SOUND ON SOUND

[awjoe]

So, imagine a buzzing fret on an acoustic guitar. I'm thinking there are two fixes to explore: a higher bridge, I mean just to see. Refretting. I don't want to begin to go there.

[Murray B]

Just the one fret?
On all the strings?
Which fret?

Sometimes a tiny adjustment in the neck relief or a little hammering on the fret one higher can fix this kind of stuff. But there are many variables and the guitar makers and menders here will need a bit more detail I think if you want useful advice.

If you can get the guitar to a skilled repairer they should probably be able to sort this, a re fret is quite drastic and most guitars have enough meat in the frets to stand them being levelled and re profiled. If you like the guitar it's a worthwhile exercise, all my guitars that have been professionally set up come back playing at their absolute best - and it's a very positive experience and worth the money spent.

Please Note: I've made a number of cheaper guitars (I daren't mess with the posh ones) worse by not really knowing what I'm doing but it could be a simple fix. But I wouldn't wish to offer any direct repair advice in this regard.

[John Egan]

So, imagine a buzzing fret on an acoustic guitar. I'm thinking there are two fixes to explore: a higher bridge, I mean just to see. Refretting. I don't want to begin to go there.

What condition are the frets in generally? Is this an old guitar or relatively new. I ask because if the frets are on their last legs, the remedy might need to be more drastic. If, on the other hand there is plenty of life left in them, then it should be possible to reseat/fettle it.
Regards, John

[CS70]

So, imagine a buzzing fret on an acoustic guitar. I'm thinking there are two fixes to explore: a higher bridge, I mean just to see. Refretting. I don't want to begin to go there.

A higher bridge is seldom a solution, and refretting is way too drastic unless the frets are really gone. If it's just one or few frets on certain strings, it can be simply seasonal variation in the wood - make sure the guitar is plenty humidified (keep it in the case with a sponge humidifier for at least a week), and have it looked over by a luthier - dry wood contracts and frets may come up a little and need to be gently put back in place with a little tough love.

[zenguitar]

All good advice so far. The only thing that needs to be added is that a decent luthier/tech has more options than just a refret to solve this problem.

Once all other options have been eliminated, if you still have one high fret for one or more strings it it perfectly possible to remove the high spots individually. If there are a lot of high spots, it is usually possible to dress the fret tops level and then re-profile rather than having a refret.

The important thing is that you need someone who knows what they're doing to look at it for you.

Andy :beamup:

[Luke W]

Some good advice so far. A higher bridge will only hide the issue and it'll make the action higher and then introduce the issues that brings in terms of playability etc. As already mentioned, an adjustment to the neck relief could do it, but in my experience if it really is just one fret that's playing up then the more likely solution would be either a bit of a tap down on a fret that's lifted a little as Murray suggests, or a fret level.

a re fret is quite drastic and most guitars have enough meat in the frets to stand them being levelled and re profiled.

Agreed :thumbup:

Edit - Beaten to it by Andy. Listen to Andy!

[awjoe]

Good advice, all - thank you. I like this guitar, so it's off to a luthier.

[Dynamic Mike]

Just the one fret?
On all the strings?
Which fret?

Are you 100% sure it's not just a resonance elsewhere on the guitar? Have you tried a different tuning to see if it moves? Sometimes just re-stringing is worth a try in case it's a duff winding.

[JRC1]

Good advice, all - thank you. I like this guitar, so it's off to a luthier.

good choice, dont mess with things you arent 100% confident doing and in my experience with acoustics its either going to be the neck needs an adjustment or the bridge has become worn and will have to be recut or a new one cut for the guitar and those are not easy jobs if you havent done a lot before.

[awjoe]

Just the one fret?
On all the strings?
Which fret?

Are you 100% sure it's not just a resonance elsewhere on the guitar? Have you tried a different tuning to see if it moves? Sometimes just re-stringing is worth a try in case it's a duff winding.

I heard this thing recently - the moment that nylon strings fall reliably into tune for a couple days on end is the moment you should start to think about changing strings. Good joke, but it says something. Long story short, I'll see what happens the next time I change strings, and I'm really curious about the tuning change idea as well. Aside from having fun in a new tuning, it provides information about how the strings act on that guitar.

No, it's not a resonance.

[awjoe]

Good advice, all - thank you. I like this guitar, so it's off to a luthier.

good choice, dont mess with things you arent 100% confident doing and in my experience with acoustics its either going to be the neck needs an adjustment or the bridge has become worn and will have to be recut or a new one cut for the guitar and those are not easy jobs if you havent done a lot before.

No adjustments on a classical neck.

I'd be willing to swap out bridges, but I'm not going deeper than that. There are people who are paid good money to do that sort of thing. If they've done it before, they're better at it than I am.

[JRC1]

Unfortunately for classical is that the only "adjustment" on a neck is a neck reset.

[zenguitar]

Not quite true. You can reset a neck by removing it and refitting it. But there is also the option of removing the back of the guitar, adjusting the neck/body angle, and then refitting the back.

OK, so you have to refit the binding and then refinish. But it shows there's more than one way to skin that cat. ;)

Andy :beamup:

[JRC1]

Not quite true. You can reset a neck by removing it and refitting it. But there is also the option of removing the back of the guitar, adjusting the neck/body angle, and then refitting the back.

OK, so you have to refit the binding and then refinish. But it shows there's more than one way to skin that cat. ;)

Andy :beamup:

ok got me there, but I was going with the leastish work.

[zenguitar]

For a classical guitar with a slipper heel it's the only option. And related to how the neck angle would have been set during construction.

And in terms of work required, it's no more than removing and refitting a glued neck joint. Just a different set of problems to solve. It's actually a very elegant solution as you have much finer control of the neck/body angle and you can avoid disturbing a well made neck joint.

Andy :beamup: