How Do I Upgrade My Guitar? A Practical Guide to Getting More From Your Axe
So you've been playing your guitar for a while now, and maybe you're wondering... could this thing sound better? Feel better? The good news: absolutely. The even better news: you've got more options than you might think, and a lot of them won't break the bank.
Let's walk through the real ways to upgrade your guitar, from quick wins to deeper dives. We build handwired harnesses, loaded pickguards, control plates, and pickups all day here at 920D Custom, so we'll point out where we can help along the way.
Written by 920D Custom • Updated
WHERE TO START
Start with what bugs you most
Here's the thing about guitar upgrades. You could throw money at every component, but if you're not solving the actual problem you're hearing or feeling, you're just spending for the sake of spending.
Ask yourself: what's actually bothering you? Is your tone muddy or thin? Are your tuners slipping? Does the action feel like you're wrestling a bear? Start there. The best upgrade is the one that fixes your specific frustration.
Ask yourself: what's actually bothering you? Is your tone muddy or thin? Are your tuners slipping? Does the action feel like you're wrestling a bear? Start there. The best upgrade is the one that fixes your specific frustration.
TONE & SUSTAIN
The big impact upgrades
Some upgrades just punch above their weight. These are the changes that make people say "wait, is that the same guitar?"
Pickups are usually the heavyweight champion here. If your guitar sounds lifeless or just kind of... blah... pickups are probably your culprit. Stock pickups on budget guitars often use cheaper magnets and thinner wire. Swapping them out can completely transform your sound. The tricky part? There are about a million options, so you'll want to think about your genre and the tonal qualities you're chasing. Check out our pickups on our site! You can get them loaded with a harness or by the set.
The nut might seem like a tiny piece of plastic or bone, but it's one of the contact points where your strings transfer energy. A worn or poorly cut nut kills sustain and causes tuning headaches. Upgrading to a bone or brass nut (or Tusq if you want consistency) can improve resonance and tuning stability in one shot.
Your bridge and saddles are the other contact point that matters. If you've got a cheapo bridge with rough saddles, you're losing tone and probably having intonation issues. A quality bridge upgrade improves sustain, tuning stability, and makes string changes less of a nightmare.
Pickups are usually the heavyweight champion here. If your guitar sounds lifeless or just kind of... blah... pickups are probably your culprit. Stock pickups on budget guitars often use cheaper magnets and thinner wire. Swapping them out can completely transform your sound. The tricky part? There are about a million options, so you'll want to think about your genre and the tonal qualities you're chasing. Check out our pickups on our site! You can get them loaded with a harness or by the set.
The nut might seem like a tiny piece of plastic or bone, but it's one of the contact points where your strings transfer energy. A worn or poorly cut nut kills sustain and causes tuning headaches. Upgrading to a bone or brass nut (or Tusq if you want consistency) can improve resonance and tuning stability in one shot.
Your bridge and saddles are the other contact point that matters. If you've got a cheapo bridge with rough saddles, you're losing tone and probably having intonation issues. A quality bridge upgrade improves sustain, tuning stability, and makes string changes less of a nightmare.
PLAYABILITY
The feel upgrades
Sound isn't everything. If your guitar feels like a chore to play, you won't pick it up.
A proper setup is technically not an "upgrade," but it's the first thing you should do before spending a dime on parts. Action height, neck relief, intonation... getting these dialed in can make a mediocre guitar feel fantastic. You can learn to do this yourself with a ruler, some Allen wrenches, and patience, or pay a tech fifty bucks. Either way, do this first.
Tuners are an underrated upgrade. If you're constantly retuning between songs (or worse, mid-song), quality locking tuners will change your life. They also make string changes about ten times faster.
Fret work makes a massive difference in playability. If your frets are scratchy, uneven, or worn down, a level and crown job from a good tech will make your guitar feel like it just came off a custom shop bench. For guitars with small frets, upgrading to medium or jumbo frets during a refret can completely change the playing experience.
A proper setup is technically not an "upgrade," but it's the first thing you should do before spending a dime on parts. Action height, neck relief, intonation... getting these dialed in can make a mediocre guitar feel fantastic. You can learn to do this yourself with a ruler, some Allen wrenches, and patience, or pay a tech fifty bucks. Either way, do this first.
Tuners are an underrated upgrade. If you're constantly retuning between songs (or worse, mid-song), quality locking tuners will change your life. They also make string changes about ten times faster.
Fret work makes a massive difference in playability. If your frets are scratchy, uneven, or worn down, a level and crown job from a good tech will make your guitar feel like it just came off a custom shop bench. For guitars with small frets, upgrading to medium or jumbo frets during a refret can completely change the playing experience.
FOR TINKERERS
The electronics deep dive
This is where things get fun if you like to tinker.
Your pots and capacitors control your tone and volume. Stock electronics on cheaper guitars often use low-quality pots that get scratchy or don't taper smoothly. Upgrading to CTS pots and quality caps (Orange Drop, Sprague, whatever fits your vibe) gives you more usable range on your knobs and can clear up muddy tones.
The wiring harness as a whole can be replaced if you want a plug-and-play solution. Our pre-wired harnesses you can drop right in. Not quite as custom as building your own, but way easier if you're not confident with a soldering iron yet. This is basically our bread and butter at 920D Custom, every harness is handwired, so you're not stuck guessing whether some mystery mass-produced unit will actually fit or sound right in your guitar.
Adding switching options opens up new sounds from the pickups you already have. Coil splits, phase switches, series-parallel wiring. This is more advanced territory, but totally doable with some research and careful soldering, or we offer most of the possible mods out there. Send us an email if you aren't sure what you want!
Your pots and capacitors control your tone and volume. Stock electronics on cheaper guitars often use low-quality pots that get scratchy or don't taper smoothly. Upgrading to CTS pots and quality caps (Orange Drop, Sprague, whatever fits your vibe) gives you more usable range on your knobs and can clear up muddy tones.
The wiring harness as a whole can be replaced if you want a plug-and-play solution. Our pre-wired harnesses you can drop right in. Not quite as custom as building your own, but way easier if you're not confident with a soldering iron yet. This is basically our bread and butter at 920D Custom, every harness is handwired, so you're not stuck guessing whether some mystery mass-produced unit will actually fit or sound right in your guitar.
Adding switching options opens up new sounds from the pickups you already have. Coil splits, phase switches, series-parallel wiring. This is more advanced territory, but totally doable with some research and careful soldering, or we offer most of the possible mods out there. Send us an email if you aren't sure what you want!
LOOKS MATTER TOO
The visual upgrades
Let's be honest... sometimes you just want your guitar to look cooler. Nothing wrong with that.
New knobs, pickup covers, pickguards, truss rod covers... these don't change your sound, but they make your guitar feel more like yours. A beat-up guitar with mismatched plastic parts just hits different once you've personalized the aesthetics. If you want to knock out looks and tone in one shot, a loaded pickguard is a nice shortcut, ours come pre-wired with the pickups and electronics already installed, so you get the fresh look and a fresh sound in a single swap.
A professional refinish or custom paint job is the ultimate visual upgrade. This one's pricey and permanent (well, sort of), so make sure you're committed. But if you've got a player-grade guitar with a finish you hate, a new coat of paint can make you fall in love with it all over again.
New knobs, pickup covers, pickguards, truss rod covers... these don't change your sound, but they make your guitar feel more like yours. A beat-up guitar with mismatched plastic parts just hits different once you've personalized the aesthetics. If you want to knock out looks and tone in one shot, a loaded pickguard is a nice shortcut, ours come pre-wired with the pickups and electronics already installed, so you get the fresh look and a fresh sound in a single swap.
A professional refinish or custom paint job is the ultimate visual upgrade. This one's pricey and permanent (well, sort of), so make sure you're committed. But if you've got a player-grade guitar with a finish you hate, a new coat of paint can make you fall in love with it all over again.
UPGRADE VS. REPLACE
What about just buying a better guitar?
Fair question. Sometimes the math doesn't math, and you'd be better off selling what you have and buying something nicer.
Here's my rule of thumb: if the cost of upgrades approaches 50 to 75 percent of what a significantly better guitar would cost, just buy the better guitar. But if you've got a solid foundation (good neck, good body wood, decent construction), upgrading can get you 90 percent of a custom shop guitar for a fraction of the price.
Also consider the sentimental value. If this was your first guitar, or it's got history, upgrading it might be worth it even if the math says otherwise. No shame in that.
Here's my rule of thumb: if the cost of upgrades approaches 50 to 75 percent of what a significantly better guitar would cost, just buy the better guitar. But if you've got a solid foundation (good neck, good body wood, decent construction), upgrading can get you 90 percent of a custom shop guitar for a fraction of the price.
Also consider the sentimental value. If this was your first guitar, or it's got history, upgrading it might be worth it even if the math says otherwise. No shame in that.
DIY OR PRO?
Can I actually do this myself?
Some of this? Absolutely. Other parts? Maybe call in a professional.
Swapping pickups, electronics, tuners, nuts, and bridges are all doable at home with basic tools and some YouTube tutorials. Take your time, stay organized (label your wires!), and don't be afraid to test as you go. A pre-wired harness from 920D makes this one even more approachable, since the soldering between pots, switch, and jack is already done for you. All that's left is connecting your pickups and grounds.
Fretwork, neck resets, and refinishing are specialist territory unless you really know what you're doing. A bad fret job can ruin a neck. A botched refinish can tank your resale value. For these jobs, find a trusted luthier or guitar tech.
Swapping pickups, electronics, tuners, nuts, and bridges are all doable at home with basic tools and some YouTube tutorials. Take your time, stay organized (label your wires!), and don't be afraid to test as you go. A pre-wired harness from 920D makes this one even more approachable, since the soldering between pots, switch, and jack is already done for you. All that's left is connecting your pickups and grounds.
Fretwork, neck resets, and refinishing are specialist territory unless you really know what you're doing. A bad fret job can ruin a neck. A botched refinish can tank your resale value. For these jobs, find a trusted luthier or guitar tech.
The bottom line
Upgrading your guitar isn't about turning a Squier® into a Custom Shop Fender®. It's about taking what you have and making it work better for you.
Start with the problem you're trying to solve. Invest in the upgrades that address that specific issue. And remember: even small changes can make your guitar more inspiring to play, which is really the whole point anyway.
Your guitar doesn't have to be perfect. It just has to be perfect for you. And if the plan involves new pickups, a harness, or a loaded pickguard, that's exactly what we handwire here at 920D Custom, so feel free to poke around the shop or reach out if you want a second opinion on parts.
Start with the problem you're trying to solve. Invest in the upgrades that address that specific issue. And remember: even small changes can make your guitar more inspiring to play, which is really the whole point anyway.
Your guitar doesn't have to be perfect. It just has to be perfect for you. And if the plan involves new pickups, a harness, or a loaded pickguard, that's exactly what we handwire here at 920D Custom, so feel free to poke around the shop or reach out if you want a second opinion on parts.