnight always aims for 1.5mm.
Fender’s base setup is around 2mm.
I’m just a strickler for excessive buzz, and I think guitars tend to sound the best at 2mm ish. I really dig in though, especially when vibratoing while bending.
Those saddles won't fit this guitar. This guitar requires 20mm saddles. Those Musiclilly/Wilkinson saddles are 21.5 (or closer to 22). Graph Techs too. Which is the usual standard. Don't know why Thomann went with these.
@Ari Carlsen Thanks! :) I will check out the options from Musiclily and Wilkinson. Are the both in the same quality range? I'm thinking of replacing the bridge altogether for a model with string through body.
About the action, yeah, that's a matter of taste. :) I don't mind the buzz as someone who plays with distortion most of the time anyways but I see your point. It's always good to try and find what best suits one's purpose. Do you have a specific style of music that you play the most?
@M C Thanks for pointing that out! Do you think the replacement saddles could be sanded down to fit?
@@Bandforge The Graph Techs would be easier to sand into shape. Brass isn't too hard, so that's possible too. But I don't think it's worth it. The non-compensated saddles are a big part of the classic Telecaster sound. Just replace the height adjustment screws.
@M C Do you happen to know the exact diameter of the screws? Maybe I can find some in the local hardware store. That's always more convenient.
Thank you so much for making this video! My new TE-20 is arriving in the mail in two days, and I'm looking forward to getting it set up. Did you ever find a solution for the screws on the saddle? They look kind of dangerous. Maybe an arm guard, like archers wear?
One thing to note: the saddles on these are 20mm wide. Which means you can't drop in just any old replacement saddle (most seem to be closer to 22mm). At least the height adjustment screws are standard size! That's the first mod I made on mine (just got it yesterday), even before I've done a proper setup. The length of the stock screws is unacceptable - not just uncomfortable, they're dangerous!
Thanks for the input! I'm thinking of replacing the bridge altogether and geting a string through body bridge instead. Yeah, the screws are horrible! I will try to sand them down a bit but I will need a vice for that. Unfortunately, my desk isn't ready for one yet (it's still just a board laying on other pieces of furniture without any attachment). One step at its time. :)
@@Bandforge I had some old saddles lying around, the screws fit perfectly. I was considering replacing the bridge before I found them. But I've decided to keep it a top loader - more authentic! And I don't want to sink too much money into this guitar. The whole point is that it's a cheap but playable tele. I'm replacing the tuners (mine aren't great and I prefer locking tuners), and if I can fix the old Fender pickup I have lying around, I might install that. And of course I'll roll the fretboard edges and polish the frets. But that's about it. (Well, I'll probably do a strat-style belly carve one day.) Thanks for your videos, they've been great to watch.
@M C Sounds like a really fun project! What's the issue with your old Fender pickup? And, does your guitar have a maple fretboard? I'd love to roll the fretboard edges, too, but I'm a bit concerned about the maple fretboard and its finish.
@@Bandforge Yes, rosewood's easier, since there's no finish. (I'll be sanding off the HB logo as well, but it looks like that was applied on top of the finish). The pickup has been rattling around in my parts drawer for a few years - one of the wires snapped where it connects to the solder points. It might be possible to fix it... I'll know tomorrow!
@M C What are you going to do with the finish on the fretboard? Will you apply another logo on the headstock instead? When soldering a new wire to the coil, keep in mind that there's a super thin layer of some kind of lacquer on the coil's wire. This can be a hassle to get off but it should work. Please keep me updated! :)
Hello from Victoria BC .. wonderful content I’m going to guess your in Germany 🇩🇪? Your English is very good. Look forward to more of your tutorials. 😊
Great video. What do you think about adjusting intonation based on the 12th fret harmonics instead of actually fretting the note?
Hi Rina,
Thanks you for the tutotial.
I just bought a Harley Benton TE-62CC in Lake Placid Blue which is the "Custom" upgrade to your "Standard" TE-20. My neck radius is 12".
It also has the Classic 3-saddle bridge. I do like the guitar but would like to lower the strings a bit.
I am not looking foward to dealing with this style bridge when it comes to adjusting the string action and the inntonation.
I can go one of two ways: 1) install "Compensated Saddles" or 2) replace the entire bridge with the "Vintage 6-Saddle" bridge which comes with metal or brass saddles.. (I don;t know how the compensated saddles even work!)
What is your recommendation?
Thanks.
Thanks, Rina! Another fantastic video, and a huge help! I'm just wondering, if the radius is the same at the bridge as at the 12th fret? Are they both the same radius? And I couldn't download the printable radius and string height help tool pdf. Can you help me with that? Thank you! God Bless You! Cheers, Viktor
Try a firefly tele for comparasion
Never seen anyone set up a guitar before setting the neck relief first 😮
Thanks for this very usefull video as always !! Will use it on my brand new HB TE62 CC ;). By the way as I know that you love Telecaster and even more so Blue ones, did you saw the new TE 62 DB ? Those are really lovely (& no i dont work for Thomman hahaha) !
Are you sure you don't work for Thomann or my bank?? ;)
You keep tempting me with blue Telecasters… The TE 62 DB looks really classy! That keeps me thinking again and I really shouldn't, hahaha!
@@Bandforge Haha, no if only it could be true (but i should be considering it maybe this is my destiny). But yeah those beast are very cool, they just released some footage on their own youtube channel. I think this is quite close to CV from Squier but at the Affinity price tag. Loving my TE 62 CC LPB until now ;) !
@Kampf Katze I think, you'd make a very good guitar's sales person, hahaha! ;)
The TE-62CC IS (yeah, I know… not blue!) would be my prefered pick, I think. It somehow looks like the pickguard is a bit different from the TE-20. The radius is smaller, too. Say, could you do me a favor? I'd love to know the scale of the TE-62. Could you measure it for me? All you need to do is put a folding ruler (I mean "Zollstock" by that) right against the nut, where the strings begin and measure until the highest point of the 12th fret. That would be awesome! :)
nice and easy to follow. thanks! i read that the radius of the te20 is 12.5" (calculated even 350mm/25,4=13.8"). do you think if you use this value for the string action, it would make it evennicer to play? or wouldn't it make a difference?
Oh my, you're perfectly right! My mistake, sorry! Yeah, it should play even nicer with a 12.5" setting… I've just tried to measure the radius with my radius gauges and the 12" setting seems to be closer than the 9.5". I have to apologize! If you're using my tool for the setup, take the Gibson / Epiphone setting.
@@Bandforge Hi, nothing to apologize! I saw just by fortune when I was looking for tests about the guitar, that it has not the expected radius of 9,5". Was not sure wether it might has a large impact. That's why I asked. Thanks again for your great vids!
@Murrat Osmani You're welcome! :) I bet that it will have an impact on the playability. Interestingly, in my case, the wrong radius was already a massive improvement in playability in comparison to the stock non-radius setup.
i hate the look of the 3 saddle bridge much prefer a 6 saddle bridge its more precise
I agree 100%!
#70_AnswerToQuestion_AlwaysRemoveExamineAlterEverythingMyself_CantPlayMusicButSewWhat🇺🇸✡️✝️
waste of money! instead you could have the new te62 lake placid blue and double bound justa saying REGRET
Sadly, the te62 wasn't out when I purchased my te20…
It depends on the person. For some, the te 62 is a waste of money.
It's about price. You can't beat 88 euros. The TE62 sells for twice as much. Which gets it too close (for me) to the price of a good used Fender MIM. Which are much better guitars.