Do I need a lower action??

[Adrian Dupree]

Hello!

I want to be able to tap as well as I can. However, in order to do this, I must enhance my guitar. Let me first tell you about my guitar and how I modified it:

I have a Silvertone electric guitar (strat copy). I lowered the action and put a mute at the nut (home-made mute).

I have a problem with tapping. It seems that I have to exert some force (probably an unneeded amount) whenever I tap. My action is quite low. However, if I lower it more, then the strings will buzz. How low does my action need to be?
Thanks,
Adrian

[rjgoos]

Just some random thoughts.


An experiment, if you put a reguar guitar capo on fret 1, and hold string 1 or 6 down to the highest fret (20-something), how much of a gap is there between the string and fret 11 or 12? There should be little gap (more like a business card thickness, not dime or penny thickness). Examine the gap between the strings being held down and the neck, up and down the neck. Is the neck bowed or warped somehow? Perhaps you will need to take it to a guitar shop for a neck adjustment for a flatter profile to the neck.

Another experiment....if your action is as low as possible without buzzing, try tuning the instrument down a half step or a full step and see if this improves the situation. Some six-string tappers do this anyway.

Tapping should not be hard with low action. How heavy are the strings?