nickvz Posted August 14, 2011 Share Posted August 14, 2011 Hey guys I just moved today to Quito for University, but the deal is that Quito is a totally different environment compared to where i used to live(Guayaquil)and i wonder how this will affect my guitar for example my biggest concern is that I'm bringing my guitar from an altitude of sea level( were i used to live) to about 9300ft (2800mts).... from a hot humid place, to a cold dry place... i brought with me my gibson les paul studio and a self-made electric guitar with tremolo( strat style)...but what should i check over here? trust rod? intonation? what should i look out for? like i know i should detune the guitar when i take it on a plane because the change in altitude would make the string tension increase and strain the neck and possibly break it, so my concern is what should i look out for/take care/check constantly now that i live in a higher altitude? thanks in advance! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlanH Posted August 14, 2011 Share Posted August 14, 2011 Hey guys I just moved today to Quito for University, but the deal is that Quito is a totally different environment compared to where i used to live(Guayaquil)and i wonder how this will affect my guitar for example my biggest concern is that I'm bringing my guitar from an altitude of sea level( were i used to live) to about 9300ft (2800mts).... from a hot humid place, to a cold dry place... i brought with me my gibson les paul studio and a self-made electric guitar with tremolo( strat style)...but what should i check over here? trust rod? intonation? what should i look out for? like i know i should detune the guitar when i take it on a plane because the change in altitude would make the string tension increase and strain the neck and possibly break it, so my concern is what should i look out for/take care/check constantly now that i live in a higher altitude? thanks in advance! I wouldn't think that altitude itself would affect your guitar, just the changes in cold and humidity. I live in the UK and we can get very cold days in the winter (-15C, where central heating causes lots of dry air indoors) and then you can get 30C plus in the summer with a lot of humidity. These extremes usually only occur for a few days/weeks at a time. Otherwise it's generally overcast and mild all year with maybe on 10C difference between summer and winter tempteratures. Despite the occasional extremes, I don't experience problems that require a set up in most cases. I'm lucky, in that our house is older having a double layer of bricks with cavity wall insulation between them. This helps to keep the indoor temperatures warmer in winter and cooler in summer. So, just protect your guitar from extremes by keeping it in the case and allowing it to slowly acclimatise before opening it if you've gone from very hot to very cold conditions. Also store it in a room which is subject to the least temperature fluctations. It may just need setting up now you are in Quito. If you're going to be moving between tropical low lying and tropical mountainous climates regularly then you'd be better off learning how to do set ups and tweaks yourself. I'd advise buying the book How to Make your Electric Guitar Play Great by Dan Erlewine. IMO, you far bigger concern is what the airline will be doing with it and how you protect it against that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nickvz Posted August 14, 2011 Author Share Posted August 14, 2011 I wouldn't think that altitude itself would affect your guitar, just the changes in cold and humidity. I live in the UK and we can get very cold days in the winter (-15C) where lots of dry air from central heating and then 30C plus in the summer with a lot of humidity. Despite this, I don't experience any problems requiring set ups in most cases. I'm lucky, in that our house is older having a double layer of bricks with cavity wall insulation between them. This helps to keep the indoor temperatures warmer in winter and cooler in summer. So, just protect your guitar from extremes by keeping it in the case and allowing it to slowly acclimatise before opening it if you've gone from very hot to very cold conditions. Also store it in a room which is subject to the least temperature fluctations. It may just need setting up now you are in Quito. If you're going to be moving between tropical low lying and tropical mountainous climates regularly then you'd be better off learning how to do set ups and tweaks yourself. I'd advise buying the book How to Make your Electric Guitar Play Great by Dan Erlewine. IMO, you far bigger concern is what the airline will be doing with it and how you protect it against that. Thanks for the reply! I do know how to make small tweaks like intonation , string height, basic electronics, i just haven't done anything mayor like adjusting the trust rod or stuff like that...but i'll surely check out that book... and yeah airlines suck, once i brought a guitar from france and when i got home they nicely told me, sir we accidentally left your guitar case in france because it had the fragile stickers so we were going to place it on the plane at the end so there weren't bags on top of it, but apparently none of the fragile stuff from any passengers got into the plane, we should be able to have your luggage here by tomorrow. But do you think they got it here? apparently all the fragile stuff from my flight was mixed up and added to the next flight going out from that airport in france , meaning my guitar was now unclaimed luggage in some random country...long story short...i finally got my guitar a week after my flight...thankfully it was in the same exact condition i had packed it. thats why I'm making the trip by car, its a lot longer but i kinda had to...im studying music production, so i had a lot of gear to bring. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angellus Posted August 15, 2011 Share Posted August 15, 2011 yeah for differences in temperature use your case as quarantine. this will help it adjust more subtle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kaicho8888 Posted August 19, 2011 Share Posted August 19, 2011 I travelled back and forth on weekends from zero altitude in San Francisco to North Tahoe about 8,700.. not problem. I've also had my guitar shipped in containers with other household items for a month or so to Saudi... no problem on my vintage guitars either. If coming from the cold to a warm house, let your guitar acclimate in the case before opening the case. Don't leave your guitar in the trunk during a hot summer day... General rule is if it's comfy for you, it's comfy for your baby. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nickvz Posted August 21, 2011 Author Share Posted August 21, 2011 I travelled back and forth on weekends from zero altitude in San Francisco to North Tahoe about 8,700.. not problem. I've also had my guitar shipped in containers with other household items for a month or so to Saudi... no problem on my vintage guitars either. If coming from the cold to a warm house, let your guitar acclimate in the case before opening the case. Don't leave your guitar in the trunk during a hot summer day... General rule is if it's comfy for you, it's comfy for your baby. thanks for the advice!!! As you said no problems have occurred so far and i've been living here for a week now...and yeah its never a good idea to expose your guitar to extreme climates... i prefer thinking a guitar as a woman... everything affects her... too damn cold, too damn hot, its too humid, its too dry, you name it and yet we can't live without them :lol: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nickvz Posted August 21, 2011 Author Share Posted August 21, 2011 yeah for differences in temperature use your case as quarantine. this will help it adjust more subtle. thanks man! will do Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kaicho8888 Posted September 1, 2011 Share Posted September 1, 2011 ... i prefer thinking a guitar as a woman... everything affects her... too damn cold, too damn hot, its too humid, its too dry, you name it and yet we can't live without them :lol: Good one Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest rogerb Posted September 7, 2011 Share Posted September 7, 2011 We recommend taking your guitar to a qualified guitar tech to have the truss rod adjusted. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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