What to adjust?

[Owdkasd]

I put new Flats on My Fretless bass and I used a lighter gauge strings. Now the action is just a bit too low. It was perfect before with the heavier strings. Should I raise the bridge, Turn the truss rod, or work on the nut? It's a Carvin USA Active Nerckthru Fretless bass.

 

[ridgebackdk]

have a look on youtube for a visual idea of a set up if you have never tried it before,it is simple enough task BUT you do need to follow some basic rules.. most important when it come to truss rod..little goes along way.and you need to let the bass settle and re-adjust if needed...you should also try find the setup manual for your exact bass,(carvin website at a guess)..you might get away with just lifting the saddles on the bridge,.one question lighter strings have dropped the action??? did i read that correct.it is not to expensive to get your bass set up correct for you and a good tech might let you watch him do it,..and explain what does what...just be carefull and remember little goes along way..intonation and pickup hight might also need adjusting so like i said if your not happy doing it a tech is your best bet..at least until you have a better idea..not much help i know ,,,

have a look here,there are lots of set up demos.
[video=youtube;cIzV9462xeE]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cIzV9462xeE&feature=related[/video]

 

[mart]

+1 to all that.

...one question lighter strings have dropped the action??? did i read that correct....

That sounds right to me. Lighter gauge strings are often (but not always!) lower tension, in which case they won't pull the neck into a bow shape as much as the previous strings, so the action is lower.

 

[ridgebackdk]

cant say i have noticed that before ,but then warwick necks are very stiff to start with..and 99.9%of the time i have the same guage string on anyway....worth remembering actually,learn something new everyday i guess..

 

[DiMarco]

Tension on the neck has become lower by using a lighter gauge strings thus the neck is now a little bit too straight.
Logic tells us you have to adjust the trussrod a little instead of lowering the bridge as the curve of the neck is what has changed.

 

[ridgebackdk]

intonation and pup adjustment i would say are on the cards too!! not to sure how confidant the OP is doing the set up himself,its something that can go wrong if not careful and lots of people crank on the trussrod and dont really know what is going on,,,truss rod adjustment does sound the right way to go..carvin should have the manual with the ideal relief and string hight..that where i would start from myself..my wick neck is tight as a drum and almost never moves (baseball bat NT5 neck on a thumb).....
owdkasd..did you have flats on it before you changed?most guys i know that use flats have them on years or until they snap,been told many times they get better the older they get..i like bright and new thanks lol,flats are not for me

 

[jester]

I find intonation needs to be adjusted even when changing strings with the same exact set, although it's a small adjustment. For different brand and/or gauge, it's an absolute requirement.

 

[Owdkasd]

Tension on the neck has become lower by using a lighter gauge strings thus the neck is now a little bit too straight.
Logic tells us you have to adjust the trussrod a little instead of lowering the bridge as the curve of the neck is what has changed.

Great Point DiMarco. Just a 1/4 turn should probably do the trick I guess. I got a great deal on this bass and had no Idea what strings were on it. The G string actually broke when I loosened the Sperzels Lock so I just got a whole new set. I really want a Wick Fretless but this is pretty cool for now. Thanks for the reply.

 

[Owdkasd]

The Sperzel Lock is the cause of the string breaking. I've never ever had a string break before but it broke right where the lock makes contact with the string. I prefer rounds too but The fretless board it too minty to gouge up. It is Ebony but I still fear the round wounds on a fretless neck. I have no clue how to set intonation on a fretless but it's easy on a fretted bass. I'll see how it goes but I'm not too worried as I am not recording or even gigging with it for that matter just jammin' on it as if it had frets.

intonation and pup adjustment i would say are on the cards too!! not to sure how confidant the OP is doing the set up himself,its something that can go wrong if not careful and lots of people crank on the trussrod and dont really know what is going on,,,truss rod adjustment does sound the right way to go..carvin should have the manual with the ideal relief and string hight..that where i would start from myself..my wick neck is tight as a drum and almost never moves (baseball bat NT5 neck on a thumb).....
owdkasd..did you have flats on it before you changed?most guys i know that use flats have them on years or until they snap,been told many times they get better the older they get..i like bright and new thanks lol,flats are not for me

 

[ridgebackdk]

setting the intonation is the same on fretless as one with frets..makes it easier if you have a good tuner lots of people have the same fear with rounds and fretless necks.been using 45s rounds on my stingray since 1995,neck is still fine,its all about what makes you happy..flats would drive me crazy lol..

 

[golem]

setting the intonation is the same on fretless as one with frets..makes
it easier if you have a good tuner lots of people have the same fear
with rounds and fretless necks.been using 45s rounds on my stingray
since 1995,neck is still fine,its all about what makes you happy..flats
would drive me crazy lol..

Sometimes R/Ws eat the FB and sometimes they don't ... so, clearly,
other variables are involved. As to adjustment, since the only change
affecting the action is the string swap, the truss rod is the way to
restore the action, which was affected by the change in neck relief.
And as mentioned elsewhere, you'd wanna check your intonation and
adjust as needed.

BTW, altho the principles are the same, I do find setting intonation on
fretless is different in that I set it for playing style/habits to a degree
that a fretted neck just doesn't allow ... sorta "less robotic, more of a
personal tweak". In my case, this means each higher string is tuned
a bit sharper, gradually across the FB. It's for my fingering habits. Is
this technically "correct" or "proper" ? Nope ! But it's what works just
great for me. Open strings ? LOL.

 

[ridgebackdk]

fair point golem..how hard you play and of course the fretboard wood itself have to be taken into the picture,did not mean to suggest you should use rounds!! apologies if it came across that way,just out of interest what does warwick recommend for their fretless guitars???..the stingray fretboard is made from Pau ferro,(looks like rosewood) dont have a clue how that rates against Ebony as to how hard it is,but i would think ebony is one of the best timbers to use for fretless. one advantage of a fretless is if your intonation is a little out you can adjust your fingers to suit...not saying you should hahaha but it can be done..
owdkasd how is the carvin,is there any dead spots on the neck.. from b flat to the d on the G string, on the stingray does not sing to well,but i belive its an inherent problem on all fretless instruments,but i have played some guitars that dont have the same issue, anyone with a wick fretless got a similar issue.its no big deal you learn to play around it...

 

[jester]

BTW, altho the principles are the same, I do find setting intonation on
fretless is different in that I set it for playing style/habits to a degree
that a fretted neck just doesn't allow ... sorta "less robotic, more of a
personal tweak". In my case, this means each higher string is tuned
a bit sharper, gradually across the FB. It's for my fingering habits. Is
this technically "correct" or "proper" ? Nope ! But it's what works just
great for me. Open strings ? LOL.

Nice point. Some more thoughts on setting the intonation on a fretless:

 

[DiMarco]

Setting the intonation? Neh I like it to be as my fretted basses.

 

[Florin]

We ship our fretless basses with round strings so...

 

[bass in ur face]

tighten the truss rod a quarter turn. use a straight edge acroos the fretboad. on the 7th fret place a creit card between the fret and the string. press down on the 1st and 12th fret. this will show you how much tention is on the kneck. the card should be touching the strings very lightly.

 

[Florin]

Well, some say "business card" which is thinner"

The truth is that you set the bass to match your playing style. If you dig harder, you need more relief. If you play smooth, you can have a straighter neck. All those internet measures are starting points. In the end the only thing that matters is not to have buzz, and to have good intonation.

 

[DiMarco]

My fretless neck is almost 100% straight as in my case that brings out the fretless "whaaaaaat?" across the entire neck. This particular neck allows this but not all necks do.

Each instrument has its strengths and weaknesses. Setting it up is more then often a compromise between minimizing the weaknesses and getting the best possible playing comfort while at it.

 

[golem]

tighten the truss rod a quarter turn. use a straight edge acroos the fretboad.
on the 7th fret place a creit card between the fret and the string. press
down on the 1st and 12th fret. this will show you how much tention is on the
kneck. the card should be touching the strings very lightly.

Fret ?

Ok ok, just being picky .... but, a "straight edge" ? Whatever for ?
You pull a string down at 1st and 12th positions, and that IS your
"straight edge".

 

[bass in ur face]

the straight edge is your 3rd hand!!!!!!! unless you have someone to help you. or a capo. you need to move the card in and out of the 7th fret. makes things alot easier. you can get a straight edge from a hardwear store for less than 10 bucks.