Setting action on a Floyd

NorioDS

Alan Ratcliffe wroteI could go into detail, but everything you need is at the Jemsite Tech Setup & F.A.Q - well written and comprehensive.

Alan, on that JEMSite link, which articles should I read so I can set my own action nice n low during a string change? I'm shit-scared of doing anything "technical" on my Ibanez other than a string change and then only if it's the same gauge and brand ? But that has to change now as I need to save bucks ?

AlanRatcliffe

Read through them all and most of all, get a bit of practice at doing everything yourself. The more you do it, the easier it gets.

The most important one for everyone is the article on Restringing and Retuning.
To set the action you need to set both the bridge and the nut
Also note the articles on Truss Rod adjustment and Intonation adjustment.

Gearhead

Just wanted to comment on the 'nice n lo' action thing (no offense intended); is really everyone on this forum so hung up on low action or what?
Low action just makes for either having to adjust the truss, bridge and what not, every week, or suffer fret buzz (even if the JEM site says buzz is a fact of life, it shouldn't be).
Low action does not help with grabbing the string when bending and more rapidly leads to note-outs on the bends (unless you have a compound radius fretboard) [fact]. In short, it's just for speed metal wannabies [opinion].
I'm not saying high action is the thing, because it plays heavy etc but (as with so many things) somewhere between low and high there's just right. Okay everyone's 'just right' is different, but I bet 90% of the guitarists on the forum are not going to be happier with lowering their action even if they think they are.

NorioDS

@Alan, tanks ? I'll print them out and (slowly) mess around with my baby till I get the hang of it.

@Gearhead, I love low action and light strings. It allows me to do long legato runs, right-hand tapping and playing with a soft touch. So yeah, I'm hooked. My old axe (RG470) was set up REAL low and it was wonderful. I haven't enjoyed my new one as much (RG42DX I think) because of the action and slightly greater tension on the strings.

I don't play much rhythm and, when I do, I try to play it as lightly as possible. I just like it better that way.

AlanRatcliffe

Different approaches, different sounds and different playing styles. As Norio pointed out it does make legato, tapping and sweeping, etc. easier.

It is possible to get a low action and no buzz - all down to the fret dress. If you want a low action and still want to really grab the string, a taller fret (or scalloping) lets you do that too. Compound radius (or more accurately, conical radius) doesn't let you get a lower action than the largest radius of the cone, so you can get a straight 16" radius as low as Warmoth's 10" - 16" conical radius.

While my action has crept up higher in recent years, I do still love a fairly low action because I do a lot of stuff on the fingerboard with my left hand - percussive knocks and tapping. It's not as ridiculously low as it used to be (under a mm at the 24th), mostly because I like to feel the fingerboard as I play and lower frets with a slightly higher action is easier on my knuckles than the other way around...

Gearhead

Wouldn't want to hijack Norio's thread and turn it into low-action-thread, but I appreciate the comments on low action. I just tried to point out that in general there are trade-offs, it's not all-important for a guitar to have it and there's no point in paying a tech to set up your guitar with low action if you don't know why.
Above all it annoys me when people talk about a guitar 'having low action' as if it's a quality criterion. The guitar being able to have it is, admittedly, a sign that the neck build was done properly but that's all. Just wanted to say that. To avoid the confusion. ☹

NorioDS

Everything has trade-offs and I know a lot of people hate low-action and light strings so it's just a personal preference thing.

I'd definitely say that every guitar player should try both low-action and high-action and see what they prefer. It's particularly useful to see what your heroes use and then try it. Some things you'll like, some thing you won't but it's good to try EVERYTHING. Otherwise you'll never find your "sweet spots" and that's what makes playing guitar so damn thrilling ?