Setup question: Action is too low (!)

Read through Jerzy Drozd's ultimate setup guide in the stickies. Read it once more and you are ready to work.

If you would rather just jump right in, what is the relief like and what is the action like now? If the relief is good, set the action. If the relief is no good, set it before adjusting the action. I am guessing the buzz is across all strings, if it is just on one string you may just want to raise the needed saddle. My fretless basses have almost no relief and a low action, .010" relief and 2mm on the E string.

 

Basic premises:

Truss rod adjustments control relief.
Saddle adjustments control string height.

If the strings are too low, raise the saddles.

Intonation may need to be adjusted.

 

Yes, certainly try saddles first.

Especially with a FL, as a flat fingerboard is usually preferable to relief.

Don't forget to loosen the strings by detuning first so you don't stress or strip the tiny saddle screws.

 

I used the Gary Willis setup guide (http://www.garywillis.com/pages/bass/bassmanual/setupmanual.html) to learn about action and string height. As does the OP, I like to dig in. The strings wil move a lot more and need more room to do that. For my playing technique, I need a higher action and like quite a bit of relief in the neck (fretless and fretted). It's a bit harder for the left hand - you'll need more strength in your fingers - but once I was used to it, I never really liked basses with low action... but it depends on your own playing style.

 

Gary Willis is an excellent player.

His tech advice is not so good. Professional techs do not perform set ups or repair work using his "hit or miss" suggestions.

For these reasons his site was removed from the sticky several years ago.

Not recommended.

 

Oops sorry, didn't know about that... You're right about not using "hit or miss".

 

Every adjustment on the bass is dependent on a properly adjusted neck. Always start with the neck first, raising the saddles, when the reason for the low action was caused by a back bow in the neck will not solve the problem, it will only make it worse when the neck is properly adjusted.

 

Absolutely true. I was assuming that the neck is not back bowing as that is usually visually obvious and the OP would have mentioned that.
If it is mostly flat, which is only a guess from what the OP was describing, saddles would be a good place to start.

 

Not necessarily, the slightest back bow can throw the action out of whack and cause fingerboard buzzing. While you are absolutely right about a fretless needing less relief than a fretted bass, I still find that a slight relief is beneficial. Maybe just .003 to .005" of relief instead of .009 to .012" like on a fretted bass. Its quick and easy to check relief, so it should always be checked before any other adjustments are made. Especially if the bass was set up properly before and became out of adjustment.

 

Setting up a fretless to play at it's optimum is like doing so on a fretted instrument times ten. All adjustments become super critical if you want the fretless electric mwah without undue buzz and a trueness of tone all along the fingerboard. Even a slight irregularity in the fingerboard will give inconsistencies in the playability of the instrument.

If you want the instrument to play it's best, I highly recommend you take it to a very experienced technician. But then I am a highly critical fretless player - you may not be so fussy.

 

When your harmonics begin to lose sustain and or volume, your action is too low. There are more of these weaker harmonic tones because you can drop it much lower on a fretless. Your action will be just right once you raise the saddles to the right spots.

Or do you have a slight backbow?

 

Trying to understand what you mean here. Are you talking about open string harmonics?

 

Inquiring minds want to know.

 

Yes. You could drop the string height way down on my old bass, probably because of the excellent fretwork it had, and every fret still rang true. The only thing it affected was the harmonics. A bass with no frets to contend with would certainly have this ability.

 

I don't understand how action can affect the volume and sustain of a harmonic, unless of course it is so low that the vibrating sting is actually contacting the fretboard.

 

Fundamentals require more excursion than harmonics, so they would be affected first.

 

It can't. There is no effect on the string's vibration without contact.

 

Turnaround,
Is there a specific setup procedure that you follow differently for fretless?
When you mention slight irregularity in the fingerboard, that would seem to entail sanding and re-radiusing the fingerboard.

 

Irregularities will have to be remedied. High spots need to be removed. Tools include a precision straight edge and a good light source (to find the problems) and cutting tools of choice. That may include rasps, files, scrapers, and blocks with sandpaper grits up to 600. Usually a sharp scraper and/or sanding blocks are enough to solve the problem(s).

Changing the radius is a personal choice, not necessary to get a true surface.