Impossible to get reasonable action

[belzebass]

Hello.

I have a bass that I like a lot, but I cant seem to get action at a reasonable "lowness". I like action a little higher than normal, But on this bass the action is just too high at higher frets.

I tightened the trussroad and lowered the saddles, it is still high over 12th fret, and buzzes like hell on first ones.

Is the neck just unmanageable? How would you know that for sure?

Maybe put a business card into heel joint?

Opinions?

Tnxkbai!

[Jazz Ad]

There is a logic to setups.
First you adjust curvature with the trussrod, then string height at the bridge, then intonation by moving the saddles.
If and only if strings remain too high with saddles completely lowered, you may consider shimming the neck.

What you describe is typical of a neck that was set straight with the trussrod. A properly adjusted neck has a slight curve to leave room for string movements.

[iiipopes]

Originally Posted by Jazz Ad

A properly adjusted neck has a slight curve to leave room for string movements.

Qualify that remark: on most Fender or Fender-inspired instruments. There are instruments out there whose manufacturer recommends a straight neck. And the different manufacturers otherwise recommend different relief amounts.

Find a tech that specializes in your particular make of bass, since you didn't state what kind of bass it is.

Not only the setup, but sometimes the frets need addressing. When frets are dressed at the factory, they are done all at once with a long dressing bar. If equal pressure is not applied, the first few frets will not be crowned properly and this can cause buzzing also.

So when you have a setup done, have the frets checked as well.

[Jazz Ad]

Basses are all built the same and really don't differ much in the way of setups.
There are subtle differences that take 2 seconds to measure and mostly relate to the player.
I'm not aware of a specialized tech per bass brand.

[Bassbubble11]

Could be a number of things such as the bass needs a shim
or a fret level. Could also be you tightened the truss to much
and now have a slight back bow. My gut tells me the neck
needs to be shimmed. What kind of bass is it?

[belzebass]

It is a Jaguar clone almost like this: http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e2...taggJag005.jpg

It seems that even when the trussroad is too tight, the action is high under 12th fret. Thats why I thought to put something into the heel pocket.

What do you mean by "Shimming the neck"?

[iiipopes]

Originally Posted by belzebass

It is a Jaguar clone almost like this: http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e2...taggJag005.jpg

It seems that even when the trussroad is too tight, the action is high under 12th fret. Thats why I thought to put something into the heel pocket.

What do you mean by "Shimming the neck"?

That's exactly what is meant: the thin strip of wood that is inserted or glued into the neck pocket so the neck tilts up is a shim.

OK -- I was trying to be discrete: Rickenbacker specifies an absolutely straight neck. And it's not just personal preference. There are fundamental differences. See Joey's Bass Notes.

[belzebass]

Ok, thanks for tips, I'll test that. What do you put into the neck pocket?

I any case, if the action is still high, I'll just man up, I guess

[BarkerBass]

i use strips of business card, although never more than 2 on top of each other, then you start getting into crazy levels of shim.

try a 2 cm wide strip of business card or thin cardboard placed up against the bridge end of the neck pocket and then reevaluate and do the set up again

[iiipopes]

You put the shim right up against the body so the neck will tilt up, effectively lowering the action.

Remember, this is in addition to a complete set up: truss rods, fret leveling, nut slots, bridge height, bridge compensation adjustment for intonation, etc.

If you're not sure it needs the shim, take it to a qualified tech.

[Silas Stingy]

This could be any number of problems, personally I'd take it to a professional if it's something that isn't solved withing 10 minutes of messing around. I picked up a bargain Precision which needed setting up, once the action was lowered the first few frets buzzed, the nut was cut slightly too low.

[JLS]

Originally Posted by Silas Stingy

This could be any number of problems, personally I'd take it to a professional if it's something that isn't solved withing 10 minutes of messing around. I picked up a bargain Precision which needed setting up, once the action was lowered the first few frets buzzed, the nut was cut slightly too low.

Then it still needs setting up, because it needs more relief; if the nut is cut too low, the bass will buzz/fret out on the first fret. Period.

OP: read the stickies on setups, watch some videos, get back to us.

[megafiddle]

Sounds like it has no relief, and is back bowed.

The only time you shim the neck is when the saddles would have to go too far out
of their range to get the required action height.

Set the relief properly first. You can't do anything untill you do that.

[belzebass]

Update:
I shimmed the neck by inserting a piece of credit card inside, and now that's definitely better. I get consistent action from low to high frets.

Sometimes, it seems like I have obsessive-compulsive DIY disorder I could have taken it to a tech, but I wanted to it myself.

Thanks a lot for advice.

"Set the relief properly first. You can't do anything untill you do that."

I did, but even when when the trussroad is way too tight (buzzing with a lightest on all low frets), the action was still too high under 12th fret.

[guy n. cognito]

Originally Posted by iiipopes

That's exactly what is meant: the thin strip of wood that is inserted or glued into the neck pocket so the neck tilts up is a shim.

OK -- I was trying to be discrete: Rickenbacker specifies an absolutely straight neck. And it's not just personal preference. There are fundamental differences. See Joey's Bass Notes.

Let's be clear........even rickenbackers need a little relief. As much as this little bit of misinformation has been repeated, the Rickenbacker hasn't figured out how the cheat the physics of a vibrating bass string.

[JLS]

I did, but even when when the trussroad is way too tight (buzzing with a lightest on all low frets), the action was still too high under 12th fret.

No, you didn't; you don't have enough relief in the neck.