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Low action - is this really a good thing?

bass nitro

bass nitro

Feb 21, 2011
477
252
BG,SZ
#1
I have put this tread here because i think it is related to setup generally .Well, What do you think about - What way low action does affect sound ( except these obvious "clinky" noises )? I for one think that some brand and basses do sounds better with little more action - mean higher,some do not.Do you like click-plucking sound?Why?Thank for any answers :bassist::bassist::bassist::D:D:D
 
#7
The distance necessary to push down a string to contact a fret changes the tension and therefore changes the pitch. The change in pitch effects the intonation to being either sharp, flat, or perfect. This small difference may or may not be noticeable to the human ear. For your question, yes the tone is effected.
Rocky
 
#9
JimmyM said:
I love low action, and it doesn't necessarily mean clinky and clunky. Just have to adjust your right hand for it.
Click to expand...

Oh yes. If you are willing to experiment you may find it works great - the only requirement is decent flat frets!

Rocky McDougall said:
The distance necessary to push down a string to contact a fret changes the tension and therefore changes the pitch. The change in pitch effects the intonation to being either sharp, flat, or perfect. This small difference may or may not be noticeable to the human ear. For your question, yes the tone is effected.
Rocky
Click to expand...

When you intonate the string by adjusting it's length you are trying to offset this... make each fretted note very close to the actual note (without temperament etc. but clsoe enough).

AFAIK the real tonal difference between high and low action is when you 'dig in' with 'yer pluckin' ' hand! That and the pickup height setup. As you fret up the neck a low action bass will have less string height change - on a high action bass the string height when open and when fretted at the 17th fret is more exaggerated - even with a straight neck. This matters even more if the neck has a lot of relief.
 
#11
I like low action because it's easy to play. Unfortunately I use gigantic strings and cheap basses so my action is pretty high. Neigh unusable to your average player.

But you get used to it once you get your Popeye fingers and then start to enjoy the positives of a little bit higher action.
 
#12
I tend to use a low-medium action - I think I get my best playability and sound that way... For me, if the action is too low, my notes don't ring out as much as I want them to - I set my basses up so that there is no string buzz(unplugged) at all for "normal" playing, but so that I get a tiny bit when I really dig in hard... In order to accomplish this, I have to have very level frets, and run around .010-.015" of neck relief - fortunately, I have an excellent luthier within 45 minutes driving that does killer fret work for me...


- georgestrings
 
#13
I don't think it's either a good or a bad thing - it's a personal preference. It all depends on what you like. I like the action low on my Hofner, combined with the short scale it makes it a really fast bass, great for playing intricate single-line runs. On the other hand, my P-Bass has a higher action, which makes me play slower and cleaner, for getting a good groove going when playing in a band setting.
 
#14
JimmyM said:
I love low action, and it doesn't necessarily mean clinky and clunky. Just have to adjust your right hand for it.
Click to expand...

PlungerModerno said:
Oh yes. If you are willing to experiment you may find it works great - the only requirement is decent flat frets!
Click to expand...

Silver Blues said:
I love low action. I play light 98% of the time, too, though. Can't stand these 'factory set up' basses that have like centimeter-high actions, and some people play them like this :eyebrow:
Click to expand...

^^^This^^^

I like my action as low as possible, but detest fret buzz. IMHO, clanking is as unacceptable as playing drastically out of tune. When recording and listening to it played back, I like to hear all notes and no clank or buzz. That being said, I play Rock/Classic Rock/Jazz, fingerstyle only (no slap, ever), and never use stainless strings, only Nickels and flats. Might be a different story if it was more a metal-type scenario. But then again, I'm not the guy you'd want for that....
 
#15
georgestrings said:
I tend to use a low-medium action - I think I get my best playability and sound that way... For me, if the action is too low, my notes don't ring out as much as I want them to - I set my basses up so that there is no string buzz(unplugged) at all for "normal" playing, but so that I get a tiny bit when I really dig in hard... In order to accomplish this, I have to have very level frets, and run around .010-.015" of neck relief - fortunately, I have an excellent luthier within 45 minutes driving that does killer fret work for me...

- georgestrings
Click to expand...

+1

I set mine up the same way. No buzz playing lightly, some buzz when I dig in. The buzz helps give some definition and character to the tone / notes.
 

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