Intonating Teles

[tot_Ou_tard]

So how hard is it to intonate teles?

[Katastrophe]

Depends on the bridge. The traditional setup involves three brass barrels over which the strings rest. Wilkinson makes a compensated barrel bridge that keeps the traditional look, but will get you closer to better intonation.

More modern teles have a six saddle bridge where each string is adjustable for height and intonation.

The best way to do it, however, is shake them strangs all around the note you want to play, and nobody will know the difference!:

[t_ross33]

What Kat said...

[markb]

They're usually close enough for rock n roll. Compensated saddles make them better, I used some StewMac brass ones on a Classic 50's I used to own, they cost about $20. My current tele is an American Ash (8502) with a 6 way bridge. It's the only 6 saddle tele bridge I've ever liked the sound of.

The cheap solution to a tele that just won't play in tune with an old school bridge is to bend the screw on the middle saddle until it's right. Not for the faint hearted.

[mrmudcat]

Ok ill put this out there.Perfect intonation on a 3 barrel is almost impossible to get but you can come close.As mentioned above briefly you can bend the adjustment screws slightly so the saddles "walk" up when adjusting.(hard for me to describe so someone else might do better ) The hot subject is although the "modern" 6 barrel is better overall for intonating ,the old school 3 barrel is better for sustain as the strings are not broken up as much.(2 per sharing a barrel) I have 2 teles a modern type bridge and a old school style.You will have to guess which I prefer

[sunvalleylaw]

Ok ill put this out there.Perfect intonation on a 3 barrel is almost impossible to get but you can come close.As mentioned above briefly you can bend the adjustment screws slightly so the saddles "walk" up when adjusting.(hard for me to describe so someone else might do better ) The hot subject is although the "modern" 6 barrel is better overall for intonating ,the old school 3 barrel is better for sustain as the strings are not broken up as much.(2 per sharing a barrel) I have 2 teles a modern type bridge and a old school style.You will have to guess which I prefer

I guess close enough with more sustain.

[mrmudcat]

:

[Tone2TheBone]

Agreed. My Muddy has the 3 brass saddles and it's pretty close which is more than enough to rock on. In all actuality it's damn close on chords, barred and open and that's saying something because my Gibson with the Tune-O-Matic bridge doesn't compare in terms of hearing a "perfectly tuned and intonated" guitar on this particular Telecaster. Life varies.

[abraxas]

I use Glendale saddles on my Tele and the intonation is as good as with a 6-saddle bridge (I use 9-46 strings).

But the Tone, that's another matter... :

[Bloozcat]

Here's some illustrations to go along with the above descriptions, tot:

Compensated saddles from Stew-Mac:

Wilkinson compensated bridge from guitarfetish, $29.95:

Compromise bridge. "Mini", individual barrels, as opposed to individual saddles. $22.95 from guitarfetish:


I picked up one of the Wilkinson's in the second pic for my Tele project.

[LowEndWonder]

If you have the neck set just right everything else falls into place.
I had a 51 re-issue Fender P-Bass with the two saddle bridge and got the intonation dead on believe it or not!

[tot_Ou_tard]

Thanks everyone!

Do those of you with six saddle bridge feel that it misses some fundamental

teletude,


or izzat also close enough for rock n' roll?

[markb]

Thanks everyone!

Do those of you with six saddle bridge feel that it misses some fundamental
teletude,
or izzat also close enough for rock n' roll?

I'd have said yes to that until I bought my current tele. It manages to have all that twang with six saddles but it's the first bridge of that design that's done it for me.

[tot_Ou_tard]

I'd have said yes to that until I bought my current tele. It manages to have all that twang with six saddles but it's the first bridge of that design that's done it for me.

What Tele is that markb?

[t_ross33]

Thanks everyone!

Do those of you with six saddle bridge feel that it misses some fundamental

teletude,


or izzat also close enough for rock n' roll?

I have a "vintage" 6 saddle bridge on my Squier VM SH, so of course I'm dying to try a 3 saddle compensated bridge, maybe even mixing up steel and brass barrels to even out the tone . Not that there is anything "wrong" with the 6 saddle bridge, but this place tends to put funny ideas in my head :

Trev

[tot_Ou_tard]

I have a "vintage" 6 saddle bridge on my Squier VM SH, so of course I'm dying to try a 3 saddle compensated bridge, maybe even mixing up steel and brass barrels to even out the tone . Not that there is anything "wrong" with the 6 saddle bridge, but this place tends to put funny ideas in my head :

Trev

I do think it's funny that sloppy intonation is good enough for rock & roll, but it just ain't right with a 6 saddle vs a 3 saddle bridge.

I guess everyone trying to get the tones that they've heard & liked before.

[markb]

What Tele is that markb?

This one.

[tot_Ou_tard]

Very sweet Mark!

[t_ross33]

I do think it's funny that sloppy intonation is good enough for rock & roll, but it just ain't right with a 6 saddle vs a 3 saddle bridge.

I guess everyone trying to get the tones that they've heard & liked before.

Not chasing tone so much as wonderin' what all the fuss is about, and since this forum is turning me into something of a gearhead, I'm noticing things I wouldn't have cared much about before. :

t_ross33: Ooooh, look at the shiney brass saddles on that Wilkinson compensated bridge. That looks suh-wheet! And I bet it sounds so much warmer than the 6-saddle vintage bridge on my Squier Vintage Modified (single/humbucker) Telecaster.

Mrs. t_ross33: Uhm, yeah. Whatever

:

Trev