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Tension and gauge

#21
OP - Sometimes the buzz we hear doesn't really come through the amp or recording. If you play quiet there's always some clank or buzz only to disappear when you are playing live in a band or recording. If you have a DAW or multi track setup, just record it with drum track and see if it is still buzzy.

Or maybe play lightly - not a technique critique - and let the AMP do the heavy lifting by increasing your gain. Low action will just have a different sound than a high action no matter the technique. I just met a guy who uses extra light but sets his action higher. It sounds huge amplified. I am thinking of going that route
 
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#22
Hey this a great topic and always a good debate.
To control your fret buzz
I added more relief to the neck and lowered the strings at the saddle.
Eventually my saddles almost bottomed out so i shimmed the neck pocket to give the neck a different angle. It has no buzzing and my action on the E and A are close to 5/64 - 6/64.
I've also had the whole tension thing in my head but i realize after, that those differences are only really measurable on a high end machine with very precise measurement and probably have degradation after days of play. Go with feel and try not to analysis by paralysis. Those tensions are feel and if you are looking for tension measurement its a deep rabbit hole, just my own experience.

The Roundwound should be all about clang and bang :bassist: acoustically sounds like garage. Amped up bliss. Just listen to JPJ warning up on his jazz with no amp, literally sounds awful but we all know the tone is gold.
 
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#23
Dirk Rockbottom said:
I want to use roundwounds on my Fender Jazz, but herein lies the problem. When I use medium light gauge strings (40-100), the tension is lower, making fret buzz more likely. If I use higher tension medium gauge rounds (45-105), I have to adjust the height of the E and A higher than I would prefer due to the thicker strings in order to avoid fret buzz.
My question: Does there exist a set of medium light gauge roundwounds that have higher tension? I never had this problem when I used flat wounds on this particular base, but I prefer the sound of roundwounds on a Jazz bass when performing with a band. Thanks.
Click to expand...

I hate to be that guy but you should try the ernie ball cobalt flats. They sound incredibly close to rounds but have the tension of flats.
 
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#25
logdrum said:
OP - Sometimes the buzz we hear doesn't really come through the amp or recording. If you play quiet there's always some clank or buzz only to disappear when you are playing live in a band or recording. If you have a DAW or multi track setup, just record it with drum track and see if it is still buzzy.

Or maybe play lightly - not a technique critique - and let the AMP do the heavy lifting by increasing your gain. Low action will just have a different sound than a high action no matter the technique. I just met a guy who uses extra light but sets his action higher. It sounds huge amplified. I am thinking of going that route
Click to expand...
I have noticed that when I play through the amp I don't hear much fret buzz. It only seems to be when I'm testing it after I do a setup without it plugged in. I suppose sometimes we can be a little bit finicky about things.
 
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#26
Dirk Rockbottom said:
I have noticed that when I play through the amp I don't hear much fret buzz. It only seems to be when I'm testing it after I do a setup without it plugged in.
Click to expand...

When I was starting out on bass, I got into a bad habit of practising with my bass unplugged. That meant I was playing a lot harder than I needed to just to hear what was going on.

You should always test the setup for new strings with the bass plugged in.
 
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#27
BassFalcon said:
No problem, glad I could help to at least get you thinking in more directions about it. Also, I meant no offense with the technique comments, just the downfall of Internet forums and the trouble with attempting long distance diagnosing, we don't know much about each other and the others experience, etc. I spent a while teaching electric and double bass and worked in and managed a repair shop during those same years, and in my experience with those two things technique is a common problem when discussing fret buzz and also the cheapest to solve, so it's always worth mentioning first and getting out of the way. There's a lot of bad info about setups out there but also a ton of good. Roger Sadowsky has excellent videos, you can learn tons from Dan Erlewine at Stew Mac. I prefer books and Jerzy Drozd, a polish luthier who lives in Spain has what I feel is the best bass setup book, and it's available as a pdf on his website for free and in English too. It goes very very in depth on the how and the why. Even has a section on dual truss rods. Besides all that, the best way to find out what works for you setup wise, if you have the time, is trial and error. Take very good measurements and write them down so you can always get it back to square 1, and just try stuff, keep measuring and writing down until you have it perfect. Keep in mind though that the full effect of a truss Rod adjustment may take a day or two.
Click to expand...
Well this morning I checked my action and it was more in the range that it's supposed to be. Maybe the truss rod did take a couple of days like you said. I checked out Roger Sadowsky's YouTube video on setting up your bass and he does things a lot simpler than Carruthers. But when I checked the string heights both ways (Sadowsky's way and Carruthers way) they both matched.
Amazing. I'm not hearing any more buzz through the amp so I think I'm cool, but the search for the perfect string continues. Thanks for the advice.
 
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#28
Dirk Rockbottom said:
Well this morning I checked my action and it was more in the range that it's supposed to be. Maybe the truss rod did take a couple of days like you said. I checked out Roger Sadowsky's YouTube video on setting up your bass and he does things a lot simpler than Carruthers. But when I checked the string heights both ways (Sadowsky's way and Carruthers way) they both matched.
Amazing. I'm not hearing any more buzz through the amp so I think I'm cool, but the search for the perfect string continues. Thanks for the advice.
Click to expand...
The string quest is lifelong, haha. I'm generally a DR pure blues kinda guy, but I dabble in LaBellas as well, right now the white nylon tapewounds are really the tension, tone, and feel I like for where I'm trying to take my playing. I prefer light gauge and low tension. There was a time when it was the opposite though, strings are the easiest and cheapest way to some drastic changes so they can and should evolve with you as your playing changes over the years
 
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#29
Sheldon Dingwall has an excellent step by step set up tutorial on YouTube. Another great resource for working on dialing in your setup.

Strings are an ongoing quest for me, probably $300 into my search for the very lightest set up that skates the edge of too light.

I'm at .085 ish to .030 ish for a four string tuned E-G.

Strings I thought were too light, over the past eight months, have become the norm.

I guess I'm saying you don't just change your strings and set up, your strings and set up change you. Some cosmic poop!
 
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#30
singlemalt said:
Sheldon Dingwall has an excellent step by step set up tutorial on YouTube. Another great resource for working on dialing in your setup.

Strings are an ongoing quest for me, probably $300 into my search for the very lightest set up that skates the edge of too light.

I'm at .085 ish to .030 ish for a four string tuned E-G.

Strings I thought were too light, over the past eight months, have become the norm.

I guess I'm saying you don't just change your strings and set up, your strings and set up change you. Some cosmic poop!
Click to expand...
Funny, I was gravitating toward lighter strings for a while, but couldn't seem to lighten my touch enough. Almost sounded like I was slappin' da' bass. Maybe that's the technique thing. Anyway, I prefer the bigger sound of the mediums and they stand up better to my heavy hands. I'm currently using GHS SS Precision Flats medium gauge on my P-bass but the E is dead. Boo.
 
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#31
singlemalt said:
The DR Pure Blues VW set is .040 and felt similar to TI jazz flats for tension...maybe just a tad stiffer. I really liked them. They are nickel not stainless.
Click to expand...
I thought I'd give you an update. I began re-thinking this thing, and I put the light gauge Pure Blues back on the P-bass (40-95). I remembered that I liked them the first time and my wife even told me how good my bass sounded with them on. Can't remember why, but I changed them to the GHS Precision stainless which sounded to "thumpy" as P-basses are prone to do. I raised the action a little and with the Pure Blues lights on, life is good. I have also been working on my right-hand technique to bend my wrist more to minimize fret clack. The lighter gauge strings help in that area too. Color me enlightened. :)
 
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#32
BassFalcon said:
The string quest is lifelong, haha. I'm generally a DR pure blues kinda guy, but I dabble in LaBellas as well, right now the white nylon tapewounds are really the tension, tone, and feel I like for where I'm trying to take my playing. I prefer light gauge and low tension. There was a time when it was the opposite though, strings are the easiest and cheapest way to some drastic changes so they can and should evolve with you as your playing changes over the years
Click to expand...
Thought I'd give you an update. I began re-thinking this thing, and I put the light gauge Pure Blues back on the P-bass (40-95). I remembered that I liked them the first time and my wife even told me how good my bass sounded with them on. Can't remember why, but I changed them to the GHS Precision stainless which sounded to "thumpy" as P-basses are prone to do. I raised the action a little and with the Pure Blues lights on, life is good. I have also been working on my right-hand technique to bend my wrist more to minimize fret clack. The lighter gauge strings help in that area too. Color me enlightened
 
  • Like
Reactions: BassFalcon
#33
Dirk Rockbottom said:
Thought I'd give you an update. I began re-thinking this thing, and I put the light gauge Pure Blues back on the P-bass (40-95). I remembered that I liked them the first time and my wife even told me how good my bass sounded with them on. Can't remember why, but I changed them to the GHS Precision stainless which sounded to "thumpy" as P-basses are prone to do. I raised the action a little and with the Pure Blues lights on, life is good. I have also been working on my right-hand technique to bend my wrist more to minimize fret clack. The lighter gauge strings help in that area too. Color me enlightened
Click to expand...
What gauge of Labella white nylon tape wounds do you use? I can only find 50-105 which seems a little heavy. Thanks!
 

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