Official Luthiers Forum!

Owned and operated by Lance Kragenbrink
It is currently Fri Mar 29, 2024 10:31 am


All times are UTC - 5 hours





Post new topic Reply to topic  [ 7 posts ] 
Author Message
PostPosted: Tue May 28, 2019 2:21 pm 
Offline
Koa
Koa

Joined: Fri Feb 10, 2017 11:09 pm
Posts: 870
Location: Cowichan Valley, BC, Canada
First name: Conor
Last Name: Searl
City: Duncan
State: British Columbia
Zip/Postal Code: V9L 2E5
Country: Canada
Status: Semi-pro
Anyone else have any experience with these colored strings? I think they're made by DR.

I'm usually pretty handy when it comes to chasing down electronics issues, but I'm a little stumped. I've got an active G&L bass in for a setup and it has the weirdest ground buzz. The buzz goes away if I touch the bridge, control knobs, or input jack as usual. The strange thing is it only barely goes away when I touch the strings, but it does go away when I touch the machine heads. Is there any possibility that these colored strings are preventing me from grounding the guitar when I touch the strings? Or am I missing something simpler? As an experiment I stuck a normal guitar string in between the bass string and saddle, when I touched that string the buzz went away.

There are also 3 toggle switches and when I touch them the buzzing remains, unlike the other controls, and the pickup selector actually amplifies the buzz. Having said that there is no ground wire coming off the housings of these switches, and if I touch the bridge or one of the pots that buzzing coming from the switches is eliminated.

I found this article online (for whatever that's worth) that seems to confirm my consternation...

https://epublish.panaprint.com/article/ ... ticle.html


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Tue May 28, 2019 3:39 pm 
Offline
Brazilian Rosewood
Brazilian Rosewood
User avatar

Joined: Mon Dec 27, 2010 9:06 pm
Posts: 2739
Location: Magnolia DE
First name: Brian
Last Name: Howard
City: Magnolia
State: Delaware
Zip/Postal Code: 19962
Country: United States
Focus: Repair
Status: Professional
I have always respected Mr Sadowsky and refer to his other research often. My personal opinion places products from DR at the very bottom of the list for strings in general...

The tuning keys confirm this for me. The core wire is conducting and grounding through the string balls (I assume it's a top loader).

The only thing that gives me pause is the fact I remember tapewound bass strings from my jazz band school days and they did not have any issues like this. And I see they still make nylon tapewound strings....

_________________
Brian

You never know what you are capable of until you actually try.

https://www.howardguitarsdelaware.com/



These users thanked the author B. Howard for the post: Conor_Searl (Tue May 28, 2019 3:43 pm)
Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Tue May 28, 2019 3:51 pm 
Offline
Koa
Koa

Joined: Fri Feb 10, 2017 11:09 pm
Posts: 870
Location: Cowichan Valley, BC, Canada
First name: Conor
Last Name: Searl
City: Duncan
State: British Columbia
Zip/Postal Code: V9L 2E5
Country: Canada
Status: Semi-pro
B. Howard wrote:
I have always respected Mr Sadowsky and refer to his other research often. My personal opinion places products from DR at the very bottom of the list for strings in general...

The tuning keys confirm this for me. The core wire is conducting and grounding through the string balls (I assume it's a top loader).

The only thing that gives me pause is the fact I remember tapewound bass strings from my jazz band school days and they did not have any issues like this. And I see they still make nylon tapewound strings....


It actually has the option to be string through or top load. When the customer brought it in with the Black strings on he had just bought the bass, and it was set up as a top loader. He wanted me to change it so it was string through. So now the ball ends are sitting in grommets on the back of the guitar and not grounded, and we have all kinds of buzzing that I assume he never noticed when he bought the bass, so perhaps this phenomenon is less pronounced when those ball ends make contact with the bridge as you mention Brian.

Anyway I already hated these colored strings, they feel like plastic, and the color starts rubbing off almost immediately, I guess here's one more reason to recommend against them.


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Wed May 29, 2019 5:25 am 
Offline
Old Growth Brazilian Rosewood
Old Growth Brazilian Rosewood
User avatar

Joined: Fri Nov 02, 2007 9:49 am
Posts: 12973
Location: Ann Arbor, Michigan
First name: Hesh
Last Name: Breakstone
City: Ann Arbor
State: Michigan
Country: United States
Status: Professional
Roger is a genius and a VERY good guy too. We have a mutual client who played with the greats and was on the tonight show band for a decade or more, Robert Hurst. Robert is now a University of Michigan Professor and also a great guy.

DR strings suck.

Replace the strings and see what you have. I save old bass strings in good shape to use in the shop if this happens and for this purpose.

Did I mention that DR strings suck?

_________________
Ann Arbor Guitars


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Wed May 29, 2019 12:01 pm 
Offline
Koa
Koa

Joined: Fri Feb 10, 2017 11:09 pm
Posts: 870
Location: Cowichan Valley, BC, Canada
First name: Conor
Last Name: Searl
City: Duncan
State: British Columbia
Zip/Postal Code: V9L 2E5
Country: Canada
Status: Semi-pro
Confirmed!

I forgot I had an old set of GHS bass boomers. The plain nickel string defeated the ground buzz, just like one would expect.

These colored strings were definitely the culprit.


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Wed May 29, 2019 11:35 pm 
Offline
Old Growth Brazilian Rosewood
Old Growth Brazilian Rosewood
User avatar

Joined: Fri Nov 02, 2007 9:49 am
Posts: 12973
Location: Ann Arbor, Michigan
First name: Hesh
Last Name: Breakstone
City: Ann Arbor
State: Michigan
Country: United States
Status: Professional
Conor_Searl wrote:
Confirmed!

I forgot I had an old set of GHS bass boomers. The plain nickel string defeated the ground buzz, just like one would expect.

These colored strings were definitely the culprit.


Very cool - don't ya love it when your hunches pan out?

_________________
Ann Arbor Guitars


Top
 Profile  
 
PostPosted: Thu May 30, 2019 3:07 pm 
Offline
Brazilian Rosewood
Brazilian Rosewood

Joined: Tue May 13, 2008 10:44 am
Posts: 6232
Location: Virginia
Interesting. I've never run into this problem but the only coated eletric guitar strings I have ever used were D'Adarrio and even then mostly I use uncoated for electric. Good to know!


Top
 Profile  
 
Display posts from previous:  Sort by  
Post new topic Reply to topic  [ 7 posts ] 

All times are UTC - 5 hours


Who is online

Users browsing this forum: Kbore and 12 guests


You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot post attachments in this forum

Jump to:  
Powered by phpBB® Forum Software © phpBB Group
phpBB customization services by 2by2host.com