Is there anyone to prevent fret buzz??? Is there anything you can buy?

[Lizooki]

Since someone else started it.....

I use Buzz-Bee-Gone. From Bee Basses of course!


Matt

[celtic tig]

Originally Posted by NickInMesa

A bit of clicking and buzzing is not necessarily a big issue. If you play big rock / metal, it will be lost in the mix. Lower action means faster playing and less cramping.

If you need a neat sound, raise your saddles little, string per string, quarter turn per quarter turn.

That's what we did and it's a lot better now. The action was raised just a tad but not high enough to make it hard to play. It still clicks a bit if I hit it really hard but you're right, you don't hear it in the mix. Happy days!

[rreed]

Is it a GSR200 ordered from the 'Friend? Got mine two days ago, my neck was so back-bowed it was in the shape of the letter "C." You could have used it to shoot arrows to kill wild boar. The strings were all laying hard against the neck all the way down, they wouldn't even vibrate/play at all. It nearly took a pipe wrench to loosen the truss rod and about a good day and a half of turning a quarter turn at a time, at this point about 1.5 full turns and the saddles raised as far as they'll go w/o pushing the screws out of the bottom of them to get rid of the severe buzz at first and second frets. The action is so high my wrists are sore from playing it (beginner playing about two days now). It now has tremendous ramp to it plus the neck is now bowed forward. I also cannot get the E to intonate as that screw is turned all the way out and fell out a couple times while trying. I'm considering sending it back for another. I'm about to post pics and description of my issues. I'm considering another nut or wondering if maybe strings might help? I'm a very beginner noob but I think I just got a lemon bass.

[suitlandkid2005]

Originally Posted by Eric Moesle

Are you taking it to a professional luthier for setup, or to a music store? You just mention taking it to "the shop".

A pro luthier will diagnose the problem, and music store tech will just do simple tweaking, usually.

I took it a music store. The first time I took it, the guy did a simple tweak like you said while I waited, it was straight for about 6 months. I went in febuary and started notice the action was too high in august and had to press down on the frets to play. It was nasty. So I took it back and left it there and they hooked it up good as new. I even got some new strings on it since I had the ones from the factory on there. It was good until I had some lessons in december and noticed not only buzzing again in the first fret but my instructor noticed the notes from the second fret sounded just like the first fret which was odd. I took it back to the shop where they did an inotation and tried to get the action low enough without fret buzz. 2 weeks later the buzzing came back which I still have and the same note thing happening again. I wanted to wait until the weather gets better before I got it repaired again since it is still winter and don't want to have to have the same thing happen 2 weeks later. So you think a luthier would just straight do me one better than to keep going back to the music store? Like I said, I do have a beginner's Ibanez bass; but I am about to get an Ibanez ATK bass in the near future.(my dream bass) but I still want to have the beginner want set straight. I sure hope the ATK does have the same problems like that all the time.

Originally Posted by NickInMesa

Fret buzz is half setup and half technique but in some cases, buzz is not a big deal, for instance when playing metal. For this style, you want fast action, therefore a flatter neck, and you often get quite a bit of buzzing, which is usually drowned by the guitars.

Anyway, you need to take it to a luthier, a real pro. I found my luthier by simply asking at GC and they sent me to the best in the area and he sets up a whole bass for $45, which includes setting neck, adjusting saddles and bridge (tuning), also cleanup and inspection of the electronics.

Yes, it is pricey, but believe me, there are more expensive hobbies (I used to race motocross, by comparison, music is extremely cheap).

Many folks, instead of spending that sum, will think that they need to spend a huge amount, $500, $1000, $2500, whatever, on a boutique bass, when a good cheap bass like an RBX can be tuned for a few bucks and turned into a great instrument to start on and make real progress and even gig.

Thanks a lot. I paid $50 at my music shop and I think they just did a simple tweaking. They didn't even clean it up. You are right...they are more expensive hobbies. I think $45 dollars is a good price if your bass is going to get hooked up the right way instead of $50 every so often.

Originally Posted by Chris Breese

I think Ernie Ball makes some stuff called FretBuzz Remover. Works like a charm.

Lol...where is this at?

Originally Posted by NickInMesa

A bit of clicking and buzzing is not necessarily a big issue. If you play big rock / metal, it will be lost in the mix. Lower action means faster playing and less cramping.

If you need a neat sound, raise your saddles little, string per string, quarter turn per quarter turn.

Thanks...I do play metal; but I tend to lean towards others styles as well for I am trying to be versatile.

Originally Posted by rreed

Is it a GSR200 ordered from the 'Friend? Got mine two days ago, my neck was so back-bowed it was in the shape of the letter "C." You could have used it to shoot arrows to kill wild boar. The strings were all laying hard against the neck all the way down, they wouldn't even vibrate/play at all. It nearly took a pipe wrench to loosen the truss rod and about a good day and a half of turning a quarter turn at a time, at this point about 1.5 full turns and the saddles raised as far as they'll go w/o pushing the screws out of the bottom of them to get rid of the severe buzz at first and second frets. The action is so high my wrists are sore from playing it (beginner playing about two days now). It now has tremendous ramp to it plus the neck is now bowed forward. I also cannot get the E to intonate as that screw is turned all the way out and fell out a couple times while trying. I'm considering sending it back for another. I'm about to post pics and description of my issues. I'm considering another nut or wondering if maybe strings might help? I'm a very beginner noob but I think I just got a lemon bass.

Sorry to hear that man. You guessed right. I did get it from the musician's friend; but it was an Ibanez IJSB90 beginner bass. Take a look:
http://bass-guitars.musiciansfriend....ack?sku=516149

It causes me problems from time to time and then I have to take it to my local music shop to get it fixed.

[Chris Breese]

Originally Posted by Chris Breese

I think Ernie Ball makes some stuff called FretBuzz Remover. Works like a charm.

Originally Posted by suitlandkid2005

Lol...where is this at?

...........

[JustOpenYourMind]

Honestly, learn to do your setups, action and relief are really easy things to do, in fact when you know how to do setups, you do a better job than the tech you'd pay at the shop for the simple reason that only you can setup your bass to the exact specs that suit your playing style.

Most basse's wood necks move from time to time, it doesn't even on the brand, it,s each individual instruments, I've had two basses of the same make, one need adjustements weekly, the other could go months without needing to tweak it.

In my mind it's ridiculous to pay someone to setup your bass, you only need two allen keys and you're good. you do a little at a time till it's just right.

[robkphoto]

I had a similar problem with some of my basses and guitars and I think I figured out that the problem was that the heating in my apartment (we have radiator heat)was drying out the wood and causing it to warp. I got a small humidifier for around $30 at target that I put in the room where my instruments are stored and I run that for the winter months and it seems to have corrected the problem.

[Vakmere]

Take the frets out.......

[Bassamatic]

Someone mentioned earlier about relief. It may be that the music store is only raising or lowering the saddles at the bridge, and the REAL problem is that the neck's truss rod should be adjusted instead.

The neck is never perfectly flat - the strings vibrate more in the middle, so the neck needs to have a slight curve to allow the strings room to move, but so much that the action is uncomfortable.

Look down the fingerboard from the bottom of the bass - there should be a tiny curve away from the strings. Hold down a string at the first fret and one of the last frets - there should be a small gap around the 12th fret of 1/10" or so.

Check this out again when it starts to buzz and see if it has changed.

A proper setup adjusts BOTH the neck and the saddles.

(this is all covered extensively in the setup threads)

[OldBluesGuy]

Originally Posted by JustOpenYourMind

Honestly, learn to do your setups, action and relief are really easy things to do, in fact when you know how to do setups, you do a better job than the tech you'd pay at the shop for the simple reason that only you can setup your bass to the exact specs that suit your playing style.

Most basse's wood necks move from time to time, it doesn't even on the brand, it,s each individual instruments, I've had two basses of the same make, one need adjustements weekly, the other could go months without needing to tweak it.

In my mind it's ridiculous to pay someone to setup your bass, you only need two allen keys and you're good. you do a little at a time till it's just right.

+1000

Learning how to properly perform a set up is a skill that's well worth having. You'll never regret taking the time to learn to do it yourself.




obg

[Brado]

[quote=Gio S;7078786]Someone mentioned earlier about relief. It may be that the music store is only raising or lowering the saddles at the bridge, and the REAL problem is that the neck's truss rod should be adjusted instead.

The neck is never perfectly flat - the strings vibrate more in the middle, so the neck needs to have a slight curve to allow the strings room to move, but so much that the action is uncomfortable.

Look down the fingerboard from the bottom of the bass - there should be a tiny curve away from the strings. Hold down a string at the first fret and one of the last frets - there should be a small gap around the 12th fret of 1/10" or so.







If the bass is built properly/ if the fret job is right/ you can set your neck perfectly flat. The problem alot of players encounter with this setup, though, is that they have a heavy touch....well, of corse you're going to get buzz if you dig in like an NFL linebacker. It takes a little bit lighter touch, but still allows for some dig. The problem with setting relief into a neck is this. It works fine from around the 9th to 12th fret back to the nut....if you venture up beyond the 12th, though, your strings are going to meet the "up slope" in the relief you put in your neck. It will buzz out. So, you end up jacking the saddles up higher to maintain some clearance....Also/ if you keep the neck in a constant bow, you'll never be able to get that out if it stays that way for too long. There are some ways of reversing a permanently bowed neck, but it takes time & is costly....I set my basses dead flat & they sound phenominal.
www.myspace.com/bradymuckelroy listen to a few of the tunes. there's no excessive buzz at all. If you ever do hear a click or a buzz, it adds expression to the note....that's because I dug in some.
There's my 2 cents worth.

[bassmam53]

One thing I haven't seen mentioned in these posts but that I have had with fret buzz is that my batteries needed changing. You can get all sorts of weird things happening when the batteries are going low.

[NickInMesa]

Originally Posted by bassmam53

One thing I haven't seen mentioned in these posts but that I have had with fret buzz is that my batteries needed changing. You can get all sorts of weird things happening when the batteries are going low.

If you let the active circuits handle the issue, it's merely a bandaid.