neck dead spot

[BassBob185]

Whats the best way to eliminate or minimize a dead spot on my bass neck.
Bass is SX SPJ. Dead spot is on low E string at the 9th and 10th fret. Its not horrible just has a small thud sound.

[lburton2]

Start with a basic set-up.. Including Calibration/String-Height/Pick-up Height/Intonation.

If you use Steel strings, they may have begun digging notches into your frets. Regardless, check your frets around the 9-11th fret.. If you're getting buzz on the 9th fret, it's the 10th fret. etc. If you notice when you're siting down the neck that one of the frets is higher/lower around the same spot as your fret buzz.. there is your problem. Hopefully the set-up will fix your problem... If not, and you find the fret problem, it's not too hard to fix if you know what you're doing. Hopefully i didn't give you any bad information.

[BassBob185]

I'm using Ernie Ball Slinky's and they have only been on for about 3 weeks. The bass is only 7 months old so the frets are still in good shape. I do my own set ups and it seems fine in all other aspects. I'll site the neck for high frets.

Seems like I read somewhere that there is a test to see if its due to the wood. I recall reading that some necks just have dead spots. Anyone know about such a test?

Thanks for the tips, very much appreciated.

[J.D.B.]

Did this show up with the string change?
Josh

[BassBob185]

Not really, the E string has always been a little thuddy on those frets. When playing normal if I hit notes there quickly and move on its not noticeable but if you hit the note there and stay on it, there is not as much of sustain.

[J.D.B.]

I would try setting up with a lighter gauge set, like .40 or .45-.90 or .95. I have found that some bodies/necks soak up too much vibration with heavier strings. My plywood Hohner was one example. Totally dead with a .105 E on it, but, pretty good with a .95 instead. My mahogany-bodied "flame" is similar and sports .40-.100's. Just fer grins make sure the neck joint is tight, too.
Josh

[lburton2]

I have heard about "dead spots" in necks.. and apparently it's not too uncommon.. I've heard that Groove tube's "Fat Finger" Can fix the problem.. It adds extra weight onto the headstock end of the bass to better balance the weight of the bass.. I hear it helps, although i dont know exactly how to test for the dead spots etc..

[Turnaround]

A "dead spot" is really just a particular frequency where the instrument vibrates differently, causing some cancellation in the sound. Jam your headstock up gainst a door frame and see if the problem disappears (more likely moves to a different fret). What happens when you jam your headstock into the doorframe is that you end up altering the resonant frequency of the bass by coupling it to the frame. This moves the deadspot to another frequency. Which one? Well that depends on the resonant frequency of your doorframe.

A Fat Finger may help - or you may find that the problem has only moved up or down a fret or two. There's no way I know of to predict. By all means try it if you don't mind the additional weight and the tendency for a little more neck dive.

[lm183902]

In my experience, nearly every bass with a wood neck I've ever played has had a dead spot to some extent. Some are definitely worse than others, and unfortunately, I've owned some really nice basses with pretty bad dead spots. It's usually pretty easy to work around, though, as most of the time,the problem occurs somewhere on the G-String, where you're not playing whole notes too often.

[GianGian]

My bass has dead spots on some places...I learned to live with it.

[BassBob185]

Interesting idea with the door frame thing. I did notice that the thud sounds better. Its not a huge deal and as others have written most basses have some degree of dead or not so dead spot.