you know what Ef the action

[Urwordsbreakmed]

ok im going to cry lol
ok the measurments i have now are on the b string 3 /15 unfretted (action)
The relief is the thickness of a hotel card (at the 7th fret being held at the 1 and 17th fret)
now if i lower the action at all from the saddle the notes buzz in the higher notes
but are fine from below the 12 th fret
any suggestions? need any more measurements?

 

[Urwordsbreakmed]

The suspense is killing me!!!!!! Did you figure it out?

Tom

no didnt but i found out something that i was doing very wrong

 

[Urwordsbreakmed]

Holy ****! A fifth of an inch! I'd rather have a fifth of Patron. You sure that is correct?

The rule i have is pretty ****ty but either way that string is pretty damn high

 

[maddog]

ok im going to cry lol
ok the measurments i have now are on the b string 3 /15 unfretted (action)
The relief is the thickness of a hotel card (at the 7th fret being held at the 1 and 17th fret)
now if i lower the action at all from the saddle the notes buzz in the higher notes
but are fine from below the 12 th fret
any suggestions? need any more measurements?

Try starting from scratch.

Step 1: Set the neck flat. Tighten the trussroad and check the string height at the 6th fret while pressing at 1 and 12. The string should just be riding the fret. Tapping the string while fretted and listening to the fret buzz works for me as a good indicator of a flat neck. Tightening the trussrod should be turning the capstan wheel away from you as you are holding it like you are playing. Righty-Tighty Lefty-Loosey or if you've taken a physics class, apply the right hand rule.

Step2: Set the action using the 12th fret. I use a 3/32" allen wrench to measure the string height. Pass it between the string and the 12th fret and watch if the string moves or if there is a gap. Adjust saddle height accordingly.

Step3: Check for fret buzz from the 4th fret to the 24th fret. If so, raise the height. If string height seems excessive, maybe the fret heights need to be checked. Use a small straight edge to check 3 succesive frets. If the straight edge totters or doesn't touch the middle fret, the frets need looking at.

Step4: After finding the perfect string height, check for buzz around the 1st thru 4th fret. If found, loosen the trussrod so neck relief is added. To loosen the trussrod turn the capstan wheel towards yourself while you are holding the bass like you are playing it.

Make sure to turn the capstan wheel in small increments. It doesn't take much. My 4 Bong-er ended up staying very close to flat when I put some TI powerbass strings on it.

Would somebody please check my directions for correctness so others don't get frustrated doing something stupid.

If everything I wrote is great and correct then I credit Rod Trussbroken for teaching me how to set up a bass. If it isn't, my apologies.

Tom

 

[dlloyd]

from the fret there is almost no space lol if it take EB thin pick and try to slip it under it moves the string

Edit: I initially wrote this as a full "guide", but went back to Tom's post and decided I'd add to his instead because his was better in most places...

Try starting from scratch.

Step 1: Set the neck flat. Tighten the trussroad and check the string height at the 6th fret while pressing at 1 and 12. The string should just be riding the fret. Tapping the string while fretted and listening to the fret buzz works for me as a good indicator of a flat neck. Tightening the trussrod should be turning the capstan wheel away from you as you are holding it like you are playing. Righty-Tighty Lefty-Loosey or if you've taken a physics class, apply the right hand rule.

I use a slightly different approach, using a capo at the first fret and I fret with my left hand at the 17th fret. I use these frets because it gives the largest range in which the truss rod operates... you tend to see larger differences for the same amount of adjustment.

I do measure the relief, because I know what works for me. Necks do need some relief because of the way strings vibrate when you play them. I currently have my bass set to 0.014" which is as low as it goes without getting buzz at the lower frets.

EB thin picks are 0.46mm, which is 0.018"
A "standard" credit card is 0.76mm which is 0.030" There will be some variability though.

That's pretty much the normal range. In practice you won't see many basses with less than 0.018" or more than 0.030"

A medium pick would be a more reliable indication of the upper range of relief.

Some people advocate an even larger amount of neck relief. Ken Smith reckons 1 to 2mm (0.039" to 0.079"). In my opinion that's excessive, but Ken's pretty experienced...

I'd say set the relief to the thin pick width first of all. Turn the truss rod right to decrease the amount of relief, left to increase it.

Step2: Set the action using the 12th fret. I use a 3/32" allen wrench to measure the string height. Pass it between the string and the 12th fret and watch if the string moves or if there is a gap. Adjust saddle height accordingly.

That's a good tip for measuring string height, one I'll probably use in the future. The action on my bass is slightly higher, at 1/8" at the 12th fret.

Step3: Check for fret buzz from the 4th fret to the 24th fret. If so, raise the height. If string height seems excessive, maybe the fret heights need to be checked. Use a small straight edge to check 3 succesive frets. If the straight edge totters or doesn't touch the middle fret, the frets need looking at.

Bear in mind you'll need to use several straight edges with different sizes, so they only cover three frets. Check them parallel to the strings.

Step4: After finding the perfect string height, check for buzz around the 1st thru 4th fret. If found, loosen the trussrod so neck relief is added. To loosen the trussrod turn the capstan wheel towards yourself while you are holding the bass like you are playing it.

Yep (lefties would do the opposite, obviously)

Make sure to turn the capstan wheel in small increments. It doesn't take much. My 4 Bong-er ended up staying very close to flat when I put some TI powerbass strings on it.

You'll probably need to adjust the intonation now. Tune to pitch using a decent electronic tuner. See if it's in tune when you play at the 12th fret. If it's flat, you've got too much string length and need to move the saddles towards the nut. If it's sharp, move them the other way.

Go back and check everything over because adjusting intonation will affect the string height slightly.

You might try going up a gauge of strings. Heavier strings have more tension, move less when you sound them and will tend to buzz less against the frets for the same given action.

It's worth mentioning that you can get too obsessed by fret buzz. You can get any bass to buzz if you try and it may be that you're unconsciously doing this. Do you hear the buzz when the bass is amplified?

Also, when I play unamplified I often hear little buzzes coming from the frets. When I check, it's usually a technique issue. If you press the string down too far from the fret, you often get these buzzes.

 

[Urwordsbreakmed]

You might try going up a gauge of strings.

It's worth mentioning that you can get too obsessed by fret buzz. You can get any bass to buzz if you try and it may be that you're unconsciously doing this. Do you hear the buzz when the bass is amplified?

Also, when I play unamplified I often hear little buzzes coming from the frets. When I check, it's usually a technique issue. If you press the string down too far from the fret, you often get these buzzes.

Bigger than 130 :O i dont know if i can handle that lol.... i made sure it wasnt a techinque issue but havent to close attention to the buzz while being amplified

 

[Urwordsbreakmed]

Thank You everyone for you help i fixed it only problem is it buzzs very badly on the 5 and 6 fret B string Im pretty sure that fret is higher than the other it seems alot of people on this forum are having that problem maybe that machine that pushes the frets down needs adjustment any way i can fix that on my own?

 

[dlloyd]

Thank You everyone for you help i fixed it only problem is it buzzs very badly on the 5 and 6 fret B string Im pretty sure that fret is higher than the other it seems alot of people on this forum are having that problem maybe that machine that pushes the frets down needs adjustment any way i can fix that on my own?

If you mean when you fret on the fifth or sixth string you get a fret buzz, it could be the seventh fret is rasied. Get a straight edge about 3" long and lay it over the 6, 7 and 8 frets. Does it rock?

 

[Rod Trussbroken]

>>>any way i can fix that on my own?

If it's a high fret, get a luthier to do it.

 

[Urwordsbreakmed]

If you mean when you fret on the fifth or sixth string you get a fret buzz, it could be the seventh fret is rasied. Get a straight edge about 3" long and lay it over the 6, 7 and 8 frets. Does it rock?

i already did that before i posted and im pretty sure it was the 7th fret it looks like its pulling out of the wood

whats weird tho is even tho it rocks on the 7th fret the buzz comes from the 3rd fret when im holding the strng down at the 5 or 6 fret so it seems

 

[adouglas]

whats weird tho is even tho it rocks on the 7th fret the buzz comes from the 3rd fret when im holding the strng down at the 5 or 6 fret so it seems

That is weird. That you're able to get the 3rd fret to buzz when you're holding the string down at the 5th fret!

 

[Rod Trussbroken]

>>>That is weird.

It can happen. Possibly the state of the strings. Nut groove could be too low but I doubt that.

 

[Golem]

That is weird. That you're able to get the 3rd fret to buzz when you're holding the string down at the 5th fret!

I've encountered the occasional bass-and-string combination that, if the neck relief is really minimal, nearly flat, the string between the nut and the fretted note gets going, just from the tiny impact of the string coming to contact the intended fret. And it gets going kinda buzzy. The cumulative effect of this "wrong tune, right beat" thing playing itself along with me is annoying in quiet practice, but on a magnetic-only bass, I never hear it come through the amp.

 

[Bassosaurus]

Basso-

What's the string height at the 12th fret with the E-string open (unfretted)?

Tom

It was set to 3/32" (factory set-up) - I believe the repair person at the store raised it a bit - it is higher than the other strings (not just 'cause it's fatter). Only the E-string buzzes.

I'm sorry I don't have the bass w/ me so I can't say exactly.

Since there are two posters receiving help here, I'll restate my problem - try to keep it straingt:

- New bass set-up at shop to factory specs, E-string buzzes around 5th/6th fret
- I loosened the truss a bit w/ no change in buzz
- With capo on 1st and finger on 15th fret the action at the 6th fret was less than the width of my driver's licence (credit card)
- 12th fret action was set to 3/32" (factory set-up) - I believe the repair person at the store raised it a bit - it is higher than the other strings (not just 'cause it's fatter).

 

[maddog]

It was set to 3/32" (factory set-up) - I believe the repair person at the store raised it a bit - it is higher than the other strings (not just 'cause it's fatter). Only the E-string buzzes.

I'm sorry I don't have the bass w/ me so I can't say exactly.

Since there are two posters receiving help here, I'll restate my problem - try to keep it straingt:

- New bass set-up at shop to factory specs, E-string buzzes around 5th/6th fret
- I loosened the truss a bit w/ no change in buzz
- With capo on 1st and finger on 15th fret the action at the 6th fret was less than the width of my driver's licence (credit card)
- 12th fret action was set to 3/32" (factory set-up) - I believe the repair person at the store raised it a bit - it is higher than the other strings (not just 'cause it's fatter).

Dude! You're here in town! Just noticed that. By chance did you have Rainbow take a look at it?

PM sent.

Tom

 

[Bassosaurus]

Dude! You're here in town! Just noticed that. By chance did you have Rainbow take a look at it?

PM sent.

Tom

Hee, hee - yea that's where i bought it. They were real busy when I picked it up, but the guy, supposedly, did a full set-up on it - i should probably just swing it back down there, but I thought if i could make a quick adjustment, i would.

I've been playing forever, but haven't had to worry too much about set-up issues. I understand the neck relief concept, but have never really tweaked much. Guess it's about time I started.

I'll check that PM...

 

[Urwordsbreakmed]

From all that height adjustment the b string was turned to c when i turn it back to a b the buzz disappeared it should be fine hopefully

 

[maddog]

From all that height adjustment the b string was turned to c when i turn it back to a b the buzz disappeared it should be fine hopefully

Perplexing, tuned it down from a C to a B and the buzz stopped. Hey, if it works...

 

[dlloyd]

Perplexing, tuned it down from a C to a B and the buzz stopped. Hey, if it works...

Must be sympathetic resonance somewhere.

 

[dlloyd]

From all that height adjustment the b string was turned to c when i turn it back to a b the buzz disappeared it should be fine hopefully

It's a good idea to tune your bass after every adjustment when you're setting it up.