New bass. Is this buzz normal?

[fretno]

Ha ok I hear it now on a different playback. It sounds like a string buzz from a high fret to me. Put a straight edge on that thang and look for high frets. Not uncommon for frets to lift in the summer temps.

 

[Gothic]

My thinking, if the factory cannot / will not fix it, take it to a luthier, get him to write a detailed report of said problem and the solution then claim the cost of the luthier's services back from the factory!

Hahah good luck with that!

 

[joshstanman]

Ha ok I hear it now on a different playback. It sounds like a string buzz from a high fret to me. Put a straight edge on that thang and look for high frets. Not uncommon for frets to lift in the summer temps.

That's exactly what my guitarist said! I have quite the to do list on my next day off.

 

[joshstanman]

Here's an example of where the allen wrench slot is.
Its on the same spot for all of their bass tuning machines.

View attachment 4391684

Thanks for that, it's something I didn't check yet. It's nice to have experienced people willing to chip in advice.

I had an odd bass buzz today. It was my locking strap.

Been there! Kicked myself when I finally found it. Was convinced the bridge on my Jazz was rattling.

 

[joshstanman]

My thinking, if the factory cannot / will not fix it, take it to a luthier, get him to write a detailed report of said problem and the solution then claim the cost of the luthier's services back from the factory!

That's a possibility. I'm going to let them know what I find whether it's me or a luthier that finds the cause. It'll be up to them to make it right.

 

[B-Mac]

All good points, thanks y'all. I've never tried tape wounds, but now I'm curious! Been considering flats on this thing too.

Loosening the truss rod has seemed to make it worse with my experiments. There's a dead zone in this dual action truss rod.

I also agree about this being a cool bass that's worth getting right. I'm trying not to let a sour customer service experience turn me off of it. It was a pretty instant bonding experience. Sounds great, easy playing and lightweight!

I have a little ebony low profile thumb rest I'm considering installing. The sweet spot seems to be just in front of the bridge pickup, but there's nowhere to anchor when playing on the E string. If I keep it, it goes on, but if I decide I can't get over this it would probably hurt resale value.

It's not the bass, its the string.

 

[3bc]

To me it sounds like a high fret or needing a professional setup. I can't possibly imagine a truss rod making any noise, let alone noise that was so loud that it was captured by your pickup, which is pointing the other direction and nowhere near the truss rod. The fact that it makes similar buzzing on multiple strings is only pointing further to a high fret or a bad setup, that 8/9/10th fret is like a speed bump, sitting higher than the rest, and creating a buzz.

I have a $4k lakland bass that buzzes ever so slightly around the 6th fret when i dig in. Not really there when I play with normal or lighter force. I have the action set incredibly low, and i think the buzz sounds awesome. If i raised it ever so slightly it would go away. Listen to "whatever it is, i just can't stop" to get a sense of what i'm talking about. Man digs in and the bass is rattling like crazy, and it sounds very tasty.

Bigger problem, like others have said, is that your legato note is not producing an even, uniform sound with a steady decay, it is vary warbly/chorusy.

 

[BassDaddy77]

The faint buzz sounds like a slightly high fret to me. But, that chorusey/warbling sound could be pickup height related. I just remedied the same phenomenon on my Gibson EB bass. Once I dropped the pickups a few mm, the "issue" was resolved.

One other thought: if you check the frets for high spots and come up empty-handed, maybe the truss rod is in a funky position. I had an odd rattle coming from my Epiphone Embassy bass. From the factory, it was a tiny bit back-bowed and needed relief added. Once I loosened the truss I had a bit of a rattle. Ended up being the truss needed tightened just a hair to add a little tension and it's been fine since.

Maybe try loosening the truss rod a half turn and then restoring the proper amount of desired relief from there? Worth a shot, maybe?

 

[HalfManHalfBass]

It's a short scale, semi hollow!

thanks again to all for your suggestions! I have a lot of things to try, including potentially putting it in the hands of a professional! I love to tinker and repair things, I'm an industrial maintenance technician by trade, but I recognize my expertise isn't in guitar repair.

While I wish you every success in resolving this issue I just have to say: damn my ears are good! I really didn't know the bass wasn't 34"!

Short scale basses have a very distinct sound to me and IMHO can also be a little more prone to buzzes around the middle frets -probably as a consequence of the arc of the strings and the lower string tension / shorter scale length itself.

 

[707GK]

Buzzing "behind" the fretted note would be a problem with nut slots, have you measured the space between the bottom of string and top of first fret? It should be something like .020-.022". If its Cut too low, the nut will have to be replaced, or you might try the "baking soda and CA glue trick" to raise the bottom of slots. Im grasping at straws here, I do hear the buzz, but its really subtle.

This is exactly what I was thinking too. I've had basses with "back buzz" or buzzing "behind" the fret (not sure what the official term for that is) and the nut was the culprit. Super easy fix like you said.

@joshstanman I think it would be worth determining where the buzz is coming from, if it's a low nut slot, it's very easy to fix. Clear epoxy was what I used to beef up the nut slot and then file down to the right height. Should take 20 minutes tops and you can't even tell it's there unless you look very, very closely.

 

[NathOBX]

Are you a fresh string guy? IME new strings always have that little extra "Sizzle" that fades as they break in but amplifies any little buzz enormously until then.

 

[dbsfgyd1]

I just bought a new bass. I was initially in love, but started noticing a strange buzz or rattle. It's most noticeable at the 9th fret of the E string, but does it at other frets in the same area on the A and D strings too. I can hear it through my amp, DI/headphones and acoustically. I attached a recorded clip, please listen with headphones and tell me if you hear it too. I'm convinced it's the truss rod. The sound improves but doesn't eliminate when I tighten it, and gets worse when I loosen it.

It just got back from the manufacturer today. At first they said it was just the strings, that their factory strings are no good. They had all of a couple hours play time on them and the buzz was present with GHS Pressurewounds and DR Sunbeams too. After I told them I had tried other strings, they then changed the story to 'we couldn't replicate the sound' and sent it back.

This brings me to another point. Their customer service has been lacking at best. Not once have they said 'we're sorry you're having problems with your brand new bass!' They also told me turnaround time is the same day, then just quit responding to emails for a week. I called their number and the owner surprisingly answered. He just fed me a bunch of excuses about everyone being out on vacation. Never offered any acknowledgment that it sucks to get a $1200 bass with issues. Finally got it back today after some condescending back and forth with a sales rep. The shop that I bought it from has been great. They paid to ship it.

What's my next move? It buzzes exactly the same since getting it back. This is a brand new Reverend Dub King, bought from Wildwood.

I otherwise love the bass, making this the most frustrating new bass experience ever. Took it to a band practice and love the short scale playability, light weight and killer sound.

Sorry to hear about your experience. In such situations don't be afraid to let them know you participate with social media, like this forum for instance and see if that doesn't move the needle

I'm not sure who's customer service company you were dealing with that was giving you the run around , but Reverend has a fairly large amount of satisfied customers here at TB.

Hope it resolves soon.

 

[Black Out Jazz]

I think you should take it to a professional luthier and have it set up.

 

[Bonafide]

I hear it just fine. Its more a ping - rattle (springy ping) than a buzz. Alot of good advice so far. Its semi-hollow? If any wires even remotely hit the top of the bass you will hear rattle. Its a common issue with semis and hollows. Truss rattle is usually very evident. Good luck!

 

[drumvsbass]

Since it's semi hollow, you might want to check whether some cable is not rattling inside the bass.

Although I a agree it might not be the problem, this is some Jedi level wisdom.

 

[jxj]

I've had some odd buzzes caused by a string thru bridge before. Sometimes the strings (especially low E) can get twisted/bound up at the ball ends while passing through the body and traveling over the saddles. If this is the case, it can cause a weird sitar-like overtone. The solution has been to unwind the string from the post, allow all tension to release, and then restring as normal.

 

[Slevage]

The buzzing sounds to me like you need to be fretting harder. It's very present during the decay after your initial attack. You mentioned the action was a bit high for you which makes it harder to fret in general but it would be especially harder for everything above the 8th fret. This and the fact that it doesn't happen on lower frets or open strings makes me think it's your technique.

Try fretting way harder than you need to and see if the buzz stops, if it does then lower the action and be aware from there.

Good luck!


Ps. Doesn't sound like a truss rod issue at all. You could also try some half-wounds or tapewounds would be easier to play and I think they'd sound amazing on that bass too.

Good point about fretting technique.
I'd suggest moving closer to the fret rather than pressing harder.
No need to work harder than necessary, and pressing too hard can make the note go sharp.

 

[mikecd1]

I had a strange buzz that turned out to be from an improper break angle from the nut to the tuner. You could check that by putting a capo on the back of the nut to push down on the strings. I put a Fender stealth string retainer on and it fixed it, but suppose you could get a new nut or repair if it turned out to be nut.

 

[Grinderman]

I had an odd bass buzz today. It was my locking strap.

I did too. It was my bones rattling to the low frequency coming from my bass.

 

[Bill Murray]

Good point about fretting technique.
I'd suggest moving closer to the fret rather than pressing harder.
No need to work harder than necessary, and pressing too hard can make the note go sharp.

good point as well! Although from the sounds of it OP has his fretting hand figured out so I'm assuming he's got a high fret somewhere above the 9th fret. The sound is definitely string on fret.