Electric Bass Guitar Repair in Spokane, WA

The electric bass is my first love. While it is a relatively simple machine, the set up can be quite personal to your playing style. When you drop off your guitar for a set up with Cole Music Co. we will ask you a series of questions about how you play, your preferences, and what issues you may be having with your instrument. From there we can tailor the setup to get the most out of your bass. We also do free adjustments for 30 days after your instrument is set up. Need something tweaked a bit for your style...no problem, we will make the adjustments quickly and with no additional charges. Not only have we worked on thousands of instruments, we build them from scratch. We are well equiped to handle all the heavy repairs other shops are not able to perform.

Restring…..$20

Remove old strings; clean and hydrate the fretboard; polish the fret; tighten the tuners; install new strings.

Complete Set up….$75

Adjust the truss rod; adjust string height at the nut; adjust action at the saddle/bridge (including individual string height on Tune-A-Matic style bridges); set intonation; adjust tailpiece height; tighten tuners; adjust pickup height; check electronics; tighten tuners and other hardware; clean and restring. *”Set neck” and “Bolt on neck” guitars are surprisingly different in how they are set up. We have perfected a series of adjustements specific to each design. In the cases where a “Bolt on neck” needs to have the neck angle adjusted we use specially tailored “tapered shims” to ensure stabilty, increase tone, and avoid air pockets between the neck and body.

New Bone Nut….$65

A well made nut is an extremely important to the tone and playability of your electric bass. A properly cut nut can improve tone, tuning stability, ease of play, sustain, and even intonation. We can custom cut a new bone nut specifically for your instrument and we don’t use pre-made nuts, or inferior plastic nuts. Graphite, ebony, brass, Tusque, pearl, and Mammoth (legally sourced) are all available by request.

FRET WORK

Fret work is one of the most important, and often overlooked, variable in bass guitar set up. Professional level fret work is one of the things that separates a “luthier” from a “guitar tech” and is one of the most requested services we perform. If you want low action, those frets have to be perfect! Contrary to popular belief, having your frets “Plekked” is essentially having a “fret level” done by a machine, and will never be as good as what a skilled luthier can do. We perform all of our fretwork in house and is one of our most requested services.

Fret Level…..$110 (maple fretboard add $15)

We take measurements of the truss rod relief, nut height, and string height at the 12 fret; adjust truss rod; level all the frets; recrown and polish all the frets; clean and restring; set the bass guitar back up to the “original specs” using the measurements we took at the beginning of the procedure.

Individual Fret Replacement….$25 each + Fret Level

Not every bass guitar with worn frets needs a “complete refret”. Often times we can replace worn frets individually and follow up with a “fret level (see above)”, seamlessly blending in the new frets with the old. This not only saves money, it helps to preserve “originality” of an instrument. Depending on the instrument, a new nut is sometimes required after individual fret replacement.

Complete Refret….$399 ($499 for stainless steel)

A complete refret is a very challenging repair and should only be performed by an experienced luthier. This procedure is one of the things that sets a “luthier” apart from a “repair tech” and takes years to perfect. As vintage bass guitar experts, as well as builders of high end electric guitars, we are well versed in the art of fretwork and are equipped to handle “bound necks”, ebony fretboards (which are prone to “chipping”) and maple necks (which require specific procedures for different years of Fender production, as well as finish touchups). Additional charges may be incurred for ebony and maple boards. Quite often a new nut will be required after a complete refret.

Fretless conversion….$300 and up, depending on the situation.

ELECTRICAL WORK

Quality electrical work is imperative to a properly performing electrical bass guitar, and is often overlooked by both players and techs. Just because it is hidden under a control plate or a pickguard does not mean it can be sloppy! In addition to repairing guitars and amps, we build guitars, pickups, amplifiers and effects pedals...this means we take our solder work very seriously. Getting the most out of your electric bass guitar means keeping those electrons flowing as freely as possible, every extraneous bit of wire and solder has the ability to impair that flow of electrons...and therefore your tone. We stock a variety of CTS and Bourn’s pots, various “Paper and Oil” and polypro tone caps, Switchcraft and CTS switches and jacks, as well as our own line of custom Silverhand pickups. We are admittedly “tone snobs” and are happy to help you find that tone you have been searching for.

Pickup Install….$45 each

We remove the original pickup; clean the old solder from pot/switch; install new pickup; adjust pickup height; clean and restring. We stock Silver Hand Pickups and can special order several other boutique brands.

Pot or Output Jack Replacement….$25 each

Switch Replacement…..$35 each

Preamp Installation….Can do! Custom routing, passive to active conversions, we can help.

Custom Circuit Mods….$ by estimate

Want a kill switch?...no problem! Coil tap?...let’s do it! Custom pickup selectors?...bring it! Peizo Bridge wired?...piece of cake! Custom LED effects...well, let's talk, but we’re not sayin’ “no”!

OTHER STUFF

Having worked on thousands of bass guitars (literally) over the past 15+ years, there is probably not a repair or mod we haven’t been asked to perform. Having an extremely well outfitted shop, as well as the experience, is crucial to ensuring “non reversible mods” come out at a professional level. Since we build guitars, electronic devices, as well as wind pickups, our resources outshine those of even the big guys. The following is a small sample of the custom services we offer:

Remove a broken screw…$35+

(Seriously, let us fix that for you! I put this one at the top because many techs don’t know a broken strap button or tuner screw can be removed and repaired like it never happened)

Custom Routing….$75+

We can rout your guitar body for different pickups, modify your pickguard for various configurations, install a Floyd Rose and locking nut, even fill in previous routes...we got’s the tools!

Tuner Replacement….$45+

Install new tuners, clean and restring. Modification/Drilling the guitar to accept new tuners will be estimated after evaluation. Parts in addition to labor.

Structural Repair….$ by estimate

Broken necks and headstocks, punched in output jacks, leaning Tune-A-Matic bridges, vandolism, we’ve seen it all. We hate to see ‘em come in, but we love to see ‘em leave...repaired.

Threaded Inserts for Bolt on Necks….$25 each

Got a squirrely neck? Need to travel with your favorite Fender and would like to pack it in your overhead baggage? Want better tonal transmission form the strings to the body? We can convert your Bolt on neck guitar from wood screw attachment to using threaded bolts and neck inserts, just like we do on our Hollowtop guitars!

Other Stuff….$ by estimate

What do you have in mind….lets talk!

CNC Time….$ by estimate

We have a CNC machine! Do you have files for a one off design, or small run you want to try? We may be able to help.