Get To Know Your Ukulele - It's Designed For It!

One subject that you will see mentioned a lot is that of ukulele 'setup'. This means the adjustment of certain parts of the ukulele to adjust playability and tuning accuracy. In the main most people go no further on the point than 'leaving that to the dealer' and may never adjust anything on their instrument again. Why not?

Some time ago I put this video together on YouTube talking about adjusting action / intonation on the ukulele but thought I would expand on that on the blog. And why? Well because I think with many many people they still seem afraid to adjust anything. A fear that they may break something at best or that the universe will end at worst.. But, it's designed to be adjusted!



In the simplest sense I have seen beginners stress about changing strings on their ukulele and even in a couple of cases taking them in to stores to have the shop do it for them. I find that quite incredible because the reality is that changing strings on a ukulele is super simple. Sure, it's a job none of us really enjoy, but complicated it is not. I always that strings are like tyres / tires on a car. If you own a car you SHOULD know how to change a wheel in case you get a flat. Tyres are designed to be changed and they don't last forever. It's the same with strings - they wear and break. They will need changing. Sadly there is no magic ukulele fairy out there who can do these while you sleep (although the way some people get evangelical about the uke, you would think there would be...). It's something that I would encourage all ukulele beginners to do quite early on in their ownership of the uke. Sure, you may get it wrong first time, so just whip them off and start again! Go too far and snap one? Then get another set. Strings are not expensive (well unless you think that $15 for a ukulele is expensive and then strings would represent a big chunk of that... but lets not go there...). The thing is, you WILL be changing strings at some point. You WILL snap a string at some point. Do you really want to be in a situation, perhaps half way through a busk / gig / club night and have to change strings having never done it before? Surely far better to have done it once or twice before in the calm of your own home. Here is my take on changing ukulele strings.

But it goes beyond strings too. The next most adjustable part of the ukulele is the bridge saddle. Now unless you have something exotic with a fixed moulded bridge, the little white strip in your bridge is designed to be removable and adjusted. This can adjust a range of things and is something that is MEANT to be looked at. Adjusting your action can change the playability of the ukulele (the feel on the fretting fingers) but also the projection and response. The saddle changes the action of the ukulele over most of the fretboard and reducing a high action can often deal with intonation issues (the accuracy of the fretted notes up and down the neck). Last but not least, removing a saddle allows the fitting of an under saddle pickup, and fitting one of those WILL require you to lower the saddle to compensate for the height the pickup is adding. For me, an acceptable action would be one that sees the strings at about 3mm above the crown of the 12th fret but this can vary and it really is personal preference. Much higher though and the mathematics of the neck to string angle throws the tuning out on some of the frets. Adjusting a saddle downwards is simply a case of removing it and sanding the base down keeping it perfectly flat. No need to touch the top edge at all. Go too far and you can get buzzing or loss of projection and tone, but you can shim it back up with card or a sliver of wood veneer.  If you go slowly replacing and checking the height every so often you should not have that problem. Try it - measure your action height at the 12th and if its way higher - why not give it a go!

Fret edges sharp? Get a file to them! Whilst I mention fret edges in all my reviews, and a ukulele sent by a dealer with sharp edges is unacceptable, what people don't realise is that humidity, environmental factors and time can affect fret edges through the slight shrinkage of the fingerboard. It's perfectly normal to have a ukulele that was nice and smooth on the neck suddenly develop sharp edges. Do you really want to pay someone to smooth them off when its just a short job with a small file? Again, just go easy and if you are concerned about the finish, masking tape is your friend!

This leaves the nut which is a more difficult one to deal with as it requires some special filing equipment to take high nut slots down. The trouble with the nut is that it is not quite that simple. It's about taking them down AND leaving the correct break point at which the string runs off in tension down the neck. Get that wrong and you can throw out intonation as well. And of course, if you go too low its a much bigger job to take them back up. For me, I check nut height by holding a string at the third fret and seeing that the string should then only just kiss the top of the first fret. If you have loads of daylight when you do that, you have a high nut and likely to have intonation issues at the lower frets. Be very careful though in taking them down and use the right tools for the job. That said, I'd encourage you to try if you are confident.

But this isn't meant to be a 'how to guide'. It's here to make the point that getting to know your instrument, and getting used to adjusting things is a normal part of instrument ownership. Not only can such adjustments improve the performance of a ukulele they get you totally in touch with the instrument and give you a better understanding of how the ukulele actually works. At the end of the day a ukulele relies on some accuracy in mathematical measuring to make it play the way it supposed to. It's one of the curses of cheap ukuleles as things like whilst action can be adjusted and often improve such ukuleles, things like mis placed bridges and frets can prove fatal in a pursuit of accurate tuning. But learning to see how these things work will help you recognise whether you do have a major problem or not, and in most cases give you the skills to improve tuning issues. (How many times have I read of beginners saying 'yeah it was cheap and it goes out of tune up the neck, but I will live with it'? Why live with it??

Of course I am also not saying that certain build flaws are acceptable just because you can fix them yourself. I remain if the view that ukuleles should be sourced from good dealers who will give things like the frets and saddle a once over before shipping, but you are permitted to have a fettle yourself.  If you are not happy it is your right to send it back. Nor am I  saying that you should all be talented luthiers willing to take ukuleles to pieces (although I am sure some of you would have that in you if you put your minds to it). It's just that I think players need some encouragement to try things out with their instruments. If you go carefully and read guides / watch example videos, so long as you don't go crazy it's unlikely you will do anything fatal.

I actually find it quite sad when I read that people are afraid to meddle with anything on the uke. It's really not all that hard and will get you in touch with the instrument. No dealer can give you the perfect setup that you find the most comfortable as we all have different preferences. I have owned a LOT of ukuleles and have adjusted the bridge of most of them since they arrived. That is not to say the dealers got it wrong (they don't because I choose good dealers who send things within acceptable limits) but I find that the fine tuning is down to me!  And at risk of repeating myself - these things are SUPPOSED to be adjusted.

© Barry Maz

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Adjusting Ukulele Setup and the Impact on Intonation

A few people asked for me to expand on the topic of ukulele setup, so thought I would put it down in a video.

All about adjusting the setup of the ukulele to improve playability and tuning accuracy. Don't be afraid to adjust things - they are designed to be adjusted!



( DIRECT LINK )

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Ukulele beginners tips - Intonation - what is it?

If you are beginning with ukulele and have no string instrument background, you may be confused by this oft used phrase - what is it though, and why should you be worried if it is bad?

Intonation refers to the ability for a ukulele to be in tune not just when the strings are plucked "open" but also when fretted anywhere else on the neck.  Bad intonation will basically mean that your uke wont play in tune even if your strings are tuned perfectly when open.

Its down to mathematics.  The position of the frets on the neck are placed accurately in relation to the scale length of the instrument (distance between nut and saddle).  When set correctly (and assuming the instrument is set up well) holding a string at any fret and plucking will give you precisely the note that is supposed to be played at that fret (see my fret roadmaps on chord page to check them HERE )

If you find that your uke, despite being tuned correctly is sounding bad at certain frets, it could be a number of factors, from easy to difficult.  In line with my earlier post regarding buzzes, have a run through this checklist in order to see if you can isolate the problem

1. Bad strings?  A badly made string can cause tuning problems along its length - try swapping the string to see if that cures it

2. Action at the saddle - this refers to the height of the saddle.  If a saddle is too low, it can cause buzzing but equally, if too high, can cause problems with intonation.  Again, this comes down to mathematics (switch your brain on and think of pythagoras!).  For the maths to work, and the frets to accurately give you the right notes, it assumes that the strings run as close as possible as to be parallel with the line of the fingerboard.  If you imagine a seriously high saddle, the strings will run at an increasing height away from the fingerboard approaching the bridge - like the hypotenuse of a long thin triangle - if this is the case, your open tuned string will sound fine, but you are stretching and pushing the string down when fretting and this will give you an off note.  The answer is simple - sand the saddle base down and re-install, taking care not to sand too much or you will get buzzing -the answer is to do it a little, replace it, repeat.

3. Action at the nut - this is tricker to deal with, and may be something you give to a luthier.  Again if the nut slots are too high, you get same effect in reverse.  To lower nut slots be very very careful and I would recommend using nut files especially for the purpose.

4. High frets? - in some cases high frets can cause problems as the string will have to dip down as you press it and stretch - characteristics of this are a note that sounds fine held softly but sharpens when you squeeze - dramatic cure is to have the frets dressed down, but much easier fix is to play the uke a little lighter with your fretting hand!

5. Something more serious - sadly, if the above dont fix the issue, you are looking at a badly made uke or a neck out of alignment.  Either get a refund, or it its a valuable oldie - look for a fix.

At the end of the day, if you are buying new, the best way to avoid this is to physically play before you buy - take a digital tuner with you and test the thing.  If thats not possible though, I hope the tips above show that a lot of issues are easily fixed.

Buying cheaper ukes in particular tends to raise the chance of intonation issues, but usually its just a string or saddle issue that will fix it.  Beware - even top end instruments with bad set up can slip through the net!

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Ukulele beginners tips - Nuts and Saddles

We've looked at strings, woods, tuners, so about time I moved on to some guidance on the other important parts of a ukulele.

The uke works by holding the strings in tension over a sound chamber to resonate the sound - as a child you may have done the same thing with rubber bands and a tissue box.  In order to make this play accurately, some maths comes in to play.  For the frets to accurately change the notes of the strings when held, it is important that the string length is uniform and set in relation to these frets.    The parts of the uke that hold the strings at the correct length are the nut (at the top end of the uke by the tuners) and the saddle held in the piece of wood glued on to the body of the uke below the sound hole.  The distance between these two is the scale length.

As with all stringed instruments, the quality of these parts and how they are shaped is critical to a well playing instrument.  To high at the saddle and you will have too high an action, too low and you will get buzzing as the strings touch the frets.

Likewise at the nut - if the slots are cut too low, you will get buzzing at the low frets, too high and you raise action, and worse can cause a sharpening of notes when pressed at the 1st and 2nd frets.

In both cases, if the string is not as parallel to the finger board as is possible without buzzing you can get into intonation problems (ie frets not giving you the exact note they should)

Adjusting action for tuneability and to remove buzzes is something I will cover in a subsequent post, but on a nicely set up instrument if you hold a string at both the 1st and (say) 12th fret, you should be able to just slip a thin business card between the string and fret at or around the 6th.

So what are these items made of?  Well in cheaper instruments, almost certainly plastic, or a composite material which is basically plastic, but is trying to big itself up by calling it something else (stand up please NuBone and Tusq).  In more expensive instruments, these parts may well be made of bone, or a hardwood like Ebony.

Some suggest that moving up in quality will impove sound, but I think this is subjective.  On a steel strung acoustic guitar a change from plastic to bone saddle will make a noticeable difference - Im just not sure that you will notice that difference (for the hassle) on a consumer level ukulele.  I am happy to be persuaded otherwise though!

As a final thought - if you are fiddling with your saddle and remove it to take it down in height - remember - this is the key point of the instrument that transfers sound into the body of the uke.  It is essential the base of the saddle is sanded totally flat and when re-seated makes a perfect fit into the bridge mount.  This is even more important if you have a piezo pick up fitted under the saddle, as you may find a badly seated saddle results in volume differences across strings (not good)

Word to the wise - if you are not sure what you are doing but want a change to your ukulele - take it to a reputable guitar tech!

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Ukulele beginners tips - Intonation

Ukulele into what now?

You may here this term used a lot for all sorts of stringed instruments.  The important thing to note is you want good intontation, or perfect intonation.  Bad or poor intonation is a bad bad thing, and in extreme cases may mean the uke you have is always going to be unplayable unless you take drastic re-building action.

Anyway, intonation refers to the accuracy of the frets in providing the right notes when fretted.  The frets are laid out mathematically to allow for this, but the accuracy depends on their spacing and the distance between the bridge and the nut.  Your strings on your standard uke are tuned GCEA when open, but when you fret at certain point, each fretted note should be an accurate note in itself(or its perfect sharp version).  If your intonation is off, the thing will sound out of tune, even when tuned (if you follow me)

The way to quickly check intonation on a uke is to tune it, and then fret the string at the 12th fret and play it.  The note you hear should be exactly one octave higher than the open string.  If it is sharp or flat from the open note, the intonation is off.

What can I do about it?

Well, if the difference is slight, it may be down to the action being too high - I have had ukes where intonation was bad, and I dropped the bridge saddle a millimetre and it sorted it.    it may also be a case of action being too high at the nut - be very careful here lower the nut slots too much and it is very hard to go back - you want there to be about a credit cards thickness between the string and the top of the first fret....    It could also be a bad string - try changing it.  But if those things dont change it, it could be more serious (ie the bridge is not set in the right place or the frets are poorly spaced) and I would avoid the instrument!  Some cheap ukes are just built plain wrong!

Some poorly made instruments have frets that are too high, and fretting firmly can stretch the strings into the gaps giving off notes - this is not a case of bad intonation, but its still a bad set up and I would reject it.

Anyway - no matter what you are spending - if the intonation is off and it is down to the way the thing is built, it will never play right - avoid it!

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