cant get action lower

#1 09-04-2005, 10:54 PM

I am curently trying to set up my ibanez fretless blazer bass so that it has low action. but when it gets as low as other fretless basses to get that muah sound, the higher fret markers wont work. i dont know what i should do... get new strings? get a repair man to take a look? mess with the truss rod? im not even sure what the problem is....

jenderfazz · #2 09-04-2005, 11:24 PM

What do you mean, the higher fret markers won't work? You mean that it buzzes too much at the upper "frets"? Or do you mean the fretmarkers are out of tune (wild guess)?

JimmyM · #3 09-04-2005, 11:31 PM

Could be the truss rod, could be the neck needs sanded, could be you're just trying to get it way lower than it should ever go. That's something nobody could answer on here with any certainty. You need a professional opinion, so take it to a shop.

#4 09-05-2005, 02:14 AM

thanx for the feedback. it looks like the board needs sanding. it buzzes on the higher frets. but i cant understand why... because the strings are so high.

el_Kabong · #5 09-05-2005, 03:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Da Funk Docta

thanx for the feedback. it looks like the board needs sanding. it buzzes on the higher frets. but i cant understand why... because the strings are so high.

Could be that the nut is too high (ie the slots need to be cut deeper) and you're dropping your bridge saddles too low to try and compensate. Easy way to check is to capo the neck at the first 'fret' and measure the string to neck clearances at the second fret. Do this with the bass held as if you were playing it, not lying flat on it's back. Then take off the capo and measure the clearance at the first fret, it should be the same plus a bee's whisker. When the nut is correct readjust your truss rod and saddle heights to suit.

Figjam · #6 09-05-2005, 08:58 AM

Needs less neck relief. Tighten truss rod.

#7 09-05-2005, 03:18 PM

well my nut is practicly non-esistant, and my neck isn't shimmed. thanx for the replys tho

Figjam · #8 09-05-2005, 03:36 PM

Ill say again, tighten truss rod.

How high are the strings? :-/

#9 09-05-2005, 04:04 PM

when i tighten the truss rod anymore than it is, it makes the lower notes more buzzy, and the higher notes don't get any better...

Trevorus · #10 09-05-2005, 04:20 PM

It sounds like you may have a hum around the twelfth fret, maybe... Without being able to physically look down both ends of the neck, I couldn't say or certain. A lot of less expensive instruments tend to develop this problem

Figjam · #11 09-05-2005, 04:23 PM

Yes seeing it would help.

**BurningSkies** · #12 09-05-2005, 04:37 PM

Yup.

Sounds like a rise in the fingerboard right around the bolt-on joint.

#13 09-05-2005, 06:15 PM

thats kind of what it looks like to me.... should i sand it till it works with low action?

Magneto · #14 09-05-2005, 06:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Da Funk Docta

when i tighten the truss rod anymore than it is, it makes the lower notes more buzzy, and the higher notes don't get any better...

"high notes don't get any better" .. Does that mean that the higher notes buzz too? If, after adjusting the truss rod, most of the frets are buzzing, this usually means that the relief is good, but the strings are now just too low.

Taken from the Gary Willis setup site:

"The quickest way to tell if the right amount of relief is in your neck is to lower the strings. If after lowering the strings, the notes buzz only above the 12th fret, then there's too much bow in the neck. You'll need to tighten the truss rod.

If after you lower the strings, the notes only buzz in the 1st 5 frets then your neck is too straight. You'll need to loosen the truss rod.

If after you lower the strings, the notes buzz all up and down the neck, the neck's fine. Your strings are just too low."

Remember, a good setup is more than just adjusting the truss or the saddle heights. Most times it involves adjusting both (at first), but after you get it dialed in, you usually only have to adjust the truss from time to time. The saddles usually won't need adjusting.
It's something you'll have to learn and get used to. A simple change in the weather and/or temperature can make a neck start changing.

I hope this helps a bit..

Mag...

JimmyM · #15 09-05-2005, 06:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Da Funk Docta

thats kind of what it looks like to me.... should i sand it till it works with low action?

Absolutely not! You need to take it into a shop and have them look at it. You are going to do serious damage to your bass unless you have it looked at by a pro. There's a lot more to sanding a neck than just sanding until the buzzes go away.

**BurningSkies** · #16 09-05-2005, 07:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Da Funk Docta

thats kind of what it looks like to me.... should i sand it till it works with low action?

Mr. Funk, you should take it somewhere to have it looked at.

If it indeed is a rise at the end of the neck, then they may sand the top of the board...but its not as easy as that. Your fingerboard is radiused, to give a proper and uniform curve to the board. In some basses, it might be a compound radius, meaning it changes from nut to heel.

Without seeing the bass and being able to look at it with detail, all of the advice you're getting online is just shooting in the dark. We're guessing at the problem, given the info you've provided...which shouldn't give you the confidence to sand the neck, especially if you can't come up with a prognosis of your own.

#17 09-05-2005, 07:38 PM

well... i think ill just state my situation better. its fine up until the 19th fret mark. and when it gets there, it sounds like if it was flat against the finger board and its being plucked but theres no note... its more of a clank or rattly sound. and after the 19th fret, all the clanky rattles are chromatic.
i have to have the action pretty high at the saddles so that it dosnt make the clanky rattle sounds at the 19th + fret marks.