whats the secret to low action with no buzz?

Asa Samuel · #1 08-13-2007, 11:07 AM

my action seems quite high compaired to what i have seen on other basses, i've seen some that look really really low but get no buzz, mine seem to be quite high to get no buzz.

i'm only getting the buzz around the 12th fret.

so i just need heavier guage strings to get that tightness?

anyone help?

kalle74 · #2 08-13-2007, 11:08 AM

construction of the bass, I´d say...

Jimbob Jones · #3 08-13-2007, 11:56 AM

shim the neck!

To learn how, buy "Guitar Player Repair Guide" or "How To Make Your Electric Guitar Play Great!" (both are by Dan Erlewine and available from Amazon) Those books are second to my Bible! They unmask the mysteries of guitar/bass setup and show you that you can make almost any guitar/bass play beautifully.

Shimming is quite a complicated procedure, but Dan explains how to do it perfectly.

pkr2 · #4 08-13-2007, 01:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jimbob Jones

shim the neck!

To learn how, buy "Guitar Player Repair Guide" or "How To Make Your Electric Guitar Play Great!" (both are by Dan Erlewine and available from Amazon) Those books are second to my Bible! They unmask the mysteries of guitar/bass setup and show you that you can make almost any guitar/bass play beautifully.

Shimming is quite a complicated procedure, but Dan explains how to do it perfectly.

Are you saying that all basses that have higher than desirable action need the neck shimmed? Seems that they would just shim it at the factory.

May I ask what your setup experience consists of? I'm pretty familiar with Erlewines repair techniques and I've never seen him make a blanket statement like you give him credit for.

mellofello · #5 08-13-2007, 01:57 PM

prolly need to tighten the truss rod.

Pilgrim · #6 08-13-2007, 01:58 PM

The secret is the RIGHT curvature of the neck - and perfectly even frets.

To get the right curvature, you may need to shim - and to get the frets even, some fret leveling may need to be done.

JAUQO III-X · #7 08-13-2007, 02:05 PM

Touch.

MikeBass · #8 08-13-2007, 02:05 PM

Everyone is forgetting a good set-up at the other end of the bass as well- the nut.
Even though once you fret a note, the nut is removed from the equasion, it still makes a world of difference.

JHL · #9 08-13-2007, 02:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JAUQO III-X

Touch.

Awwww man, you beat me to it

JAUQO III-X · #10 08-13-2007, 02:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JHL

Awwww man, you beat me to it

And I wasn't being sarcastic,it really does start with touch.

Figjam · #11 08-13-2007, 02:41 PM

touch

lack of relief

good frets

steve66 · #12 08-13-2007, 02:47 PM

A good basic setup is probably what you need. You can get the specifications off the manufactuers website. If you are a little handy and have the basic tools to do the job, you can do this yourself and save some cash. Once the bass is set up, check for that buzz. Once the buzz issue is gone, you can make other small adjustments to suit your taste.

Jazz Ad · #13 08-13-2007, 02:48 PM

Light touch.

jeffhigh · #14 08-13-2007, 03:09 PM

Set relief, check nut height, adjust saddles. If you still get a buzz around the 12th, you may have a high fret and need a fret level and crown.

OrionManMatt · #15 08-13-2007, 03:22 PM

Invisible Touch

Jimbob Jones · #16 08-13-2007, 06:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pkr2

Are you saying that all basses that have higher than desirable action need the neck shimmed? Seems that they would just shim it at the factory.

May I ask what your setup experience consists of? I'm pretty familiar with Erlewines repair techniques and I've never seen him make a blanket statement like you give him credit for.

Sorry...you know when you read something back and it doesn't sound anything like you intended it to? well it just happened to me

Fender used to shim the necks on their P basses back in the 60's, then they stopped when they introduced the micro-tilt system. but I'm not sure after that. Some guitars' necks are shimmed, some aren't, I'm not really sure what makes a manufacturer decide whether to put one in at the factory or not.

I set up a lot of guitars and basses, going (mostly) on Dan Erlewine's vast library of knowlage and information from this forum. Because I set up my friends' guitars/basses, what I work on are mostly cheap instruments which come out of the factory with a neck angle of 0°. (As a reference, nearly all set-neck and acoustic guitars have an angle between 3° and 10°, with Gibson It's between 5° and 7°).

So when I'm working on entry-level Ibanezez and Squires, a shim usually goes in, and it does help to achieve a lower action and improve playability.

I hope I answered your question ok without sounding too much of an idiot.

All the best

JBJ

mark roberts · #17 08-13-2007, 06:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JAUQO III-X

Touch.

+1000

JAUQO III-X · #18 08-13-2007, 06:27 PM

I've played basses that buzzed like crazy when another bassist played them and when I played the same bass,there was no more buzzing.It really has a lot to do with touch first because if it didn't how would one know to fix other aspects of what may be causing the buzz.

Mike Shevlin · #19 08-13-2007, 06:31 PM

You could always get a fretless. I'm not kidding.

pkr2 · #20 08-13-2007, 06:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jimbob Jones

Sorry...you know when you read something back and it doesn't sound anything like you intended it to? well it just happened to me

Fender used to shim the necks on their P basses back in the 60's, then they stopped when they introduced the micro-tilt system. but I'm not sure after that. Some guitars' necks are shimmed, some aren't, I'm not really sure what makes a manufacturer decide whether to put one in at the factory or not.

I set up a lot of guitars and basses, going (mostly) on Dan Erlewine's vast library of knowlage and information from this forum. Because I set up my friends' guitars/basses, what I work on are mostly cheap instruments which come out of the factory with a neck angle of 0°. (As a reference, nearly all set-neck and acoustic guitars have an angle between 3° and 10°, with Gibson It's between 5° and 7°).

So when I'm working on entry-level Ibanezez and Squires, a shim usually goes in, and it does help to achieve a lower action and improve playability.

I hope I answered your question ok without sounding too much of an idiot.

All the best

JBJ

I understand neck tilt and how it affects an instrument.

This is the question asked by the OP: "my action seems quite high compaired to what i have seen on other basses, i've seen some that look really really low but get no buzz, mine seem to be quite high to get no buzz.
i'm only getting the buzz around the 12th fret."

The two facts given are a concern that his action is seemingly high, and, Buzzes only on the 12th fret.

How does neck angle, or shimming, apply to either of these facts??

Of course you don't appear to be an idiot.

I just don't believe that you thought your answer through. We all do that.

The remedy that you suggest is unrelated to the question. As are several other responses, unless the bass has every problem known to man.

And