Whoa there! High action

[Damani311]

My strings are all almost 1/4" above the 24th fret 0_o.......this is about the lowest I can get the to go without buzzing when I fret the higher register notes (I tend to dig in, gives me a different sound that I like).....is this normal/acceptable? I know it's all preference but I see people saying 1/8" is really high, so..........

Just wondering if there was something else that may be wrong......I may have TOO MUCH relief in my necks if anything, and I don't know if having too much relief could be the cause.

Opinions needed.

[Damani311]

I resetup the bass....still not possible to bring the strings lower than about 1/4" inch without getting some buzz playing the higher notes.

Just wondering if anyone else has their action this high, or if it's insane.....

[202dy]

Please post the stats (string height at F12 and relief at F7) and someone should be able to help you. If you do not know how to take the measurements refer to the stickies at the top of the page.

[Damani311]

All my strings are at least 1/4" an inch off the fretboard, and the relief is about 3 business card thickness.

[wabbit]

AFAIK, if there is buzzing above the 12th fret, there is too much relief and you need to tighten the truss rod ..... if it buzzes from the 5th fret down, there's not enough relief and you need to loosen the truss rod ..... if it buzzes all the way down the neck, the relief is fine, the bridge saddle is just too low on that string

the source of my info

bassically
wabbit

[202dy]

Originally Posted by Damani311

All my strings are at least 1/4" an inch off the fretboard, and the relief is about 3 business card thickness.

At first glance it would appear that there is too much relief in the neck. Relief should be +/- .012" at the seventh fret. Adjust the truss rod to approximately one business card. Once that is locked in, post string height at the twelfth and last frets precisely and it should be simple to see what to do next.

[EADG mx]

Originally Posted by wabbit

AFAIK, if there is buzzing above the 12th fret, there is too much relief and you need to tighten the truss rod ..... if it buzzes from the 5th fret down, there's not enough relief and you need to loosen the truss rod ..... if it buzzes all the way down the neck, the relief is fine, the bridge saddle is just too low on that string

the source of my info

bassically
wabbit

+1

this method has never let me down

[Chili]

i'm getting buzz above the 12th fret, but i cant tighten to truss rod anymore, it gets really stiff, should i try turning it or will this brake it? is there meant to be a point where it gets to stiff to turn anymore?

[cofibreyk]

don't turn the trussrod anymore! ..you could strip the nut. you could try putting an extra washer on the adjusting nut, but if you have'nt tried that before, i suggest you go to your luthier. ...how's the condition of your frets? ..it could be that you have a low fret around the 12th fret.

[Chili]

i wasnt getting the buzz before, i've been messing around with bridge hight and adjusting the truss rod etc, and i've started to get things the way i like it, exept now i have fret buzz, and the kneck rattles abit when i pluck the E string, oh, and the fret buzz is only on some fretted notes above the 12th fret on the E and A strings, the D and G strings are fine, oh, and when i pluck the G string hard open it buzzes aswell...

[cofibreyk]

Originally Posted by Chili

i wasnt getting the buzz before, i've been messing around with bridge hight and adjusting the truss rod etc, and i've started to get things the way i like it, exept now i have fret buzz, and the kneck rattles abit when i pluck the E string, oh, and the fret buzz is only on some fretted notes above the 12th fret on the E and A strings, the D and G strings are fine, oh, and when i pluck the G string hard open it buzzes aswell...

my apology, i thought you were the original poster that had a very high action...
@Chili, this is what i do... considering you have good condition frets ( no low/valleys on the frets,etc..), you set your truss rod so that you have enough relief(some measure it with 1 credit card) and then you adjust the height of the strings via the bridge saddles; ...if your g string still buzzes i think your nut is cut too low. if it still buzzes above the 12th fret, your bridge is set too low.

the gauge of the strings is also a big factor..i just changed the set-up of my sx bass coz i changed to a .50 gauge

hope this helps a little

[Damani311]

Sorry to bring back an old thread, but my original question was never answered:

Is 1/4" too high?

[dbcandle]

This article, from the stickies at the top of this forum, talks about string-height: http://www.sadowsky.com/media/suppor...bass_setup.pdf