Buzzing amp speaker question

[seannx]

First, thanks to all for the great advice about a guitar for slide. If I can figure out how to post pics, I’ll show you the Firebird V 2015 I got off of Craigslist for a great price. I saw Johnny Winter twice, once in 1969 and again at the Sausalito Art Festival in 2009. He was introduced by Robin Williams, and I was fortunate to see them both before they died. So wanting a Gibson sound, the Firebird was ideal.

I tested the guitar before buying on a Fender Princeton amp, at a sufficiently loud volume, and the open strings' intonation was the same when fretted at the 12th. Once home, I plugged into my youngest son's '85 Squier 15 practice amp. It sounded great, with the exception of a distorted buzz when fretting the low e at the 12th fret. The neck had a little too much relief, so I took it for a setup, thinking that could be the problem.

After the setup, with the relief problem corrected, the buzzing is still there. It’s most prominent on the twelfth fret, slightly on the 13th, and no where else. I couldn’t hear or see any string buzz acoustically, and it sounds more like a frequency resonance effect. Thinking back to when I demoed the guitar, it’s something I definitely would have noticed when checking the intonation.

I tried two more guitars, with the same result. No buzzing sound from the speaker up to the 11th, then it appears on the 12th, and slightly on the 13th. Above that the sound is fine. You can also get the same effect on the A string, on the 7th fret. It’s not as loud, but the same extended buzzing.

So I think the problem is in the amp, and suspect the speaker. I bought it for my oldest son in 1985, so it has some family history. He never played much, but when my youngest son got serious about guitar, we got it out of storage. The little amp goes loud, has a great sound, and my son has certainly pushed it over the last 8 years. I can get a replacement speaker for about $40, but want to get opinions/advice before I order one. Thanks in advance.

[clintj]

Could just be something loose rattling at that frequency. If you have a looper pedal, you can play back that note while you press on different parts of the amp to see if you can isolate it. Even the grill cloth on an amp can cause a funny buzz if it vibrates the right way against the baffle.

[muscmp]

tighten all of the screws you can find on the amp. make sure the connection to the speaker is tight. if it is a tube amp, turn the amp off, pull the tubes partially out and back in a few times. connect a different speaker if you can. might be a combination of things or just one. clintj's idea of the looper frequency is good because you can press on the amp in certain areas and perhaps find the problem. good luck!

play music!

[MikeBmusic]

A 33 year old Squier amp, you should be thankful it makes any sound! It's a $40 used amp now, so not worth a lot of effort.

[Dru Edwards]

Originally Posted by muscmp

tighten all of the screws you can find on the amp. make sure the connection to the speaker is tight. if it is a tube amp, turn the amp off, pull the tubes partially out and back in a few times. connect a different speaker if you can. might be a combination of things or just one. clintj's idea of the looper frequency is good because you can press on the amp in certain areas and perhaps find the problem. good luck!

play music!

+1. Great place to start.

[MiG50]

It sounds like a resonant frequency causing a buzz, especially since you can get the same result from the same note on a different string (try the 2nd fret on the D string, see if it's there also). If there isn't anything physically loose in the cabinet, then it could be the speaker is on it's way out.

[roylor4]

reread post. Get a decent amp. Problem solved.