Fretless buzz on one note

[DCCat]

I bought a used Fender MIM fretless jazz about three months ago. It has a rosewood fretboard with fret lines, an Omega bridge, and (currently) TIJF strings. I've been working through a few issues/mods since I got it. I now have one problem left:

There's an area just behind (i.e., nut side) and on top of the E fret line (#7) on the A string that buzzes pretty badly. It's not just excessive mwah (which I've had in a couple of other spots and can manage with technique and action adjustments), but a raspy, woody buzz. Because it happens just behind the fret line, I thought it was due to a raised fret line, but it really feels pretty smooth right there. I've adjusted the relief up and down, and adjusted the action up and down (first all strings for balance, then just the A string). I thought raising the action might get the string to vibrate above the problem area, but I've raised it pretty darn high (up to 6/32", with the others around 3/32 and working pretty well) to no effect.

Any suggestions? This is my first fretless and I don't have a lot of experience with this sort of thing. I'd be curious if anyone thinks there are other adjustments I can make to the bass that might help. But it seems likely that there's some kind of irregularity in the fretboard surface in that area, even though I can't feel or see anything. is there any kind of oil or other surfacing agent that can be applied to that area that might work? Or maybe just some light sanding and refinishing in that area? Or is some major sanding and/or surgery likely to be required?

If I fret the note a little more towards the nut side or just on the bridge side of the fret line, it's pretty OK, so that's usually my mitigation at the moment, but at the cost of proper pitch. I also had the problem with some Sadowsky flats, so it's not just a string issue, but I may try some other strings -- maybe tapes -- to see what happens.

 

[lowphatbass]

Sound like you probably have a low spot or high spot. It’s a lot easier to feel imperfections like this when you use the length of your finger rather than the fingertip. If you have a straight edge that’s even better.
If this is something that came up as you were modding think about the last mod you did.

 

[luciens]

Do NOT try to guess where the high spot is and sand it by hand.....

It's actually pretty difficult to make a lined FL that doesn't end up with a buzz at or near one of the lines somewhere on the board. I've done 2 FL conversions, one was a mess but the other was done right with inserts made of maple veneer carefully glued in and the entire board very carefully finished with a radius beam on a jig, etc. It was perfect feeling it by hand but still had a buzzy area or two once the action got really low. About a year later, a couple more buzzes had appeared very slowly and subtley over time.

My jaco pastorius even has a slight buzzy area around the 7 "fret" region on the G string though I can't actually feel it with a finger and it's totally smooth.

And even an unlined board with no cuts in the wood won't be utterly perfectly flat, or at least not forever. Wood will move and change shape and there's not much you can do about it even if it was totally perfect when it was first made.

So depending on how bad it is, it may be a fairly easy fix on up to major surgery to end up better off than what you got now. And often the improvement isn't that much unless you really do it carefully with the right tools.

But if it is bad, you'll really need good tools to do it right, a good radius beam (expensive tho) and tools for the nut, etc. at a minimum. Otherwise, probably best just to raise the action and live with it if it's not too bad.

L

 

[Lagado]

Perhaps the fret line has lifted or the fretboard has shrunk a little. I had a bass professionally de-fretted and the slots were filled with maple strips. The woods shrink at different rates, over time I began to be able to feel the lines, that's when it's time to get the board levelled again.

 

[Lagado]

Perhaps the fret line has lifted or the fretboard has shrunk a little. I had a bass professionally de-fretted and the slots were filled with maple strips. The woods shrink at different rates, over time I began to be able to feel the lines, that's when it's time to get the board levelled again.

If you say the fret lines feel smooth to the board, then it would be a high spot. I'd have the board levelled, a light sanding would probably do it.

 

[JRA]

Any suggestions?

if you're serious about fretless playing, and if you don't have the chops to remedy this yourself = taking it to a luthier who 'knows the drill' is your best solution.

"raising the action" and "living with it" are not reasonable, long-term options if you are really interested in fretless bass playing.

good luck with your fretless ax!

 

[DCCat]

Thanks for the input, folks. I likely have a good luthier in my future in order to resolve the problem rather than the symptom. I managed to address the symptom by putting some tapewounds on. The buzz is 90-95% gone. I guess the nylon is more tolerant of whatever irregularity is there.

I looked for unevenness with a straight edge and it looked good. No obvious issues. So the problem is evidently pretty subtle. I'll work with the tapewounds for now (not bad at all) but will plan on getting it truly fixed in the near-ish future.

I've noticed something else, though. The B (ninth fret line) on the D string sometimes has what I called "excessive" mwah above. I looked closely at that area and saw that the fret line has a tiny chip missing so that there's a thin, shallow hole there. Is there a way to safely and reliably fill that hole (superglue, maybe?) or should I just hold off until the whole thing gets resanded?

 

[Turnaround]

Thanks for the input, folks. I likely have a good luthier in my future in order to resolve the problem rather than the symptom. I managed to address the symptom by putting some tapewounds on. The buzz is 90-95% gone. I guess the nylon is more tolerant of whatever irregularity is there.

I looked for unevenness with a straight edge and it looked good. No obvious issues. So the problem is evidently pretty subtle. I'll work with the tapewounds for now (not bad at all) but will plan on getting it truly fixed in the near-ish future.

I've noticed something else, though. The B (ninth fret line) on the D string sometimes has what I called "excessive" mwah above. I looked closely at that area and saw that the fret line has a tiny chip missing so that there's a thin, shallow hole there. Is there a way to safely and reliably fill that hole (superglue, maybe?) or should I just hold off until the whole thing gets resanded?

Filling with CA is a good solution, but to do it will will require over-filling it and sanding it down perfectly flat. Might as well do it when you have the other problem corrected - it will most likely require sanding too.

 

[DCCat]

Filling with CA is a good solution, but to do it will will require over-filling it and sanding it down perfectly flat. Might as well do it when you have the other problem corrected - it will most likely require sanding too.

Understood. That's what I figured. Thanks.