High Action sounds so much better

[markdavid]

For a long, long time I had as low an action as possible on my basses and hated high action and at one point I had a bass where the action was about 1mm at the 12 fret, there are postives to a low action such as less force required to fret notes, economy of motion. 

Recently I have found my action gradually rising and at the moment it is 3mm at the 17th fret,  I can see that if I was going for a clanky bright tone as with my previous band I might want the action lower to get that clank but I am using flatwounds and the higher action really emphasizes the thump and the attack of the flatwounds as well as the notes coming through cleaner and clearer,  I tend to play towards the end of the fingerboard and this is made much easier with the higher action.

Possibly worth pointing out is that my main bass is a Hofner club bass so the bass is 30" scale and very narrow string spacing so high action is not at all uncomfortable, I can imagine if I was playing a 35" scale 6 string bass with a neck like a tree trunk my preference may well be different

Anyone else here really like the tone from high action?

 

[mentalextra]

You don't have to set up 'fast and low'! Most manufacturers provide a range of adjustment to allow for players that require higher or lower action. If you prefer a high action and don't mind working harder, then go for it?

[ambient]

Anthony Jackson and John Patitucci both use a very high action on their instruments. I was watching a video by Janek Gwizdala recently, explaining his switch to using a high action.

[wateroftyne]

Yep, I'm the same. Drop the pickup height as well. Evens everything out nicely.

[Monkey Steve]

Yep - I routinely have to raise the action whenever I get a new bass, or get an old bass back from having any work done on it. 

Originally it was when i was learning some slap bass - needed some clearance under the strings - and now my standard technique is a very aggressive Entwistle-esque  tap which needs some space to stop it becoming more clank than note.  While I'm sure I'm not unique, I'm happy to accept it's unusual enough that it's nobody's fault for assuming I'd want a lower action

Linked to this, "the lower the better" does seem to be a bit of unchallenged wisdom that everybody knows to be true, even when it's not.  A mate of mine who has loads of guitars but genuinely cannot play beyond a few barre chords, has left some with me to store while he's in a smaller flat than usual (long story, not worth the re-telling).  He "knows" that the action should be as low as possible (and also that the pickups should be as high as possible) and most of the guitars were unplayable when he dropped them off - and I mean unplayable: on one guitar the strings were actually resting on the frets, and on a couple of others you couldn't play a note without fretbuzz, intonation all over the place, etc.  When I pointed this out to him (and did very quick set ups to fix them) he insisted that there wasn't a problem because the action was low and that was always a good thing, what was I talking about?

[Muzz]

I don't like a high action, but as I'm mostly an aggressive pick player, I don't go 1mm low, either. I find just under 2mm to be the right place for me. 2.5mm and up seems like hard work...

Never noticed the tone changing much with action height, either, but then I have active EQs in all my basses, so it might be that...

[Doctor J]

I have never measured action in my life, I go with what feels right for that neck and fret combination. I like it high enough that the note is clear and true when I play soft to medium, but low enough that I can summon up some grit should I want it by digging hard. I think, by most standards, I err on the lower side of action, based on the setup of instruments I have bought, however, the first thing I do with any bass I purchase is level and dress the frets and, most importantly, dress the nut slots so the action isn't ridiculous at the first fret. Choking notes with stupidly low action is silly, but having the action higher than it needs to be to get clear and true notes seems odd to me. I don't want to have to fight notes out of the bass, we're in the same gang.

[hooky_lowdown]

2 hours ago, markdavid said:

I am using flatwounds and the higher action really emphasizes the thump and the attack of the flatwounds 

Having been a flatwound user for years, I've never associated flats with "attack" of any kind. Also playing nearer the fretboard gives a fuller, almost duller sound. Playing closer to the bridge gives a more defined tone. Which seems to go against what you said your experience is, which seems unusual to me.

I play with a low action, simply because it's easier and economical to play this way, for me at least. I set my action as low as it can be without any fret buzz.

[musicbassman]

Interesting topic.

I play with what I expect some would consider a very high action - I've just checked on my regular bass and it's 4mm at the 17th.

But this helps with eliminating all buzzes and clanks - which very much suits me as I use a lot of ghost and stopped notes, and the last thing you need is any of that business going on - I like a bright clean 'chonky' sound with well defined clear notes or percussive notes.

PS - I play with fingers or a pick on a PJ with flats. And a dull thud certainly isn't the result.  🤗

[stewblack]

It's one of the things changing for me over the years. My mistake was using a g*******t as a tech for years instead of learning to do it myself. 

Now I'm happier with a little bit of air under my strings. See also flatwounds and rolling off the extreme bottom end of the eq. 

[chris_b]

I don't dig in. I try to utilise the least amount of effort when I'm playing. So the action is low-ish. My eyesight isn't good enough to see if it's 2, 3, 4 mm or more.

 

[BrunoBass]

3 hours ago, wateroftyne said:

Yep, I'm the same. Drop the pickup height as well. Evens everything out nicely.

I drop the pickups on my six strings. I read somewhere years ago that the string will vibrate more freely if it’s not effected by the magnetic pull of the pickup and therefore sound better. 
 

Probably less of an issue on bass strings though.

[NikNik]

It can sound much better buy it depends upon what bass you're playing and what tone you're trying to achieve. 

For instance,  I'd use a really low action and roundwounds on a Rick 4000 series bass to get that rattle that I think is necessary when using that bass. On a fretless Precision on jazzy/soul pieces, I'd favour a high action with flats. 

[Bassfinger]

I like mine on the high side too - not complete and utter cheese cutter, but perhaps higher than most prefer it. Vive big hands with long fingers and I just feels right to me.  I'm glad there may even be some science behind it.

Edited December 31, 2019 by Bassfinger

[Dan Dare]

24 minutes ago, Bassfinger said:

I like mine on the high side too - not complete and utter cheese cutter, but perhaps higher than most prefer it. Vive big hands with long fingers and I just feels right to me.  I'm glad there may even be some science behind it.

If you have big hands, a certain guitar, er, customiser, whose work is much revered on here should be able to help out...

Being serious for a moment, I agree. I like to dig the pads of my fingers slightly under the strings - it gives a fatter tone - and find there's too much rattle and clank with a low action. Some of the vid's you see, especially by slap players, are terrible for that. All bzzz, bzzz, rattle, rattle and no note.

[4000]

3 hours ago, Muzz said:

I don't like a high action, but as I'm mostly an aggressive pick player, I don't go 1mm low, either. I find just under 2mm to be the right place for me. 2.5mm and up seems like hard work...

Never noticed the tone changing much with action height, either, but then I have active EQs in all my basses, so it might be that...

Which fret and which string?

FWIW, my preference is very low, but I compromise slightly on my Rics. About 2mm 12th E, just under 1.5mm, maybe 1mm 12th G, Depending on how I’m feeling. I tend to setup by feel and tone, but when I measure it where I’m happy it’s usually pretty much the same. Some of the other basses I’ve had have been quite a bit lower. I think my old ‘73 4000 was no more than 1mm 12th E, until I raised it a bit prior to selling. 

Ive tried raising the action countless times, but it just doesn’t suit how I play. I strike the string and also fret very lightly. It also depends on the bass as tension feels different from bass to bass. 

Edited December 31, 2019 by 4000

[Lozz196]

I like a lot of clank/rattle in my sound, so I have a fairly high action as I only want said clank/rattle to be the product of hard-hitting.

[musicbassman]

By the way, here's a little tip for those struggling to measure their action  (fnaar, fnaar.).

Just check it by trying various drill bit sizes.

So if a 2mm drill bit just neatly fits between your string and the fret and is touching both, then your action is...... 2mm !

Simple is good.

 

[joeystrange]

I’ve always had high action, mostly due to being heavy-handed.

I’ve tried playing with a lighter touch and with lighter picks but it just feels like I’m not really trying so it doesn’t last for long.

I’ve also found that, probably for the above reason, I’ve never strived for the perfect setup - action, neck relief, pickup height etc. As long as there’s no fret buzz when I’m playing then that’s fine with me.

[Lozz196]

7 minutes ago, joeystrange said:

I’ve always had high action, mostly due to being heavy-handed.

I’ve tried playing with a lighter touch and with lighter picks but it just feels like I’m not really trying so it doesn’t last for long.

I’ve also found that, probably for the above reason, I’ve never strived for the perfect setup - action, neck relief, pickup height etc. As long as there’s no fret buzz when I’m playing then that’s fine with me.

Same for me, I think it’s the music we play, just seems wrong playing with light touch.

[Reggaebass]

I play with the lowest action I can get, usually around 1 to 1.5mm at the 12th E , I struggle to play my friends jazz which is around 4mm , it just seems hard work for me, and I cannot say I notice a difference in the tone between them, I use this to measure, it’s a handy little tool 🙂

[CamdenRob]

Horses for courses and all that isn’t it...

I’m either too aggressive or have too poor a technique to get away with a really low action. I can’t abide any fret clank in my sound, so generally set the action just high enough to get the full range of clean notes across the neck. No idea about actual measurements but compared to other people’s bases I’ve played at bashes etc mines definitely on the higher side of average.

[MacDaddy]

Most of my basses have ramps and light strings, so low actions for me. I can dig in if I want, so clank is there if I want it, but no problem with thump or attack either.

[Muzz]

20 hours ago, 4000 said:

Which fret and which string?

FWIW, my preference is very low, but I compromise slightly on my Rics. About 2mm 12th E, just under 1.5mm, maybe 1mm 12th G, Depending on how I’m feeling. I tend to setup by feel and tone, but when I measure it where I’m happy it’s usually pretty much the same. Some of the other basses I’ve had have been quite a bit lower. I think my old ‘73 4000 was no more than 1mm 12th E, until I raised it a bit prior to selling. 

Ive tried raising the action countless times, but it just doesn’t suit how I play. I strike the string and also fret very lightly. It also depends on the bass as tension feels different from bass to bass. 

Sorry, not very clear there: 12th fret, 2mm on the E, that being the highest: the others are lower going down to about 1.5mm on the G. I never used to measure the action, just set it how I like it, and that’s how I still do it: I measure afterwards and hey presto, it’s always 2mm at the 12th on the E 😀

As far as Clank goes, I don’t mind some, and I like more of it when the song calls for it...in fact it’s like solo bass tones: they’re verrry different (and rarely better) with the full band playing. Just listening to some of those isolated bass parts from people like John Entwistle, Chris Squire and Geddy Lee shows how tons of clank and gnarl can kind of settle into the band sound, and you don’t hear them...

[ambient]

4 hours ago, musicbassman said:

By the way, here's a little tip for those struggling to measure their action  (fnaar, fnaar.).

Just check it by trying various drill bit sizes.

So if a 2mm drill bit just neatly fits between your string and the fret and is touching both, then your action is...... 2mm !

Simple is good.

 

Good idea. An Allen key works well too.