Mike's Oud Forums

Adjusting the Action by Adjusting the Strings

DD - 9-28-2005 at 10:20 AM

How do you raise or lower the action on your oud, other than by adjusting the nut or the neck?

On the subject of buzzing strings and raising action in another thread, Greg said:

"If it still buzzes after the strings settle in, I will either re-arrange the way the strings enter the bridge or...."

How is that done? It would seem that tying and looping the strings in different ways at the bridge could effect the action quite a lot.

Dr. Oud - 9-28-2005 at 02:16 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by DD
How do you raise or lower the action on your oud, other than by adjusting the nut or the neck?

On the subject of buzzing strings and raising action in another thread, Greg said:

"If it still buzzes after the strings settle in, I will either re-arrange the way the strings enter the bridge or...."

How is that done? It would seem that tying and looping the strings in different ways at the bridge could effect the action quite a lot.

The loop at the bridge can be adjusted closer to the top of the bridge to raise the action. In some cases you may raise the top of the bridge with a shim to get the strings higher. A popsicle stick or cofee stirrer can be used here. Too much height at the bridge can put extra stress on the glue joint of the bridge, so be careful and don't tune the oud too high. The string guides in the top nut should set the bottom of the strings at 1mm above the fingerboard. Your oud should be tuned as low as it can make music to postpone the inevitable warp in the body and/or neck.

paulO - 9-29-2005 at 01:36 PM

Hi DD,

Just my 2-Cents -- if you've got a serious buzzing problem, you might need some work on the fingerboard from Dr. Oud, or another oud builder/repair person. Good luck.

PaulO