new La Bella 760FL G string extreme buzz/citar effect

[markjazzbassist]

if he plays with low action, it's not too low... mine are similar on some basses. it even depends on the body's thickness and neck inclination (not talking about truss rod, but the inclination on the entire neck, like when you need to use a shim under it).

maybe it's the bass then. on my bass i get extreme buzz if i lower the saddles too much. then i check the truss and most of my action is adjustable through that. i can adjust my truss and that lowers my action.

so maybe check your truss man, credit card at 7th fret, anything more and you should tighten. then you can raise the saddles, try that.

 

[SLaPiNFuNK]

Many times when new strings are installed that may vibrate with more intensity (heavier gauge or more mass) they will bring out different buzzes and noises that are not present with other strings. I remember getting this the first time I put flatwounds on one of my Ken Smith basses. They resonated the instrument so much more that the springs on the bridge buzzed loud enough for me to hear. Even when I play different instruments through the same cabinet I will notice a buzz when certain notes are played that does not happen on different instruments playing in the same cab.

Anyway... This can be a setup issue and it can be something buzzing within the instrument, truss rod, or something on the bridge which is why I asked for a photo of the bridge. The saddle height adjustment screw on the G-Saddle closer to the D-Saddle looks higher, is it making full contact with the bridge plate? If there is the slightest gap it will make a buzz like that.

 

[RJHall]

if he plays with low action, it's not too low... mine are similar on some basses. it even depends on the body's thickness and neck inclination (not talking about truss rod, but the inclination on the entire neck, like when you need to use a shim under it).

This. I also run my action pretty low and while I had the "sitar" issue with the Sadowskys, I just installed a brand new set of 760FLs and they work amazingly well. I really think the G on the Sads was damaged.

 

[ale29]

Anyway... This can be a setup issue and it can be something buzzing within the instrument, truss rod, or something on the bridge which is why I asked for a photo of the bridge. The saddle height adjustment screw on the G-Saddle closer to the D-Saddle looks higher, is it making full contact with the bridge plate? If there is the slightest gap it will make a buzz like that.

Yep, it's all good. It's just that the new fender bridge has a groove under one of the screws, which is the most external one in the case of the G string. Therefore, you need to compensate with screws if you want the saddle to be straight.
Saddles are low because my action is (kinda) low. 1,5mm at 17th fret on the G string, an hair more than 2mm on the E. And that's good with Thomastiks, which, I repeat, are very prone to buzzing and are usually a "benchmark" to check if fretwork is actually good because otherwise with such an high flexibility you won't get a low action without tons of buzz...

Just to clarify: this is NOT fret buzz. It sounds different. The hypotesis of something resonating sounds more convincing to me

 

[Pier_]

i can adjust my truss and that lowers my action.

this if you don't use a precise and meticolous setup. the truss rod should be adjusted before every other thing, and after that you decide the action and set the intonation last.

for my tastes, a credit card is triple the relief I use on my basses huge relief, honestly, and a bass like that for me will be totally unplayable (oh, mathematically you should measure under the 8th fret, which is the middle of the neck, where you have the "center" of the curve).

I had the "sitar" issue with the Sadowskys

99% is just a matter of strings. I use extreme low action, even on the Pbass and with light strings (30-90, sometimes), and I've never had issues like sitar effect or strange buzz.
only had some strange resonances for twisted strings or faulty strings.

for example, months ago I bought a set of GHS Boomers: the E string made an awful chorus effect, that caused intonation issues all over the neck. I thought of a faulty string, but then I dismounted it from the tuner, mounted back, and it was perfect.

the OP pictures show a bent strings, with a strange angle at a certain spot, so it's clearly a faulty string.

 

[ale29]

My relief is around 0,3 - 0,35mm

 

[iiipopes]

The saddles could be too low for the bridge plate, and without enough down force over the saddle, they could buzz. Also, if the bridge is positioned so the saddle is at the front of its adjustment, the spring could also rattle.

Try swapping out another bridge saddle on the bass with the G string saddle to see if it still buzzes. Also try giving the neck just a hair more relief.

 

[RJHall]

I'm getting the sitar buzz again!!! It came back since installing the 760FLs. I either get an amp-audible buzz and/or fretless-like "mwah" on the G string between about the 9th fret and the 19th and between the 12th and the 19th on the D. 20th fret is fine. Think this is a high fret after all! Maybe just on the "treble" side of the hypothetical high fret. What do you guys think?

Anyone know if high frets are covered under warranty on new basses?

 

[Pier_]

Anyone know if high frets are covered under warranty on new basses?

if you bought it in a phisical shop, go there and ask. they should examine your bass and tell you what to do.

however, try another set of strings before telling that it's the fretboard, because maybe is really a string issue.

 

[ale29]

The saddles could be too low for the bridge plate, and without enough down force over the saddle, they could buzz. Also, if the bridge is positioned so the saddle is at the front of its adjustment, the spring could also rattle.

Try swapping out another bridge saddle on the bass with the G string saddle to see if it still buzzes. Also try giving the neck just a hair more relief.

Hi, I tried, among other things, to apply some pressure with a finger on the part of the string located after the saddle to see if insufficient downforce could be the issue, but that's not the case appearently.
Haven't tried to exchange saddles though, I just tried to place the string on different threads of the same saddle.
RJHall, if your symptoms are the same as mine, I would exclude a single high fret. You would get some buzz on the 18-19th fret maybe, not on the entire length of the string (or most of it, anyway). And high frets are not responsible in my case since the problem is there only with a specific model of string and the frets were professionally PLEKed in september.

 

[iiipopes]

The buzz could also be the truss rod. With the different tensions of the different sets, the different tweakings of the truss rod necessary to have the proper relief may cause it to buzz at one setting but not at another.

 

[Frenchy-Lefty]

If the same problem happened again with the replacement string then you can be sure it comes from a bass set up issue. I never had a problem with my FL760's.

 

[ale29]

I'm writing to say that, really, La Bella CS is top notch.
Once I told them that even the replacement gave me the same problem, even if it could even be something else than a faulty string, they sent me 3 other G strings and a fresh new set of 760FL!!
I have to say that's more than I expected at first, very impressed.
Especially considering that I live like 6500Km away from their HQ

 

[RJHall]

Ale - glad it worked out! ...did it? Is the buzz gone?

I actually got my bass diagnosed with a bad neck (slight twist causing fretboard unevenness). Luckily I was still under my 30-day return period, so I'm getting the bass swapped. They said that if I like the weight from the "bad" bass better, I can just swap necks and keep the original body. They must have a great relationship with Fender! I'll report back later this week re: 760FLs.

 

[Yahboy]

I am from Asia country,Labella is totally HARD-TO-FIND brand in my country. Last month i bought 760FL Via Ebay. Found a dead & lack right sound E string.
Email to Labella few week ago, they just reply and ask me give them my address......... until this morning, i still dint get any reply from labella. So , i email to ask again.

HOLYpoopie!!! after an hour i send Email,i receieved a parcel mail from Labella....... They sent me a replacement. Truly touch!


Thank You ~ Labella , Not just your string make the bassist around the world happy, great attitude & aftersales service providing are awesome.

 

[Yahboy]

I'm writing to say that, really, La Bella CS is top notch.
Once I told them that even the replacement gave me the same problem, even if it could even be something else than a faulty string, they sent me 3 other G strings and a fresh new set of 760FL!!
I have to say that's more than I expected at first, very impressed.
Especially considering that I live like 6500Km away from their HQ

Wow, make me jealous Via envy.
Labella ~ The Bassist Trust Brand!!!

 

[ale29]

Ok then: mounted the 3rd G string carefully, without bending it first...and the problem was still there. Then, I tried doing something not recommended by La Bella, but I've got many G strings now, so I could sacrifice one for the purpose you know
I Mounted the string through the bridge instead of top load, and the problem, while not completely gone, was definately reduced (but it's still there).
So, I'm quite confident now when I say that IT'S NOT a matter of faulty strings. Maybe not having a sufficient bending angle at the saddle had something to do with it, but there are other factors for sure that I haven't recognized yet.
I'm giving up for now, keeping the fresh set of La Bellas for when I'll get some other bass, because the strings sound terrific. On this P, though, back to TI for me.
I will say again that I'm REALLY impressed with La Bella CS: they sure stood behind their product.
Just for comparison, Thomastik customer service, while not necessarily bad, was not nearly as good (had a problem with a string once and they wanted me to deliver the string to them before they would send a replacement).
I'd like also to excuse myself for jumping to conclusions by saying that the string was defective, thus causing a waste of time and money to La bella.

 

[ale29]

Quick update:
I Tried to mount again the G string today.
I noticed that the buzz is LESS pronounced when tuning the string 1 step down, and almost no buzz if I pluck close to the neck.
Also, there's no buzz at all if I dig in, just the usual quick attack and a completely normal decay of the note.
The buzz is magnified by playing kinda softly, especially nearer to the bridge.
Basically, it's the opposite of what would normally happen when talking about "fret buzz". This would be the proof that it's not a setup-related problem.
It's almost like there's some resonance going on.
Does any of that make sense to any of you?

 

[michael_t]

the buzz is LESS pronounced when tuning the string 1 step down, and almost no buzz if I pluck close to the neck... Also, there's no buzz at all if I dig in, just the usual quick attack and a completely normal decay of the note... The buzz is magnified by playing kinda softly, especially nearer to the bridge.

I'm looking at one of the photos you posted previously...

Looks to me like those two screw-in pieces for the saddle height adjustment for the G string are not in there far enough for the saddle to sit "firmly on its two legs"; instead, the main saddle piece is sitting directly "on its belly". Have you tried screwing them in further so at least the "two legs" have firm contact at the bottom? I suspect it's the main saddle piece vibrating against the metal plate underneath without the "legs" that's causing the buzz.

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[ale29]

Hey, good catch!
However, that part of the saddle is not making direct contact with the bridge plate, even though from that picture it sure seemed so.
You can take a better look from here.