In this lesson, learn how to improve your electric guitar with upgrades. You can do simple things that will significantly enhance your electric guitar's performance and playability.
Reflect your personality
What is great about playing an electric guitar compared to an acoustic is that you can easily make it your own. You can easily do things to it that reflect your personality. Simple things, like reshaping the neck profile, or on some models, you can even replace the neck. You can change out the pickguard, pickups, bridge, and volume knob. All to make the guitar uniquely one of a kind.
Upgrade examples:
Enhance the neck profile for easier playing
This is an option that does take some time and skill. I would only recommend doing it if you feel confident in sanding and shaping wood. If so, you can make the neck profile more to your liking. In this example, I wanted the neck to be a bit thinner.
So I, took the neck off of the body, grabbed some different degree sandpaper, and started sanding and shaping the neck. This took some time to get it like I wanted, but in the end, I sanded it down to be more to my liking. Now the neck feels the way I want it to.
Upgrade the nut and tuning keys
One of the easiest things you can do that will help keep your guitar in tune better is to upgrade the nut and tuning keys. Sometimes on less expensive guitars, the nut and tuning keys aren't as good, and this causes the guitar to not stay in tune as well as you'd like. By upgrading the these with better ones, the tuning stabilizes and performs better.
Gotoh tuning keys
These are excellent tuners. They are machined well, made with hardened steel, and come in chrome, black, and gold. Replacing your tuning keys is fairly simple and can be done fairly quickly. This simple upgrade can make a huge difference in your guitar's performance.
If you're having issues with your guitar staying in tune, and you ever decide to upgrade your guitar tuning keys, I highly recommend you check these out. They are well-made and will last a lifetime. I have them on all my guitars, and they work great!
Upgrade the bridge for better string stability
The bridge makes a huge difference in the guitar tuning stability. Especially if you have a floating tremolo style of bridge like the one above. These types of bridges have springs in the back to pull them back, while the strings in the front pull the bridge forward. This concept allows the bridge to "float," as they call it. It just pivots on two posts at the end of the bridge.
This allows you to not only lower the pitch of the note, like on a Fender-style bridge, but also allows you to raise the pitch of the note. This can allow you to make some pretty cool sounds with your guitar. And once the guitar nut is locked down (see picture above in the replacing tuning keys section), all tuning stability is on the bridge.
GOTOH floating tremolo bridge
Enter the GOTOH floating tremolo bridge. As you can see from the picture, this bridge is well crafted. Machine quality is also made with hardened steel. This makes a huge difference in the tuning stability of an electric guitar.
Although I use floating tremolos, they do have other styles that will work with your guitar if your bridge is different and you want to upgrade. You can easily find these on Amazon, and that is where I got mine. I have them on all my guitars that I have upgraded. If you decide to upgrade your bridge, GOTOH is the brand I recommend.
Watch the video lesson below.
Upgrade your pickups
This is probably the most common upgrade that guitar players do to improve their sound. Upgrading their pickups. In less expensive guitars, these are not the greatest. Good enough to do the job, but don't bring out the clarity in notes that upgraded pickups will. So, if you think your guitar tone sounds kind of dull, this might be something to consider.
Now, since these have wires attached to them, they are a little more difficult to replace than the bridge or tuning keys. You can either DIY by watching YouTube videos or have a friend help, or you can take it to a professional guitar tech who knows how to do it. It is up to you. It just comes down to you learning how to do it or having someone do it for you.
Dimarzio pickups
When it comes to guitar pickups, there are many to choose from. I prefer Dimarzio. These are great pickups and are usually installed in a lot of high-end guitars. They produce a nice, clear tone for clean sounds, as well as a nice, thick mid-range tone for high-gain sounds.
I recommend you do some research and see what type works best for you. It all comes down to your playing style and how you approach the guitar. Upgraded pickups can make a huge difference in your playing. especially if you play rock guitar. Because with this style of music, you want a nice, clear blasting tone, and Dimarzio pickups will give you that, and much more.
Final thoughts on upgrades
As you can see, when it comes to making your guitar perform better, there are many things you can do. But it comes down to your commitment to the instrument. What I mean is that you can make all the upgrades you want, but if you commit to practicing every day isn't there, all the upgrades won't make a difference.
But if you are, then it's just a matter of finding the right parts to improve your guitar's playing ability. Above are my recommendations, but I strongly suggest that you do research and see what brands and types work best for you. This can be a fun adventure. But make sure you are committed to playing the guitar, not just making it look good.
Private instruction is also available
So make sure that you are committed to playing the instrument the best you can, and you'll sound great! And if help is needed in this area, I do offer private guitar instruction. Customized lessons that cater to the interests and skill level of the student.
These can be a great way to learn as they provide quick results, a better understanding, and a fun, easy way to learn. So, if you feel this might work for you, feel free to contact me at my website, and we'll set up a time to talk.
Thanks for your time, and best of luck.
Until our next lesson, take care.
Sincerely, Dwayne Jenkins
