Really changing the action of my guitar?

[elenore19]

To start off...This is just out of curiosity mainly. I don't have the guitar I'm referring to yet.

The guitar is a lotus. Horrible action.
I'm wondering if there's a way for me to make the action better. Would a new bridge have any effect? Or just messing around with the current bridge?
Or would I have to go as far as replace the neck or something?

Thanks.


Elliot

 

[WhiteStrat]

I'm not so familiar with the Lotus brand. Are we talking about an electric or an acoustic? The action of any guitar can generally be improved. But it's much more accessible for the average player with an electric than an acoustic...

 

[Dani Pace]

Three things come to mind whenever anyone mentions improving the action of a guitar, 1, nut, 2 neck relief and 3 bridge. Too high (not deep enough) nut slots will cause the action to be high near the nut. Impropper neck relief (needs a truss rod adjustment) causes too much bow in the neck and raises the action in the mid section of the fingerboard. Bridge/saddles too high causes high action in the higher section of the fingerboard. If it has a bolt on neck also make sure the neck bolts/screws are tight. Beyond this there is the possibility that the neck is not seated properly or it's warped. Truss rod and bridge adjustments are the most common "cure" for bad/high action.

 

[elenore19]

I'm not so familiar with the Lotus brand. Are we talking about an electric or an acoustic? The action of any guitar can generally be improved. But it's much more accessible for the average player with an electric than an acoustic...

Electric. Strat-style guitar.

Three things come to mind whenever anyone mentions improving the action of a guitar, 1, nut, 2 neck relief and 3 bridge. Too high (not deep enough) nut slots will cause the action to be high near the nut. Impropper neck relief (needs a truss rod adjustment) causes too much bow in the neck and raises the action in the mid section of the fingerboard. Bridge/saddles too high causes high action in the higher section of the fingerboard. If it has a bolt on neck also make sure the neck bolts/screws are tight. Beyond this there is the possibility that the neck is not seated properly or it's warped. Truss rod and bridge adjustments are the most common "cure" for bad/high action.

Alright, good to know. So the cure for those things would be...Switch out the nut? Fretboard adjustment. and possibly switch out the bridge, or just mess with it rather.

Thanks for the info!

Elliot

 

[Farview]

Electric. Strat-style guitar.

Alright, good to know. So the cure for those things would be...Switch out the nut? Fretboard adjustment. and possibly switch out the bridge, or just mess with it rather.

Trus rod adjustment and bridge adjustment. if you swap out the bridge, you will still need to adjust the new one. If it has a fender-type bridge, there are allen screws on the saddles that adjust the height of each string.

As for the nut, you just need to have the slots cut deeper. A new nut won't have any slots, so they would have to be cut anyway.

 

[danw]

Fret a string at the 12th fret, and pluck the part of the string between the nut and your finger. Does it ring out? If so, take a look at that part of the string. If it's high above the fretboard in the middle, but low on both ends, the neck probably has too much relief, so try tightening the truss rod a little. If it's higher at the nut end, the nut slots are probably too high.

If the string didn't ring out but instead buzzed or was stopped by the frets, the problem is probably either that the saddles are too high or that the neck is not properly seated. I'd check the saddles first, as they are easier to adjust. If the saddles are already as low as they'll go, the trouble is in the neck joint. It could be that the bolts are just loose, so you might try unbolting the neck (take the strings off first) and putting it back on. If that doesn't solve the problem, you can put a shim under the end of the heel closer to the pickups to increase the neck angle a little. I used a couple of plastic picks for a shim in mine, and that was enough to do the job.

 

[elenore19]

Fret a string at the 12th fret, and pluck the part of the string between the nut and your finger. Does it ring out? If so, take a look at that part of the string. If it's high above the fretboard in the middle, but low on both ends, the neck probably has too much relief, so try tightening the truss rod a little. If it's higher at the nut end, the nut slots are probably too high.

If the string didn't ring out but instead buzzed or was stopped by the frets, the problem is probably either that the saddles are too high or that the neck is not properly seated. I'd check the saddles first, as they are easier to adjust. If the saddles are already as low as they'll go, the trouble is in the neck joint. It could be that the bolts are just loose, so you might try unbolting the neck (take the strings off first) and putting it back on. If that doesn't solve the problem, you can put a shim under the end of the heel closer to the pickups to increase the neck angle a little. I used a couple of plastic picks for a shim in mine, and that was enough to do the job.

Wow, fantastic. Thanks a bunch! This should definitely help me out.

Elliot