How to Lower the Action for Your Playing Style
The Donner Hush C is a compact travel nylon-string guitar that packs a lot of features into a small case. One of the most common complaints is the high action it ships with. In this video I walk through a setup, focusing on dialing the action down to suit classical, jazz, fingerstyle, or flamenco-style playing.
What I cover:
- Measuring action at the 12th fret
- A practical target action height
- How to lower the saddle
- Truss-rod adjustment
- Checking for high frets with a fret rocker
On this particular guitar the action measured around 3.7 mm (roughly .145″) at the 12th fret before any work. That’s quite high for some players, and gets tiring higher up the neck. I aimed for roughly 2.5 mm on the high E and 3 mm on the low E, which is a comfortable range for mixed classical and jazz playing.
After setting a small amount of neck relief and checking the frets, I marked and sanded the saddle. The Hush C comes with a decent saddle (feels like bone), so it takes material cleanly. Once the saddle was reinstalled the action came down nicely and the guitar felt much more playable.
If you’re setting up your own Hush C, the process is straightforward with basic tools. A straight edge, feeler gauges or a simple height gauge, and something to sand the saddle are the main items. A fret rocker is useful if you want to check for high frets before you lower the action too far.
Tools and products mentioned (affiliate links):
- Donner HUSH C Acoustic-Electric Nylon String Classical Guitar https://amzn.to/49PMLfC
- Muzikion Luthier Tool Kit, Fret Leveling Guitar Setup Tool Set https://amzn.to/4bVEwjq
- Feeler Gauges 0.0015-0.035” (0.04-0.88 mm) https://amzn.to/4bnbity
- Miniature Belt Sander https://amzn.to/4tdlWtu
- Fret Hammer https://amzn.to/4rgPOTO
If you have a Hush C and the action feels too high, this is a reliable way to bring it down without a full fret job. The extra saddle height it ships with is actually useful and gives you material to work with setting it to your own preference.