Club Sadowsky!!!

[bucephylus]

So close to joining the Sadowsky family now...the 9-month wait has been, well...too long! I'm hearing my NYC Vintage 5-24 PJ alder/maple (gloss black/bwb--light flats) should be completed at the end of the month, via BSD...

How does Roger normally set the string height? (I have a fairly light string attack, and usually prefer low-action setups...)

If you go to the Sadowsky Channel in YouTube and watch video #20 called Behind the Notes, Roger explains his setup parameters in quite some detail.

I suppose there are players who may want some other setup parameters; but, I find the setup specs to be stellar. Enjoy!

 

[MattB88]

Well I added a 6th member to my low end family. I just picked this up from a fellow TB'er!

 

[Sam Dingle]

I almost got that bass!!! Glad it found a home!

 

[pickles]

I imagine he'll set it up the way you ask him.

Thats true, but the default is on the low side of medium. I always drop the saddles a bit on mine. I read something once from roger about the two ends of the setup spectrum being marcus miller (crazy low) and will lee (super high) but roger generally thinks basses sound better with a bit higher action, even though his basses are legendary for playing clean with VERY low action.

 

[kobass]

You can always take it to your local GC and have them dial it in for you!

 

[Sam Dingle]

Thats true, but the default is on the low side of medium. I always drop the saddles a bit on mine. I read something once from roger about the two ends of the setup spectrum being marcus miller (crazy low) and will lee (super high) but roger generally thinks basses sound better with a bit higher action, even though his basses are legendary for playing clean with VERY low action.

How high are will lees strings?

 

[bucephylus]

You can always take it to your local GC and have them dial it in for you!

That's a good one. LOL

 

[kevk]

You can always take it to your local GC and have them dial it in for you!

Now THAT'S funny...great post!

 

[gustobassman]

... even though his basses are legendary for playing clean with VERY low action.

I'll second that statement. Mine is just a Metro but I think I had the A string as low as like 2.5mm. I actually had to raise the saddles yesterday for the first time in months. It's still on the low side (IMO anyway), around 3/64 on the A but sounds just fine. Love my Sadowsky!!

 

[TedH]

Action is indeed low, so depending how OCD you are, you may do semi-frequent truss rod tweaks depending on your winter environment.

 

[HeavyJazz]

Thats true, but the default is on the low side of medium. I always drop the saddles a bit on mine. I read something once from roger about the two ends of the setup spectrum being marcus miller (crazy low) and will lee (super high) but roger generally thinks basses sound better with a bit higher action, even though his basses are legendary for playing clean with VERY low action.

I was surprised by the action upon delivery as most Cadillac basses (in my experience) come pretty low. In fact, I spent about two or three days tweaking it to the lower side before I finally found a place that felt right. And the saddles are nearly maxed to the low. I think you're right though in that his approach is in the medium height range. This would make sense given the broad type of player he serves. I think what's remarkable is how he incorporates a classic Fender feel in the neck, but applies such exceptional fretwork that you can get away with action highly unlikely on a Fender - be it import, domestic or CS.

 

[pickles]

On the topic of action, I gigged an RV5 with stock strings (black label steel) and action for a while. It was harder to play than Im used to, but it really did sound great. Ultimately I compromised on tone for stress free execution on hard parts. If I could play more hours/day I'd probably keep it stock.

 

[SethD]

Here is an article from '96 in which Roger mentions Marcus and Will, along with their respective setups:
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[pickles]

Yeah, that's what I was thinking of. Who are the other two guys in the photo?

 

[AMp'D.2play]

Here is an article from '96 in which Roger mentions Marcus and Will, along with their respective setups:
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Interesting how the difference between Roger's definition (back then) of low action vs. high action is a mere 1/32".

 

[bucephylus]

Action is a pretty player specific thing. The most entertaining story I have heard was from Mica Wickersham at Alembic (I've maintained interactions with those folks over the years). They worked with John Entwistle for a while; and Mica told me that while dialing in his instruments, he needed the action so low that he was literally the only person who could play them. No one else in the shop could even make the instrument speak. I found that fascinating.

 

[TedH]

Action is a pretty player specific thing. The most entertaining story I have heard was from Mica Wickersham at Alembic (I've maintained interactions with those folks over the years). They worked with John Entwistle for a while; and Mica told me that while dialing in his instruments, he needed the action so low that he was literally the only person who could play them. No one else in the shop could even make the instrument speak. I found that fascinating.

I always liked the Entwhistle response to "how low do you like your strings?" A - "on the other side of the frets"

 

[Holdsg]

especially since he had that funky fingers attack. If I played like that, I'd need a much higher action.

 

[Sadowsky]

As discussed above, action is very personal. When I do the final setup, I make sure the G string can go as low as 3/64" before bottoming out. This insures that the player will have enough range to tweak their bass from a very low action, to a moderately high action.

I consider very low to be 3/64" on the G and 5/64" on the E. On the high side, my range would be 3/32" on the G and 4/32" on the E. This is measured at the 12th fret, holding the string down at the first fret, and measuring from the bottom of the string to the top of the 12th fret. Add an additional 1/64" for a B string.

 

[Sam Dingle]

Setup question. I got my bass shipped from Japan to New Orleans. When I got it the strings were touching the neck after tuning up. The 1st 3 frets buzzed when played and then it was ok further up the G string. Luckily I play with higher action so I put them at a good height, but I'm wondering if that buzzing was a sign of warp or if it was normal.

Also the famous string question: what do you guys like on your Sadowskys?