Lammas Day Posted August 28, 2011 Share Posted August 28, 2011 I seam to remember something on here a while ago about action but couldn't find it when searching? Just wondering what you think - I'm well prepared (as in most cases) to be in the minority here ( ), but all anyone seams to talk about is along the lines of "it's REALLY good the action is so LOW" - for me though, that a'int a good thing... not terrible, but why can't people see the benefits of a good high action? Yep, if you're learning (or like Tony Iommi, don't have any ends to your fingers) then you don't want to make life difficult for yourself by adding hand cramp to the list of things to get used to when playing. But once you're a little more fluid, you've got good strength in your fingers, I really like the clarity of a high action. Seams to me, to be a common mistake of the beginner to assume a high action means a poorly setup or just plain bad guitar, so I was just wondering if anyone else preferred a higher action or strived to have the strings as low to the fret-board as was possible? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
retrosurfer1959 Posted August 28, 2011 Share Posted August 28, 2011 Depends on what you mean as a high action. I used to have a few guitars with low tight actions but now I tend to leave everything pretty much at factory settings unless it's for slide than I raise them a tad. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kimbabig Posted August 28, 2011 Share Posted August 28, 2011 I love high action! I've got a strat copy with gauge 12's and high action, which I do not use for slide. I have a couple guitars with medium action, but none low. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daveinspain Posted August 28, 2011 Share Posted August 28, 2011 I was always trying to get my action low as possible but since I bought a new guitar that had higher action and I didn't know how to lower it I just kept it that way. Now I find it's worth getting use to higher action for tone and sustain... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LarryUK Posted August 28, 2011 Share Posted August 28, 2011 I bought this Ibanez sa160 on a whim off Ebay. Only cost £117. The action is quite high. But I love playing it. It's permanently in my lounge. It doesn't hold its tuning very well. But it's ok for practice. It's made me think again over how low I have my action. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lammas Day Posted August 28, 2011 Author Share Posted August 28, 2011 I bought this Ibanez sa160 on a whim off Ebay. Only cost £117. The action is quite high. But I love playing it. It's permanently in my lounge. It doesn't hold its tuning very well. But it's ok for practice. It's made me think again over how low I have my action. nice... it's good to know I'm not alone, not that it matters I guess but it's always nice to hear from people who share. But the point that it was only until you might acquire a guitar which is already pretty high, that you discover the merits of playing high is the same for me, and what my point was really. All the time I've spent in the past delicately twisting a truss rod nut and messing with bridges to try and bring the action down, because it's inherited knowledge that LOW = GOOD, can sometimes mean that you're missing out on something that could add something else to your playing. @lashurst - there's been a tonne of Ibanezascrouges I've seen on ebay, but I can't for the life of me work out if an Ibanez A7863 is better than the Ibanez F8938, when the RG2372 sells for £10'000 but the RG2371 you can pick up from ASDA for £69... I wish to hell they'd develop some kind of system there :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G McBride Posted August 28, 2011 Share Posted August 28, 2011 I have guitars set up both low and then I guess it would be considered medium. I like the action to be just a bit higher on blues type music where you do a lot of bending. I do not have a guitar set up for strictly slide but my low actions are just not suitable at all for that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pete c Posted August 28, 2011 Share Posted August 28, 2011 i set mine where its comfortable for me. ive had people say its too low or too high. i usually tell them they dont have to play it. one friend has an ibanez sable he has the action so low i cant play it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
strat-o-steve Posted August 28, 2011 Share Posted August 28, 2011 I am heavy handed with my picking hand....and therefore I need a higher action so I'm not generating lots of buzz! Besides, I love the feel of the strings when I bend if the action is a little higher ;) You can push the string easier and not rubbing your finger on the fretboard so much. I do like how low action feels to my left hand, but I just dig in too much to have any guitar set up that way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zigzag Posted August 28, 2011 Share Posted August 28, 2011 I can handle a higher action for picking individual strings, but for chords, I like a lower action. That's why all of my guitars are set lower. Plus, I am not a heavy handed player and use 10s and 11s on all my electrics. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
milod Posted August 28, 2011 Share Posted August 28, 2011 I think that beginners buying their first guitar might be well advised to be asked how they intend to play, then have a bit of in-store setup. That said, I think too that after a few years of playing and swapping guitars, which was a natural progression for me and most folks I know, we will suit the action to our personal playing styles. I personally much prefer a set of light strings on a relatively flat and wide fingerboard and a low action. But I mostly play fingerstyle with a very light touch. My old AE steel string has somewhat heavier strings, but I used it mostly for bluegrass and old time strumming to back up fiddlers and such. Yes, you're likely to change preferences with different guitars to be played with different styles and techniques. m Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chase1410 Posted August 28, 2011 Share Posted August 28, 2011 I like my action fairly high...All of my electric guitars are setup to 0.075" on the bass E 12th fret...and 0.010" on the treble E 12th fret....For me this cause's absoultely no buzz, and still plays like butter for me...I use the StewMac Action Guage witch really helps getting everything perfect.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kimbabig Posted August 28, 2011 Share Posted August 28, 2011 I like my action fairly high...All of my electric guitars are setup to 0.075" on the bass E 12th fret...and 0.010" on the treble E 12th fret....For me this cause's absoultely no buzz, and still plays like butter for me...I use the StewMac Action Guage witch really helps getting everything perfect.... You call that fairly high? I call it fairly low. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chase1410 Posted August 28, 2011 Share Posted August 28, 2011 You call that fairly high? I call it fairly low. Really? I always considered that a little high...Oh well good to know. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kimbabig Posted August 29, 2011 Share Posted August 29, 2011 Really? I always considered that a little high...Oh well good to know. It's high for a shredder, but I'd consider it just below medium. I don't know, you're talking to a guy who can bend easily on acoustics. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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