Bad Frets - Status Graphite

[SGB2]

Hey folks, just got my Status Graphite placement neck on my Precision a little while ago. I've gotten the action low and the neck close to straight. I've played other basses with the exact same setup I'm trying to get with the Status, and I've never had a problem before, so it's not my technique or the setup itself.

But the first and second frets buzz so much on the Status neck they're unplayable. When I press the strings down at the third fret, the space under the string at the fourth fret looks and feels normal, whereas the space under the string at the third fret when the second fret is pressed down is too low. There is even less space under the string at the second fret when the first fret is pressed down. The nut looks a little too high and can't possibly have anything to do with it.

Obviously I'm in for a fret job. But guitar technicians around Chicago tend to not understand what "low action" on a bass guitar really means. Every guy I've gone to has just told me to raise the action, as if it's a problem of how low the bridge saddles are. And it can't be because I've had this action work on basses before.

I'm a little dissapointed in the neck itself, but obviously the Status shop guys couldn't put it on a bass to check out what was going on with the fretwork before shipping the neck to me in the States.

Does anybody have any advice for how I can explain this to the [i]next [/i]guitar technician I try to take my bass into? Or better yet, can anybody give me some advice as to what I can do in the meantime?

Edited December 8, 2009 by SGB2

[maxrossell]

[quote name='SGB2' post='677443' date='Dec 8 2009, 03:44 AM']Hey folks, just got my Status Graphite placement neck on my Precision a little while ago. I've gotten the action low and the neck close to straight. I've played other basses with the exact same setup I'm trying to get with the Status, and I've never had a problem before, so it's not my technique or the setup itself.

But the first and second frets buzz so much on the Status neck they're unplayable. When I press the strings down at the third fret, the space under the string at the fourth fret looks and feels normal, whereas the space under the string at the third fret when the second fret is pressed down is too low. There is even less space under the string at the second fret when the first fret is pressed down. The nut looks a little too high and can't possibly have anything to do with it.

Obviously I'm in for a fret job. But guitar technicians around Chicago tend to not understand what "low action" on a bass guitar really means. Every guy I've gone to has just told me to raise the action, as if it's a problem of how low the bridge saddles are. And it can't be because I've had this action work on basses before.

I'm a little dissapointed in the neck itself, but obviously the Status shop guys couldn't put it on a bass to check out what was going on with the fretwork before shipping the neck to me in the States.

Does anybody have any advice for how I can explain this to the [i]next [/i]guitar technician I try to take my bass into? Or better yet, can anybody give me some advice as to what I can do in the meantime?[/quote]

I think you probably need to show your next guitar tech this post you just wrote, because from my point of view you've made it very clear what the issue is and how it needs to be solved.

In the meantime, if you want a workaround I'd try playing with shims in the neck pocket to alter the neck angle and get the strings to sit more evenly across the board.

[Lfalex v1.1]

+1 to a "gentle" shim to tilt the neck ever so slightly - just using something as thin as those plastic A4 document pouches or laminating material in the pocket under the rearward part of the neck may be enough. I had a similar issue with a bass (not my Status, though!) and fixed it with a piece of card from a cereal box. I felt a bit "guilty" about having done it until the Luthier who built it played it again. He said it was phenomenal! Needless to say I didn't tell him about the shim!

Otherwise, I'm surprised that a Status product has failed to completely satisfy. Rob's QC is legendary.
Are there no specialist Bass Vendors / Luthiers in the Chicago area? From the way you worded your original post, it sounds like youv'e approached "Guitar Techs", and whilst many of these are perfectly capable, we all know that bass & guitar are entirely different disciplines ( ) and that they may not quite understand what you want !

Edited December 8, 2009 by Lfalex v1.1

[SGB2]

I don't hold it against Rob because he didn't have the neck on a bass to actually do a real setup on the frets and nut. I have actually shimmed the neck, which is something I have a bit of experience with.

I've done all kinds of searches for bass guitar specialists in Chicago and I haven't found anything. Actually I'm really surprised at the small number of guitar technicians in the city. I posted on Talkbass to see if anybody could help me out but no dice.

There is one place, it's just two guys and they have a really great reputation for guitars and basses and mostly what they do is fretwork. Probably going to take it to them.

Oh well, I guess I waited long enough to actually get the Status neck, I can wait a little while longer until I get it in shape. And to be fair, it does still play better than my twisted Fender maple neck which I'm happy to say I no longer have to deal with, but that's a whole other story.