There is such as thing as too low action (!)

[Rashputin]

So I visited Erik Welo at Gulden Guitars yesterday. I'm having him do final setup and PLEK (fret dressing) on my Flying V project. And at his shop I saw this Ibanez Universe. A beautiful guitar. Erik was just finished seting it up for the costumer and had me try it out because he wanted to make sure I knew what super low action means. The PLEK thing makes it possible to have the strings SUPER low, and this owner obviously wanted that.

I had initially asked Erik to set the action on the V "super low" (my words), but after playing that Universe I changed my mind. There were almost no movement of the string at all when pushing it in towards the frets. It was like touching the front of an Iphone or something. And NO buzz! I was amazed, but at the same time I changed my mind about setting up my own guitar that low. I couldn't get my finger properly "under" the string with my left hand for bends and stuff because they were so low. I thought you could never have too low action on a guitar, but I was wrong. With the PLEK machine, you can.

Basically the machine adjusts all the frets according to string gauge and tuning. You can tell it how low you want the action, and it measures neck tension so you can adjust the truss rod to the absolute optimal tension for that gauge and tuning. The results were remarkable to say the least.

I can see how it could be useful with that low action for extremely fast technical death metal stuff where it's all lightning fast runs, sweeps and tapping the whole time, but for anything else (for me) that action is too low as my fingers are used to applying a little more force to get the note to sound right.

 

[MrMcSick]

It might just take some time to get used to. I've never played anything so low that I didn't like it besides the buzzin lol.

 

[thesimo]

ive obviously not played a guitar setup by PLEK, but ive gotten some of mine low enough that its hard to bend too. Definitely not nice to play a guitar like that. I guess if you scalloped slightly you could have best of both worlds

 

[MaxOfMetal]

Well, the idea of "the lower the better" as far as action goes is a little of a misnomer. Besides the obvious differences in players' preference, there are just limitations to be had as far as bends on radius'd fretboards, and how much force you can hit the strings with.

 

[synrgy]

If my fingers could handle it, I'd have my action a LOT higher than I usually do. The low action has simply become a matter of necessity in regards to my ever increasing carpel-tunnel/general-hand-muscle issues..

Lower action can be a bad thing when pushed too far; not just in terms of tactile response (bends, etc) but also in terms of how little room the string has to vibrate without hitting something.

All that said, I'm *really* frothing at the mouth to get a couple of my guitars set up at a local PLEK facility. I just haven't had the extra $$ to put towards it yet..

 

[SD83]

Just so I get this right... this will work for exactly one tuning with one certain type of strings? What if you decide to change tunings or strings? It doesn't look like a change that can be undone, like adjusting the bridge or the truss rod or even changing the nut...

 

[Rashputin]

Basically its no different than any other setup, its just really fine tuned. Your setup (truss rod, frets, nut, bridge etc.) is also ideal for the type of tuning and strings you used when you had it set up. Most guitars come set up from the factory for standard E and 09-46 gauge strings (or something similar). When you want to go a lot lower than that, there is less tension on the neck (string pull) so the truss rod needs to be adjusted slightly. Basically all the PLEK does is measure fret height and neck tension. It then adjusts the frets so they are 100% level (no buzz) and tells the operator how much to tighten or loosen up the truss rod. So basically its no more limiting than any other setup.

 

[MaxOfMetal]

Just so I get this right... this will work for exactly one tuning with one certain type of strings? What if you decide to change tunings or strings? It doesn't look like a change that can be undone, like adjusting the bridge or the truss rod or even changing the nut...

Well, PLEK jobs aren't something you get done every time you change tunings, or just on a whim, they aren't very cheap and not all shops have them. Ideally, you would get it done to a guitar you keep in one tuning, with a gauge of strings you like, etc. For instance if your band plays in B Standard, and you like using .009 - .054 gauge strings, then it may be nice to get the guitar PLEK'd so that your primary instrument for your band is playing at it's very best.

Though, it is just a set-up, so you can adjust things, just don't expect it to be as nice as (as in action being ridiculously low) when in the tuning and at the gauge it was when PLEK'd. Just like any set-up really.

 

[Customisbetter]

Im totally getting a Plek at some point. There is a shop about a hundred miles from em...

Edit

Just shot them an email...

 

[S-O]

Lower action is fine by me!

On all my guitars with trems, I can only get the action so low, not quite super low. But on my 7621 I can get it stoooopid low, and I love it. Some bends fret out, but for the most part it's all good.

 

[Erik Hauri]

To the OP - it sounds as though that neck had some very uneven frets, and the PLEK needed to take quite a bit of meat off the top, so that the frets were very close to the fretboard once the PLEK was done with them. I have a 1984 Gibson LP Custom that is just like that, but due to the factory fret job - they were called "fretless wonders" back in the day.

If the fretboard is well done and very flat, without dips and humps - and the fret installation is also very good - then your PLEK job should not take very much off the fret tops, and should still give you low action with plenty of fret height left to get your fingertips "underneath" for good bending. But this might not happen if this is your 2nd or 3rd fret levelling on those frets.

"Action" is really all about the distance between the bottom of the string and the top of the fret - not the top of the fretboard.