Guitar string buzzing
PatrickBateman
Posts: 2,243
I bought a 3/4 guitar for my son who wants to learn how to play. It's not the best guitar (Fender Squire), but I think it is decent for a beginner.
Anyways the 3rd and 4th string buzz against the frets when played openly.
Is this something that can be fixed? ( I am a drummer and know squat about guitars) or is it something we just live with because of it being a beginner guitar, or is it something I should take back to the store?
Anyways the 3rd and 4th string buzz against the frets when played openly.
Is this something that can be fixed? ( I am a drummer and know squat about guitars) or is it something we just live with because of it being a beginner guitar, or is it something I should take back to the store?
If a man speaks in a forest and there is no woman around to hear him, is he still wrong?
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makes perfect sense
The truss rod adjustment can be both simple and complex at the same time. On the simple side, a minor adjustment to straighten a neck with too much concave bow or to relieve a convex bow is possibly all that is needed to make a dramatic improvement to your guitars playability. On the complex side, adjusting the rod alters other aspects of the set-up such as overall action, string height and intonation.….and YOU CAN DAMAGE YOUR GUITAR PERMANENTLY IF THE ADJUSTMENT IS NOT MADE CORRECTLY. If you feel confident that you can make this adjustment…go on.
ADJUSTING THE TRUSS ROD:
-Place a capo at the first fret.
-Press the low E string down at the 17th fret.
-Look for a small gap of (approximately .010” or 0.25mm) between the top of the 7-9th fret and the underside of the string.
-If there is too much gap, the truss rod needs to be turned clockwise.
-If there is not enough gap, the truss rod needs to be turned counter clockwise.
SOME TIPS:
-Never force the adjustment if it feels tight.
-Make any adjustment in very small degrees at a time.
-Let the neck “settle” between adjustments.
-If you are not clear on these instructions, take your guitar to a qualified technician.
SETTING THE ACTION/STRING HEIGHT:
Once you are sure your truss rod has been adjusted properly, you will want to adjust the action or string height to insure the best playability. String height is measured at the 12th fret.
-Using a steel ruler, measure the action on the top and bottom strings.
-Adjust the bottom string (low E) to 2.00mm and the top string (high E) to 1.5mm by raising or lowering the saddle.
-Set the middle strings by gradually increasing the height from treble to bass side.
SETTING INTONATION:
Most electric guitars provide individual string length adjustment for setting intonation. Fine tuning this length insures that your guitar plays in tune all the way up and down the neck.
-Using an electronic tuner, tune your guitar to pitch.
-One string at a time, play the harmonic at the 12th fret and then play the fretted 12th fret note.
-If the fretted note is sharper than the harmonic, increase the string length slightly until both notes register the same on your tuner.
-If the fretted note is flat compared to the harmonic shorten the string length slightly until both notes register the same on your tuner.
Repeat the procedure on all strings until the harmonic and the fretted notes are the same.
SETTING PICK-UP HEIGHT:
Pick-up height can greatly effect your guitars output. The closer to the strings the pick-up is, the more output you will get but….if the pick-up is too close the strings, problems can occur with magnetic pull.
-Fret the outer strings (one at a time) at the top fret.
-Measure the distance from the top of the pick-up to the underside of the string.
-Adjust so there is between 2.5mm and 3.00mm.
good luck friend,
Marcelo
Montevideo-Uruguay
What would be a fair price to pay someone to do this for me? It seems like something left best for someone who knows what they are doing.
By the way, I raised the string height and until the buzz went away, but now it seems to buzz when pressing certain frets.
I paid about $35 to have my guitar teacher do a full setup on my acoustic guitar. He adjusted the truss rod, lowered the action, checked the intonation and threw in a free set of strings (the high E snapped after two weeks though). Can't see it being much more for an electric. Definitely let someone who knows what they're doing take care of it for you.
PS: Kigcat: If u have that book please bring it to me :P
I should have a stock thing to post for this, as I was the resident repair guy here for a while, now I'm not around as much,.
All guitar players should own this book!:
http://www.stewmac.com/shop/Books,_plans/Building_and_repair:_Guitar,_electric/Guitar_Player_Repair_Guide.html
Here's that article that you posted with some pictures, too.
http://www.icepoint.com/guitar/Setting%20up%20your%20electric%20guitar/
Patrick, if that's a newer guitar with no fret wear, then it may need a little relief on the neck. ( the third sentence in the adjusting the truss rod section.) if it needs that, and you adjust it to give a little concave to the neck, the strings will be a little higher off the frets. Then you can lower the bridge saddles a bit on the strings that feel too high.
Not a bad thing to learn how to do, but if not, like Moster says, probably $35 for a set up and maybe they'll do it cheaper as good will to a kid's guitar.
If the frets are worn, then they may need to be filed and leveled. That would be more.
Don't be mankind. ~Captain Beefheart
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