HELP! Bass with no fundamental!

[AndyPanda]

I'm not sure what kind of tuners you have on there now - but if they are the heavy type and you want to experiment (depending on what you learn with the C-Clamp) you can also test by removing the G string and the G string tuner to approximate the weight loss of going with ultra-light tuners like Gotoh gb350 (my favorites) or the hipshot ultralights.

 

[bassliner50]

Tighten the neck plate in case there is slop there. Change your strings. move toward heavier gauge. I use 50-105. Then re-evaluate.

 

[bassman74]

Update
Today was a long day. I first visited one of my two favorite luthiers. He said that everything is fine, he checked the electronics, he tried it with the two bridges, he checked the frets, the truss rod, etc. He thinks it's maybe the light alder body, he's also saying that it's maybe a neck resonance problem. He also tried Bruce's trick regarding neck stiffness, there was barely a noticeable difference in the relief with the bass detuned by two steps.

Then I went to the luthier who built me that bass. He also checked the electronics, the pickup, the truss rod, the frets, etc... He says everything is nice. He sanded the neck heel and neck pocket. With the heel finish removed and the neck pocket clean, it didn't changed a thing. He then decided to remove some material on the head stock, the head stock is a little bit thinner now and it helps but it also changed the situation. We spent some time adjusting the pickup height and now the volume is identical on the E and A string. Here how I would describe the problem now. I hear it like the roundness of the E string is not the same as the other 3 strings. It sounds like the E string as more definition or clarity than the other 3 except. There is no more difference between the first 3 frets and all the others on the E string. They are now similar, more defined, clearer, no as round as the other 3 strings.

Next step, the luthier thinks is to shave some material off the back of the neck which is like I mentioned earlier, thick and stick.

 

[bassman74]

Hi, Francois!

Another vote for the neck / body interface especially if the tone magically re-appears above the 4th fret. Another tip from the G&L playbook: tune to pitch and slightly loosen the neck bolts. This will allow the neck to butt-up firmly within the pocket. Don't forget to re-tighten! I'll assume you re-checked all the simple stuff like string install, contact points, and afterlengths.

Riis

Hello Riis, I hope you are doing well! I will try loosening the neck bolts and I won't forget tightening them back

 

[40Hz]

Had that happen to me back in the early 80s with a brand new Fender PB. Tried different bridges, tuners, strings, pickups, electronics and got absolutely nowhere. Thing just sounded dead as cardboard. Tried adjusting the truss rod and reseating the neck. Still nothing. Today I’d just try another neck since that’s all that was left. But back then you didn’t have the parts resources you’ve got today so it never occurred to me to try that.

Never got to the bottom of it. Finally got rid of it. Only totally bad Fender PB I ever experienced let alone owned.So I’m super interested on hearing what the final diagnosis and fix for this is going to be.

 

[somebrains]

You can also try taking a C clamp and clamping it to the headstock to see if the dead spot goes away or moves to a different spot on the neck (use leather or something under the clamp to protect your finish).

I've had necks with dead spots (usually on the G string) that vanished by switching to lighter weight tuners - and read many reports of people curing dead spots by clamping on more weight to the headstock.

But making sure the neck it seated tightly in the socket and that the truss rod isn't loose are the first things to try.

Hey, the Leo Quad Badass neck weight method.
Been a while since I've heard anyone mention adding weight to a neck can cure an issue.

 

[Doug Parent]

What you are hearing is the wood. Light bodies (from my perspective and I have had quite a few "nice light body") can be thin. Every 5 string below 9 lbs I ever had was thin. I have a one piece ash body, oil finish nice looker. I can't even gig with it.

 

[bassman74]

What you are hearing is the wood. Light bodies (from my perspective and I have had quite a few "nice light body") can be thin. Every 5 string below 9 lbs I ever had was thin. I have a one piece ash body, oil finish nice looker. I can't even gig with it.

I understand but the other 3 strings sound phenomenal???

 

[AndyPanda]

And I have a 7 pound 4 string that sounds great on the E string.

 

[Macht-0]

Another tip from the G&L playbook: tune to pitch and slightly loosen the neck bolts. This will allow the neck to butt-up firmly within the pocket. Don't forget to re-tighten! I'll assume you re-checked all the simple stuff like string install, contact points, and afterlengths.

Riis

I wanted to thank you for this.
My issue probably had nothing to do with the OP's original query but hopefully it will help other people out there.

I joined the neck and the body from two cheapo P-bases. Bass A had very good playability but it sounded quite dead, it wasn't resonant at all ( I suspect it's a bad body). Bass B had a very resonant and spanky sound, a very rich tone to die for, but the playability was poor because the neck had a ramp and it was noticeably soft.

So I joined the neck from bass A with the body of bass B. The result was good playability, but although the sound was better the overall feel and tone was still lacking.
Anyway, unscrewed the bolts nearer the headstock first, then the ones nearer the bridge, by about half a turn each, and then retightened in reverse order.

Man the difference, the bass became alive instantly. It sounds louder acoustically and the tone is sweet and complex again.
The pocket connection must have been very poor because after doing this the tuning went noticeably flat and I had to tighten all the strings!

 

[HaMMerHeD]

I've seen this problem with a slightly loose nut slot.