How to setup the action on an electric guitar

Intimate-feeling playing experience. Nice neck. Easy to play. Body shape well suited to austere appointments. Gibson's history is rich with acoustic instruments built to be accessibly priced. The company's beloved and underrated B series guitars from the '60s, for instance, used laminate mahogany sides to make them more attainable.

Even the legendary J began as a relatively affordable model—cleverly using that beautiful sunburst finish to conceal less-than-perfect spruce pieces that were in short supply around World War II.

For most of recent history, Gibson's acoustics occupied more rarified upmarket territory—largely leaving the mid-price business to their Asia-built Epiphone Masterbilt instruments, Taylor and Martin's Mexico-built entry-level flattops, and a revolving cast of overseas manufacturers.

It's easy to understand Gibson's reticence to enter the mid-price acoustic game with a Gibson-branded guitar. It's a brutally competitive market: Asia-built instruments leverage lower manufacturing overhead to ape more expensive American inspirations, while legacy American brands offer less luxuriously ornamented guitars built with alternative and laminate woods—often in facilities in Mexico.

With the Generation Collection of acoustics, Gibson chose a middle path to the mid-price market. Rather than move production to Mexico or overseas, or use laminates or wood composite materials, the Generation guitars are built with solid woods in the same Bozeman, Montana, facility that makes the company's top-shelf flattops.

That means the guitars are pretty austere and more expensive than a lot of the mid-price competition. Yet the G and G offer a compelling playing experience, and each model is built with a side port which Gibson calls the Player Port that enables a subtly more intimate means of relating to each guitar's dynamic potential. For this review we looked at the two models that bookend the Generation Collection: the G and G For many players, this author included, the Gibson L is a magical little instrument.

Not only does it conjure images of Bob Dylan shattering folk convention circa '65 with his very similar Nick Lucas model, but it's one of those flattops that, when built right, occupies a sweet spot between power and sensitivity. They are fantastic fingerstyle instruments, and the Generation Collection incarnation of the L, the G, is particularly well suited for that task. The slim, compact lines are flattered by the lack of binding, giving the guitar an earthy, elemental essence that suits its folky associations.

The solid walnut back and sides are beautiful pieces of lumber with abundant swirl and figuring that lend the otherwise plain-Jane styling a lot of personality. The solid spruce top, meanwhile, is straight-grained, high-quality wood. The neck is carved from a single piece of mahogany-like utile, and the headstock which is fashioned from two additional "wing" sections of utile is capped with walnut.

The striped ebony, with its orange-red streak that runs from the soundhole to the 5th fret, lends a subtle sense of flash to the guitar's otherwise spartan visage, and the fretwork is largely flawless.

Though the G has a lovely natural glow, the nitrocellulose satin finish seems exceedingly thin. That's no bad thing if you like your tone as wooden and unadulterated as possible, but if you're the kind of fastidious player that likes to keep your instrument in perfect shape you may long for a more robust finish. The G also shows some signs of economizing on the guitar's interior, which is more visible for the presence of the player port.

A sizable errant glue smear was plain to see just inside the player port and several sections of bracing could have benefitted from another pass with sandpaper. These aren't imperfections that affect sound or playability in any way. But they are details you'd like to see looked after more carefully when you're shelling out a grand for an instrument.

One of the really lovely things about playing a guitar with the compact dimensions of the G is the way it feels like an extension of yourself.

Big guitars can sound beastly, but the G lends a natural, effortless feel to the playing experience. The neck, which feels like a cross between a D and C profile, walks the line between slim and substantial gracefully. I might have preferred a touch more girth, but there's no arguing with the ease of playability. The sense of being at one with the guitar is enhanced slightly by the player port.

This design feature was, according to Gibson, a primary impetus behind building this line the company uncovered blueprints from proposing a J with a relocated sound port.

Sound ports have been features on boutique instruments for decades. Just as on many of those guitars, the effect of the sound port is subtle on the G But if you tune the guitar to an open chord and play the guitar while covering and uncovering the port, you'll hear a real difference—primarily in the way the low end blooms and the treble tones ring. And by the way, the G sounds especially lovely in detuned settings, exhibiting bass richness that's uncommon in a guitar this size in this price range.

The G does not come with a pickup, but as we found when testing the pickup-equipped G, the port works effectively as a supplementary monitoring solution in quiet performance situations. How it fits into the aesthetic whole is subjective. And how it affects performance will vary from player to player, but, at least in my experience, it lent an extra sense of detail in fingerpicking situations.

Gibson's list of iconic designs is lengthy to say the least. But while it may not be as famous as some of its other acoustic and electric kin, the J is one of the most beautiful and impressive Gibsons of all. The Generation Collection version, the G, does many things that a good jumbo should.

It compels a player to dig deep into chugging, choogling rhythm moves and it's loud. Man, is it ever loud. In the case of the G, though, that loud can sound just a touch one-dimensional at times. How you relate to strong midrange may determine how much you love or just like the G in a strumming context. But it can sometimes read as brash—particularly when you use the heavy rhythm approach that makes a J the acoustic of choice for power strummers like Pete Townshend.

The bass tones are quite pleasing—a quality revealed, again, by the presence of the player port. And if you use a lighter, more dynamic flatpicking approach, you can coax a much more even tone profile that lets the resonant low end and ringing highs shine. Jangly Johnny Marr and Peter Buck arpeggios sound lovely for this reason—especially when you use a capo.

In fingerstyle situations, the guitar feels a little less dynamic and balanced, largely because coaxing an even response from a body this big takes a fair bit of muscle. But when you do get a feel for how to make the G sing with a lighter touch, the walnut and spruce tonewood recipe dishes some very pretty tones, indeed.

Like the G, the G is an absolutely lovely player. While the action feels slinky and low-ish, there isn't a buzzing string to be found anywhere—and that's a beautiful thing given how much the guitar begs to be played hard and that the cutaway makes lead runs all the way up to the 20th fret a workable proposition. But while the playability is hard to top—and reflects a great deal of care for how this guitar was built and set up—there is still evidence of some economizing to keep the price in that high-mid category.

As on the G, there are clearly rough cuts on the bracing that could have been remedied with a light pass with the sanding block. What's more, the soundhole revealed a less than flattering view of the wire connecting the otherwise excellent L.

Baggs Element Bronze preamp to the soundhole-mounted volume control. You don't want to use hardware to affix a length of wire to bracing or the top that are so critical to tone, but there must be some way to fix a wire so you don't see it flopping through the player port. Gibson is taking a noble shot at threading a needle with the Generation Collection. The company's commitment to building a more affordable flattop in the U. There is a lot that is special about the G For more information about nut and saddle adjustments, please visit the nut adjustment page or the saddle adjustment page.

Depending on what is wrong with your guitar there are different ways to adjust the action. More likely than not, the cause or your high or low action can be fixed with a simple truss rod adjustment.

If nothing traumatic happened to the nut or neck, i. Your action adjustment also depends on what type of guitar you have and the hardware on the guitar. Generally, there are three steps the completely setting the action on your electric guitar. These adjustments must be done in this order because one adjust will affect adjustments done after it. The truss rod is a piece of metal that is inlayed inside of your neck. It provides support and flexibility to the neck.

The truss rod can be tightened or loosened to straighten or flatten your neck. Most likely neck straightness is the cause of your high or low action problems. If you adjust the truss rod and your action is set where you want it to be, there is no need to move on to the following two steps. For step-by-step instruction on adjusting your truss rod, please visit the truss rod adjustment page. Once the truss rod is adjusted and the neck is as flat as you want it, you can check the action at the nut.

In order to measure the action at the nut, you will need a set of feeler gauges. The action at the nut is measured at the first fret. If the string is higher than. For step-by-step instructions on filing down the nut, please see the how to the action at the nut on my electric guitar page. By doing this, you can get a clearer tone and avoid having to worry about the buzzing effect. It is usually sufficient to adjust your guitar to a mm range unless yours is out of adjustment.

The action on cheaper acoustic guitars is not uncommon for them to be as high as a car. You can select strings and adjust the neck first by following the steps above. Sand down your saddle or add a shim. If you want to lower your action, use sandpaper to slowly and carefully sand down the saddle. If you want to raise your action, you'll need to glue a shim to the saddle or buy a higher saddle.

An uneven saddle will ruin the tone of your instrument. Do a little at a time, then replace your strings, bring your guitar back up to pitch, and check the action again. Be prepared to repeat this action several times, especially if you don't have much practice. Check your action and readjust as necessary. Whether you have an acoustic or electric guitar, you may have to repeat the process of adjusting the action a few times before you get it right.

Make sure your guitar is tuned to pitch and measure the action at the 12th fret as you initially did.

If you've not yet hit your target, repeat the process of adjusting the action and try again. If you're getting a lot of fret buzz when you play your guitar, you've got your action too low. If it's not comfortable to play or you're having trouble fretting strings, you may have it set too high.

Play around until you find what works best for you. Aaron Asghari. Make sure that the amplifier's output level is set to your desired volume. Then, adjust the gain knob to your desired setting. Now, adjust the tune knobs that are labeled bass, mid, and treble until the notes you play register at the right pitch. One way to do this is to use the sweeping method, where you turn the knobs down all the way, then turn the first knob all the way up while strumming to find the frequency where the notes are being affected by the knob.

Then, repeat this process with the remaining knobs. Yes No. Not Helpful 0 Helpful 1. Include your email address to get a message when this question is answered. If you use alternate tunings that change the tension of your strings, you may have to adjust the action when you switch it back to standard tuning. Helpful 1 Not Helpful 0. The feel and playability of a guitar have nothing to do with how expensive it is.

If you pick up a nice guitar and find it difficult to play, it likely isn't set up correctly for you. Adjusting the action on your guitar is a task suitable for more experienced guitar players who can also do minor guitar repairs.

If you don't have any experience working on guitars, you're probably better off taking your guitar to an experienced luthier who can help you set it up.

Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0. You Might Also Like How to. How to. More References 2. About This Article. Co-authored by:. Co-authors: 2. Updated: March 30, Categories: Guitar. Thanks to all authors for creating a page that has been read 16, times.

I am certainly no pro when it comes to guitar playing. I am not sure if my Gibson is the real thing or not but I think your advice will improve its action a lot.

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