Forum - Banjo Ben Clark

A&D string buzz

#1

The A and D strings on my guitar are buzzing. It isn’t too noticeable when I am flatpicking, but it is awful when I play fingerstyle and it drives me crazy. The D string only does it when it is played open, but the A string does it open or fretted. It doesn’t appear to be buzzing on the fret wire though. Does anyone know how to fix this?

#2

It seems odd to me that it is while playing with fingers and not a flatpick. I play harder with a flatpick than fingers. It could partially be the angle you drive the strings with your fingers.

If the D string only does it open and the A string does it open or fretted, it may not be the same issue. For an open string (only) buzz like on your D, a likely culprit is the nut slot. That is easy to check, see here:
http://www.frets.com/FretsPages/Musician/GenSetup/NutAction/nutaction.html

As far as the A, it could be any one of nut slot, too flat of a relief or too low of a saddle. See above for the nut. Here is for checking relief:
http://www.frets.com/FretsPages/Luthier/Technique/Setup/BuzzDiagnosis/Relief/relief.html

As far as too low a saddle, you could always shim the bottom of the saddle with a piece cut from an old credit card or similar to check the results. If the buzzing started over the winter, it is likely that your guitar is dried out and the top has shrank and sunk a bit. If that is the case, add humidity (either to the room or the case).

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#3

One last thought… make sure that the string balls are seated well against the bridgeplate. I use a mirror on a stick to look at it. If you have a string ball end moving around, they can make a bad noise that is hard to locate,

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#4

Thanks for the help @Mike_R. I tried some of the stuff and at the moment it didn’t seem to help, but this morning it doesn’t seem as bad.

#5

@KevinB, glad to help. If it is transient (seasonal) in nature, it might be just fine on its own in about a month. As the temps warm up, air carries more moisture. If you want to speed that along, I’d add a little case humidification until summer gets here.

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