New buzz

morgensd · Dec 25, 2015

Hi everyone. I have a Bruce Wei acacia tenor set up up with Low G aquilas. It's given me no problems since getting it this summer. I picked it up today and noticed a very slight buzz on the G string when fretted at the second fret. All the other strings are fine as is the G string at all the other frets. I slipped a small piece of paper into the slot on the nut to raise the action up slightly and the buzz is gone. I figured I would wait to see what happens at my next string change. Any suggestions?

Dave

Inksplosive AL · Dec 25, 2015

If you haven't yet humidified the instrument now might be the time to start. My Wei-Wei tenor cracked its first winter due to dry heat in my home.

These things are made in the jungle as far as humidity goes keep that in mind.

Freeda · Dec 25, 2015

Yep. Humidity was the first thing to spring to mind.

morgensd · Dec 25, 2015

I have a whole house humidifier so it's not too bad, but I'll start looking for a humidifier for my case. Couldn't hurt.

actadh · Dec 25, 2015

We have had such mild weather that I didn't think I needed to do much to my ukuleles. I was surprised at how much the case humidifiers needed re-hydrating with just using the space heater at night.

Moore Bettah Ukuleles · Dec 25, 2015

You,always know when ts winter when these "sudden" buzzing issues start appearing. Check your humidification. Given the environment in which it was built your Bruce Wei uke is more susceptible than most to these kind of problems. Put the uke in a large plastic bin with a bowl of water in it, put The lid on
and you'll be fine in a couple of days.

Rllink · Dec 25, 2015

Well, I'm sure that this is not the case, and I'm sure that this probably has never happened to anyone else, but just the other day my Mainland developed this terrible buzz on the A string. I could not figure it out, as it came and went. After about a half hour of dicking around with it, I realized that the button on my shirt sleeve was hitting the string. I buttoned up my sleeve, and the buzz went away.

spongeuke · Dec 25, 2015

The mythical Button Buzz appears usually when having too much fun.

janeray1940 · Dec 26, 2015

Moore Bettah Ukuleles said:
You,always know when ts winter when these "sudden" buzzing issues start appearing. Check your humidification. Given the environment in which it was built your Bruce Wei uke is more susceptible than most to these kind of problems. Put the uke in a large plastic bin with a bowl of water in it, put The lid on
and you'll be fine in a couple of days.

I'm wondering if this is why my Kamakas have all suddenly started buzzing - and a friend's Kamaka suddenly started doing the same thing. We were both attributing it to a string change but now I'm not so sure.

We're near the beach in Santa Monica, CA, and don't have any sort of central HVAC in our houses, so have never bothered with humidification. But it's been cold (for you non-Californians, that means under 60 degrees!) and the wall heater has been on a bit more than usual, and it's certainly drying out my skin so it stands to reason that the ukes could also be in need of extra moisture.

I'm probably the only American on the planet without a garage full of plastic bins (heck, I don't even have a garage) and no place to store one - would getting a case humidifier accomplish the same thing?

moetrout · Dec 27, 2015

How old are the strings?

morgensd · Dec 27, 2015

2-3 months maybe.

Moore Bettah Ukuleles · Dec 27, 2015

janeray1940 said:
I'm wondering if this is why my Kamakas have all suddenly started buzzing - and a friend's Kamaka suddenly started doing the same thing. We were both attributing it to a string change but now I'm not so sure.

We're near the beach in Santa Monica, CA, and don't have any sort of central HVAC in our houses, so have never bothered with humidification. But it's been cold (for you non-Californians, that means under 60 degrees!) and the wall heater has been on a bit more than usual, and it's certainly drying out my skin so it stands to reason that the ukes could also be in need of extra moisture.

I'm probably the only American on the planet without a garage full of plastic bins (heck, I don't even have a garage) and no place to store one - would getting a case humidifier accomplish the same thing?

In your case if it started buzzing when you both changed strings then it is very likely the string changed that is causing it. As you mentioned, people on the west coast rarely have problems due to humidity. When something suddenly goes wrong always look at the last thing you did immediately before.
Just curious, what strings did you have on and what did you change to?

janeray1940 · Dec 28, 2015

Moore Bettah Ukuleles said:
In your case if it started buzzing when you both changed strings then it is very likely the string changed that is causing it. As you mentioned, people on the west coast rarely have problems due to humidity. When something suddenly goes wrong always look at the last thing you did immediately before.
Just curious, what strings did you have on and what did you change to?

Thanks for the response, Chuck! I went from Martin M600s (which I had used for years with no problems) to Aquila Nylguts. The latter, IIRC, are actually a wider diameter - with the Martins I was starting to notice an occasional buzz, so I wanted to see if changing to a slightly thicker string would alleviate it. I fell in love with the sound but was surprised to find the buzz got worse with the Aquilas!

Oddly enough, on my longneck soprano and my friend's tenor, it's the E string with the buzz. On my concert, it's the C string. On that one, my luthier filled in and re-cut the nut slot which helped, but it still buzzes when I fret the 2nd and 3rd frets. I'm kind of living with it and adapting my playing to compensate, which is a workable solution, but your previous comment got me to wondering if humidity is something I should be concerned with.

Moore Bettah Ukuleles · Dec 28, 2015

janeray1940 said:
Thanks for the response, Chuck! I went from Martin M600s (which I had used for years with no problems) to Aquila Nylguts. The latter, IIRC, are actually a wider diameter - with the Martins I was starting to notice an occasional buzz, so I wanted to see if changing to a slightly thicker string would alleviate it. I fell in love with the sound but was surprised to find the buzz got worse with the Aquilas!

Oddly enough, on my longneck soprano and my friend's tenor, it's the E string with the buzz. On my concert, it's the C string. On that one, my luthier filled in and re-cut the nut slot which helped, but it still buzzes when I fret the 2nd and 3rd frets. I'm kind of living with it and adapting my playing to compensate, which is a workable solution, but your previous comment got me to wondering if humidity is something I should be concerned with.

That's your problem then. Aquilas are some of the buzziest strings around. The M600s are stiffer. String diameter is one factor to consider but you're forgetting about material composition. Aquilas are very soft, that's why many beginners prefer them. These buzzing questions that pop up every winter are almost always from other parts of the country than the West and are almost all humidity related. For the rest of you, make sure you monitor your humidity this winter. This means knowing what the parameters should be, checking and keeping your humidifiers from drying out, and having a good hydrometer and making sure the batteries are good (they should be digital.)

janeray1940 · Dec 28, 2015

Moore Bettah Ukuleles said:
That's your problem then. Aquilas are some of the buzziest strings around. The M600s are stiffer. String diameter is one factor to consider but you're forgetting about material composition. Aquilas are very soft, that's why many beginners prefer them. These buzzing questions that pop up every winter are almost always from other parts of the country than the West and are almost all humidity related. For the rest of you, make sure you monitor your humidity this winter. This means knowing what the parameters should be, checking and keeping your humidifiers from drying out, and having a good hydrometer and making sure the batteries are good (they should be digital.)

Ha, buzziest strings around? I had no idea! I did neglect to mention that I also tried D'Addario Nyltechs for comparison, and they were equally buzzy to the Aquilas, so - since they're a similar composition that might be precisely what's going on. I'm going to put some Martins back on one of the buzzy ukes and see what happens. Appreciate the info Chuck - thanks for your help!

ETA: Aquilas off, Martins on and - no buzz

Wish all problems could be solved so easily!

New buzz

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