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How high is your action and what do you consider low action?

#42
zortation said:
Everything you said is true, but I can argue that taking string height measurements at the 12th fret is not as accurate as somewhere else, like where the neck joins the body. Necks are made of wood, and wood tends to move.

The point I'm making is that you can try and take every flaw your bass has--like an inaccurately cut nut--out of the equation to get the right "datum", but it's still wood. Wood is wood. :)
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I agree in part- the higher the fret, there is less chance of there being any forward relief included in the measurement. For that reason, I always set relief first. If the relief changes seasonally, I bring it back to my preferred curve and double-check the height. Usually, I don't need to do any saddle adjustments. I may start a new thread: "How do you measure relief?" because that seems to be often neglected- too many people change their bridge saddle height to compensate for changes in neck relief.

Taking the nut out of the equation has nothing to do with a flaw in the nut. The techs who do this do it because the height of the slot is typically greater than that of the frets.

If a bass is set up with less relief (I set mine at .008"), then 12th fret is pretty much going to stay on the same plane as the last. As long as we measure our own instrument on the same fret each time, we'll be fine. :)

My 12th fret heights in 64ths:
C=3
G=4
D=4
A=4.5
E=5
B=5.5

The reason my height measurements increase on the lower strings is to compensate for the greater excursion of the larger strings. Peace!
 
#43
There seems to be a contest of who can achieve the lowest action. A pride in saying, "my action is lower than your action". Or, he who has the lowest action wins. I think this is especially true of the newer players. Having played bass for over 50 years and playing maybe hundreds of basses I can honestly say that I don't like low actions. Mainly because of the loss of tone and note fullness. Just my 2 cents.
Rocky
 
#44
Kwesi said:
I am curious, why is it that so many folks measure action in inches?
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Because we are a nation that clings to a system that even the English have given up on ... mostly? Personally I don't care if you use inches or mm but if the former then use decimal inches. A better question is why a nation of people who cannot work fractions would measure things in 64ths of an inch?? :rollno:

Ken
 
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#45
Rocky McDougall said:
There seems to be a contest of who can achieve the lowest action. A pride in saying, "my action is lower than your action". Or, he who has the lowest action wins. I think this is especially true of the newer players. Having played bass for over 50 years and playing maybe hundreds of basses I can honestly say that I don't like low actions. Mainly because of the loss of tone and note fullness. Just my 2 cents.
Rocky
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My action is pretty much middle-of-the-road. ...just like my playing. :hmm:
 
#47
Rocky McDougall said:
There seems to be a contest of who can achieve the lowest action. A pride in saying, "my action is lower than your action". Or, he who has the lowest action wins. I think this is especially true of the newer players. Having played bass for over 50 years and playing maybe hundreds of basses I can honestly say that I don't like low actions. Mainly because of the loss of tone and note fullness. Just my 2 cents.
Rocky
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I like the feel of low action, and the tone of high action... I never can find the elusive happy medium, I'm always adjusting!
 
#48
darius8 said:
From the top of the fret to the bottom of the string of my MIM Fender Jazz 4-string:

At the 12th fret 1.2mm, 20th 2mm.
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DiabolusInMusic said:
By bottom do you mean top? That is a crazy low E string but an appropriate G string height.

.
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No, I measured my E string from the top of the 20th fret to the bottom of the string. I used a 2mm allen wrench (for simplicity) and slid it between the fret and string. When measuring action height you have to have the bass in "playing" position. If you have the bass lying on its back the weight of the strings actually lowers the string. Seriously it does, try it.
 
#50
My 62 Fender Jazz, is 2.82mm from the top of the 12th fret to the bottom of the E string.

My MII Squire Jazz, is 3.01mm from the top of the 12th fret to the bottom of the E string.

I tried to get the Squire as low as the 62 but it kept wanting to buzz any lower than right around 3mm.
I honestly think I can get the 62 down lower and may try soon.
 
#52
awilkie84 said:
Question: How the heck are you setting your actions so low and NOT getting serious fret buzz when playing hard!?

My strings have to be about 3-4mm at the 12th fret (fingerboard height) and I still get irritated by the buzzing & clacking when playing harder.
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I've never actually measured my action, but I like to set it so that there is some noise just when I attack the strings hard - it's a feature, not a bug!
 
#53
It's a combination of string height and neck relief. Knowing how to set up your instrument for how you like to play is paramount!

Also, because it's so low you don't need to "dig in" so much.
You keep your amp volume higher and with the lighter touch you have more dynamics when adding more or less intensity when plucking the string.

My action is insanely low. I like to have a little "sizzle" in my sound but not enough where it chokes the strings.

The additional nice thing about really low action is that you put considerably less effort in playing. My hands are never tired after playing a 3 hour gig.
 
#54
I completely disagree with saying one can be more dynamic with lower action. It seems to me the opposite is true. I can still play softly with high action and I doubt someone could play as hard as I sometimes do with low action. As for keeping a stable playing volume. That's what compression is for.
 
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#55
That's the whole point.

With the lower action, you play with less effort to create the same effect as playing harder with higher action and not wearing out your hands. The same is when playing softer.

The amount of effort or lack thereof is considerably less extreme in either direction allowing you greater dynamic range with just a slight change in your attack.
 
#57
awilkie84 said:
Question: How the heck are you setting your actions so low and NOT getting serious fret buzz when playing hard!?

My strings have to be about 3-4mm at the 12th fret (fingerboard height) and I still get irritated by the buzzing & clacking when playing harder.
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You posted right after I did so I'm not real sure if your asking me or just anyone in general.

I myself have no idea. I learned how to set up my basses literally about a month ago. I watched a bunch of different videos and read through a few online resources and applied the most commonly suggested settings for a Fender bass.

It just worked out on the 62
And those exact same settings were just slightly to low for the Squire, so I just raised each saddle height screw 1/4 turn until the buzzing stopped.
Then intonate.
 
#59
Tone comes from many places. Some people get all the tone they want from low action and a gentle touch. Others require a more aggressive attack and some room for strings to move.

One thing that is evident to me is that the tone achieved from an aggressive playing style is not replicable with a passive playing style.

Either style is fine. That's all just a matter of taste.

There are some riffs that are very easy to pull off (pun intended) with low action that are near impossible with medium or high action. IMO that's why sometimes recent converts from guitar have amazing chops but bland tone.

There are no wrong answers, but there are striking differences between low and not-low action. I disagree with folks who think that the same tone or playability are possible with either.
 
#60
One big revelation, as for as tone goes, for me was that the sound I was chasing involved playing with a heavy touch. Going exactly with what you said. I couldn't for the life of me get the tone I was looking for from low action. So my action is set with tone rather than feel in mind. After some time my technique ajusted itself.
 

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