Buzz on B String

[Matt Madden]

Hi:

I have Crafter GAE 8, and I am getting a sitar like buzz on the B String when played open. As background, I shaped and installed a new bone saddle on this guitar, and my friend made a new nut and did a set up for me. We are both hobbyists, but he is quite meticulous. The nut was much better than the previous one done by a "professional".

Anyway, the way I compensated the saddle, the bearing surface under the B-string is a little thinner than under the other strings. The string had worn a groove in the saddle, which I thought might be the problem. I filed and sanded down the groove, but that didn't solve it.

Prior to this, I had checked and lubricated the nut slots, and I believe they are good, including the B-string.

We also looked for sympathetic vibrations from hardware, etc. This seems to be an intermittent problem. Sometimes hardly noticeable, other times.....

Any other ideas? Thanks for any thoughts on this

[Mark Swanson]

If it makes the noise on the open string and not when fretted, then the trouble is in the nut. The nut slot....most likely, the string is not in contact with the nut all the way to the fingerboard end of the slot and it is buzzing on the part that it isn't contacting. You need to ramp the slot down and away from the fingerboard edge and the string needs to be in firm contact with the nut right to the edge of the slot.