How to Restring an Electric Guitar

by: Tony Schuck

For a newbie, this may seem a little intimidating. But with the right tools, a little knowledge and some practice, you'll be able to restring an electric guitar like a professional guitar tech. When I was gigging regularly, I would restring my guitar every week. My body chemistry is acidic and the sweat and oils from my hands would tend to dull the brightness of the strings as well as make them feel "dirty". For me, the bright sound and smooth feel of a new set of strings would inspire my playing. It became a ritual for me the night before the weekend’s gigs started. I would sit in front of the TV and restring my electric guitar; my acoustic was much less frequent.

OK, so you've decided you don't want to pay the guys at the music store and you want to know how to restring an electric guitar yourself. Here is the list of tools and supplies you will need:

· A new set of strings (naturally!) Click here for info on string sizes
· A string winder (not required but very handy)
· A pair of wire cutters
· A guitar tuner (again, not required but helpful)

You will need to set aside about an hour of time to do this correctly, but like I stated earlier, with practice you will know how to restring your electric guitar in about 20-30 minutes.

First thing to remember, do NOT remove all six strings at the same time. The guitar neck is designed to withstand the tension of the strings and if all of the tension is removed for any significant amount of time you could damage your guitar.

Also, there are some guitars that are literally held together by the string tension. I remember reading a story about a guy who had recently gotten hired as a guitar tech for the Ramones. Wanting to make a good impression on Johnny Ramone he decided to restring his guitar for him right before the show. He removed all six strings and Johnny's Mosrite guitar literally fell apart in his hands. The string tension held the whole guitar together! What's worse, the bridge of the guitar bounced across the floor and fell down the air conditioning duct.

If I remember the story correctly, they spent quite some time using a coat hanger and chewing gum trying to rescue the bridge from the duct. He retrieved it and managed to keep his job, living to restring the guitar another day. But not all six strings at once!

But I digress. Some people work in pairs of strings at a time, I prefer to work on individual strings. You will quickly decide what works best for you. Use this article as a guideline to get you up to speed quickly.

OK, let's get down to it. I always start with the high E string (personal preference); it helps keep me organized.

If your guitar has a locking nut tremolo (whammy bar) system you will have to unlock it. It works best if you remove the clamps completely and work with just the nut until the restringing process is done and the strings are stretched and tuned. Then replace the locking clamps and fine tune using the tuners on the tremolo bridge.

· Use your string winder and loosen the string until there is enough slack that you can unwind the string from the tuning post by hand.

· Use your wire cutters to cut off the curled end of the string and discard. Do this to minimize the chance of scratching the finish of your guitar. Push/pull the string back through the bridge slowly making sure it does not drag across the body. You don't want restringing your guitar to result in refinishing your guitar!

· Next, unwrap the appropriate new string. Insert it through the bridge of the guitar, over the saddle, up the neck, over the nut and into the hole in the tuning post. Again make sure the trailing end of the string doesn't drag across the guitar body.

· Start turning the tuner by hand making sure the string wraps over the top of the tuning post. Ideally you want to have 3-4 wraps of the string around the tuner, but this in nothing to stress over.

· Turn the tuner until the slack is out and the string is properly seated in the nut and over the bridge saddle.

· Next clip the excess string off close to the tuner and use your string winder to bring the string up to pitch.

· Use your digital tuner and tune to pitch.

· Next, grab the string with your picking hand halfway between the bridge and the nut and lightly tug the string away from the fretboard. Do not pull real hard, just hard enough to pull the stretch out of the string and tighten it around the tuner post.

· Tune to pitch and repeat the stretching process until the string stays in tune.

Now repeat the entire process for the remaining five strings. Know that the pitch of the new strings may fluctuate as you work on the remaining strings. This is especially true with a Floyd Rose or similar type floating bridge. When you have replaced and stretched the last string make sure all six strings are still in tune. If you have a locking tremolo system, replace the clamps for the locking nut, tighten, and use the bridge fine tuners to get the proper pitch.

The final step is the best one; sit back, crank up your amp and enjoy. Make sure you play something with lots of note bending in it and make sure the stretch is all played.

Take satisfaction in knowing that you now know how to restring an electric guitar.

The History of The Electric Guitar: How Music Was Changed Forever

by: Bob Martin

In The Beginning

The guitar’s soft melodic tone made it difficult for people to hear it when being played alongside other instruments. So during the 1930’s an inventive individual decided to change that and invented the first electric guitar. Little did he know, or have imagined way back then how the invention of the electric guitar would significantly affect the course of 20th century music.

Like most new things, the electric guitar had its critics but it quickly won people over because of its ability to allow musicians to play much more creatively and express their own individual styles.

The First Pickup

In 1924 an inventive engineer working for the Gibson guitar company named Lloyd Loar, designed the first magnetic pickup. Using a magnet, he converted guitar string vibrations into electrical signals, which then were amplified through a speaker system. This first pickup was crude, but it was a great beginning.

The First Electric Guitar

In 1931 the Electro String Company was founded by Paul Barth, George Beauchamp and Adolph Rickenbacker, and developed the first electric guitars marketed to the general public. They made their guitars from cast aluminum and were played on a person’s lap using a steel slide much like today's steel guitar. Because of their unusual material, they were affectionately called “Frying Pans.”

The early success of the frying pans prompted the Gibson guitar company to build their first electric guitar, the ES-150 which is a legend today.

The First Solid-Body Electric Guitar

Electric guitars were quickly becoming popular, even though there was a major problem with their construction. Their bodies would vibrate due to the amplified sounds coming through the speakers they were played into, causing what we know as feed-back. The obvious remedy was to build a guitar made with a solid body which wouldn’t vibrate so easily.

As with most innovations, there is controversy over who invented the first solid –body electric guitar. Guitar legend Les Paul in the 1940’s developed his affectionately called “The Log” solid-body guitar by attaching a Gibson neck to a solid piece of wood…a railroad tie, hence the name “Log.”

Around this same time, guitarist Merle Travis and engineer Paul Bigsby developed a solid-body electric guitar that resembled the solid-body guitars that we’re so familiar with today.

The First Mass Produced Electric Guitar

Leo Fender in 1950 was the first to mass produce an electric guitar which was originally called the Fender Broadcaster. This guitar was quickly re-named to the infamous Telecaster because the name “Broadcaster” was already being used by another company. Leo followed this up in 1954 with the most renowned guitar of all time…the Stratocaster.

Leo’s success led other guitar manufacturers into developing their own mass-produced electric guitars. Most notable was the teaming-up of the Gibson guitar company with Les Paul to create the famous Gibson Les Paul electric guitar.

More Affordable Electric Guitars

During the 1960’s and 1970’s famous brand name electric guitars were too expensive for the average person to buy. Less pricey imitations quickly came to market but they were sub-standard in sound and playability. The Japanese, in the 1980’s started manufacturing electric guitars of similar quality to the more expensive American made models, but with much more affordable pricing. This prompted Fender and other leading guitar manufacturers into producing less expensive versions of their classic models. This resulted in electric guitars now being more affordable and accessible to more people.

Today, the Gibson and Fender guitar companies are still producing some of the most well-known and best made electric guitars on the market. But it’s getting crowded with other high quality brands such as BC Rich, ESP and Peavey. Innovative designs, shapes and materials are being incorporated with new technologies to produce better sounding electric guitars.

Modern guitars have built-in software allowing them to sound like other types of guitars. Some are even fitted with pickups that synthesize the sound of different instruments or record the notes in musical notation.

The electric guitar has come a long way with an interesting and inventive past and many in the industry say it has an even brighter future.

The History of The Electric Guitar: How Music Was Changed Forever

by: Bob Martin

In The Beginning

The guitar’s soft melodic tone made it difficult for people to hear it when being played alongside other instruments. So during the 1930’s an inventive individual decided to change that and invented the first electric guitar. Little did he know, or have imagined way back then how the invention of the electric guitar would significantly affect the course of 20th century music.

Like most new things, the electric guitar had its critics but it quickly won people over because of its ability to allow musicians to play much more creatively and express their own individual styles.

The First Pickup

In 1924 an inventive engineer working for the Gibson guitar company named Lloyd Loar, designed the first magnetic pickup. Using a magnet, he converted guitar string vibrations into electrical signals, which then were amplified through a speaker system. This first pickup was crude, but it was a great beginning.

The First Electric Guitar

In 1931 the Electro String Company was founded by Paul Barth, George Beauchamp and Adolph Rickenbacker, and developed the first electric guitars marketed to the general public. They made their guitars from cast aluminum and were played on a person’s lap using a steel slide much like today's steel guitar. Because of their unusual material, they were affectionately called “Frying Pans.”

The early success of the frying pans prompted the Gibson guitar company to build their first electric guitar, the ES-150 which is a legend today.

The First Solid-Body Electric Guitar

Electric guitars were quickly becoming popular, even though there was a major problem with their construction. Their bodies would vibrate due to the amplified sounds coming through the speakers they were played into, causing what we know as feed-back. The obvious remedy was to build a guitar made with a solid body which wouldn’t vibrate so easily.

As with most innovations, there is controversy over who invented the first solid –body electric guitar. Guitar legend Les Paul in the 1940’s developed his affectionately called “The Log” solid-body guitar by attaching a Gibson neck to a solid piece of wood…a railroad tie, hence the name “Log.”

Around this same time, guitarist Merle Travis and engineer Paul Bigsby developed a solid-body electric guitar that resembled the solid-body guitars that we’re so familiar with today.

The First Mass Produced Electric Guitar

Leo Fender in 1950 was the first to mass produce an electric guitar which was originally called the Fender Broadcaster. This guitar was quickly re-named to the infamous Telecaster because the name “Broadcaster” was already being used by another company. Leo followed this up in 1954 with the most renowned guitar of all time…the Stratocaster.

Leo’s success led other guitar manufacturers into developing their own mass-produced electric guitars. Most notable was the teaming-up of the Gibson guitar company with Les Paul to create the famous Gibson Les Paul electric guitar.

More Affordable Electric Guitars

During the 1960’s and 1970’s famous brand name electric guitars were too expensive for the average person to buy. Less pricey imitations quickly came to market but they were sub-standard in sound and playability. The Japanese, in the 1980’s started manufacturing electric guitars of similar quality to the more expensive American made models, but with much more affordable pricing. This prompted Fender and other leading guitar manufacturers into producing less expensive versions of their classic models. This resulted in electric guitars now being more affordable and accessible to more people.

Today, the Gibson and Fender guitar companies are still producing some of the most well-known and best made electric guitars on the market. But it’s getting crowded with other high quality brands such as BC Rich, ESP and Peavey. Innovative designs, shapes and materials are being incorporated with new technologies to produce better sounding electric guitars.

Modern guitars have built-in software allowing them to sound like other types of guitars. Some are even fitted with pickups that synthesize the sound of different instruments or record the notes in musical notation.

The electric guitar has come a long way with an interesting and inventive past and many in the industry say it has an even brighter future.

Learning How To Play The Guitar Could Be Quicker and Easier Using Tutorial DVD’s

by: Gary Wilkinson

When you pick up your guitar you want to start to be able to play your favourite songs as soon as you can. Let’s face it - learning to play the guitar should be fun and not boring or frustrating.

Nowadays there are so many methods to teach you how to play the guitar and you should find the one that works best for you. If you find it boring learning from a book and you can't afford a private guitar tutor, then I recommend that you learn how to play the guitar with a professional guitar DVD.

Where Do You Get A Guitar Tutorial DVD?

The good news is that there are many DVDs available on the market today that can teach you how to play the guitar. Many of them are created by real guitar pros of all ages. You can find these DVD’s in music stores or you can order them from a virtual music shops on the Internet or ebay.

Before you buy though make sure that you choose a learning program that works for you. If you're purchasing it online, a great tip is to look for reviews and feedback from other buyers. My advice is that it is better to choose a learn guitar easy DVD that has a 90-day money back guarantee so that you can send it back if you are not satisfied. Most professional online tutors will have this option proudly displayed on their websites. If you are buying it from a music store, then the staff will usually be very helpful and can recommend you one that suits your current level.

Are There Benefits To Learn To Play The Guitar Using These DVD’s?

If you are like me and find it easier to sit and watch a tutor in action rather than just reading from a book then you will indeed benefit from a guitar tutorial DVD. Some DVDs are excellent and really will make it easier to learn how to play the guitar quickly and easily.

The good news is that they are not very expensive and most of them offer a no quibble money back guarantee if you find they don't meet your learning needs (such as being too advanced or too basic). A big bonus is that you get to practice in your own home, as often as you want, without wasting time on travelling to guitar classes and you can keep watching a certain part of the DVD over and over again so that the information really sinks in without having to be embarrassed by asking a tutor to repeat the exercise.

I don’t like to make the learning curve any harder than it is already and try to make life easier for myself so I find learning how to play the guitar DVD’s definitely make the learning process fun and entertaining. It is usually more successful in keeping you focused and interested than learning from a theory book, which can be heavy and hard going. Guitar DVD’s show you exactly how to play and demonstrations on how you should sound like which is a big, big plus!

Are There Any Disadvantages To Using How To Play The Guitar DVD’s?

On the whole I would say not. They are usually very good value for money and will help you to be able to play the guitar much more quickly than if you were trying to learn to play by yourself.

However, while you can learn how to play the guitar quickly and easily on DVD, some would argue that it cannot compete with a private teacher. For example a DVD provides a standard teaching program and is not customized to suit your individual learning style. It is more generic for a large audience whereas a teacher can design the method he/she uses to meet your learning needs and requirements.

Another thing to consider is that although it shows it how you should play, a guitar tutorial DVD cannot tell you when you're making a mistake and how to correct it. A guitar teacher can only really provide this kind of constructive feedback. A guitar tutor can be truly inspirational and offer positive feedback when you're progressing which will keep you motivated and dedicated to continue playing your guitar, but a guitar ‘how-to’ DVD won't know if what you're playing is good or bad.

So there you have it. If you can afford it, I’d recommend a private tutor as it is probably the most recommended learning strategy by all of the experts but a guitar tutorial on DVD can is definitely an acceptable compromise for people like me who get bored with theory books, but don't have the time and money to pay a professional guitar teacher.

Whichever method you choose, make sure that you enjoy it. Make it fun and continue to practise as often as you can and I promise that you will learn to play the guitar much more quickly than you first imagined.

Let me know how you get on.

Best wishes

The Guitar Pro