Hi all,
I've been trying to hunt down a buzz in my bass for a few days, but not able to find the source. Recently I had an accident causing the bass to fall flat on its back (carpet floor), my guess is that this is when the rattle started.
It's mainly prevalent when playing high up the E string, somewhere around fret 10 or up. It's impossible to locate by ear where the buzz is coming from - it seems to emit somewhere in the area where the neck is attached to the body. The sound can be heard clearly when playing without amplification, but is also picked up in the output signal.
What I have tried:
- I have removed, replaced and fastened every spring, connector, screw, bolt or nut that can be fastened on the body, bridge, head, electronics, knobs, pickups, etc. This was a very educational process in itself, but did not resolve my problem.
- took off the neck. Rattling truss rot was a suspect, so I heated up the truss rod with a soldering iron and let melt as much wax around the bolt as would fit in. I can't look inside the neck of course, so I'm not sure how far up the wax was actually able to creep in.
- Today I visited a local bass luthier. He spent an hour poking, fastening, loosening, and had to give up, unable to find the cause.
I'm hoping there are some people with experience here who can provide me with other useful tips, or can guide me toward diagnosing the source of the buzz. I can provide pics of details, audio recordings, etc
Thanks!
I've been trying to hunt down a buzz in my bass for a few days, but not able to find the source. Recently I had an accident causing the bass to fall flat on its back (carpet floor), my guess is that this is when the rattle started.
It's mainly prevalent when playing high up the E string, somewhere around fret 10 or up. It's impossible to locate by ear where the buzz is coming from - it seems to emit somewhere in the area where the neck is attached to the body. The sound can be heard clearly when playing without amplification, but is also picked up in the output signal.
What I have tried:
- I have removed, replaced and fastened every spring, connector, screw, bolt or nut that can be fastened on the body, bridge, head, electronics, knobs, pickups, etc. This was a very educational process in itself, but did not resolve my problem.
- took off the neck. Rattling truss rot was a suspect, so I heated up the truss rod with a soldering iron and let melt as much wax around the bolt as would fit in. I can't look inside the neck of course, so I'm not sure how far up the wax was actually able to creep in.
- Today I visited a local bass luthier. He spent an hour poking, fastening, loosening, and had to give up, unable to find the cause.
I'm hoping there are some people with experience here who can provide me with other useful tips, or can guide me toward diagnosing the source of the buzz. I can provide pics of details, audio recordings, etc
Thanks!
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