Intonation Tips

Importance of Intonating

Is your guitar not staying in tune, even though you just tuned it? There’s more than one way to be in tune. The culprit might not be your strings or tuners—it’s probably your intonation. Intonation is all about making sure your guitar stays in tune up and down the neck. If your open strings sound fine but chords higher up sound off, it’s time to make some quick saddle adjustments on the bridge.

Start by tuning your guitar perfectly. We recommend using a strobe tuner when doing this (www.petersontuners.com). Then, play the 12th fret harmonic and compare it to the fretted 12th fret note on each string. If the fretted note is sharp, move the saddle back (away from the neck); if it’s flat, move it forward (toward the neck). Make small adjustments and retune each time—this part takes patience, but it’s worth it.

Once your 12th fret harmonic and fretted notes match across all strings, you're golden. Proper intonation makes your guitar sound better, feel more reliable, and keeps your chords in tune where it counts. Do it once, and your ears (and bandmates) will thank you.

- Kenny Potilechio