Setup Proper string height

Markr1

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How high off the fretboard are the strings supposed to be at the 12th fret and
is that the right fret to check height on it? I have a tenor.
 
The string height should be set at an optimum distance between the frets and the strings, that is not so high as to cause intonation issues and fingering issues, and not so low as to allow the strings to buzz against the frets. The height gradually increases along the length of the fretboard.

Typically the height is set up at fret 1 and fret 12. A quick search on this site for set up info will give you heaps of good info, as will a general search-engine search for ukulele set up.

When I first got my uke last September (a Makala soprano MK-SN) I did a search and came up with a range of recommended numbers from different sources. Height at fret 1 was recommended to be in the range 0.6 to 1.0 mm and at fret 12 2.5 to 2.7 mm. However my uke was set up in the shop before my kids bought it for me, and it is set up at 0.45 (according to car feeler gauges) at fret 1 and around 2mm at fret 12 (steel rule and torch). According to the recommended values I found, my uke is set way too low and should buzz like a mad thing, however it doesn't buzz, intonation is superb, tone is excellent for a cheapie uke and the action feels soft as warm butter.

Anyways, I'm not a luthier or anything so I'm hoping others will jump in with better advice than mine.

... and a little more string heights in millimetres above frets info, gleaned from the interwebs:
Source-------------------Fret 1-----------------Fret 12
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Stew Mac Kit-----------0.38-------------------2.3
Grizzly Kit--------------0.4---------------------1.2
MGM----------------------------------------------2.5 - 2.75
Mya Moe (medium action)------------------2.3
brucemoffatt's uke---0.45-------------------2.0

I'm sure there is a lot more info out there that I haven't found.
 
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There is a sort of craze about having super low action (string height) especially at the 12th fret. 4mm at the 12th fret is generally considered the high end of acceptable, but alot of people want it lower. I think that is mostly because they read it somewhere on a forum.
I can't understand that folks have such a hard time pressing down nylon strings, they should try playing something with steel strings for comparison some time.
If you set your action real low, there are a few disadvantages, 1) If you are a hard strummer, you might end up getting a buzz when you really get into it. 2) You decrease your volume. 3) You decrease your ability to bend strings.
If the string height feels comfortable to you, don't obsess about lowering it because of something you read online.
 
I had an Eleuke with at least 4mm action at the 12th fret and no matter how hard I tried, doing the D shape (eg. E chord) was impossible without hitting the bottom string. I lowered it quite a bit and now the uke is much easier to play. To me, it's not a matter of pushing down, it's my pudgy fingers that touch other strings. I haven't been playing a fretted instrument for all my life so I'm not blessed with the looooong bendable fingers that you see in the videos (^_^). Hopefully that will come in time. For now, I really like to lower the action so that I can at least sound good and not get discouraged.

Buzzing to me is as much technique as it is action. Fretting too far back can always cause buzzing for me, even on high action ukes.

As a side note, I have a Les Paul Epiphone Concert that I shimmed and it's action is waaaay low ~1.5 at the 12th fret. That uke is an absolute joy to play. Too bad it sounds tinny because of the thin body. If I can get a full-bodied uke with that low of an action, I would pay top dollar for sure.
 
I had an Eleuke with at least 4mm action at the 12th fret and no matter how hard I tried, doing the D shape (eg. E chord) was impossible without hitting the bottom string. I lowered it quite a bit and now the uke is much easier to play. To me, it's not a matter of pushing down, it's my pudgy fingers that touch other strings. I haven't been playing a fretted instrument for all my life so I'm not blessed with the looooong bendable fingers that you see in the videos (^_^). Hopefully that will come in time. For now, I really like to lower the action so that I can at least sound good and not get discouraged.

Buzzing to me is as much technique as it is action. Fretting too far back can always cause buzzing for me, even on high action ukes.

As a side note, I have a Les Paul Epiphone Concert that I shimmed and it's action is waaaay low ~1.5 at the 12th fret. That uke is an absolute joy to play. Too bad it sounds tinny because of the thin body. If I can get a full-bodied uke with that low of an action, I would pay top dollar for sure.

Wow...1.5MM...you must be using high tension strings!!
 
Thanks for all the info guys. Checkout the favilla baritone uke I just bought pics posted on uke reviews.
 
We spend a lot of time on set up in the uke building classes we do. One full day in fact and all the students get to learn how do make a nut, saddle, tie strings correctly, dress frets and of course set up the instrument with the correct action for their preferred style of playing.

With medium to high tension strings the action is measured at the first fret by fretting the string at the 3rd. There should be the width of a cigarette paper between the top of the first fret and the bottom edge of the string on the G, E and A strings. 2 papers thickness on the C. If you are using a low G then the same goes for it as the C string.

Once you've got the set up for the 1st fret, then you go on to the 12th. This is in a range of 2 to 2.5 mm between the top of the 12th fret and the bottom of all the strings for most players. For people who like to work in inches then the range will be from 0.080" for low action, 0.90" for medium and 0.100" for high. I occasionally have customers that want their set up down as low as 0.070" and they manage to get that to work with their style of playing, but you do loose a bit of volume and tone.

The most important part of set up is getting that action at the 1st fret right, and the one that is most often left way too high.
 
Thanks for your help Allen. You sound like a man that knows your ukes.
 
We spend a lot of time on set up in the uke building classes we do. One full day in fact and all the students get to learn how do make a nut, saddle, tie strings correctly, dress frets and of course set up the instrument with the correct action for their preferred style of playing.

With medium to high tension strings the action is measured at the first fret by fretting the string at the 3rd. There should be the width of a cigarette paper between the top of the first fret and the bottom edge of the string on the G, E and A strings. 2 papers thickness on the C. If you are using a low G then the same goes for it as the C string.

Once you've got the set up for the 1st fret, then you go on to the 12th. This is in a range of 2 to 2.5 mm between the top of the 12th fret and the bottom of all the strings for most players. For people who like to work in inches then the range will be from 0.080" for low action, 0.90" for medium and 0.100" for high. I occasionally have customers that want their set up down as low as 0.070" and they manage to get that to work with their style of playing, but you do loose a bit of volume and tone.

The most important part of set up is getting that action at the 1st fret right, and the one that is most often left way too high.

Thanks for this info. I'd love to take one of your classes! :D
 
Good thread, and thanks to all who have been so generous with their knowledge and experience. I learned a heck of a lot here in about a ten-minute read! In a recent exchange that I had with Mim, she made the point that super-low action runs the risk of sacrificing tone, and can be uncomfortable for those who are primarily strummers (like me). She has a good point there, as I notice that when I strum a super-low-action uke for any significant amount of time, my index finger starts to get sore from brushing against the fretboard, due to the super-low action. So, I guess "super-low" isn't always the ideal.
 
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Good thread, and thanks to all who have been so generous with their knowledge and experience. I learned a heck of a lot here in about a ten-minute read! In a recent exchange that I had with Mim, she made the point that super-low action runs the risk of sacrificing tone, and can be uncomfortable for those who are primarily strummers (like me). She has a good point there, as I notice that when I strum a super-low-action uke for any significant amount of time, my index finger starts to get sore from brushing against the fretboard, due to the super-low action. So, I guess "super-low" isn't always the ideal.

Exactly right - it all depends on preference.

I'm an avid fan of the low 1.5-1.75mm action.
I could tolerate 2.0mm maybe... but anything higher starts affecting my ergonomics for playing fast passages.
 
Good thread, and thanks to all who have been so generous with their knowledge and experience. I learned a heck of a lot here in about a ten-minute read! In a recent exchange that I had with Mim, she made the point that super-low action runs the risk of sacrificing tone, and can be uncomfortable for those who are primarily strummers (like me). She has a good point there, as I notice that when I strum a super-low-action uke for any significant amount of time, my index finger starts to get sore from brushing against the fretboard, due to the super-low action. So, I guess "super-low" isn't always the ideal.
We spend a lot of time on set up in the uke building classes we do. One full day in fact and all the students get to learn how do make a nut, saddle, tie strings correctly, dress frets and of course set up the instrument with the correct action for their preferred style of playing.

With medium to high tension strings the action is measured at the first fret by fretting the string at the 3rd. There should be the width of a cigarette paper between the top of the first fret and the bottom edge of the string on the G, E and A strings. 2 papers thickness on the C. If you are using a low G then the same goes for it as the C string.

Once you've got the set up for the 1st fret, then you go on to the 12th. This is in a range of 2 to 2.5 mm between the top of the 12th fret and the bottom of all the strings for most players. For people who like to work in inches then the range will be from 0.080" for low action, 0.90" for medium and 0.100" for high. I occasionally have customers that want their set up down as low as 0.070" and they manage to get that to work with their style of playing, but you do loose a bit of volume and tone.

The most important part of set up is getting that action at the 1st fret right, and the one that is most often left way too high.
Thank you, Allen for clarifying string height at the nut! I've seen all kinds of online guidance about height at 12th fret but your response is the first I've seen as to string height at the 1st fret.
 
So, hypothetically, if you are using feeler gauges, what is the measurement of feeler gauges for purposes of cutting Nut slots? I guess it depends a little on how high the frets are, but is there a standard starting point?
 
My trick for filing the nut slopes starts with fitting a rough nut in place with a properly sloped profile leaving the finger board side about 3 mm above the board, making sure the bottom is flat and well seated . I then take a pencil that I have planed flat on one side down to half the width of the lead. Lay your flattened pencil down on the frets and draw a line on the nut, this will leave you a reference line the height of the frets on the face of the nut. You can now start filing your slots carefully down at the right slope of course until they are about 1 mm above your reference line. I then fit a saddle and string up the g and e strings to pitch. I adjust the saddle until the action at the 12th fret is a little above what I want to finish at. You can now start slowly filing down the nut slots until they are where you want them, see Allen' post above. Your fret slots will probably end up too deep so file the slope of the nut down until about flush with the top of the strings. I then polish the top of the nut,glue it in place, string up the uke and finish adjusting the height of your saddle until the action at the 12th fret is where you want it. I like 2.5 mm to 3mm.IMG_1798.jpgIMG_1799.jpg f
 
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