does action change over time??

[ShowKing]

this might be a noob question..
but does ur action on ur bass change over time??
or does the action stay exactly the same no matter how much u play it or how much u change the strings?

[Jim Carr]

Originally Posted by sungjin891118

this might be a noob question..
but does ur action on ur bass change over time??
or does the action stay exactly the same no matter how much u play it or how much u change the strings?

In my experience, the seasons will change the relief (amount of bow) in your instrument's neck, assuming a solid body bass. The ambient humidity indoors, affected by the amount of heating/air conditioning, will cause the action to change.

As the relief increases, the action will get generally higher, especially in the middle of the neck. A slight truss rod adjustment will correct this. Undo it when things change back later in the year.

As summer draws to a close, do you see a significant change in humidity or action?

[tplyons]

Time isn't the reason that the action changes, but the change in climate is. With the same strings, the action will rise and fall with humidity and temperature.

Likewise, the change is dependent on the actual wood of each individual neck.

My old Stingray was perfect all year around with no adjustment. My old Jazz bass banana'ed every time the weather went up or down ten degrees.

[Brass Nut]

Got into the habit a long time ago of changing or at least checking the action on string changes.
String tension, frequency of vibration, etc. will allow for different settings. I prefer as low as practical per string type / style.
Generally, if you hit on a string you really like and stick with them, any adjustments would be near nil. (generally, but not always - reason for checking).