Where do you guys have your action at for classical?

[chris32895]

Got a Yamaha GC22C and like many of you I go back and forth between electric and classical nylon-string guitar. Action measured against the 12th fret is 4mm bass and 3mm treble, roughly, with the stock saddle. After some luthier work (requesting lower action) mine is now 2.8mm bass and 2.2mm treble. The new configuration is way easier to play (I was getting hand pain with the stock saddle and barely wanted to play. New configuration I actually want to play.), but noticeably quieter, less dynamic, and buzzes if I hit somewhat hard. Trying to find some suitable middle ground so I can play classical in a fairly traditional way, but be able to swap back and forth without too much trouble.

[mr. beaumont]

I keep mine about 3mm bass and 2.5 treble.

[James W]

No idea, but it feels a reasonable 'Goldilocks' action to me.

[kris]

I keep mine about 3mm bass and 2.5 treble.

On my old Brazilian guitar I have 4.5mm bass and 3.5mm treble.
It sounds great but is not easy to play.

[Rob MacKillop]

I found that a high action with low-tension strings gives me more control over vibrato than a low action and high-tension strings. So I prefer 4mm bass, 3.4mm treble. I like to ‘work’ a string rather than just pluck it, and play without fingernails.

In other words, do whatever suits your playing. It doesn’t really matter what others do.

[Brian859]

Mine just measured 3mm bass, 2.5mm high e. Seems like it was 3.5-3.0 last time I measured it in the spring. But its still sounding good I think. I'm using high tension galli strings at the moment.

[Donnd]

Personal preference is around 3.5mm on the 6th string. It’s my understanding that setting the action too low will hurt the projection since the saddle breakover angle gets too low.

[jazzloverfat]

On my old Brazilian guitar I have 4.5mm bass and 3.5mm treble.
It sounds great but is not easy to play.

My Spanish made guitar has a similar setup.

[rojaros]

This thread is a bit older, but still it is never outdated…

IMHO it doesn‘t make much to just compare the action as numbers, because how it actually feels and plays depends on several (not unrelated) variables in the guitar and in the player. Leaving the player outside the equation the optimal action depends basically on the stiffness of the top (I’m talking about purely acoustic guitar) as well as of the string tension used (which is not totally independent, because for each guitar there is a whole range of usable tensions).

But if a guitar has a rather stiff top, too low tension will not drive the top optimally. and if it has a very flexible top, too high tension will pull too strongly on the top bringing it immediately to the edge of its excursion range, thus rendering the sound stifled.

So not each guitar can be played well with the same set of strings and same action - the two being obviously interdependent.

I have a flamenca having e6 at 2.4mm and e1 at 2.2 mm at twelve fret and it buzzes only very little when driven hard, and classical that would start to buzz significantly at 3.4/2.8 and a guitar requiring maybe 4.1/3.1. But the thing is that because how the top responds, the last one works well with high tension and is less hard to play than the second one.

[2bornot2bop]

I set my classical’s up nearly as low as my guitars. I need to make them playable. If the action’s too high they won’t get played. So, first thing I do is take it to my luthier, reduce the saddle height and it’s game on. I’m not worried about volume or the top being driven. I’m concerned about playability. I know I’m breaking the rules. But what good are rules if I want to play them?

[darkwaters]

Mine is 3.0mm bass and 2.5mm treble as well. Mine is a Taylor Academy 12-N and sounds amazing. Normal tension strings. For the most part I hybrid pick.

Without comfortable playability I just don’t see the point.

[Rob MacKillop]

The point is that it sounds different with a higher action, a sound some players appreciate. Plus a high action is much better for a beautiful vibrato when required. Some players - self included - prefer a high action as I feel it allows me to fashion the sound I want to hear. You can get a lot more subtlety on a classical guitar this way.

[SOLR]

The point is that it sounds different with a higher action, a sound some players appreciate. Plus a high action is much better for a beautiful vibrato when required. Some players - self included - prefer a high action as I feel it allows me to fashion the sound I want to hear. You can get a lot more subtlety on a classical guitar this way.

Don't want to derail this thread, but It's nice to hear from Rob

S

[Rob MacKillop]

As Keith Richard’s said, “Good to be here…Good to be anywhere!”

[kris]

I think that a classical guitar sounds better if the E6 is 4 mm at the 12th fret and the E1 is 3 mm.
I tried to change the action of the strings - it's more comfortable, but the guitar doesn't sound - it's an acoustic instrument.

[grahambop]

Mine has bass 4 mm and treble 3.5 mm. That doesn’t feel high to me but I started on classical guitar at a young age, so I’m used to it.