How do you fix a guitar that buzzes?

kurt28 · 02-08-2013, 04:56 PM

I bought a used fender guitar (acoustic/electric) and it has some buzzing going on when I play it which drives me nuts. There seems to be certain spots on the fret board where I get a lot of buzzing, and usually on the A string.

I took it to a guitar shop where they also repair guitars and had them look at it. The guy said it had a slight bow in the neck so he tightened the truss rod just a bit to straighten the neck. But, it didn't fix the problem.

I got to thinking - wouldn't that make the buzzing even worse if you tighten the rod because that would straighten the neck bringing the strings even closer to the fretboard. If there's buzzing going on then it must be that the sting that's buzzing is hitting on the next fret up from where you are fretting right? I was thinking that I should loosen the neck a bit to get the strings to come out a hair. Wouldn't that fix the buzzing problem?

Thanks

Insane Guest · 02-08-2013, 05:16 PM

You could try adjusting your intonation, had a Telecaster with major fret buzz around the third fret, started messing around with the intonation and it made playing a whole lot smoother, replacing the nut might help too.

kurt28 · 02-08-2013, 05:22 PM

What do you mean by "intonation"? I've heard that term before, but I'm not sure what it means.

P A N · 02-08-2013, 05:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kurt28

What do you mean by "intonation"? I've heard that term before, but I'm not sure what it means.

it basically means your neck is a bit warped. it doesn't mean it's permanent necessarily though. chances are it can be fixed, but if you don't know what you are doing it's not something you really want to watch a couple youtube videos on and have at'er. it's generally a combination of adjusting your truss rod (the piece of cylindrical steel running down the length of the neck) and your bridge nut. depending on whether or not your bridge nut is all spring-loaded and screw-fitted, it may be a matter of actually filing it down, which is kind of an art. having your intonation set up properly shouldn't cost you much really. i wouldn't stop at my post though. i'm no expert on the matter by any means.

EDIT: and as far as the definition of intonation, it's basically a matter of resonance. if things are all perfectly aligned and whatnot your instrument will resonate properly and vice verse. buzzing is generally a sign that your neck is slightly bowed backward and when you vibrate the string they slap up and down on a fret at a pretty high rate. hope that helps.

edit 2: pardon my idiocy. i only read the last post and the title.

Burning Down · 02-08-2013, 06:16 PM

Well I'm guess that since you had the truss rod adjusted, it could be one or two frets that need to be filed down a little bit. My friend had the buzzing problem with her classical guitar - she had the truss rod adjusted and there was no warping, but the guy at the shop said that there was a fret that was a little higher than the rest. He filed it to be even with the other frets and she hasn't had a problem since then.

Urban Hat€monger ? · 02-08-2013, 07:23 PM

Join a shoegaze band

IcarusDown · 02-12-2013, 08:53 AM

You probably have a bent neck or too low string action.
Youtube some tutorials how to fix this, it's really easy.

duga · 02-12-2013, 12:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Burning Down

Well I'm guess that since you had the truss rod adjusted, it could be one or two frets that need to be filed down a little bit. My friend had the buzzing problem with her classical guitar - she had the truss rod adjusted and there was no warping, but the guy at the shop said that there was a fret that was a little higher than the rest. He filed it to be even with the other frets and she hasn't had a problem since then.

Same thing happened to me. I'll be willing to bet this is the problem.

Arya Stark · 02-12-2013, 12:24 PM

I had the same issue and the neck had to be adjusted. See if that's the problem.

Plankton · 02-12-2013, 01:22 PM

If the truss rod adjustment doesn't work, take a look at all the frets and see if one of them has popped out. If it has, I found an easy solution (just by chance) while I was perusing a guitar forum.

Quote:

Get a long piece of woodlay it across the frets (like 7 or 8)

put a drop of CA glue (superglue) at the end of the fret and capiliary action will suck it into the slot.

then tap the block of wood.

it'll force the high fret in only as deep as those surrounding it.

hold it for a minute to set and you're good to go.

At any rate, hope you get it worked out.

02-08-2013, 04:56 PM	#1 (permalink)
kurt28 Groupie Join Date: May 2012 Posts: 10	How do you fix a guitar that buzzes? I bought a used fender guitar (acoustic/electric) and it has some buzzing going on when I play it which drives me nuts. There seems to be certain spots on the fret board where I get a lot of buzzing, and usually on the A string. I took it to a guitar shop where they also repair guitars and had them look at it. The guy said it had a slight bow in the neck so he tightened the truss rod just a bit to straighten the neck. But, it didn't fix the problem. I got to thinking - wouldn't that make the buzzing even worse if you tighten the rod because that would straighten the neck bringing the strings even closer to the fretboard. If there's buzzing going on then it must be that the sting that's buzzing is hitting on the next fret up from where you are fretting right? I was thinking that I should loosen the neck a bit to get the strings to come out a hair. Wouldn't that fix the buzzing problem? Thanks

02-08-2013, 07:23 PM	#6 (permalink)
Urban Hat€monger ? The Sexual Intellectual Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Somewhere cooler than you Posts: 18,605	Join a shoegaze band __________________ Urb's RYM Stuff Most people sell their soul to the devil, but the devil sells his soul to Nick Cave.

02-12-2013, 08:53 AM	#7 (permalink)
IcarusDown Groupie Join Date: Feb 2013 Posts: 7	You probably have a bent neck or too low string action. Youtube some tutorials how to fix this, it's really easy. __________________ [link removed by mod, no advertising]

02-08-2013, 05:16 PM	#2 (permalink)
Insane Guest Music Addict Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: CA Posts: 1,322	You could try adjusting your intonation, had a Telecaster with major fret buzz around the third fret, started messing around with the intonation and it made playing a whole lot smoother, replacing the nut might help too.

02-08-2013, 05:22 PM	#3 (permalink)
kurt28 Groupie Join Date: May 2012 Posts: 10	What do you mean by "intonation"? I've heard that term before, but I'm not sure what it means.

02-08-2013, 06:16 PM	#5 (permalink)
Burning Down The Music Guru. Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Beyond the Wall Posts: 4,858	Well I'm guess that since you had the truss rod adjusted, it could be one or two frets that need to be filed down a little bit. My friend had the buzzing problem with her classical guitar - she had the truss rod adjusted and there was no warping, but the guy at the shop said that there was a fret that was a little higher than the rest. He filed it to be even with the other frets and she hasn't had a problem since then.