In our first video, Chris and James have a great conversation about the action on the guitar and how much of a difference it can make. This is important to understand before we start demonstrating how to adjust the action in the next part.
Action height is simply the height of the strings above the fretboard. The key thing to get out of this conversation is that there is no 'one size fits all' action height! String height is a very personal thing that can depend heavily on the style of music you play. For example, a blues player may want a deliberately higher action so that they can 'dig in' to the notes and get some serious bends whereas a jazz player may want them far closer to the neck to play those quick runs. What you like is something that you learn as you try different string heights, and gradually you can settle on a certain height.
Ready to move on? Remember to check out every lesson in this unit first – then try the next unit...
James and Chris now start to demonstrate exactly how you measure and adjust action on a Gibson style guitar. To measure action effectively, you will need a few tools, which the guys will walk you through in this lesson.