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Fret buzz on the low E


Desmosedici

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Hey guys

Got my LP Standard back from the techs ( toneation and action work )

Seemed great for 2 weeks or so but now I've noticed fret buzz on open,1st and 2nd on the low E

Can't hear it through the Amp, but I can if I'm 'noodleing' around unplugged

The action is nice and low, but I think the tech took too much out of the nut at the E (we were curing the ol' sharp tendency around the first few frets, which obviously meant taking the nut down a smidge)

Anyway, what do you guys think?

Should I take it back, or do you have the same occasional buzz if you play yours unplugged?

Cheers

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Seemed great for 2 weeks or so but now I've noticed fret buzz on open,1st and 2nd on the low E

 

So, if this is correct: it buzzes on the E string playing the open, the first fret, and the second fret?

 

If that is the case, it is not the nut too low. It is also buzzing when fretted.

 

Gibson types are easier to adjust action, because you can adjust the bridge and the truss rod back and forth. IF you were to adjust the truss rod for more bow, it would let the neck come higher, strings come up off the fretboard, and you would then have to adjust the bridge lower to compensate, right?

 

Its hard to tell exactly where a string is buzzing, but pretty easy to tell when it is buzzing on what fretted notes. USUALLY, it is buzzing toward the center of the length of string, where it vibrates wider.

 

So: if it buzzes when fretting toward the end of the neck, a little more bow in the neck will be better. If it buzzes when playing the center or the neck, less bow is better.

 

Now, obviously, fret buzz means the action is too low, so you would raise the bridge. Of corse, the goal is personal preference, because some of us play harder, and some like lower action than others, thus, a compromise according to your taste and style for YOUR guitar.

 

Remember to loosen the strings when making adjustments. Truss rod adjustments should only be very small adjustments (as in, 1/8 of a turn can be a lot. Should NEVER make more than 1/4 turn at a time.

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Thanks Stein

Do you get any amount of buzz on yours?

At all?

Or should the ideal be none at all, ever?

Well, yea, of corse. Whack it hard enough and you can get buzz on ANY guitar.

 

It's all a matter of how hard you want to play, how low you want the strings, and where YOU want to have it.

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Thanks matey, good shizzle man

Very true that I get it also on the fretted 123.

Maybe I need to rotate the bridge, or release the Truss, but I'm wondering, if , acoustically, this is normal?

See, I live in an appartment , and I mess around on the guitar unplugged all the time now as a matter of course.

My big amps are in the garage.

..... Anyone else want to chime in on a buzz when playing unplugged (not hammering the shitout of it just like .... Oh, example, ah, finger picking Smokestack lightning)

Seriously, I'd like to know

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I set mine up so they have a little buzz...I like my action low, and as long as I can;t hear it through the amp It's all good. If it bugs you, give the truss rod a quarter turn to the left(as you look down the neck from the head stock) and see if the buzz is gone.

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Thanks Stein

Do you get any amount of buzz on yours?

At all?

Or should the ideal be none at all, ever?

I personally dont like any buzz,even if i have to raise the action,i would rather deal witha higher action than fretbuzz (that kills sustain at low volume IMO)

 

I would have taken it back and always remember not all luthiers are created equal.I used 3 or 4 before i found one i liked.You can always do what jaygl suggested and should work.

 

If you told the luthier you wanted it as low as possible,they will generally give you a little a buzz on the first fret because you generally wont hear it through an amp.I usually say,"i want it as low as possible without ANY fretbuzz". But even if you do that,if you hit hard enough it will happen.

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I would have taken it back and always remember not all luthiers are created equal.I used 3 or 4 before i found one i liked.You can always do what jaygl suggested and should work.

 

The OP indicated it was great for two weeks after getting it back.

 

Do you live where there are changes in climate throughout the year? If so, this may be normal and something you have to learn to compensate for regularly.

 

I live in Michigan with 4 seasons and huge swings in temparature and humdity. I also like a fairly "low action" on my guitars and need to make what I'll call "small adjustments" to either one or all of my guitars from time to time based on what my guitars are telling me. It could be in the way of a slight truss rod adjustment (and I don't typically slack the strings to do a slight adjustment), a bridge adjustment, or simply adding or removing humidity in the room where my guitars are. In fall till spring, slight adjustments in temperature and humiduity levels are the most important things to keeping my guitars playing their best.

 

My Gibsons with mahogany necks/bodies are much more prone to this than my Fenders with Maple necks.

 

My acoustic guitar is the one that speaks loudest as the top and bracing requires humidity to allow it swell and provide the proper support against the pull fo the strings. Too little humidity and the top will collapse a little and result in fretting out. A day or two in a humid environment and everything returns to where it should be.

 

So, don't be too quick to make adjustments unless you know this isn't what's going on.

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Predicting the forthcoming changes in neck curvature is virtually impossible for a guitar tech. Everybody who loves a setup as close as possible along the edge which I do, should be prepared to perform subtle truss rod adjustments oneself. Some instruments might call for a correction after some weeks only. This is not a bad sign on principal, it simply is that way. In most cases there's nothing wrong with frets, bridge, nut, humidity, temperature, or anything else. Especially guitars with a vibrant resonance may react more delicately.

 

Then there is string aging, in particular of wound strings. Tiny manufacturing tolerances and deviations of winding pitch through stringing and playing may cause string buzz, sometimes yet before inharmonicities become audible. A wound string beaten to death may end up with a rattling wound wire. I know the problem well since my sweat is causing next to no corrosion - I wear out my strings mainly mechanically.

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Thanks guys

I gave a quarter turn on the Truss

Pretty much eliminated the buzz, and the action is still suitable

I put it down to change of season - the weather

thanks for your input, I feel heaps better about it now

Glad you got that worked out. Usually due to seasonal changes.

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