Had a Fender Jaguar come in recently—client had swapped the bridge for a Mustang-style one, which can be a solid upgrade. But this thing was buzzing like mad. Not just a little fret noise—full-on, unplayable buzz across the board.
What Was Going On? First thing I checked was neck relief. And yep—dead straight. No curve, no breathing room for the strings. A perfectly straight neck might sound ideal, but in reality? It’s a problem. Strings vibrate in an arc, and if the neck’s got no relief, they smack into the frets. Especially with low action. To make things trickier, the guitar had been set up for lighter strings—probably 9s or 10s—but the client wanted to go heavy. That changes everything: tension, relief, action, even the nut slots
What I Did I dialled in the right amount of neck relief using my Crimson gauge—around 0.008″–0.010″ at the 7th fret with the first and last frets held down. That gave the strings room to move without choking out. Raised the action a touch to suit the heavier strings and the player’s style.
The Mustang bridge responded well to the tweaks—buzz gone. But the nut? That needed work. The slots weren’t cut for the string width or depth the client wanted. So I broke out my Hosco nut files—top-tier gear made in Japan. I don’t mess around with cheap tools when it comes to precision. Used a specialist nut calculator to get the spacing and depth bang-on. Filed each slot cleanly, added a dab of lubricant, and she’s good to go. Smooth tuning, no binding, and the strings sit exactly where they should.
Why a Straight Neck Isn’t Always a Good Thing Guitars aren’t static—they’re alive. A bit of neck relief is essential. It’s not a flaw, it’s part of the design. It lets the strings vibrate properly and keeps the tone clean across the fretboard. Dead straight might look tidy under a ruler, but it doesn’t play well. NB the Dial works backwards!!
Need a Setup or Repair? If your guitar’s buzzing, choking, or just not feeling right, I offer guitar setups in Nottingham and guitar repairs in Nottingham that actually solve the problem—not just mask it. Whether it’s neck relief, nut work, bridge swaps or full setups, I use pro tools and years of experience to get your instrument playing its best.
Visit guitarlessonsnottingham.co.uk]to book a setup or repair. I also offer guitar lessons for players who want to improve their skills and understand their gear better.