First Fret Buzz

[blipndub]

I searched a few ways and I know this info is out there but I couldn't quite find it. Seems like this would be a common problem.

Pbass, warmoth body and neck, vintage spec non-jumbo frets.

I had this bass strung with Fender flatwounds for about a year, I pulled them off to put on another bass and recently acquired a set of DR flats, which I put on without making any real adjustments. The bass hung on the wall for maybe three weeks without any strings.

Now I"m plagued with note killing fret buzz on the D and G string but only at the first fret (first position). I figured maybe the DR's were a little thicker so I actually filled in the nut a little bit with plastic wood to raise the string at the nut. Still buzz. I put more relief in the neck, still buzz. I raised the action at the bridge and that didn't help either. I actually took a stewmac fret level file and brought down the first three frets toward the headstock and the buzz is still there!

What am I missing? Could this be a string tension issue? maybe the Fenders were a higher tension and I just lucked out with the correct neck relief to avoid the buzz?

I'll really at a loss. I do all my own setups and have for years but I'm seriously thinking of taking this in for a setup by a pro. Mike Lull is about 45 minutes away and there's a guy in town who does good work. Is there anything obvious I'm missing? Should I just do a full fret level? What if it's still there?

 

[darius8]

How much relief do you have? If there's alot of relief, you might need th shim the neck forward.

 

[Duke21]

Different strings, different tension. And your bass hang on the wall for 3 weeks without strings, the neck might have flatten out a bit.
String hight at the saddle should not be changed before you check your relief.
You could also just let it be for a while, just let the system to settle in place, both strings and neck which was without strings for a long while.

 

[blipndub]

Thanks for the input. I try to keep relief to an absolute minimum but when this problem arose I loosened things up a bit, I'm not really the measuring type when it comes to that but I put about 3/4 of a turn on a fairly flat neck, when that didn't help I went about half as much tighter. The D string is doing better, acceptable buzz level but the G is still a problem. I think just letting it settle for a couple more days before I do anything more is the best advice. If it stays I may try shimming the neck but i would rather not go down that path.

 

[john grey]

The concept of a "buzz" from open string, etc has been discussed at enormous length. Use the Search Engine for "BUZZ, neck, strings" and look back as to all the material that has been discussed at length. There are pages and pages of discussion that may have encompassed your issue specifically. Different strings have different tension levels at tuned tension, this in turn affects the setup & may be a better place to start.
Improper winding on the tuning pegs can also affect the angle of the string, dropping from the nut. It's very important to achieve an angle leading from the nut to the peg.

 

[T. B. Player]

SITs have a high string tension when tightened to tune. I have 34" scale 6 string basses, and the low B string isn't "floppy" at all. The 4th and 3rd strings have a significant amount of tensility, which helps to give a little extra "pull" on the neck. There's very little side-to-side "play" in these strings (that is, no bending...not that you'd ever do that on a bass).

Z

 

[blipndub]

Yes I understand fret buzz is the biggest topic on the forum but seeing how specific it is to the first fretted fret I posed the question. Usually when I've had this problem it has meant the nut is filed too low, that not being the case it seemed particularly unusual. I'll continue searching

 

[JLS]

If it stays I may try shimming the neck but i would rather not go down that path.

Because it has nothing to do with a buzz at the first fret.

Now I"m plagued with note killing fret buzz on the D and G string but only at the first fret (first position). I figured maybe the DR's were a little thicker so I actually filled in the nut a little bit with plastic wood to raise the string at the nut.

Bad idea.

I put more relief in the neck

,


GOOD idea!

I actually took a stewmac fret level file and brought down the first three frets toward the headstock

REALLY bad idea!

 

[blipndub]

Right, i've shimmed to straighten out upper neck problems, but I can't quite see how it would address the issue I'm dealing with.

 

[JLS]

How much relief do you have? If there's alot of relief, you might need th shim the neck forward.

? This is shoot-in-the-dark, bassplayers' urban myth, "shimming".

This would have nothing to do with the OP's problem, which probably stems from a neck which had high tension flatwounds installed, and a tight trussrod to counteract their tension. Such a neck, stored unstrung with the trussrod still very tight, might well have taken a bit of a backbow, which will take some time to (hopefully) work out.

 

[THORRR]

If your buzz is only on the first fret, it could very likely be
your nut that's "off" for the new strings.

Try "micro-shimming" under the offending strings at the nut with
little pieces of mylar or aluminum foil, then see how the bass plays.

That may solve the problem entirely.
Whether or not you want to get a new nut cut by
a luthier is up to you.

 

[blipndub]

yes, that's what I thought, which is why I filled in the nut a little. In the past I've used a touch of CA glue and baking soda to raise saddle height a touch, I tried plastic wood this time, same effect as "shimming" the nut I think. Plastic wood worked okay, bout as good as the CA/soda solution. Not prepared to cut a new nut tool-wise.

@ JLS I know. Filing down frets, bad choice!