I play fairly hard with a pick, I absolutely need high action. That said, I want to get the action as low as possible....
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Do You Use a High Action?
- Thread starter john grey
- Start date
I like high action and have no problems with it. The problems start when my action is low. Fret clack.
I don't know the physics of it, but with acoustic instruments, such as a flattop guitar, if the action is too low at the saddle, or over the fretboard, it results in a wimpy tone. I guess in a solid body electric instrument, the pickups make up for that. But still, I don't normally have a light touch, and I want a high action. With the strings higher I can play softly if I want to, or I can really dig in.
I don't know the physics of it, but with acoustic instruments, such as a flattop guitar, if the action is too low at the saddle, or over the fretboard, it results in a wimpy tone. I guess in a solid body electric instrument, the pickups make up for that. But still, I don't normally have a light touch, and I want a high action. With the strings higher I can play softly if I want to, or I can really dig in.
Wimps 
http://www.talkbass.com/forum/f8/high-action-=-better-tone-472806/index4.html#post6322172
My action on that bass is a *touch* lower now. Took one of the plates under the BadAss II out to put on my fretless P so that the action across all of my basses is pretty much identical.
When my strings start to go, I do get some intonation problems but it's like 5+ years (or more) between changes for me usually. My fretted basses are all .50 - .110 RS77LEs and both fretless ones are .65 - .115 RS88LDs. The only exception is my 60s P - no idea what strings are on it, but they're thick and flat (like the rest of mine) so I didn't change 'em.
I do dig in so there's no way I could ever do low action. Whenever I play a bass with low action it feels very weird in a bad way for me.
http://www.talkbass.com/forum/f8/high-action-=-better-tone-472806/index4.html#post6322172
My action on that bass is a *touch* lower now. Took one of the plates under the BadAss II out to put on my fretless P so that the action across all of my basses is pretty much identical.
When my strings start to go, I do get some intonation problems but it's like 5+ years (or more) between changes for me usually. My fretted basses are all .50 - .110 RS77LEs and both fretless ones are .65 - .115 RS88LDs. The only exception is my 60s P - no idea what strings are on it, but they're thick and flat (like the rest of mine) so I didn't change 'em.
I do dig in so there's no way I could ever do low action. Whenever I play a bass with low action it feels very weird in a bad way for me.
I have high action. IME I've found muting the strings easier with high action for me especially when lifting pressure off a fretted string, the string dampens quickly. I really like this about high action. Someone mentioned that lower action leads to better intonation. I want to suggest that lower action may not have better intonation as some degree of extra tension when fretting is compensated for by the frets location (or should be). There may be an optimal action height for optimal intonation and that may vary depending on the strings used. That's my theory about action height and intonation, but I may be wrong in that thinking. Anyway's I like high action for muting.
I truly DID start this thread as an open question.
I would like to reiterate that I am not "taking sides" per se' in this as I am truly curious and that's why I started this thread. I have my own OPINIONS for ME in-so-far as my background and playing but I am speaking only for myself and am very interested in other's experiences.
I'm 56 yrs old & grew up in a family where music was part of learning, etc. My older brother was a real "making money" studio musician (guitar) & I grew up taking lessons & reading.
From where I sit, the idea of "anything that makes practicing smoother" was of value. Therefore when I would try to run arpeggios, scales and so forth down the neck past the 12th fret with a high action, I (not only) slowed but my accuracy diminished (no pun intended).
I have seen factory settings being higher and lower.
I believe there may be a logic for this. Some basses were popular for playing with a pick (Rickenbacker) for several reasons not only popular player's technique but that instrument had a greater string area covered. The covering of pickups & bridges [existed] on Fenders also & this made playing w/ a pick popular (IMO).
IF the player utilized more of the (lower octaves) thinner portion of the neck; action height became a "non-issue". In fact it may not have been noticed what so ever.
I own Music Mans (as well as J-Basses, etc) so I play a great deal with various slap/finger-style techniques & my hands are considerably large. Speaking only for myself but I want to touch as lightly as possible as it appears to increase accuracy and speed. I've looked at volume as a function of the electronics first & attack second.
Bass playing has evolved a great deal over the decades. Those of us who are older remember that the electric bass was considered a rather secondary, "Backup" instrument. Today it is considered a guitar and MANY players go back and forth between the two. Bass was rarely considered a solo or "out front" instrument; today that is untrue.
My point is that it may be the evolution of the instrument as a whole which alters it's setup agenda.
I would like to reiterate that I am not "taking sides" per se' in this as I am truly curious and that's why I started this thread. I have my own OPINIONS for ME in-so-far as my background and playing but I am speaking only for myself and am very interested in other's experiences.
I'm 56 yrs old & grew up in a family where music was part of learning, etc. My older brother was a real "making money" studio musician (guitar) & I grew up taking lessons & reading.
From where I sit, the idea of "anything that makes practicing smoother" was of value. Therefore when I would try to run arpeggios, scales and so forth down the neck past the 12th fret with a high action, I (not only) slowed but my accuracy diminished (no pun intended).
I have seen factory settings being higher and lower.
I believe there may be a logic for this. Some basses were popular for playing with a pick (Rickenbacker) for several reasons not only popular player's technique but that instrument had a greater string area covered. The covering of pickups & bridges [existed] on Fenders also & this made playing w/ a pick popular (IMO).
IF the player utilized more of the (lower octaves) thinner portion of the neck; action height became a "non-issue". In fact it may not have been noticed what so ever.
I own Music Mans (as well as J-Basses, etc) so I play a great deal with various slap/finger-style techniques & my hands are considerably large. Speaking only for myself but I want to touch as lightly as possible as it appears to increase accuracy and speed. I've looked at volume as a function of the electronics first & attack second.
Bass playing has evolved a great deal over the decades. Those of us who are older remember that the electric bass was considered a rather secondary, "Backup" instrument. Today it is considered a guitar and MANY players go back and forth between the two. Bass was rarely considered a solo or "out front" instrument; today that is untrue.
My point is that it may be the evolution of the instrument as a whole which alters it's setup agenda.
I set my basses up with 12th fret action height of 2mm E to 1.5mm G, which by most people's standards is very low. I set a few up to go 1.5 mm E to 1 mm or even .75 mm G but that is getting pretty ridiculous! I heard Victor Wooten has his Foderas set up 1mm all the way across so I wanted to try that. One thing I find universally is that when I hand any of my basses to someone else it sounds like crap, I guess no one but experienced bass players can figure out how to play a low setup. Not too many realize what goes into a light touch.
i Would have to disagree with you on that
(i could be wrong) but pick ups have a sweet spot in the magnetic field where you get the best tone from your strings so depending on where you have you action set you would then want to ajust your pick ups to make sure that they stay in the sweet spot. i could be be wrong and if i am let me know.i my self play with a high action. I love to really dig in when i play and i hate fet buzz. I have no trouble playing fast licks and i feel i can get a better dynamic range this way
Same here. In almost anybody's hands but mine my 78 P-Bass w/low action and flats usually sounds like a slappy/clanky mess.
High Action here. Love it. I am a believer in aggressive playing, and I do notice a difference. I had my action lowered and it sounded and played terrible. I love plucking and pressing hard. Just my style. Not hurting myself, not straining myself at all. Just my preference.
Higher action produces different tonal qualities than low action. High and low action each allow/reward specific approaches to playing that the other doesn't. Neither is better or worse. Like any other aspect of the instrument - strings, pickups, neck dimensions, woods, etc. - it's one ingredient in an overall mix that produces different sounds. All that counts is what combination gets you the sound you hear in your head, that ideal sound you're trying to make.
Perhaps it would be useful for people to list players with notably high or low setups, to illustrate how the tone can vary. I've seen a few mentions of such already, but would be interested in seeing more.
Perhaps it would be useful for people to list players with notably high or low setups, to illustrate how the tone can vary. I've seen a few mentions of such already, but would be interested in seeing more.
The source would need to be what you've seen yourself. As a group, we get told all sorts of stories through "Slick-Page" Music magazines tempting us to spend money on a technique, product, or some venue to make money.
Frankly I think it's amazing what level of diversity there is in this small sample!
I played a bass one time with stupid high action. It was an interesting experience.
For one thing, I could smack the strings pretty hard without them touching the frets. This allowed for some very interesting techniques that I could pull off cleanly that would be impossible with low action.
But, it was a royal pain to play anything normal. If I got a cheaply made bass and got a stupid deal, like, $20 for it, I might experiment with high action on it just to make interesting sounds.
But I wouldn't have the bass I regularly play have high action.
For one thing, I could smack the strings pretty hard without them touching the frets. This allowed for some very interesting techniques that I could pull off cleanly that would be impossible with low action.
But, it was a royal pain to play anything normal. If I got a cheaply made bass and got a stupid deal, like, $20 for it, I might experiment with high action on it just to make interesting sounds.
But I wouldn't have the bass I regularly play have high action.
My fretless has low action which kinda makes sense, but on my fretted basses, my action is high high high high HIGH. Can't stand low action. On a fretted bass, it feels terrible to me. I get a clearer sound and less fret rattle.
I've been thinking about this more and more. It's too bad that many videos don't get tight shots on players hands as there MAY be a way to tell depending upon the position of the finger while playing. Superficially, it seems that a high action would demand that the fingers be "curled" much more than a lower one.
I very much doubt that there is a logic for this! Factory settings mean next to nothing! Basses in stores typically come with hideous setups. Draw no conclusions from them!
The difference between high and low setups has to do with the feel and sound of the bass. I have both. The 7 string, because of the style of tone it has (and that it's been Pleked) is set VERY low. Gives you a great piano-rattlely on the frets tone. Great for slapping or tapping or whatever like that. But you CANNOT get aggressive with that bass. If you do you get fret-buzz city.
Basses where I want to play with a pick or play very aggressively to get nice "punch" are set up higher. Note I always set them up as low as I can go given my aggression, but they are still high compared to what a lot of guys here play.
Well, the comment was made that a high setup and "aggressive" playing is a waste of "energy". Yes it is! I know all about "letting the amp do the work". BUT, bunky, it's MY energy to waste! The important thing is not the "energy" I'm putting into the bass strings, but rather the energy I'm putting into my HEART! For certain basses high action lets me really get "into" the music. If I had low action and backed off, not only would it kill my feel but the tone would start to sound like my 7 string as well.
One subtle aside here is that IF you have a bass with uneven frets, a high action will tend to hide the problem. I suspect this happens in some stores. But all my basses have leveled frets. I COULD put low action on any of them, but as I say, I don't because on SOME of my basses I want a different tone.
Changing strings, changing setups, changing action height, etc. all these things can change how your bass sounds and responds to you. There is no "best". It's what you want. So you use what fits that bass and the music you usually play on that bass.
