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Showing results for tags 'buzz'.
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Fellow luthiers, I have just finished repairing an old German strad copy, likely from the early 1900's. I got it for free from a junk box at the shop where I work, and it needed a lot of repairs to make it playable again. I have, (generally) in this order: -Removed the broken neck -glued and cleated a small crack on the edge of the saddle -glued the C-bouts back on to the sides -glued the top and bottom back on to the sides -installed another old neck (in good condition) -reglued the fingerboard -made and installed a new heel -fitted new pegs -fitted a new bridge -and fitted a new soundpost. When I played it for the first time, what struck me was that the upper strings sounded pretty good, but the G and D strings were muted and buzzing, sounding like those of a 1/2 size violin. I tried everything to fix the problem, including: -Changing out the strings, tailpiece, and end button (not all at once) -removing the chinrest and fine tuners -adjusting the soundpost -adjusting the bridge and nut grooves -checking the pegs for loose decorations -checked for loose purfling -checking the neck relief, string height, and nut height -and pressing the bass bar with a soundpost setter Yet the buzz and flat tone still persist. I kept the violin strung and correctly tuned for the past two days, and it still has a buzz, but the tone is nicer when plucked. My violin seems to have a thinner top and shorter sides than others, which might account for the flat tone, but the culprit of the buzz is still at large. If you have any ideas about how to fix this beautiful yet terrible-sounding violin, please tell me. Photos: https://goo.gl/photos/1oPhpr6bm9ddbvbd8 Thanks, A.T. Shamblin
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one day when I was practicing a noticed a slight buzz on my violas G string, open and fingered notes. I went ahead and checked the most usual suspects of buzzing ie the nut, bridge, strings, chinrest, tailpiece, fine tuners, shoulder rest, basically everything on the exterior of the instrument and could not find the source. I decided to let it sit for a night or two to see if it would go away. well, it did not. the next day I tried again and at first it sounded like the buzz had disappeared but soon after I finished warming up had it returned. this time, it buzzed not only on G but on C as well. I checked for open seams or cracks and could not find the problem. a few days later the buzz can sometimes jump to open D. I tried knocking my knuckles on the back of the viola and found that the knock sort of changes and I hear a slight vibration when I tap the back right side next to the right center bout. also when I knocked on the front next to the left corner of the fingerboard above the left f hole I got the same sound but nowhere else. after all that investigation I have no clue what this buzz is coming from. can anyone give me suggestions as to what it could be? I had been traveling the day before by plane, could that have caused something to unglue? sorry for the super long post but thank you!
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I have not worked on very many basses... but a 1/2 size, apparently with a buzz, showed up in my shop yesterday... 3 questions... because if the problem buzz is with the bass bar it will not be worth it to open up the instrument. 1- This bass is a student Pfretzschner plywood bass and the client got it as a donation from a school who said they thought that the bass bar was loose causing a buzz. I have inspected the bar thoroughly with good light and mirrors while tuned to tension. There is only one short area where the glue seems to have a small crack, but it does not seem to move under pressure and it is near the center of the bar on the bass side. The ends seem firmly fixed. It seems unusual that the bar would be loose in the middle and not the ends.... is it likely or even possible that the buzz can come from here. There are lots of loose slivers and pieces of ply around the edges that to my mind are the source of the buzz. 2-Do all tailpieces follow the standard sizing?... ie this unit has a Thomastik 4 adjuster style tailpiece that looks monstrous... but it is only 287 mm long compared the the standard 1/2 size tailpiece length of 310mm. The standard length of a 1/4 tailpiece is 290mm. I could not find sizing info on the underside of the tailpiece. so I am wondering what size of tail piece is this? 3- The tuning gears are in serious need of lubricant... what is appropriate to use? Thanks for all your help!.... Mat
