Action and string height

Both of my basses came with what seems to be really high strings; on my P-bass I lowered the string height somewhat and they were buzzing on the next fret before and after the adjustment. I'm thinking it could be binding in the nut or uneven fret heights, but that's another battle.
On my J-bass I'm yet to adjust the string height, but it just seems almost too high and I can't sustain notes if I switch fingers while holding one note.
What's the ideal string height, and do all basses come from the factory with really high strings?
 
Hello!
You should really take a time to read this:

ALL BASIC SETUP QUESTIONS ANSWERED HERE

Your basses may have come with high action, or ambient changes may have affected their necks, it depends a lot in the shop and situation involved.

The Fender guide linked in the article is simple and great way to start. Also the Elixir videos in the article are very easy to follow.

That said, to not leave you without an answer, the height at the 17th fret should be between 2-2.8mm or 5-7/64"th

Lower at the treble strings, higher at the bass strings.

But do read the guides and watch the videos!
You'll learn it better that way, good luck!
 
as above.

also, if these are new fenders with the paperwork, they should have a care manual. factory settings are specd out. these would be baseline figures. adjust from there to suit. i believe you can dig these out of the fender website as well.
 
First check string break angle at bridge and nut [google it] then check neck relief [if you don't have feeler gauge use cheap business card] capo first fret and depress fret where body meets neck on E String[usually 16th] then slip business card under E on 8th fret it should not lift string or slide under untouched just lightly hit bottom of string.

I set my P basses at 17th fret 5/64 [from top of fret to bottom of string] on E and 4/64 on G. A and D depend on neck radius
I set A at tad over 5/64 and D a tad under [you can sight down at 12th fret and should only see E string; rotate towards you and A.D and G should reveal themselves one at a time] I have done this enough as to use feel of running my index finger over strings.

Set pickup height and check intonation
 
Of course you should avail yourself of all TB links such as the ones above to learn more about proper bass setup. But here's my two cents worth.

Start by measuring the neck relief. It is critical that you resolve any issues here before attempting to raise or lower the bridge saddles. There are tons of people who will tell you how to do this "by feel." I disagree. Get a set of feeler gauges from your local hardware store for less than $10 and measure it as God intended. Capo the 1st fret, hold down the fret where the neck meets the body, and a .012 gauge should barely slide under your low E at the 8th (or so) fret. If it slides in between string and fretwire with room to spare, you have too much relief. If you can't slide it in without raising the string, you have too little. Is .012 the magic number? No. Try .013 and .011. If you have a five string, maybe even .014. The point is, measure it.

The truss rod counteracts the string tension. If the strings are winning too much and there's too much relief, righty tighty. If the truss rod is winning too much and there's not enough relief, lefty loosey. 1/4 turn at a time or even less and then tune up and measure again. Get this adjusted correctly before adjusting string height at the bridge saddles.

After having done this, adjust the bridge saddles. Get a metal ruler that shows 64ths of an inch. No capo, no fretting. Just measure the distance between bottom of string and top of fret. I like the 12th fret here. Your low E should be 5/64s. This measurement can taper down to 4/64s at the treble end.

After having done these two things–neck relief and string height–check each string up and down the entire fretboard for any buzzing. If there isn't any, you've won. Congratulations!
 
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