Buzzing G string

[CletePurcel]

I am a newbie bass player. I bought a new Ibanez SR500 a couple of weeks ago from a local store. I like it and it sounds great.

Recently the G string has started buzzing slightly but annoyingly. I guess the guitar has acclimatised to my centrally heated house and unsettled itself.

My question is whether I should just try raise the string myself by adjusting the bridge or whether I should now go back to the shop and get it set up. Everything else seems fine though. Never having owned a bass before what do people normally do when this sort of thing happens?

Cheers.

[runforcover]

get the shop to set it up for you might just need a tweek on the truss rod

[Delberthot]

When I saw the title I was going to suggest switching them off

[leschirons]

If you've only just bought it, I would think the shop would be happy to give it a tweak of a set-up. Probably nothing major anyway but then of course wood being natural, will move a little from time to time due to moisture / temperature etc.

[gary mac]

If you fancy doing it yourself and have the tools, it's not a difficult job.

If it's just the G string, it may well be a case of just adjusting the bridge saddle very slightly.


Where is the buzzing occurring on the fretboard. First few frets, middle section or up past the 12th fret?

[CletePurcel]

It seems fairly buzzy all the way along, but it gets noticeably worse as I move up the fretboard especially after the 12 fret.

Eyeballing the strings the G seems a bit lower than the others too.

[gary mac]

In the first instance, I would be inclined to take the saddle up slightly.

[CletePurcel]

Thanks. I'll see if I can figure it out.

[Sausages]

Yeah, I would raise the saddle a little bit; start by just a quarter of a turn. The G sting on my Jazz bass buzzes/or not dependent on the temperature, so I adjust it up and down slightly as needed.

[CletePurcel]

Off to find my allen keys

[HowieBass]

The G should be lower than the other strings; the string height gradually changes across the width of the fretboard and you should notice that the E has the largest gap between the string and the frets. Having said that and as others have pointed out, buzzing along the whole neck suggests the saddle needs raising very slightly - buzzing which is worst at the end of the neck beyond the 12th fret suggests to me that the neck relief might have increased a little too.

[CletePurcel]

[quote name='HowieBass' timestamp='1457193622' post='2996247']
buzzing which is worst at the end of the neck beyond the 12th fret suggests to me that the neck relief might have increased a little too.
[/quote]

what does that mean exactly?

[CletePurcel]

I have tried raising the saddle but it required quite a few turns and the string is now higher than the others and it is still a bit buzzy.

I think I will take it back to the shop.

Thanks for all the tips.

Edited March 5, 2016 by CletePurcel

[HowieBass]

The neck should exhibit a very slightly concave bow with regard to the strings so that the string to fret/fingerboard distance is greatest towards the middle of the neck - this is because that's where the string movement is greatest. Buzzing that is found mostly near the nut indicates too little relief, buzzing mostly at the other end of the neck indicates too much relief. Since it's a new instrument and you might well make matters worse it's a good idea to take it back to the shop so they can sort out what I assume is just a minor setup issue.

[bonzodog]

Daft question but have you checked its not the tuning peg buzzing. I remember having a G string buzz and found out the tuning peg was loose and buzzing when I played it. Just grip it tight and play the string to see if it stops

[CletePurcel]

No the buzz is coming through the monitors.

[paulbass]

It could be a number of things but nothing serious. Its a good bass and they do tend to have a good feel about them. It could be something simple like the gauge of the strings on it. If they are too light a gauge this can cause fretbuzz. Let us know how you get on

[CletePurcel]

I'm taking it back tomorrow so hopefully it will be sorted soon.

[Number6]

Is it the string rattling in the nut?

My A string does this if i dig in sometimes.

Edited March 6, 2016 by Number6

[PaulWarning]

in my experience the G string does sound buzzier than the rest, especially higher up the neck, if it's not coming through the amp I wouldn't worry about it, it's a funny thing about things like this, you don't notice them then when you do that's all you can hear, bit like tinnitus lol

[CletePurcel]

Well it is not buzzing today, but it was yesterday.

[steve-bbb]

behind the saddle where the string goes over the saddle, there is usually a spring - on most basses this spring is often at full natural extension on the G string (the D A and E strings will be increasingly squashed as the saddle position moves backwards)

try and check it is not this spring buzzing

Edited March 6, 2016 by steve-bbb

[CletePurcel]

I have checked this and don't think this is it. The spring on the G seems just as tight as the others and isn't rattling around or anything.

Edited March 6, 2016 by CletePurcel

[AndrewJordan]

[quote name='CletePurcel' timestamp='1457268113' post='2996831']
Well it is not buzzing today, but it was yesterday.
[/quote]
If you still have the saddle set high then it may have put a bit more tension on the neck causing it to bow a little overnight and this could stop the fret buzz.

Does/did it buzz when you played the open string? If so that could indicate fret buzz from the first few frets. A bit more bow in the neck could cure this.

Does/did it buzz when you fretted it at the last fret? This would indicate something other than fret buzz.

When I read that you had raised the string higher than the others and it was still buzzing that made me think it was something other than fret buzz. However, if the neck had no relief at all or worse still had a bit of back bow in it then you could still get buzz with a high saddle.

[CletePurcel]

Thanks for the help.

It does/didn't buzz when I played open or at last fret.

The neck is slightly concave which I guess is what it should be.

It is a bit colder in the room today - could it be temperature related?

Edited March 6, 2016 by CletePurcel