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I've been doing most of my own set-up for some time now, but am still wondering... if you have proper relief and saddle height, how low can you go with your string height at the nut?

On the sites like FRETS.com and others, I've seen several suggested parameters, but none that were specific to fingerstyle play (i.e. no flatpicking). The lowest I've gone so far is .020 - .015 (low E to high E), but I suspect that you could go a bit lower.

As a for-instance, if you capo and get no buzzing, then does it follow that you could measure your string heights at the first fret after the capo and set your actual first fret heights to those specs (which would put you pretty low, in the .014 - .010 range)? Of course then you wouldn't have much of a bluegrass player, obviously. But would it make for a 'buttery' fingerstyle set-up, with no or few real drawbacks (except that the next owner, if you sold the guitar, might not like it so low)?

Thanks for any info anyone may be able to offer!

Ken
Durham, NC

Hi Ken,

your numbers are not too far off.
For low action I use .023 at the first fret (measured from the top of the fret)for the bass E. And .013 at the first for the treble E.

at the 12th fret you want to see .090 bass, .070 treble.

These are good places to start but you may want to tweek it a bit after you set the guitar up.

Matt

It has been my experiance when building for finger style players that a very low action is not What they want. Most performing finger stylist want a fast action but not to loww. Too low and you restrict the the allowable attack on open chords in the first 5 frets, and attck is very imprtant to a finger stylist. Even though a bluegrass player will pick the stings at a pretty good force, so does a finger style player, just more on individual notes and with his finger not a pick. Most of performing finger stylist that I have built for have come into the order with their own set-up specs and most seem to be pretty close to Martin med low set-up for OM's Typical for me .025E and .016e I agree with Matt pretty close at the twelth fret. Also most do not want much relief at the eight fret. This it's self precludes an extrem low action.MichaelP38761.4073148148

I play a lot of fingerstyle. I don't like to set my guitars up with very low action. Often fingerstyle playing will cause worse buzzing than with a flat pick. I don't have measurements for the string height at the nut. I just gradually file the slot, then tune the string, and pluck the string to test. I file the slot until I can just barley make the string buzz with a very hard pluck at just the right angle.

ABout the lowest you can go is actually by not measuring at all. Press the high e string down between the 2nd and 3rd frets - how much gap is under the string at the first fret ??? When you file the slot until it just touches, thats about it. Any lower and it will buzz with not a lot of attack. Now do the same as you go downt he strings, but leave a slightly progressing gap on the D A and E. What you will likely find is that this measures somewhere in the 15 to 10 thou range, strings low to high.

_________________
Tony Karol
www.karol-guitars.com
"let my passion .. fulfill yours"

I do the same as Tony at the nut end. Basically you want to treat the nut height as if it were a fret.

_________________
Tickle your guitar daily, and it'll tickle you back.

Thanks, guys. That all makes sense.

The guitar feels pretty good right now in the .020 - .015 range, which I know, is already pretty low. At this point, I'm not playing the guitar too agressively. It's not that I want to go any lower, I'm just looking to learn the 'why' and the 'how' of guitar set-up.

I'll check the way Tony suggested, and see where I am before I make any changes (if at all).

Ken