Buzz from the Ellipse

[Thez]

Just got my L32C back today from a luthier in the midlands who has been challenged with a number of contributing factors in certain notes buzzing. There was a "hump" apparantly along the neck which needed some of the frets lowering a touch, all sorted. Then the wires inside also were causing some resonation from the clips, sorted. One or two other things got sorted and then the the buzzing appeared again - The only thing that seems to have come up as a bit of a strange problem is the ellipse blend pre-amp seems to be creating the buzz (not electrical) and stops when the unit is touched or the mic is moved slightly to a different spot. I manged today to get the mic in a place where the sound is good and there doesnt seem to be any more pronounced note buzz. However,it may not take much to possibly start again. Has anyone else experienced this, its almost as if the resonation inside the sound hole is causing certain pitches to vibrate against the pre-amp. Can it be shielded/insulated so it doesnt cause this to happen. The guitar has been brilliant but I guess with it being in its first year, maybe there has been some movement for it to suddenly develop all these things. Kind of wish I was able to get some Avalon hands on it.

Mark

[the greypicker]

Have you tried Fishman? I think they have very good customer service and they are still in business!

[Thez]

Im not so sure it is the fishman - its a very resonate guitar and the sound bounces around everything in fact since I got it back and played in church on Sunday it felt wrong in many ways. It could be the nut, saddle, relief - Im so missing playing it with the feel and sound Im accustomed to. Even the notes seemed damped so things have moved changed etc as well as the unlocateable buzz. Not knocking the skill and experience of the chap who looked at it for me - he found it frustating that he couldnt rectify it, at the moment it is kind of un useable. There is an Avalon specialist in Northampton so I may see if he can rescue it - short of booking a flight to Ireland which I really wish i was in a position to do Im praying its going to get rectified and as you say John "Long may you strumm" well "I long to strumm"

I will keep smiling and keep you posted

Mark

ps Any Irish Luthiers fancy visiting staffordshire anytime soon!

[the greypicker]

This must be really frustrating, Thez.

Guitars can sound worse if they are too dry or humid. Dry guitars can have raised frets as the fretboard dries and the relief can definitely be affected. Is the guitar stored in a dry place, direct sunlight, next to a radiator etc? My guitars were really bad one year, due to summer heat.

http://www.fretnotguitarrepair.com/repa ... r/care.php

String gauge and make can alter things, too. What are brand are you using?

Good luck!

John

[Thez]

It's kept in the case when not being played and definately away from heat, sunlight etc. Indeed the summer climate may have caused some moving - it has been quite warm over the last few weeks. When it went in last week to the luthier it had its first string change and had the EXP's that Jim and the guys reccommended and fit at the factory. One of my guitars is an Ibanez Artwood and I decided to try these on it and went for 13's instead of 12's wow sounded great - It had pretty much always had Martin SP's but the tone from D'Addarios were something else. I am thinking about putting 13's instead of 12's on the Avalon as being a jumbo it may help not just with the sound projection etc but maybe a heavier string will help with the buzz. Once I can get it looked at it again it can be discussed with the luth.

Thanks for the link John it certainly gives you a lot to think about and indeed learn.

Mark

[the greypicker]

Hi Thez

D'Addarios are the recommended string for Avalon, Lowden and McIlroy. so they should be fine, A lot of players on here use 13s and 12s, so you should be OK if you stay in that range - no heavier than 13s, though!

A loose brace can cause buzzing - I guess your luthier checked for this?

Keeping the guitar in the case is good, but even better when there is a humidifier inside. Planet Waves make good cheap ones. As a temporary measure put a damp sponge in a plastic bag with a few small holes in it inside the case. (Not too wet, just damp!)

Half the fun of owning a solid wood guitar is tweaking to get it just right! Good luck!

John

[boombox]

I'd second what John said: changes in humidity are a real pain! This year is all about high humidity though. I've found rotating my guitars on a stand and NOT keeping them in cases has helped a lot. That and buying a cheap 99p disposable dehumidifier.

I concur D'Addarios are great strings. As for string gauge, erstwhile regular poster Rick uses 13s on his L32 and on my L32C, I use DADGAD True Mediums, which are basically 13-56. Part of me is tempted to do a John Doyle and up the bottom string to a 60 as I never use my Avalon in anything but D and C tunings, thus negating the effect of the heavier gauge as you get lower tension.

Good luck in your quest.

[Thez]

Thanks guys for the advice - yes humidity has been higher lately. So tempting once its rectified to put 13's on - be great on a jumbo for sure!

Mark