Intonation
It is generally understood that the pitch of a vibrating string depends on the tension and length of the string, but the diameter of the string also affects this property. To help keep a guitar string in tune at every fret along the length of the neck, the length of the open string must be set very precisely.
Many electric guitars provide a means for adjusting the intonation by moving the bridge or individual saddles. It may be possible to adjust the intonation of an acoustic guitar by replacing the saddle.
created at 12:12 on September 27, 2009 by Jason Busse