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Club Sadowsky!!!

#23,001
Hey, I'm adjusting the setup on my vintage PJ5, the factory setup wasn't as low as I'd like it...however, after lowering the saddles I'm getting some buzzing starting at the 10th fret, mostly on the A and D strings. I play fingerstyle and I'm not heavyhanded on plucking, seems like it buzzes on anything past a very light touch. I'm figuring the solution is to add relief (loosen counterclockwise on the trussrod)...my noob question is how long should I wait between trussrod adjustments before evaluating the setup? I've done nearly a 1/2 turn in the last 24 hours (I usually loosen the strings before loosening the rod, and always when tightening)...still buzzing. Just wondering if you need to wait that long when adjusting (or longer)...sorry I don't have a straight edge to give accurate height measurements :-S

Oh yea, and I live in the tropics (80 F weather is the average), it's been pretty humid these days.
 
#23,002
P. Bass said:
DON'T get me started!!! :D You lookin' for the long or short of it? LOL. Joey, the whole exercise was a BIG smile. It was like getting lost in "the groove". Absolutely satisfying. Y'all gotta try a neck w/no finish on it. Slippery.
I just damp wipe it if it gets anything on it like any other neck. It will get some darkening over time but that's bare maple for ya. I always keep my hands clean anyway & my flats are kept like silk. No prob. Keep in mind that I only have one Sadowsky bass & this is HUGE for me. My P is home for me & now it's dressed for the dance. Someday someone else called "P. Bass" is gonna get REAL lucky with this puppy. ;)
Thanks for asking Joey & all the best to ya bro.
B.
DSCF0467-3.jpg
Click to expand...

You took the finish off the entire back of the neck, including headstock? Very cool! I took the finish (most of it) off the back of my '05 P5 neck, but only between nut and heel. I plan on doing the same to my other Sadowskys once the matte nitro finish becomes glossy from playing wear. It happens fairly quickly IME, and I don't like glossy necks.

IMO, nothing feels better than a well-grunged-up vintage Fender. My Sadowsky's getting there. :)
IMG_20110315_200928.jpg
 
#23,003
johndough247 said:
Hey, I'm adjusting the setup on my vintage PJ5, the factory setup wasn't as low as I'd like it...however, after lowering the saddles I'm getting some buzzing starting at the 10th fret, mostly on the A and D strings. I play fingerstyle and I'm not heavyhanded on plucking, seems like it buzzes on anything past a very light touch. I'm figuring the solution is to add relief (loosen counterclockwise on the trussrod)...my noob question is how long should I wait between trussrod adjustments before evaluating the setup?.
Click to expand...
Sounds like it. Depending on how much you dig in, you'll probably need to check relief, and also depending on how slinky your strings are, maybe just raise the action a touch on those strings. You shouldn't need to have too much relief tho... just enough to bounce the string up and down a bit in around the 7th fret or so when fretting at first/last frets. Always remember to keep the radius of the fingerboard in mind too when setting action height.

The time between adjustments can probably be shorter, too. To be honest, depending on if I have a gig coming up, sometimes I've been known to make a larger adjustment, and then compensate back a bit later if it settles a little too far, but honestly, these Sadowsky necks are really stable and predictable. Just adjust it slightly short of where you think it should be and let go with it for a while.

Just one trick I suggest, if you're tightening the rod (not the case for you this time), pull the headstock just enough to see the strings move slightly towards the fingerboard... just slightly... and then tighten. I just prefer to not tighten against string tension.
 
#23,004
Fuzzbass said:
You took the finish off the entire back of the neck, including headstock? Very cool! I took the finish (most of it) off the back of my '05 P5 neck, but only between nut and heel. I plan on doing the same to my other Sadowskys once the matte nitro finish becomes glossy from playing wear. It happens fairly quickly IME, and I don't like glossy necks.

IMO, nothing feels better than a well-grunged-up vintage Fender. My Sadowsky's getting there. :)
Click to expand...

I left the nitro on the headstock Ken. (See the Sadowsky Forum for a full report & pics - "Back of neck finish" thread).
Yeah, I much prefer the bare maple feel. It just "glides" so well. Very slippery. But one still has to keep it clean to make it all worth the effort. I just love it.
B.
PS: Your neck looks like you bin workin' in a coal mine. LOL
 
#23,005
BartmanPDX said:
On the subject of bags, does the maker of the Portabag make a double bag yet? I have an Incase but it's heavy and the Portabag is hands-down the best case I've ever tried (for my needs). I REALLY want a Portabag dub bag.
Click to expand...

I owned an Incase dub bag for a VERY short period of time. Great bag to be sure, but the weight with two basses, made it anything but convenient.:rollno:
 
#23,006
Jerry Ziarko said:
I owned an Incase dub bag for a VERY short period of time. Great bag to be sure, but the weight with two basses, made it anything but convenient.:rollno:
Click to expand...
Sorry if you posted earlier on this, but does this mean you don't carry doubles anymore, or otherwise, which double are you using instead?
 
#23,007
Jerry Ziarko said:
I owned an Incase dub bag for a VERY short period of time. Great bag to be sure, but the weight with two basses, made it anything but convenient.:rollno:
Click to expand...

I agree on doubles on a whole...I have a fender double gig bag, pretty light, no hardeners...and with 2 basses (an Ibanez 6 string and a Fender J or P) it was murder on my back. I shudder to think how heavy it'd be with a portabag/incase hardened design...

Vic said:
Sounds like it. Depending on how much you dig in, you'll probably need to check relief, and also depending on how slinky your strings are, maybe just raise the action a touch on those strings. You shouldn't need to have too much relief tho... just enough to bounce the string up and down a bit in around the 7th fret or so when fretting at first/last frets. Always remember to keep the radius of the fingerboard in mind too when setting action height.

The time between adjustments can probably be shorter, too. To be honest, depending on if I have a gig coming up, sometimes I've been known to make a larger adjustment, and then compensate back a bit later if it settles a little too far, but honestly, these Sadowsky necks are really stable and predictable. Just adjust it slightly short of where you think it should be and let go with it for a while.

Just one trick I suggest, if you're tightening the rod (not the case for you this time), pull the headstock just enough to see the strings move slightly towards the fingerboard... just slightly... and then tighten. I just prefer to not tighten against string tension.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the tips, Vic. I figured it shouldn't take the neck too long to readjust. I'm really shooting to see how low the sadowsky can go and then back off a lil bit, but it's buzzing a lot earlier than I thought it would (my old Ibanez 6 string survived 5 years of living in Boston (2), Miami (1) and the Caribbean (2) without any tweaks to the rod, and it was rediculously low without any buzzing, quite amazing I must say)...I'm guessing the neck was set a lil too straight for this kinda weather, will add a lil more relief and see what happens
 
#23,008
Figured I'd let you guys know that Saturday marks 365 days until I'd ideally like my 40th birthday Sadowsky to arrive. So, I sent Kevin about a half-dozen questions, including when I should order by to hit my preferred target delivery date.

Man, this process started almost five years ago when I first set up my Sadowsky-fund bank account. I've never saved up for so long towards something before. I dunno if I'm going to make it to the ordering date without vibrating to pieces.

I figure the July arrival of our first offspring will help mitigate the things a little. You know; take my mind off the Sadowsky for a while...
 
#23,010
roadkill2309 said:
Figured I'd let you guys know that Saturday marks 365 days until I'd ideally like my 40th birthday Sadowsky to arrive. So, I sent Kevin about a half-dozen questions, including when I should order by to hit my preferred target delivery date.
heir
Man, this process started almost five years ago when I first set up my Sadowsky-fund bank account. I've never saved up for so long towards something before. I dunno if I'm going to make it to the ordering date without vibrating to pieces.

I figure the July arrival of our first offspring will help mitigate the things a little. You know; take my mind off the Sadowsky for a while...
Click to expand...

You may want to lock in that bass with a deposit before the little one arrives (with all the accompanying expenses), heh heh. Congrats!!
 
#23,011
Vic said:
Sounds like it. Depending on how much you dig in, you'll probably need to check relief, and also depending on how slinky your strings are, maybe just raise the action a touch on those strings. You shouldn't need to have too much relief tho... just enough to bounce the string up and down a bit in around the 7th fret or so when fretting at first/last frets. Always remember to keep the radius of the fingerboard in mind too when setting action height.

The time between adjustments can probably be shorter, too. To be honest, depending on if I have a gig coming up, sometimes I've been known to make a larger adjustment, and then compensate back a bit later if it settles a little too far, but honestly, these Sadowsky necks are really stable and predictable. Just adjust it slightly short of where you think it should be and let go with it for a while.

Just one trick I suggest, if you're tightening the rod (not the case for you this time), pull the headstock just enough to see the strings move slightly towards the fingerboard... just slightly... and then tighten. I just prefer to not tighten against string tension.
Click to expand...

UPDATE: Hmmm now i'm wondering if I'm misinterpreting the situation...

I've loosened the rod some, and now I've noticed the D and A strings are buzzing even more, and now the E is starting to as well in the higher positions (i didn't move the saddles). could it be that the neck wasn't straight enough near the heel? or maybe a fret leveling issue? any opinions?
 
#23,012
johndough247 said:
UPDATE: Hmmm now i'm wondering if I'm misinterpreting the situation...

I've loosened the rod some, and now I've noticed the D and A strings are buzzing even more, and now the E is starting to as well in the higher positions (i didn't move the saddles). could it be that the neck wasn't straight enough near the heel? or maybe a fret leveling issue? any opinions?
Click to expand...
Set the relief first, make sure you don't have too much, and then recheck the saddle height. If you have too much relief, then the action will be too high in the middle and you'll have to lower the saddles to compensate and it'll buzz up high.

Of course there is always the possibility of a high fret, but it's not super common on a Sadowsky.

Also, if you like your action really low you're gonna' probably run into rod adjustment a lot if you go between widely varying climates... like maybe the super hot/humid outdoor gig and then the cool/dry air conditioned gig. With super low action comes much tighter tolerances for adjustments.

It's all a balancing act. Just gotta' find the happy medium in some cases.
 
#23,013
Vic said:
Set the relief first, make sure you don't have too much, and then recheck the saddle height. If you have too much relief, then the action will be too high in the middle and you'll have to lower the saddles to compensate and it'll buzz up high.

Of course there is always the possibility of a high fret, but it's not super common on a Sadowsky.

Also, if you like your action really low you're gonna' probably run into rod adjustment a lot if you go between widely varying climates... like maybe the super hot/humid outdoor gig and then the cool/dry air conditioned gig. With super low action comes much tighter tolerances for adjustments.

It's all a balancing act. Just gotta' find the happy medium in some cases.
Click to expand...

Yea I did an about face, did pretty much everything u just said about an hour ago lol it's all good now, found a happy balance; feels great :-D
 
#23,015
Didn't there used to be a Sadowsky setup guide somewhere?
On their website?

I printed it at one point, and it's in my toolbox. It covers relief, saddle setup, pickup height, the whole deal.

In the G&L faq is a nice setup guide as well.
 
#23,017
I found and even easier-to-follow setup guide in an old bassplayer article and now my action is PERFECT. You still want to get a machinist's ruler that can measure in 32nds/64ths, and want to get the neck fairly straight with a little relief. The difference is that you measure a set distance from the bottom of each string and the last fret, equal across all strings to match the radius of the fretboard. Interestingly enough when you go back and measure the way Roger recommends it almost matches up to his specs. This way's just simpler, and easier to manipulate as you don't have to hold down the 1st fret. So, per these guidelines:

1/32 from the bottom of the string to the last fret= VERY low action

2/32= medium low action (I have mine at 2.5/32 and/or 5/64ths)

3/32 and higher= medium to high action.

For my PJ5, a uniform 5/64ths from the bottom of each string to the last fret is PERFECT. No buzz, enough to dig in, but all in all fairly low and 'fast' action.
 
#23,018
I sorta do it that way, sorta.
I use allen wrenches, and slide the flats between the string and the fret.

That way I don't have to try to read itsy bitsy ruler print.
It's kinda like feeler gauges on valve adjusts.
 

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