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Help with lowering action on cheap bass?

BassicBitch

BassicBitch

Guest
Mar 3, 2016
42
31
Ireland
#1
Hey guys and gals, (im a beginner)

I would like to find out if there is any way to further lower action on a cheap instrument, rather than the bridge saddles and truss rod adjustment. The saddles are as low as they can go, and the truss rod is set up correctly (i presume), but i still feel like my action higher than what i'd like it to be.

The only think i can think of doing would be to add a small piece of material under neath the neck-body joint to raise the neck. I also considered buying a new bridge, but it would probably not be worth it because of the fact that the guitar itself isn't worth more than 80 euro

bear in mind i don't have the tools or skills to recess the bridge properly


Any help would be appreciated, thanks :)

p.s. something i saw in a youtube comment was to use sandpaper to grind away a fraction of the base of the bridge. would this be a valid option?
 
#2
A shim under the neck at the pick up end of the neck will change the angle of the neck and probably give you the results you are looking for. A business card or two cut to the width of the neck and about a half an inch wide has always worked for me. Loosen the strings (or take them off) take the neck off (four screws on the back of the neck where it joins to the body) stick the piece of card in and replace the neck. Complete directions are in the set up stickies at the top of this page.
 
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#4
Assuming the neck is flat, I would go with the Sharkbait's suggestion first. It can be tricky to get the right height and a lot depends on how hard you press and pluck the strings. The softer you play, the lower you can go.
 
#10
The neck shim really helped, although the action still isn't as low as i'd like, its much more comfortable to play. The strings are set as low as they will go without buzzing on any frets

As for lowering action on the nut, I most certainly don't have the tools required to do the job properly. I'll probably stick with what I've got right now, it's okay for me
 
#13
BassicBitch said:
I set it myself, the bass is second hand and the neck was rather bent when i received it
Click to expand...

Good. I was just checking. Like I said, if you were assuming it came from the store set correctly, it probably didn't.:meh::rolleyes: Some stores are better then others, however.

If you're getting buzz and fretting out on the upper frets it sounds like they need to be leveled and recrowned.
 
#14
sharkbait130 said:
A shim under the neck at the pick up end of the neck will change the angle of the neck and probably give you the results you are looking for. A business card or two cut to the width of the neck and about a half an inch wide has always worked for me.
Click to expand...
I added a shim to my Hofner Galaxie bass tonight. It was the first time I ever tried it and it worked great. The situation was exactly as the OP described ... relief set properly, saddles as low as they can go, and still action too high. I was trying to figure out what to use for a shim. I checked the price on the Stew Mac wood shims and they were too much for this inexpensive bass, plus I wanted to get it done immediately. I was concerned about using something like a piece of a business card and really wanted something with an angle/ramp so I would have good contact between the neck and body. I decided to make a wedge using a piece of paper and blue painters tape. I just put the tape on the paper in layers getting thicker as I moved to one end. A poor mans shim! It took me three times to get the thickness right. But I got it finally and the bass adjusted up great. I got the action just as I like it. Plus I now have some adjustment room left on my saddles if something changes in the future and I want to tweak it. This is really not a hard job and makes a huge difference in playability of the bass. BTW, it was interesting that when I removed the neck there was a shim in there from the factory ... a piece of sandpaper!

AND ... no effect on the tone of the bass! Still sounds great.
 
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#15
jpmcbride said:
I added a shim to my Hofner Galaxie bass tonight. It was the first time I ever tried it and it worked great. The situation was exactly as the OP described ... relief set properly, saddles as low as they can go, and still action too high. I was trying to figure out what to use for a shim. I checked the price on the Stew Mac wood shims and they were too much for this inexpensive bass, plus I wanted to get it done immediately. I was concerned about using something like a piece of a business card and really wanted something with an angle/ramp so I would have good contact between the neck and body. I decided to make a wedge using a piece of paper and blue painters tape. I just put the tape on the paper in layers getting thicker as I moved to one end. A poor mans shim! It took me three times to get the thickness right. But I got it finally and the bass adjusted up great. I got the action just as I like it. Plus I now have some adjustment room left on my saddles if something changes in the future and I want to tweak it. This is really not a hard job and makes a huge difference in playability of the bass. BTW, it was interesting that when I removed the neck there was a shim in there from the factory ... a piece of sandpaper!

AND ... no effect on the tone of the bass! Still sounds great.
Click to expand...

I cut a shim out of one of those cardboard tabs that comes with clothes, only one piece 1/2 inch was needed, although i might add a bit more at some stage if i need to go lower.
My bass also has a 'factory shim', a piece of masking tape under the G-string near the neck end of the neck pocket. I didn't touch it just in case it has some sort of effect on the neck
 
#16
BassicBitch said:
I cut a shim out of one of those cardboard tabs that comes with clothes, only one piece 1/2 inch was needed, although i might add a bit more at some stage if i need to go lower.
My bass also has a 'factory shim', a piece of masking tape under the G-string near the neck end of the neck pocket. I didn't touch it just in case it has some sort of effect on the neck
Click to expand...

how does it play? were you able to get the action set appropriately?
 

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