Adjusting Ukulele Action At The Saddle - Got A Ukulele Beginners Tips
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- Опубліковано 4 вер 2024
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Got A Ukulele Beginners Tips looks at adjusting the ukulele action at the saddle. Be sure to read the written guide that accompanies this video! www.gotaukulele... #gotaukulele #ukulele
Great video. Another tip, I make a trace of the original saddle with a wood "Popsicle" stick, you can usually cut the Popsicle stick with some heavy duty scissors. And then use "that" as test run first, take off the some more of the bottom of the Popsicle stick, place it in the bridge of the ukulele and then when the height seems great across all of the strings, you can use that tenp' Popsicle stick bridge to trace the height back over to the original ukulele saddle for the correct amount to take off. Kind of like the old saying, measure twice, cut once. :-)
Mr Tom great tip!
@@GotAUkulele Thanks.. I also do this with acoustic guitars as well. Have a great upcoming Sunday. :-)
As a newbie I got a soprano uke, played it for a while and gave up. Months later I was reading the most common reasons people quit playing and realized the action was way too high. During covid I had to close up shop for 6 months, got a tenor uke online, overreacted to my previous experience and asked them to make the action as low as possible. Bad idea. Fortunately, a few months after that I found your very detailed, clear instructions and was able to fix my uke and now it sounds gorgeous! Thank you so much!
YAY!!!!
I'm 80yrs young and formally a studio musician in percussion. I've now decided to take up the ukulel
I love your approach for beginners like myself. 👍
Hope you enjoy it!
80 years!!! YOU GO!! I'm 65 and still trying to figure out what I want to do/be when I grow up! HA! Good for you! I hope my fingers are still working right by the time I am 80!!
6/64 of an inch is 2,38 mm --> Its exactly the high of a 50 Cent (EUR) coin. So if you dont want to buy a string ation ruler, take a 50 Cent coin. :) greets
Thankyou so much for this! I was sooooo worried that I got scammed, because my uke was a birthday gift by my parents. You're a literal godsend!
My pleasure!
Thank you so much! You helped me pick out a uke and now how to set one up! I always trust and appreciate your honesty!
Malicious One thanks!
ME TOO!!!
Thank you for always sharing your knowledge, hopefully I can give back a little here. For anyone curious as to what their action measures yet they have no access to an accurate measuring instrument, this should help. Start with a stack of twelve standard playing cards, I prefer Bicycle brand, and slide them between the strings and the twelfth fret. Now tap the string above the twelfth fret. Does the string move? If yes add more cards, if not remove a card and repeat. Do this until the string just starts to free up. At this point remove and count your stack. Each card measures .29 mm so multiply the number of cards by .29mm. That’s it and it actually does work.
Thanks again for all you do!
Wes
Good tip!
Thank you 😊👍🏻
Sorry can you clarify? I'm a bit thick! Each card is 29mm thick?
@@leonmorgans4250 no, each card is 0.29mm thick so 3 cards are just short of 1 mm
Wow!! Cool idea! Of course, I won't remember it when I need it or I will wonder what the heck a deck of cards is doing in my ukulele case! HA HA!
Great video, mate! This has really demystified setting up a ukulele for me.
So excited for the weekend off to work on my sweet little fender uke. Thanks for the tips! Love your videos!
AaronTheArcticCat my pleasure!
use a figure 8 when sanding for levelness cheers
Even if I'm not a complete new beginner, this video is very useful for me. Thanks!! ❤
My pleasure - thank you!
You crack me up..."if you're super lazy".....HA HA!! Thank you for this invaluable information!! I will give it a go on my ukes!
Thanks for all your work. I'm a fan. My new Lohanu LU-T had a high action and I lowered the nut by about 0.028", bringing its playability up a few notches. I am encouraged by your video to take a little off the bridge. If you are able to get a Lohanu LU-T, we would like you to review it.
I'll look out for a Lohanu to review - not played one
I purchased the VTab after review from you I got Tenor all Mahogany their High end one. It did not come with button strap so I contacted them to ask if it could be put on. But due to not having tools at warehouse they kindly Gabe me a nice strap and button to install myself. Thanks for introducing VTAB.
Yeah - really friendly brand as well as a nice product
Thankyou for your informative videos. I have learned so much from your channel. And for all of us that love the ukelele, I thankyou!! 😎👍 x
+tahitislim25 Glad they help!
International standard ISO 7810 says all credit card are .76 mm thick (or 1/32 in.). Two credit cards at the 1st fret, and 4 credit cards at the 12th fret.
Two credit cards at the first is far too high. I’d struggle to get one card between string and first fret. Should be about 0.4mm
Great video (and written instructions, too!) Thank you!
Glad it was helpful!
Thanks for this info. My new soprano uke was close but not quite right with the intonation, but since sanding down the bridge a fraction, all is fixed !
Great to hear!
So useful - thanks, Baz.
Happy to help
Thanks for the video , because I build a misi acoustic trio in my Kala Triback tenor , without measering the saddle after sanding, it sounds very nice , but I think the action is still to high , and with the small ruler you showed , I can adjust my Uke the it should be
Thanks for that,very helpful
Glad it was helpful!
Thank you for all the helpful information you post about ukes. One question, is there anything to consider if lowering the action on a uke with a radiused fretboard?
No - same principle - you are dropping the flat base of the saddle NOT the curved top
Thanks friend! Do you have any videos on replacing tuning pegs?
Only did this one on fitting UPT pegs to a uke with friction pegs - but that would apply to swapping to other friction pegs too. For geared pegs, it's a case of making sure the post hole is right diameter and screwing the plate to the back of the headstock
ua-cam.com/video/Q3nLAwucLsU/v-deo.html&embeds_referring_euri=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.gotaukulele.com%2F&source_ve_path=MjM4NTE&feature=emb_title
I use thin strips of hardwood to shim a saddle up.
Yep - me too.
Thank you - very helpful, and clearly explained. I have a concern not addressed here: the distances from nut to 12th fret and from 12th fret to saddle. My kit (a Kikkerland soprano) says to position the bridge such that the mid-point of the saddle is exactly 13.7 inches or 348mm from the nut. Yet the 12th fret is 172mm from the nut - less than half of 348mm. Can this be right? I've heard about intonation, pressure on the strings, etc, but this seems a bit much. I'm not going to glue or screw the bridge in place (as the instructions say to do) until I've strung the uke and tried it out. I don't expect so much from a 30-dollar uke (or to follow in the footsteps - through the tulips - of the immortal Tiny Tim), but I'd like to get this right.
(My acoustic guitar is 325mm from nut to 12th fret, but 652mm from nut to bridge at the high E string and 654mm at the low E string, due to the angled bridge. Never took notice before! So even here there's a slight discrepancy, and maybe Kikkerland is quite right.)
Crown of the 12th fret should be exactly half way between nut and saddle as a starting point. There can then be some adjustment through compensation to dial in intonation. Your measurements have a difference of 2mm (172mm versus half of 348 which is 174). It may need that much, but it seems to much compensation to me - and in fact not all strings need the same compensation!
@@GotAUkulele Thanks! I'll start as you suggest, exactly 50-50. In junior high school I played the slide trombone. But I wonder what you could do with a slide uke! A pedal steel ukulele? (Maybe sometimes there are bad ideas in a brainstorm.)
is the measurement measured at top of the string or bottom of string at the 12th fret?
Fist Pump it’s about string clearance so it’s a measurement from the top of the fret to the bottom of the string
Thank you for these tips, very useful... It worked for me. Cheers.
My pleasure!
You recommend a shim of paper(s) to raise the saddle up? Isn't the vibration of the strings transmitted through the saddle material to the cavity, thus introducing another agent of material (ordinary paper) affect the quality of sound you produce?
I mean, there is a lot of discussion on bone being better than plastic in sound quality, but why introduce paper? I've been taught to just buy another saddle if it is too low or improperly sanded down.
If the ukulele is a high end one, then absolutely I would go to the trouble of buying a new saddle and re-shaping it. But my vids and site are mainly aimed at beginners. With 99.9% of beginner to intermediate ukuleles I would challenge anyone to tell me they could hear the difference if I had a shim of paper or card under my saddle or not! In fact, I'd challenge most people to spot the difference with any ukulele actually! Also bear in mind that some of the highest end ukuleles have under saddle pickups fitted to them - then the saddle is sitting on the pickup and not the wood. Same difference.
Of course - ideally - if you go carefully - taking the saddle down properly should never result in you needing to shim it anyway.
GotAUkulele Got it.
GotAUkulele and buying a replacement nut and bridge piece in advance isn't a terrible idea. it's ultra cheap and you can order strings at the same time. I'm pretty crappy at playing and have 3 caramel tenors which seem to be set up well enough... but I'm new. $52 Canadian and I haven't done a set up just a low G RED and high g RED changeover. I love the bright sound and the skinny strings. for $150 I have 3 ukulele... the 3rd is my experimental. it's getting an 8 string mod even if it ruins it. I will learn something.
great informative video,the action may be a bit high on my uke because I'm getting a slight sharp reading at the 12th fret. But what is 6/64th of an inch in millimeters? ;)
6/64 inch is about 2.4mm
GotAUkulele Cheers Barry. Now that string height guage you used, (Stewmacc?) is it specific to ukulele or is there just one type for all stringed instruments?
Nah - it wasn't from Stewmac - they are generic - any gauge will work - just requires a straight edge and measure. A metal ruler that has markings to the end will also do the job. I bought this on Amazon for about 3 quid
GotAUkulele cheers
This is really great Baz! You always teach me something.
Hi Baz, thanks for another wonderful informative video. I've just bought a Clearwater (Vorson) Electric Ukulele and this info will help set up the action correctly. Do you have the correct heights that the pickups should be (sorry, I know you are not very fond of solid Electric ukes) - but any info would be most appreciated. Thanks and Stay Safe.
I'm afraid I don't - Vorson didn't publish anything. Suspect it's more a case of trial and error
I have a kala that says the saddle is made with NUbone (plastic?) can I lower that or can I do that only with real bone?
No - exactly the same process!
I've bought a old ukulele but there's no saddle on the bridge or even a place for a saddle is this ok ...
Hmm - could be a one piece bridge. They do exist - but very tricky to adjust as there is no going back
Would you use the same string height measurement for a tenor and baritone ukulele? If not what measurements for them?
It's not a precise figure, more a range - but yes - the same range would apply
Hello Barry
Unlike me you appear to be an authority on ukuleles. I'm looking to buy my 12 year old son a good quality instrument. Please can you recommend which, soprano, tenor or concert he should be starting on and if possible some makes I should be looking at. I am willing to spend £100 - £150 to get a decent buy. Best Rick.
Hi there - it's very hard / impossibe for me to give you a specific recommendation for the scales - there are just too many and aside from price, looks have a big bearing on peoples choices (naturally). Best I can do is direct you to my full list of reviews (link below). They are all the instruments I have looked at in great detail, together with my scores. Basically anything with a score of 8 or above gets my vote.
All that said, your budget is a good one, and I will say these things at the outset.
1. Dont necessarily be put off by laminate bodied instruments. I would always rather have a good quality laminate uke than a poor quality solid wood instrument. At this price, you start to see the ultra cheap, thick and heavy solid wood ukes coming in - many of them are solid for the sake of it, but aren't actually great ukuleles
2. Whilst I am not starstruck by brand names, at this price, you will find some common contenders from obvious names - they've been at it long enough to know. Look at brands like Kala and Ohana. Avoid brands that are really just guitar brands - you think they will know a thing or two but rarely do - put simply they are not really ukulele specialists. In other words, avoid Fender, Ibanez, Gretsch and Epiphone in my opinion.
3. Non 'star names' can be decent, but shop around. Baton Rouge and Snail are a couple that really do very well in my mind - both newish brands but excellent.
4. Make sure you buy from a ukulele specialist, and note that a ukulele specialist doesn't mean 'generic music store'. You want a store that will check it over / set it up before you take it - most dont do that, the good ones do. There is a list of stores I recommend on the website. You may spend a few small pounds more, but trust me, you will be thankful of doing so in long run
Here's the list and good luck!
www.gotaukulele.com/p/ukulele-reviews.html
Great video, could you tell me wich sandpaper to use? thanks
Something fine grained - it's about going slow and steady as you dont want to take too much off in one go
not sure if you’ll see this but I bought a uke today mostly out of impulse of wanting to play for years and I ended up tuning 2 of the strings but the e and a string were pretty loose to begin with and as I tried to make them tighter they just seem to get so loose that I can’t even pluck the string :( any advice? I’m a total newbie
ana // moonchild sounds like they are not tied on properly and are slipping
If you make an error can you get replacement saddles?
Yes you can - widely available - loads on eBay for example. Just will need sanding back to the same sort of dimensions as the original. To be honest though, if you find you go too low, easier thing to do is just put a wooden shim under the original.
Hiya! I play guitar and am about to buy a baritone ukulele for a bit of a change! Do you have any thoughts on such instruments for under £100 and between £100 - £150? Is it possible to buy a decent ukulele at around these sums?
I’d be VERY careful with cheap baritones. They are similar in size really to guitars and since you play guitar would you expect good things from a guitar that price? Saying all that - this is the only Bari that impressed me at that money. It’s also very good! www.gotaukulele.com/2018/12/duke-dubvb-baritone-ukulele-review.html?m=0
Thank you Barry, I have my kala Concert uke which I'm going to lower a bit in action. I found almost 4mm at 12th so I should lower at the saddle 2mm (if I want it 3mm at 12th,right?)...I'm a bit scared about how can I reach that 1mm just sliding on a sandpaper sheet...i would not go too low...well, I will try,it's a trial, if it will go bad I will buy a new saddle :) even if Nubone is not something easy to find maybe... :D
Kind of - bit of pythagoras! But the better way to approach is take it off in small stages - ½ mm by 1/2mm until you get close - restring and checking along the way. Trust me - it's better than goint too far! You will find lots of saddle blanks on ebay though
@@GotAUkulele thank you
Hi, man. Excellent video. I was reading the comments and found that we should avoid guitar brands. So, do you feel the same about Córdoba ukes??
I’ve not personally played a Córdoba I was totally happy with. All those I’ve come across feel heavy and a bit dead sounding. Some worse than others. Many people like them but I wonder what it is they are comparing them to. If it’s your first uke it will likely sound great. But I don’t think they stand up to many in their price point
GotAUkulele . I see. Good to know. Those are very common here in México, so is Kala. I will research a bit more before buying one. What comes first to your mind instead of a Córdoba? In that range of price. I'm thinking in a tenor for my first uke. (Sorry for my english by the way).
Kala, Ohana or Snail
Nice. Thanks a lot for the advice. And thank you for your time. I'll see you around.
escuse me, but is it really necessary to lower the action for ukulele? i just bought a new ukulele, the gap between the string and the 12th fret is about 4.5mm, and it's pretty uncomfortable to play for a beginner like me, so i brought it to the store to ask them to lower the action for me, but they refused to do it and said that ukulele is different from guitar and its not necessary to adjusting ukulele's action, i also went to a different store but they still say the same thing..im pretty confused rn..:
What they told you is incorrect
GotAUkulele thanks so much:))
Hi. As a uke player with no special technical expertise on the instrument, just 15 years experience, I find the unhelpful reaction you received from the store to be plain outrageous. The ukulele is no different to any good stringed instrument, and adjusting the set up for the action that suits your playing is critical to your enjoyment. This is what good music stores do and advise on. I should think you are finding 4.5mm at the 12th unplayable - I certainly would. Compare that with the 2.4mm or a bit above advised in this video. Good luck with it!
rosco1pug thanks you so so so much, I really appreciate it 💪👁👄👁💪 thanks 👍😇🙏
Hi Barry! What is your recommended action at the 12th fret on DGBE tuned Baritone ukes?
Not sure about baritones as don't play them. Either way though - very personal choice. 2.5mm to 3.0mm on a tenor for me. Some go higher.
@@GotAUkulele thank you!
Hello! Thank you for this video.
Would you please give me some advice?
I'm a beginner player, and I find it very hard to play certain chords, especially the ones that require barring. For example, I've been practising Bm for a couple of days, and I can get it correctly only when I press very hard with both my thumb and index finger. As a result, my thumb is hurting now, and I even had to take a break from playing.
I measured the action on my ukulele, and it's 3mm on the 12th fret, 1mm on the 1 fret, so it's kind of normal.
What do you thing, will lowering the strings help, or it's better not to take the risk and just keep practising more?
Thank you.
Doesn't sound like a problem with action so I wouldn't meddle with that. It really is just about practice and building up hand strength i'm afraid.
Man, exact same thing happens to me. Did you resolve this problem yet and if so how did you do it?
Thanks for the tips.
*handsome too
My pleasure!
Hello! Could you please make a review of a Kasch MUH - 510 if you get your hands on one of them! :) I would love to hear your opinion about it, but if you could tell me it's worth it or not, that would do too :) Thanks
Not a ukulele I have ever heard of!
wow :D It's mainly made out of Zebra wood with rosewood bridge and neck, I think it's pretty, sounds good, but the only review i could find is a sponsored one saying nothing bad about it.
I don't see what you are measuring? Is it from the fret crown to the top of the string or bottom?
Top of fret to bottom of string
Thanks. And that should be 16/73?
No it should be within a range, roughly 6/64 (2.2mm) to 8/64 (3mm).
OK. Thanks a lot.
Well, I've tried it on my 'practice' uke. But to my horror I only realised the the saddle fitted into an ANGLED slot when I was just putting it back! I couldn't remember which way around it was supposed to be! At least I'll be more careful when I risk it on my posh uke! I also have a Cordoba Mini M guitar and wonder should I be measuring at the lower 6th string or look at the fourth, re your guidance for distances?
My tip re saddle orientation - take a photo before you take old one out! Not sure on distances with what you have as dont have one of those to hand. Sorry
What grade of sandpaper is used to sand the saddle please?
Just medium to medium fine grit - you dont want to go too fast, but equally, too fine a paper will take forever!
Thank you for superfast response. I really like the fact that you've written it all down as well as shown it in a video. I don't have a lot of confidence about doing it so I'm going to try it out on my very cheap old uke before I touch my proper posh one! Presumably I don't need to take the strings totally OFF but can just loosen them and slide the saddle out?
You know what - that's exactly how I learned setups on guitars 20 plus years back - you practice on cheap old stuff and get more experience. you only need to loosen strings to slide saddle out really
All mine says 0.90 on 12 fret I have same string action ruler is that fine
That's the 2.25 mil height so absolutely fine. Low end and I tend to have mine a touch higher, but not much.,
@@GotAUkulele thanks I wasn't sure quiet far off fretboard but I put it on so 0.90 was on fret 12 it's a donner ukelele
@@RebeccaHindle You need to take the measurement from the crown of the fret to the base of the string
Hey wait, what if my saddle is glued down? Are there any ways to remove the glued saddle and replace it?
You will rarely come across a saddle that has been glued down. They are meant to come out of the bridge slot.
GotAUkulele oh, so how am i be able to know if its glued down? By the way mine ukulele is an andrew concert, thanks 😊
@@poppikwtie722 When the strings are off - just pull it. You might need small pliers if the slot is a bit tight, but it should easily come out. They need to in order to adjust action / fit pickups.
GotAUkulele thanks a lot:)
GotAUkulele thank you so so much!!! I just adjusted my ukulele and its reallyy confortable and easy to play now!!! Thanks so so much, have a great day!!!
Hi Barry.
I sanded the saddle of my Enya KUTMA, but it ended slanted. Is it still usable or do I need to buy a new saddle? The sound changed a bit and seems likeit lessen the sustain.
Doodz Piega if it’s slanted it can cause two issues. Either string buzzing or throw off the intonation. If it’s affecting either of those, buy a new saddle. If not - you’ll get away with it as is
Barry Maz
Thanks for your fast reply. More power to you and God bless.
What can I do if the neck is bowed and I have no truss rod
Very very few ukuleles have truss rods. If it has indeed bowed it could be fatal i'm afraid. A good luthier could try to reset the neck, but the bow will be there. Do you know what caused it to bow? The reason I ask (and the reason so few ukuleles have truss rods) is that the tension of the strings is just nowhere near enough to bow a well made neck.
i think it bowed a bit when i brought it home from the store. it was fine there but the action was a bit high. I'm was going to sand down the saddle a little and placed a humid pack in the box just to let it breathe a bit. its a Luna tenor tribal. so the thing was only $120 and i might just return it and opt for a Pono with a rod.
My point is - there really is no need to get a uke with a truss rod. Whilst it would certainly help in this case, it shouldn't have bowed in the first place. kamaka, Kanile'a, Koaloha, Martin - dont have truss rods. The reason this has happened is more likely to be quality control failing by Luna - not the first time i've heard that with that brand!
3/32" = 6/64" :)
I've only ever worked in metric all my life..
Can i get that in metric?
Which measurement?
what ukulele is this?
+jade browning this is an Omega Zedro uke
Why would you want to adjust the Ukulele action at the saddle? Why would you do this?
As the video says - an incorrect action here raises the strings too high - not only makes them harder to play but throws out the accuracy of fretted notes on the neck.
If there's a "sweet spot" for the action height, how come some ukuleles come with either too low or too high action height? Just wondering.
If they arrive too low it's because they have not been setup correctly. If they arrive too high it's because the brand didnt want to risk a return because of buzzing. I didn't actually say there was a perfect sweet spot - there is an acceptable range. Too low and you buzz at worst or kill all volume. too high and you affect tuning. I dont say there is one precise measurement for all though.
@@GotAUkulele Thanks! I should have said "sweet range" (that's what I meant). I guess with the same logic that the saddle might be too high/low, the nut can also have the same issue (too high/low), is that correct?
@@jya811 Oh there is a sweet range - but it's fairly broad in the scheme of things. Still - my reasons for brands failing still apply - either don't care or care too much!. And yes - the nut is important - in fact perhaps MORE important - just never want to make a nut adjustment video as it is much more technical and I can't bear the people getting it wrong and blaming me!!!
3 /32nd.
Same as 6/64 - or about 2.4mm.