Fret Buzz!!?

Question

How can I help stop fret buzz on my bass guitar?

I can fix it by putting my fingers in different positions and I can't be watching out for that all the time.

PLEASE HELP ME!!

Answer 1

Several things can cause this. It's likely that if your finger position is good, then the only other thing you do that might cause this is how hard you pluck the strings. Playing softer and turning up the amp to compensate can sometimes make the difference. However you'll need to remind your bandmates to constantly tell you to play softer until it becomes second nature.

All other options really need to be resolved at a guitar shop, they probably won't be that expensive, since it's just adjusting, but I really recommend you let a professional do it, since there are many ways to screw up your bass if you do it wrong. For instance, the neck has a rod inside it, that can be turned to bend the neck and create more "action" for certain areas. (usually the cover plate for this is at the top of the neck - where you tune the strings). The bridge (or as the other guy called it a saddle) can be adjusted to lift the strings higher, but this sometimes doesn't do much for the frets at the on the opposite end. Lastly, you may need to have the "nut" replaced. The nut is the end of the neck where the strings leave the frets and go to keys (where you tune). Sometimes those can be too low, and simply need to be changed so that the lower frets have some higher action. However all three (neck, bridge and nut) would need to be tuned by a guitar shop.

Thanks for paying attention to that detail. It will make you and your band mates happier!

Answer 2

When you say different positions, you may be moving beyond the cause of the buzz. Most fret buzz as opposed to amp buzz or chord buzz is created when a raised fret just touches a string.

The action on that string is too low. You may try raising the saddle, I don't what kind of bass you have or saddle type but on my Fender Strat, I had a similar problem. Raise the saddle just to the point where the buzz stops. To do this to mine I had to use an allen wrench. It was every easy.

If that works and the guitar remains playable your cool. If not you may need to get the frets dressed by a luthier. He can properly set the action and make your guitar much more playable.

Answer 3

Try plugging your amp into a different plug.

When my guitar has amp noise, the outlet is carrying somekind of feedback/noise because the outlet it's plugged into also is the fusebox for a lamp, fridge or something elsewhere in the house that is causing your amp to pick it up through the electric current..

Answer 4

make sure that your fingers look like this
|x-x-0|x-x-0|x-x-0|

rather than this
|x-0-x|0-x-x|x-0-x|

the 0's are where your fingers are

you will get sick of hearing this but your fingers need to be closer to the ends of the frets.