Buzzing G

[pickles]

The G string on my octave mando buzzes. I'm not great with tools so I'm afraid of messing with the bridge or anything, just been hitting it light to avoid the buzz. But I notice as my strings age the buzz gets worse. I'm wondering if better strings alone could fix the problem, or if I need to take it to a shop, or if there's a really easy adjustment I could try -- something I can undo if I do it wrong, like moving the bridge a little one way or the other? What should I try?

[Dolamon]

First off - you need to identify where the buzzing occurs - open string, fretted at the fifth, seventh, third fret etc. What type of instrument is it: floating bridge or pin style, type and guage of strings? There are a lot of variables and it's really difficult to isolate a problem without seeing or having more understanding of the type of instrument.

Frank Ford's remarkable web site www.frets.com has several illustrated articles on identifying and remedying buzzes. (Sorry I can't pull the actual URL at this time.)

[pickles]

Thanks, I'll take a look there, and try to narrow down the particulars of this buzz.

[Dolamon]

Finally my computer or Frank Ford's is working ... This # (http://www.frets.com/FRETSPages/Luthier/Technique/Setup/BuzzDiagnosis/buzzintro.html)is the start of the Buzz Diagnosis section on Frets.com.

There are other more specific diagnosis sections but this should get you thinking in the right frame of mind.