I've been playing in A standard for a while and I've been using D'Addario Medium Baritone strings on an SG. The problem is that the strings always pull sharp when played high up on the neck. I need to come up with a custom set of strings to correct this. I have a set already figured out, but I was wondering if some knowledgeable person could tell me if these would provide proper tension and prevent warping.

6th .70
5th .59
4th .48
3rd .36
2nd .26
1st .17

Thanks.

How on earth did Demilich keep their shit in key?

Tuning and intonation issues can be caused by several things.

Loose strings are definitely a part of that, and the string set you have chosen looks VERY nice for A Standard on a 24.75" guitar. I would recommend getting a baritone, with a 27" or 28" scale length. That would help with intonation and also with your tone.

However, if the bridge isn't set up correctly, then NO strings will sound right. Check the intonation by getting a strobe tuner and checking the 12th fret harmonic with the 12th fret note. Adjust until they're equal on all strings.

If the neck is severely bowed, that might be causing intonation issues. Check for neck bow by holding down the low E string at the 1st and 14th frets, and looking at the clearance of the string on the 6th fret. There should be enough room to slide a business card in there. Adjust the truss rod until you've got the ideal bow.

Lastly, if the nut is cut too high, this could cause notes to pull sharp on the first few frets. High action at the bridge might cause a similar phenomenon but it'd be a lot less noticeable.

Aren't strobe tuners ridiculously expensive, like in the $200s?
And when you said the string set that I've chosen, you meant the gauges that I listed and not the set I'm using now, correct?
How would I go about setting up the bridge, just in case that is the problem?

There's also that whole issue of frets themselves going sharp/flat/whatever. I can't quite remember how to explain it, but Charlie Hunter and Steve Vai both use slanted frets so every note on every string is in tune. Might be worth looking into.

I meant the "custom" gauges

As for setting up your bridge, that depends on what type of bridge you have. If its your first time doing adjustments like this, I'd take it to a tech or a friend that can do this, and have them show you how its done.

Yes, strobe tuners are pretty expensive. But the accuracy is crucial for set ups.

Which do you think is a better choice?

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/ ... sku=210056

or

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/ ... sku=210079

I've got a tune-o-matic bridge btw, just the one that came stock with the guitar. It's the only thing on it that I didn't have replaced or modified.