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[Not Me]

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[Henk]

Well, I've always been a bit of a black sheep. :)

You wont be the first and most definately you wont be the last m8  :P

[Not Me]

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[Philly Q]

Gonna experiment with different (and thicker!) strings and more high-resistant potentiometers at some point.

And different cigarette packets? 

[Not Me]

Gonna experiment with different (and thicker!) strings and more high-resistant potentiometers at some point.

And different cigarette packets? 

Most definitely!

[Not Me]

If it helps, down the neck playing style affects this. With tender, tender sweeps it's hardly noticeable. But up the neck it doesn't matter what you do.

[Philly Q]

I'm wondering how much relief there is in the neck.  Changing back and forth from 10s to 12s will need some adjustment of the trussrod - which Henk mentioned - and even if that has been done it can take time to settle.

Try fretting a string (or putting a capo) at the 1st fret, and also fret high up where the neck joins the body (say around the 17th fret).  Then keeping the string fretted at both points, take a look how much gap there is between the string and the frets around the 7th/8th fret.  There should be just a tiny gap. 

If there's a big gap, there's too much relief - in which case setting the bridge for a low action at the upper frets will still leave a high action around the middle of the neck.  So notes will ring clearly at the lower frets but may buzz at the upper frets.  In that case, the trussrod needs tightening.

If there's no gap at all, the neck is dead straight or may even have a bit of a back bow, which means you'd get fret buzz mainly on the lower/middle frets.  In that case, the trussrod needs loosening.

If you do adjust the trussrod, do it very gradually - only about 1/8 of a turn, then leave it to settle for a while and retune.  If there's still a problem, adjust it another 1/8 of a turn.

[Not Me]

I'm not sure which is classified as big in this context, but I'd say there's a tiny gap that runs from the 5th to the 10th fret. Should it be located at around the mentioned 7-8 only?

Yes, I had it done at a proffesional. I don't even think I'd have the tools right now, though I've been assured that adjusting the truss rod is safe, if only done with caution.

I think the guitar acted somewhat the same with the 10s, though that might have also been due to neck tension,  of course.

[Philly Q]

I'm not sure which is classified as big in this context, but I'd say there's a tiny gap that runs from the 5th to the 10th fret. Should it be located at around the mentioned 7-8 only?

No, there should be a gap as you've described, but 7th/8th would probably be the deepest part.  Think of it like an archer's bow - the neck is slightly curved upwards, and the fretted string is creating a straight line to let you see how much curve there is.

[Not Me]

Might just then be fine, fine tuning if it's down to the neck, as you'd suspect. It would appear to be within the criteria of tiny. :)

I've been playing now a bit unplugged, doesn't seem that evident. But once amplified it becomes a pain in the (r)ear.

I'll just flirt around with the neck then to see if it helps. You don't think that things such as the nut and its condition could have an affect? It appears worse with the lower (as per position, not tone height) strings, especially the B string.

[Philly Q]

A badly cut nut can cause string buzz - when you're playing open strings.   But when you're playing fretted notes it makes no difference.

[Not Me]

Ah, Yes. Makes sense. Thanks!

[Not Me]

What is the relationship between the saddle(?) and the bridge? Seeing as they're both adjustable, one would guess they'd have an effect on one another, though I can't quite figure out what it could be. Obviously strings would be tighter the lower the saddle.

Having read your post again, I must say that having the bridge high provides me with high action at the higher frets and low action near the headstock, though I haven't noticed any improvements (bridge used to be about halfway lower prior to this, leaving low action throughout the fretboard. In both cases buzzing worsens closer to the body).

Body/neck joint on my SG appears to be at the 19th, which when fretted along with the 1st fret leaves a VERY little gap. So much so, that I'm not sure if the e-strings windings are touching the 7th fret (or any other) or not. This is too close, yes? If so, do the symptoms apply to the diagnose (truss rod too tight?)?

Also, I don't remember noticing this buzzing issue - only being unhappy with the overall sound - while I'd switched from 9's to 10's and from 10's to 12's without touching the truss rod at all (hey, I just play the damn thing!), though then again it would have been harder to notice with the poor amp and pickup I was using at the time...

[Philly Q]

The bridge obviously adjusts the overall string height, and naturally it gives low action near the headstock and slightly higher action as you move towards the higher frets - if the strings were absolutely parallel to the neck they'd buzz like crazy, you need a bit more clearance as you move up the neck as there's more movement of the strings.

The saddles are mainly adjustable forwards and backwards to adjust intonation.  They don't allow for any height adjustment except by filing the string slots deeper.  There's normally no need to do this except to match the bridge/saddle radius with the radius of the fingerboard - which shouldn't be necessary on an SG.
 
If you're getting fret buzz on the upper frets even with the bridge raised high, it suggests there may still not be enough relief on the neck.  The guitar MIGHT also benefit from a little "fall-away" on the upper frets - which basically means the top few frets (say 15-22) should be filed a little lower than the others.  This is pretty complicated stuff and very much something for a pro to look at!  A bit more info here:

http://acapella.harmony-central.com/archive/index.php/t-1139363.html

[Not Me]

Thanks a lot again! Good to know I'm not crazy. :)

Need to find another tech, as the one previously appointed to me obviously didn't take the issue very seriously.


Tech: "There's always fret buzz, but it doesn't actually have an affect on playing, as it isn't amplified."

Me: "But it is amplified"

Tech: "No it isn't. That's a physical impossibility, as I've tried to explain."

Me: "But surely, I get really cr@ppy sustain etc."

Tech: "You get bad sustain, because the stings are vibrating against the frets. There's nothing you can do about it, though I can have the bridge raised for you, if you want."