low action & string attack

[tommyindelaware]

the lower your action............... the softer u have to strike the string to avoid fret buzz .

i did a fret level job on an old sg today. the guy dropped it off first thing this am.
it turned out PERFECT !!!!!
truss rod worked evenly.....
the tired ole neck was stable as hell....
didn't have to take a whole lot off ..as it was worn fairly evenly.....
i couldn't wait for the guy to come in & see how perfect the action was. VERY low.....w/ no buzzing......just sweet clear tone !!!!!!
he comes in...........picks up the guitar............starts plucking it super hard w/ his right index & middle finger....like it's a plucking bass or something.....looks at me & says ...it still buzzes !!!!!!!!!
so..............

i took him outside & kicked his city slickin ass !!!!!!!
just kiddin.......

i took the guitar from him ..........showed him what a pick was..........& how to use it....... & demonstrated how it didn't buzz if you play acording to the string hieght. & showed him how to raise the action if he really needed to pound on the guitar to play it. and oh yea.......he wanted 9-42's on it !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Colin]

I wonder what the fascination is with low action? The guy that repairs my instruments tells that same story all the time.

 

[tommyindelaware]

i think some people think that the lower the action........the easier it plays.......then....the better they can play. this is only true up to a point.............. then the strings will start to choke out from being touched.

 

[CudBucket]

I'll take a low action thank you. Playing a higher action doesn't make you better either.

 

[Larry]

i like my action low but some people go crazy over a little buzz if you cant hear it throught the amp then its no big deal if you ask me

 

[CudBucket]

Ever since jongitarz told us that even John Petrucci's guitar buzzes a bit (acoustically), that's all I needed to know.

 

[Norrin Radd]

Funny. I just shimmed the neck on my Axis today (one business card worth) and the action is now awesomely low! There is a little bit of fret buzz on the D string and maybe a little less on the G, but the rest are okay. AND I didn't notice the buzz amplified.

I'm with Cudbucket - I like it really low. My JP is already good and low but has no buzz. I can't believe though how great the Axis plays now with the lower action. Damn! Sorry about the rambling, just loving the guitar (like it's all new again!)

 

[Colin]

I'll take a low action thank you. Playing a higher action doesn't make you better either.

I think you're right, but it's this obsession with extreme low action I was talking about. I personally like a heavier string with a bit of daylight between the strings and fretboard. Tone wise I think there is a trade off with low versus high action and light versus heavy strings. But that might be for another thread.

Colin

 

[koogie2k]

I have one JP that Jongitarz did for me...."pimp job" and I really really like it. Plus, that was the guitar that had to have the neck replaced anyhow, so I had him do that. I like it. But, I still play my other Pets with the factory height and there is nothing wrong with it. I can go between them easily and have no problems. Low action is just that.....low action. Does it make a difference? To me, not really. I just don't have to strike the strings as "hard".....but, I was never really pick heavy anyhow. My 2 pennies....

 

[Thirdpole]

It's all a matter of comfort and preference. Low action is more comfortable. But, I like my strings fairly high so i can play with the dynamics of the pick attack.

Higher strings also allow me play cleaner because the high strings are naturally muted by the index finger of my left hand position (thumb on top ala Jimi).

I'm just asking here ... are low action guitars more sensible to fretting out on 2 step bend in the high registry ?

 

[SteveB]

I like low-ish action for the ease of depressing the strings. But I don't like it so low that I can't get 'under' the string to bend it. I've played some guitars with action that was actually too low for my comfort.

Thank goodness action is adjustable!

 

[ripley]

if I can pass 2 business cards stacked on top of each other under my trings at the 12th fret: the action in too high.

I have a problem with the joints in my wrists and fingers. I have a weird 2 handed playing style a' la michael manring meets leatherface from texas chainsaw massacre, so after playing for a while the lower action greatly reduces the stabbing pain in my joints.

I've always really disagreed with the "high action= better tone=real men play with high action" macho mantra. I never set my action for specific tonal goals, and more believe that the quality of your tone - relating to action - is really deturmined by setting the action to the prefrences of your *hands*, not your ears. if your hands work right with the instrument, the tone follows naturally.

but I'm just some random guy, not an expert.

 

[Colin]

While I personally couldn't care less how people have their action set (after all it is your guitar). It is generally excepted that a higher action + higher gauge of string does result in a better tone (how much is another debate). Put thin strings on your acoustic and then thicker strings and you may notice it more than on an electric. I personally don't like it too low or too high but I have varied off the factory heights. But when it's so low that you get excessive buzz, that's what Tommy was referring too. I know a guy that played acoustic for years and when he went back to playing electric the strings felt too light and he was over bending. So the gauge was upped (it had a wound G string). It's what ever floats your boat.

Colin

 

[edensdad]

There has to be a happy medium for me. I like the JP action, and have set up all my other electrics the same. Action can be too low, though. I sold this Gretsch I had to this guy, he was worried about the action being too high - so I set it up so you could barely fit an atom between the string and the fret board . Didn't buzz, really straight nice neck (lousy neck joint) I didn't like it that low personally.

Tommy, with all due respect, picking or fingerpicking aggressively is a valid style IMO. I use a heavy delrin pick (1.0 mm) and vary me pick attack from "put you to sleep" gentle to "break two strings every song" aggressive. Certain parts of my lead playing style were inspired by the likes of Gary Moore and SRV, who pounded the hell out of their axes.

 

[CudBucket]

I have small hands so a low action helps. Especially on wide stretches. But I too, don't like an action so low that I can't bend strings. My 79 Les Paul was my only guitar for years and that guitar was a "fretless wonder". Low, wide frets. After my 15 year hiatus, I sold all my gear except that guitar. I bought an Ibanez RG to get back into it and realized I couldn't play the Les Paul with those frets. So I had it refretted with Dunlop 6100 and it's a totally new axe now. Wasn't long after that that I picked up a used Petrucci in a GC one day and everything changed. I sold all the guitars I had picked up since getting back into playing, except the Les Paul, and started over. To this day, the Petrucci sets the standard for every guitar I buy.

 

[NorM]

Even at twice the cost education is a value. Cool Post Tommy.

 

[jazzbo jim]

I think Tommy's trying to say (and I agree) that it's OK to smack the snot out of the strings..just don't expect "buzz free" "atomic low" action at the same time.
I'm a little skeptical of the " my axe is so nice...super low action and no buzz" posts.
If you smack it hard enough, it'll buzz. It's called an ellipse...physics rules.

 

[Norrin Radd]

I think Tommy's trying to say (and I agree) that it's OK to smack the snot out of the strings..just don't expect "buzz free" "atomic low" action at the same time.
I'm a little skeptical of the " my axe is so nice...super low action and no buzz" posts.
If you smack it hard enough, it'll buzz. It's called an ellipse...physics rules.

That's true no matter HOW high the action is, though. I like it low. A little buzz here and there I can live with. If not, I'll just take out my shim!

 

[jazzbo jim]

That's what I'm saying..a little buzz (especially on a lively guitar with a maple fingerboard and top) is normal.

 

[fbecir]

Hello folks

The type of action (low, medium or high) depends on what you play. If you play "shredder stuff", you need to have a low action. But, if you have to play more "acoustically" a buzz is a problem.
I think that the action of John Petrucci's guitars is not exactly the same for every song : the guitar he uses for Endless Sacrifice for instance has no buzz so the action is not so low.
In my case, I have a medium action. In our set, we have hard rock stuffs but also acoustic songs, thus I'm obliged to have an action that is good in every case (I use only one guitar, my trusty Music Man Steve Morse).
Low action is nice, but if you have to play with a slide ... you're dead

Aloa