Help! A String not sounding right at all

[OysterBoy]

I'm a bit of a newbie bassist, so I apologize for what will probably be a silly question. Right.

I bought a used bass a while ago and used it just fine, though once I got it tuned, the A string gave me some trouble. On the 10th fret of A, it sounds very warbly / buzzy, and somewhat on the 9th and 11th. This is when it's in tune, anyways. The only solution is to keep tuning until it goes away, but by that point, my A and D are identical in sound. Obviously, this is a problem. I've tried adjusting the action, but to no avail. Looking down at the A and D strings, they are very very similar in gauge; so similar in fact that I think they may possibly be mixed up; though D is in perfect tune. I'm stuck in a rut . Anyone able to help?

Thanks,
Alex.

EDIT: hmm, I should mention that I have no idea of the brand of strings; my bass guitar however is a Peavey Milestone 2. And side question; How would I adjust the trussrod (wheel located in base of neck), and what happens when I do ?

[justateenpoet]

Go buy a cheap set of strings, put them on, see if it goes away. If it does, then yes, you had a D string for your A. If it continues, take it to a shop to get it setup (your neck might have a weird forward bow in it).

If you're new to the instrument I wouldn't suggest doing the truss rod yourself.

[TribalisticBass]

You should probably take your bass to the nearest shop, and have them adjust your truss rod, and intonation. If that doesn't work you may have to get those fret replaced, because they may be worn down. I have my truss rod adjustedatleast once a year. Keep your bass out of your car it can warp the neck.

[BurningSkies]

No need to be so melancholy, Oyster Boy.

It sounds like you might have a few issues here...

First off, yes, try some new strings, make sure you've installed them in the right place and have them up to proper pitch. If you haven't done a string change, get someone who's done one to help guide you through the first time.

Get yourself a tuner. They're not so expensive and it will certainly help you in the long run. It sounds like you had this bass for a while before you tuned it properly, which may have a hand in your problem. Having a bass neck at odd tension from incorrect tuning can certainly cause action problems. While there are a variety of tunings you can use, a neck has to be adjusted to do so.

If you're going to start messing around with string height, truss rod adjustment, make sure you know what you're doing. These can get tricky if you're not versed in the adjustments, even though it seems easy. Truss rod adjustments are done in small increments and can take a while to take effect (like hours or a day).

Take your time and make notes of any adjustments you make...that way when you change something, you can reverse it. If you start making all sorts of little changes all over the place then it can snowball into a mess!

You should also check out the FAQ stickies here and do some searches...you'll turn up with a lot of fixes.

[cardboardJoe]

Great sig... made me laff out loud

[BurningSkies]

Originally Posted by cardboardJoe

Great sig... made me laff out loud

Thanks!

[7flat5]

Originally Posted by OysterBoy

How would I adjust the trussrod (wheel located in base of neck), and what happens when I do ?

Another chance to post these links!

http://www.garywillis.com/pages/bass...tupmanual.html

http://www.fender.com/support/setup/basssetup.php

Also, go to the Setup forum and do some searching for truss, etc.

[OysterBoy]

Thanks guys, the problem seems to have gone away. It still twangs a bit at the 10th fret, but its much more tolerable. Hooray!

And does anyone have any idea on how / where to buy a ramp?