School Me on...Why a New Bass Goes Sharp

[MusicManStudio]

New Warwick German 5'er

Last tuning was a few days ago. Typically, I would expect a few cents flat
because of wood and parts settling in, but on this it was many cents sharp.


tia

 

[Geri O]

Might have come from a different environment (humidity) than it’s in now.

Keep an eye on the neck relief. If it’s going sharp, the neck could be trying to flatten itself out.

 

[JW56789]

Probably half the basses I own have been put in their case or bag dead-in-tune, only to be pulled out a day or two later and they crept several cents sharp. And these basses were setup properly, strings wound properly on the pegs, etc. (I'm REAL fussy about tuning), and across the board in terms of age or construction in a steady 'climate' here in the house.

I've never nailed it down as to why, but I've seen it regularly.

 

[Dave TB Killer]

If it were me and considering new instruments can be temperamental at first, I might back off the truss rod just a tiny bit. Sometimes it can tak weeks and even months for a Bass to settle in. Thus the old joke about This Is Going To Sound Great in Six Months.

 

[godofthunder59]

Definitely a temperature issue, wood expands and contrats.

 

[JKos]

Definitely a temperature issue, wood expands and contrats.

As does metal. I.e., the strings.

Try this. Put the bass away in tune. If it really is the same temperature when you get the bass out the next time, check the tuning. Is it sharp? Don't retune right away. Play for a while and then check again. The heat from your hands will warm up the strings a bit and change the tuning.

 

[rickdog]

Temperature makes a noticeable difference on my basses. It's not uncommon that I pull the bass out, check the tuning and find it a little sharp, rub my hand up and down the length of the strings a few times - and it's in tune.

 

[jim nolte]

It’s the constriction of the strings when not being played, the strings cool down when not being played in the case and will constrict causing them to go sharp being made from metal, every bass I’be owned has done this regardless of the stability of the neck.

 

[Element Zero]

Meh. It happens to my Fodera too. No biggie.

 

[jthisdell]

Look at how the strings go through the nut and a lesser extent over the bridge, see if anything is binding there.

 

[steelin4u]

Probably half the basses I own have been put in their case or bag dead-in-tune, only to be pulled out a day or two later and they crept several cents sharp. And these basses were setup properly, strings wound properly on the pegs, etc. (I'm REAL fussy about tuning), and across the board in terms of age or construction in a steady 'climate' here in the house.

I've never nailed it down as to why, but I've seen it regularly.

I'll throw this in - I would wager that when you tune, you bring a string in tune from the 'bottom up' (starting flat and arriving in tune). That's how most of us are taught to tune. Depending on how tight your nut fitment is, sometimes the string tension from the tuner to the nut is higher than the speaking legnth of the string from 'tuning up'. The tension slowly levels out to the speaking side, throwing you a few cents sharp. This is, of course, in conjunction with humidity, ambient temp, wood & string temp, and accidentally bumping the tuners.

 

[Ewo]

It's a non-problem, IMHO. Changes in ambient temperature, changes in the temperature of the string metal, changes in humidity, a bit of pent-up tension when a string binds in the nut slot...

No biggie. Just retune, and carry on.

 

[micguy]

Wood and steel both change with temperature, and not in lock step. Wood actually moves less (along the grain) than steel does. So, it's mostly the fault of the steel if it's temperature. When I go to gigs in the winter, the cold in the car is enough to make the thing a bit sharp (the steel shrinks more, so it's higher tension, and therefore sharp). Leave it sit for a bit, it comes back into tune.

 

[Spidey2112]

I have less tuning/intonation problems with my basses stored on edge, as opposed to those stored hanging, upright, or flat.

 

[MrLenny1]

My Tobias goes sharp in the summer humidity
and flat in dry winter.

 

[Cowboy in Latvia]

It's a non-problem, IMHO. Changes in ambient temperature, changes in the temperature of the string metal, changes in humidity, a bit of pent-up tension when a string binds in the nut slot...

No biggie. Just retune, and carry on.

You and your logic. Coming in to destroy our fun.

 

[JimmyM]

If it were me and considering new instruments can be temperamental at first, I might back off the truss rod just a tiny bit. Sometimes it can tak weeks and even months for a Bass to settle in. Thus the old joke about This Is Going To Sound Great in Six Months.

So true! On average it takes me about 6 months before I get a new instrument to my liking. Doesn't mean I don't still use it but with rare exceptions, I don't bond with any bass until I get it tweaked just right.

 

[ardgedee]

A young bass is still growing when you get it, so the strings that fit it perfectly at first start feeling tight after a little while. Soon your bass will mature to its full size and leave its reckless tunings of youth behind.

 

[DanDBassist]

Definitely a temperature issue, wood expands and contrats.

It's a non-problem, IMHO. Changes in ambient temperature, changes in the temperature of the string metal, changes in humidity, a bit of pent-up tension when a string binds in the nut slot...

No biggie. Just retune, and carry on.

Depending on where your instrument was built and where it was before you received it, changes in altitude, humidity, temperature, can have a lot to do with a set up. What works in California will not necessarily work in Colorado. Your instrument is adapting to it's new home. It will probably eventually need a good going over after a while and it will be fine. And then there is this:

The ambient temperature has a definite effect on the pitch of the strings. IME in playing 1000's of gigs and since the common use of electronic tuners, the heaters or air conditioners turn on and my instrument's pitch changes. Cooler = sharp and warmer = flat. It also changes from day to day with the varying weather. My favorite gadget is the electronic tuner. ;>)

 

[Geri O]

I'll throw this in - I would wager that when you tune, you bring a string in tune from the 'bottom up' (starting flat and arriving in tune). That's how most of us are taught to tune. Depending on how tight your nut fitment is, sometimes the string tension from the tuner to the nut is higher than the speaking legnth of the string from 'tuning up'. The tension slowly levels out to the speaking side, throwing you a few cents sharp. This is, of course, in conjunction with humidity, ambient temp, wood & string temp, and accidentally bumping the tuners.

Definitely a possibility!

Just about all of my new bass acquisitions need a tiny bit of nut filing to accommodate the heavier gauge strings I use. When new, I notice that they slip “sharp” after I’ve tuned them “up to pitch”. Even with my Mike Lulls, even though Mike told me a long time ago that they make the nuts to accommodate a set of 50s, 70s, 85s, 105s, and 135s.

No biggie. When I tune, I’ll give the string a light snap against the fretboard and that solves the pitch “sliding up” issue by equalizing the string tension on both sides of the nut. Hopefully, shortly after I’ve had the bass a few days to a couple of weeks, I have my most excellent local guitar tech to ever-so-slightly enlarge the width of the nut slots (he uses a micrometer and a set of calipers to make the needed measurements) for the bigger strings.

Of course, this is still only a small part of the process the OP is going through with his new bass acclimating to its new environment. I just wanted to elaborate a little on @steelin4u ’s excellent point.