I just finished my second build. It is a fretless through-neck with a 22.5 inch scale. I have it tuned GDg with 42/32/24 light Daddario strings.
Anyway, I'm a beginning builder and player. When I use the slide (copper) to fret, the top string clanks quite a bit. So, if I strum an open chord and then apply the slide to play a new chord, there is a buzzing sound when the copper slide meets the bronze strings. There is not buzz at all when I play an unfretted, or open, chord.
The buzz is very prominent on the top/low string, which has the highest gauge. It is slightly present on the middle string, and does not appear to affect the bottom (highest pitched) string at all. This fact leads me to believe that wound strings plus metal slides equals some noise, especially in the hands of a novice! :)
I don't think the buzz is due to the nut or bridge, which are both bolts. My fretboard and box top were level before I strung it up. But when I used the level after stringing, it appears the top string (the worst offender for the buzz) is a bit higher than the other two strings. The second/middle string appears a bit higher than the bottom string, too. I have no idea if this is causing the buzzing, or a separate issue. To the naked eye, they appear plumb, but obviously they are not. The nut and bridge are flat, so it's simply an issue of the different string gauges. Here is a photo of the level on the strings:
I'm sure the strings should all be the same height from the fretboard, but I'm not sure how you achieve this with different gauge strings and bolts for your nut/bridge. It would appear obvious the fatter/heavier string would sit a bit higher off the bolts. Am I suppose to groove the bolts to individually accommodate each string? I somehow thought the bolts were just "set it and forget it" which is why I chose them over a nut/bridge I would have to handcraft.
The buzz appears to be simply the result of touching a piece of metal to another piece of metal which is in motion. Is my technique off? I'm a brand new slide player, so am I not using the slide properly? If the above description is poor, I can add a sound sample of my horrible playing if that would make it easier to diagnose my issue.
When I pick up the slide to move it down the neck to a new fret mark, how do I re-engage the strings again, which are in motion, without there being a buzz or clanking sound? Is this just a fact of life for wound strings, or at least for heavier wound strings? I'll change to strings 3-2-1 if that will help the noise...
I hear similar clanking, although perhaps not as severe, on videos on YouTube, so I know there is an expected amount of slide buzz even when playing properly. Any tips or suggestions would be great...
Replies
put at top a pipeclamp to create tension on strings wrks and stop buzz
Sounds like it's your playing technique, but the first thing to do is to get rid of the copper toilet fixture..copper tubing is no good as a slide, it's too soft and too light. You need a slide with a bit of weight that's going to "ride " on the string due to it's own weight. A proper glass bottleneck slide or a brass or chrome steel slide will be much better. If you go for glass, DO NOT buy a store bought "Pyrex" glass slide (Jim Dunlop)..the glass is far too thin and it's borosilicate lab. glass and I really don't think it's what you need.
To get rid of the rattle you need to trail a finger behind the slide to damp or muffle it, as you drop the slide onto the string...this should help get a cleaner clearer sound. It's a technique that needs a lot of practice before it becomes 2nd nature. You need to be quite positive about the first contact of the slide with the string..if you are too slow and tentative, you'll get the rattle - a heavier harder slide will help to get a more positive contact and help reduce the rattle.
Thank you Clock the Wolf and Anonymous Picker for the great advice!
Thanks to you Oily for the kind words, as always. It's good to know the build is OK and that I have to work on my technique -- I can handle that. I think my noise is a bit more grating than the grind you refer to. I have to become less of a grind via practice!
If the noise continues, I might try some nickel strings until I can master that muting finger thing.
Chickenbone, thank you, too, for the tips. So, if I have the slide on my ring finger (fourth finger) of my left hand, I would use my middle finger to its left to mute the strings upon contact?
I had a stainless steel spacer that was quite a bit heavier than the copper slide, but it appeared to make the clanking worse. It would just tip onto the fretboard due to its weight plus cause the buzz. I'll give a wine bottle neck a try and compare it to the copper...
you may also find the tapered shape of a bottle neck may help your angle too .. but may make it worse also ;-)
Lovely build. Nothing wrong with it. The variation in string height is normal, purely due to the different string diameters; this hapoens even on commercial gits. The "fix," which is completely unnecessary in this case, is to use slotted bone or plastic nuts and saddles, where each string slot is cut to fit the equivalent depth of a particular string diameter. As pick and Clock have said, it may be, just slightly, related to your technique. A little string buzz ( are you sure you're not just hearing that warm grind that copper on bronze gives you? That's one of the sounds you're looking for!) is normal when playing slide; it gives it that honest grit. Don't overthink this. Just play, and keep playing. Listen to lots of slide players, both here on CBN, and on commercial recordings. If you're hearing lots of sweet sustain and pure glassy notes on a recording, it's due most likely to a combination of an electric guitar strung with light nickel wound strings, played with a glass or steel slide. CBGs don't normally sound like that, without some amplification, nickel or unwound strings (as you noted on your unwound g string) and some refined technique.
Don't worry, ya done good.
you can also try changing the way you hold your slide , and cock your wrist . ,, even try a different finger .
as clock says it will get better with practice .. and different tuning too .
also dragging a finger as a mute behind the slide technique may help .
swooping into a note on an angle is helpful too, instead of hammering it straight on all the time .
by the looks of things its not your build .. its the strings and your relation to them .
good luck ;-)
Really, that sort of thing is normal for these nuts and bolts type of instruments. However, with practice, a great deal of this will vanish. That being said, if one so wishes, one could shim up one side of the nut and bolt with, lets say, a thin piece of cedar? Just a thought. You could also try adjusting the tuning a bit, that is, if one of the strings seems a bit too loose or tight. ADF#, for instance. Also, sometimes this sort of problem can be exacerbated by poorly fitted tuners and improperly aligned string retainers. Just another thought.
Not that I have a clue or anything...