Q&A for How to Adjust Intonation on Bass

Avoid leaving it out. Always keep it in a case or covered with humidity control, especially for guitars without a truss rod. As far as physical appearance, avoid sunlight for long periods of time, which will fade and damage the guitar. Avoid severe heat, severe cold, and severe moisture. Keep it in that perfect temperature range of around 68 degrees to 72 degrees. As far as dust and dirt and oils go, make sure that the guitar is cleaned properly before putting it away. Wipe down all the strings. Make sure there's no oil from your hands or other things on the face, top, or sides of the guitar, which can get into the guitar or damage the varnish. There are whole kits that come with everything such as oil cleaner, wax, and fret polish. It's important to clean in between the frets, where dirt and grime can go because those can wear down the frets faster.

One of the harder things is keeping your focus and not losing your place when dealing with different strings. Also, learning different patterns can be difficult such as different walks, runs, and structural patterns on the baselines. It also wears on your hands a lot more than any other guitar because it's heavier. If you don't have a callus, you'll definitely develop one.

If they quickly come out of tune, then they are old. Also check if they are rusty.

You need to adjust the intonation in any tuning. The tuning of your bass refers to which strings are tuned to what note, intonation is making sure the tone is exactly on the pitch you want it to be. For example, drop D tuning would be tuning the bottom string of your bass to D, while adjusting intonation is making sure it is exactly on D, not a few cents sharp or flat.