Possible String Problems

eerbrev · #1 12-20-2009, 12:17 PM

Hello There everyone,

I've been creeping around talkbass for the last little bit, and I figured I should talk to you folks in the setup and repair department regarding a problem I'm having.

I have a set of Thomastik Bel Cantos on my bass, and whenever I play the top three strings especially, i get the note, plus what sounds like an open seam. I've had my Luthier in town (ex-Soundpost in T.O. Canada) look it over, and he couldn't find any open seams, and there are no serious cracks that would cause the level of vibration i'm hearing. At this point, I am suspecting string death

. I have only had these strings on for a year, and from what I've been told, normally bass strings last a bit longer than that. Is this likely? keep in mind that as a college student, I try to play somewhere around 3-4 hours a day, sometimes more.

regards,

Alex

Andrew McGregor · #2 12-20-2009, 05:37 PM

Get someone to listen around the bass while you're playing long notes, and see if they can narrow down where the buzz is coming from. Pressing on areas to damp them a bit can help.

Dead strings more normally either go dull or produce an obvious metallic sounding twangy buzz that you couldn't mistake for a seam or crack (even synthetic cores do that). This sounds more like an endpin buzz, or something of that nature.

**Matthew Tucker** · #3 12-20-2009, 08:09 PM

tuners?

eerbrev · #4 12-26-2009, 10:57 AM

Thanks for the replies guys,

The vibrating sound comes from near the tailpiece area, at least that's where I seem to hear it the most. I can't do much right now, as I'm home in another city on vacation, and couldn't afford to fly it home with me. I'll post an update when I get back into the same province my bass is in.

Regards,

Alex