Floppy strings on a 35'' scale Lakland

[ixlramp]

What i mean is action should be as low as possible without excessive (or any) fretbuzz, any higher is pointless. I'm sure the OP already has it set up with this optimum action. It's likely a much lower action because the frets are more level which allows that.

I assume ixlramp will say "this won't affect plucking hand feel." And around we go. : D

Correct, a higher action has no effect on plucking hand feel, because everything is the same as before except the string is now higher off the bass. I understand physics and basic mechanics so this is obvious to me, some here are just guessing.

 

[Double E]

What i mean is action should be as low as possible without excessive (or any) fretbuzz, any higher is pointless. I'm sure the OP already has it set up with this optimum action. It's likely a much lower action because the frets are more level which allows that.

I am quite sure that "low as possible" is a subjective measurement, playing style and preference does come into play, this is commonly accepted, ask any pro guitar tech. You can't just drop the action to the deck and expect it to work for everyone. Your "low as possible" may be to low for someone else. In fact, fretbuzz can never be eliminated for certain players that are heavy handed, it can only be mitigated by raising the action.

 

[ixlramp]

Double E yes i totally agree. I assume the OP has setup the bass the way he likes it, which means the optimum action for him, any higher is pointless, it might reduce fretbuzz when playing excessively hard but will have no effect on floppiness.

 

[RickyT]

Isn't it possible to retain stiffness without adding action height?

Yes. Put thicker gauge strings on. You'll adjust to them in no time what so ever and you have "tighter" feeling strings. Problem solved.
There's no point using the same strings over and over then complaining they feel to floppy.

 

[micguy]

I studied Acoustical Physics (including this very topic) in college. There have been several folks here already that have stated the correct Physics - no point in re-hashing that. At this point I'm just being entertained with the Psychology of all of this. Perhaps I should have studied that as well.

Carry on....

 

[Double E]

Double E yes i totally agree. I assume the OP has setup the bass the way he likes it, which means the optimum action for him, any higher is pointless, it might reduce fretbuzz when playing excessively hard but will have no effect on floppiness.

We can't assume that the OP has had any setup work done...he admits that his four string has higher action than the bass in question so either he prefers high action or is just neglectful in having his instruments maintained. He clearly does not have any setup experience himself.

This debate over "floppiness" is starting to sound really ridiculous. It is not even a real thing, a set of strings will have the same tension when tuned to pitch on any instrument of the same scale. The tension on his 35" scale 5 string should actually be higher than the 34" scale 4 string. So either the strings are not the same or they are not tuned to pitch. The whole premise that "floppiness" can be attributed to the bass just doesn't hold water.

It would be nice to hear back from @Drienvyftigcent to hear if he has made any headway.

 

[David Jayne]

This thread has become my 'car crash' thread. I don't want to look, I know I shouldn't, but I just can't help it. : D

 

[Drienvyftigcent]

No i don't dispute what the OP reports, and physics doesn't either, it can't as there has to be a cause, whatever it is, maybe a wrongly-labelled set of strings, a change in the construction of a particular set of strings, maybe bass construction or some flaw somewhere. I also don't say it is not setup, just that it is not saddle height.
The report is not just of 'feel', the distance the string can be pulled sideways differs, this means either differing tension or maybe the instrument flexing more.

It would be stupid to setup with an overly high action, action should always be as low as you are comfortable with.

Was the 4 string strung through-body too?.

At a point, as long as the tone is good, you have to just accept the unexplained difference and realise higher tension or stiffer strings are needed.

We can't assume that the OP has had any setup work done...he admits that his four string has higher action than the bass in question so either he prefers high action or is just neglectful in having his instruments maintained. He clearly does not have any setup experience himself.

This debate over "floppiness" is starting to sound really ridiculous. It is not even a real thing, a set of strings will have the same tension when tuned to pitch on any instrument of the same scale. The tension on his 35" scale 5 string should actually be higher than the 34" scale 4 string. So either the strings are not the same or they are not tuned to pitch. The whole premise that "floppiness" can be attributed to the bass just doesn't hold water.

It would be nice to hear back from @Drienvyftigcent to hear if he has made any headway.

The 4 string was also through body, I have actually sold it quite a while ago as I mentioned before in this thread. The 55-02 is indeed setup (not by me) and I think it plays great. I never mentioned any other issue besides the strings feeling floppy relative to the 4 string, which definitely should not be the case as Double E says.

The bass plays fine besides that, there isn't any excessive buzzing or anything like that. I sort of like the low action, but I'm not sure if having it any higher would benefit me even though I do play quite hard. The 44-02 had action that was too high and made me work too hard, but if adding height will make the strings feel stiffer in any way I might do that. I have actually ordered new pickups that I will let a luthier install pretty soon, and I might also raise the action then, see what happens.

The problem definitely does not lie in the strings unless DR uses a different formula for their strings, I have purchased my 3rd or 4th set of Lo Riders a few days ago and the strings play the same.

 

[Drienvyftigcent]

Well I think I forgot to address the solution on this thread ever since I found one, but a few years later I can now definitely confirm that the problem lied in the action of the bass. I was used to a high action that the 44-02 had, and my 55-02 had action that was far lower. My lack of knowledge was that a lower action will make the strings feel floppier in the right hand, especially if you have an agressive attack like myself. I assume that this is because they sit closer to the fretboard, therefore having less space to move. I increased the action quite a bit and that made the strings move a lot more freely and have a tighter feel to them. It is a little harder to play, but to my preference it feels better.