Lateral Nut Position Wrong?

[Eric Nelson]

I just noticed why I sometimes slide the string off of the fret on my E string with my newly acquired MIJ Geddy Lee. The strings are not symmetrically laid out on the fretboard, and the E string is therefore very close to the fret end. What is the fix? I did notice that the nut looks like it was worked on and does stick out slightly on the E string side.

Attached photos:
Maple neck is Geddy Lee with the nut position concern
Rosewood neck is MIM Jazz Bass for comparison

 

[Alex Masters]

Position of the E on the nut looks ok - it's been cut correctly. The most out of position photo seems to be at the 21st Fret, so I think the neck isn't aligned correctly.

Try to fix by loosening the next screws and moving the. Headstock upwards (in the direction of the E string. If there is some wiggle room in the neck pocket, you shod be able to realign and tighten the screws back up.If the neck screws are in the wrong position, you may need to fill and re-drill them.

Good luck!.

 

[Alex Masters]

Position of the E on the nut looks ok - it's been cut correctly. The most out of position photo seems to be at the 21st Fret, so I think the neck isn't aligned correctly.

Try to fix by loosening the next screws and moving the. Headstock upwards (in the direction of the E string. If there is some wiggle room in the neck pocket, you shod be able to realign and tighten the screws back up.If the neck screws are in the wrong position, you may need to fill and re-drill them.

Good luck!.

Sorry - misread the labels of the photos. It does look like the nut is out position. Has it been replaced? The G strong side looks correctly aligned, but the S string side is sticking out?.

It's a simple job to tap out the nut and realign it / refix with CA. If the nut is the wrong width, I'd just replace it rather than mess round.

It also looks like the neck is out of alignment, so look at trying both - do the neck adjustment first.

I really hope it didn't escape the factory like that!

 

[songwriter21]

Crazy as to even how many boutique builders are guilty of this off-spacing inconsistency, too. At least use a CNC to get this perfect every time (if bridge mispositioning is the culprit), then go by your hand/eye with everything else.

 

[InternetAlias]

I think this is actually down to preference. I cut my nuts so that the G string has a lot more space from the fretboard end than the E string.

My reasoning? No matter how slightly you bend the string when you press down, it's mostly going to bend slightly downwards, so if you want a narrow(er) fingerboard, it's advisable to have a slight bit more space on the G string as compared to E.

Of course, YMMV and you might think I am insane.

 

[Eric Nelson]

I repositioned the neck as much as I could without re-drilling, I might have created a 1/16" improvement, but its's still to weird to me to have the E so close to the edge of the fretboard.

Looks like I get to try my luck at installing a new nut.

 

[fretno]

you are going to crack that nut loose anyway try sliding it over and reshaping the G side a bit , it looks like it went past the fingerboard a little anyway on the E side so should be fine when in proper position . FYI when installing a new nut I usually wait to glue it in after I get it in proper position , then a dot of glue and under string tension to hold it there .just a dot

 

[Oobly]

Hmmm... looks like more than just a nut issue to me, possibly bridge or neck alignment. Fixing it at the nut will help for the lower frets, but I suspect you're still going to have issues higher on the neck.

Check your bridge saddles, see if you can shift them over to the right a bit.

Personally, I would knock the nut loose, shift the nut over a little and CA it in place, then smooth out any overhang.

I actually prefer to have a little more real estate for my E string than my G as I tend to be a little more "accurate" with the G and sometimes bend the E a little (it has lower tension).

 

[sawzalot]

Just get a tech to replace the nut. It's sticking out on the E string side and looks like it was cut wrong. Also see if you need to adjust the neck side-to-side--maybe do that first to get it playable.

 

[micguy]

I think this is actually down to preference. I cut my nuts so that the G string has a lot more space from the fretboard end than the E string.

My reasoning? No matter how slightly you bend the string when you press down, it's mostly going to bend slightly downwards, so if you want a narrow(er) fingerboard, it's advisable to have a slight bit more space on the G string as compared to E.

Of course, YMMV and you might think I am insane.

Interesting. Using the same logic, but starting from the opposite premise (strings always bend up for me), I favor more spacing on the E side. Let’s say we’re both right.

 

[Eric Nelson]

I had to pick up a bass and play it to remember which way I bend. Turns out I always bend toward the center of the fretboard, so G string bends up, and E string bends down giving plenty of fretboard to work on.

 

[mcnach]

Position of the E on the nut looks ok - it's been cut correctly. The most out of position photo seems to be at the 21st Fret, so I think the neck isn't aligned correctly.

Try to fix by loosening the next screws and moving the. Headstock upwards (in the direction of the E string. If there is some wiggle room in the neck pocket, you shod be able to realign and tighten the screws back up.If the neck screws are in the wrong position, you may need to fill and re-drill them.

Good luck!.

very much this

 

[Eric Nelson]

Ouch, I'm hoping to avoid resetting the neck if possible. I did spend some time looking at the photos of Geddy Lee's collection in his excellent Big Book of Bass, and noticed several of his instruments had similar string placement with E string close to the fretboard edge. I would prefer more symmetry, but will live with the asymmetry if it requires serious woodwork to repair.

 

[2F/2F]

Is the nut blank pushed in on the high side, or do my eyes deceive me?

If so, you have compounded issues: slot cut too close to the edge, as well as the nut being pushed over too far toward the low end.

If so, you can just neatly cut the finish on the sides of the nut, and re-glue the nut moved over a bit to handle the one issue...and it might be enough.

If not, then have a tech install a new nut. Don't buy a pre-made one; have one made from scratch. The whole point is a custom slot placement, so buying pre-made defeats the purpose.

When the flats were put on, someone might have widened the slots, but gone out instead of in, like they should have.

For now, you can crank your neck clockwise (when viewed as viewed in the pix). No need to loosen the screws to do it. Just give it what for.

 

[Iridescentone]

Ouch, I'm hoping to avoid resetting the neck if possible. I did spend some time looking at the photos of Geddy Lee's collection in his excellent Big Book of Bass, and noticed several of his instruments had similar string placement with E string close to the fretboard edge. I would prefer more symmetry, but will live with the asymmetry if it requires serious woodwork to repair.

I'd replace the nut, with the slots cut correctly this time. I mean, you can see those slots are off just by comparing to the other bass. Fix the known problem first, before shifting the neck around trying to compensate for the bad nut.

Not seeing the rest of the bass, but can't imagine any "woodwork" being needed. Replacing a nut is a routine operation for even the most modestly skilled tech. Or just DIY. Nut blanks aren't expensive. Good luck.

 

[eastcoasteddie]

...I cut my nuts so that the G string has a lot more space...

ouch...

 

[Eric Nelson]

Is the nut blank pushed in on the high side, or do my eyes deceive me?

If so, you have compounded issues: slot cut too close to the edge, as well as the nut being pushed over too far toward the low end.

If so, you can just neatly cut the finish on the sides of the nut, and re-glue the nut moved over a bit to handle the one issue...and it might be enough.

If not, then have a tech install a new nut. Don't buy a pre-made one; have one made from scratch. The whole point is a custom slot placement, so buying pre-made defeats the purpose.

When the flats were put on, someone might have widened the slots, but gone out instead of in, like they should have.

For now, you can crank your neck clockwise (when viewed as viewed in the pix). No need to loosen the screws to do it. Just give it what for.

Yes, nut blank is pushed in toward the E side, actually sticks out a little on the E side. Flats are my installation (I know - Geddy Lee would not approve) with no nut mods by me, but the nut install looks sketchy with glue on the E side. I agree that my next step is to reset or replace that nut and I appreciate the advice there.

Anyway, enjoy this photo of a 1968 paisley telecaster from Geddy Lee's collection with the same problem!

 

[fretno]

I don’t know what’s wrong on that ‘68 but i have a ‘68 and it has the 2 saddle tele bridge and the strings can move around on the saddles and look just like that.

 

[andruca]

Your nut looks a little off, of course, but you still might want to check neck alignment too after you reposition the nut. Just loosen strings a little (not too much, you still want them straight, not hanging) and neck bolts, move the neck to where strings look the most centered then tighten bolts back.

 

[LkS]

The nut seems to be the wrong size. just a few millimeters too long, but still. Aside from the nut, judging from the picture of the neck heel, it seems like the bridge is also misaligned to the neck, which is a very common issue, some are worse than others. So yeah, you can replace the nut but I'm afraid you will still have the E string on the edge of the fretboard in the higher register.