In today's lesson, we are going to learn how to fix fret buzz on your electric guitar. This is a very common issue that can easily be fixed by,..
#1: What is fret buzz?
This is when the string gets too close to the frets. What causes this is movement from the neck. The guitar neck is designed to move because it's made out of wood. And wood is known to expand and contract with weather conditions. You see this in wooden fences all the time.
It'll rain, speak up the wood, and then the sun will come out, and take it all out of the wood. This causes the wood to warp. Now, of course, your guitar is not going to be in these extreme conditions, but it can be slightly affected by slight temperature changes in the climate. This is what causes fret buzz.
#2: The truss rod
This is the reason why all electric guitars and steel-stringed acoustic guitars have a truss rod in the middle of the neck. It is so that the neck can be adjusted when the neck moves. Since the neck is being pulled from the tension of the strings, the truss rod helps it to stay straight and not curve too much.
So, being able to adjust the truss rod to eliminate fret buzz is something that is part of guitar maintenance. A quite common procedure on electric and acoustic guitars. Especially when they are subject to slight climate change, like seasons in the weather.
Watch the video lesson below
#3: The truss rod wrench
This is a tool that allows you to adjust the truss rod. There are different ones available, and it depends on your model of guitar, for the one that I'm working on I ned one like the one below. It is an older model guitar and requires a certain type of truss rod wrench.
If you ever decide to adjust your truss rod, make sure you get the proper size wrench. Most models will use a Allen wrench. You just need to figure out the size. Shouldn't be to difficult, because they come in a set. You'll just need to figure out which one to use.
#4: Loosen or tighten to adjust
Once you get the correct tool, you'll need to either loosen the rod or tighten it. Usually, with fret buzz and the strings being too close, you'll need to loosen the rod.
#5: Retune and check your progress
When you adjust the truss rod, do it in very small increments. Loosen it too much and there will be too much neck relief (the distance between the neck and the strings), and if you tighten it too much, the strings will be too close. So make sure you check as you go along. Then retune and check your progress.
Final thoughts
If you've done it correctly, you should have eliminated the fret buzz. If you are still experiencing it, I recommend you go back through the steps and try again. If it still seems to have an issue, you might want to take it to a professional, as there may be something else wrong with it. But 99% of the time, this will fix the issue.
Thanks for your time, and keep practicing.
Until our next guitar lesson, take care.
Sincerely, Dwayne Jenkins.
