Clacking Noise

[st-anger1221]

Hi,

I play bass with my fingers and depending on the speed I play some of the strings, especially the E willl clack against the frets towards the pickups, so like fret 22-24 and it gets kind of annoying. How can I eliminate this? Does the action have to be adjusted or does my playing have to be less intense? lol

thanks

[Joe Nerve]

Lots of things can cause the clacking. The bass itself, your technique, the strings, the way you have it EQed. I play pretty aggressively and couldn't get a Warwick I had to stop clacking unless I pretty much rolled off all the highs. Suggestions:

• Play more softly
• Raise your action
• Use nickel wound strings
• Mess with your EQ until you elimate the clack
• Change your technique
• Shop for a new bass that you can dig into without clacking

If none of those fix it than accept that you're a clacky player.

[amistybleu]

I get the same thing, you can try and deal with it by lowering you mids and highs if it bothers you, I only notice it when I am playing alone, and it really doesn't bother me. I think it is the nature of the beast, especially if you are doing drop D tuning. I had high action on one of my basses before and hated it because it seemed more clacky during hammer on. What do your bandmates say about it?

Of course you could start playing Carpender's Songs, that would probably fix it

[SGT. Pepper]

Raise your action, try flatwounds or nickel rounds, back off on the treble a bit.

[Crockettnj]

i hate the clack. with my new bass i tend to clack more than with my old one. so, i ...

raised the super low but beautiful actin a bit.

i rol loff the 12k.

i TRY to play more gently, but frankly it isnt me. i am not a crazy hard kill my strings nut. i play skynyrd type stuff. but i tend to run a llittle hard with my fingers.

i thikn i MAY need a higher nut though. is this possible? it seems to be the only way to rais ethe action at the other end of the neck (near the nut).

thoughts? (osrry for the hijack.. i t amy help you thougH!!!!!!)

[st-anger1221]

well one of my band mates said it sounds sometimes like i am playing slap bass lol
Thanks for all your suggestions I will give them a try.

[D.A.R.K.]

might not have understood correctly, but you say the strings hit the pickups causing a clacking sound?
are the pickup poles exposed? if so, metal contacting metal(string and pole) can cause this type of noise also.
i've put a small piece of electrical tape over exposed poles on pickups before to solve the problem.
it does not have any effect on the sound.
or perhaps just lower the pickups?
then you don't have to sacrifice playability.

[st-anger1221]

ya there seems to be contact on the pickups aswell as on the frets closest to the pickups, but themain clacking seems to be coming from the strings bouncing off the frets.

[LoveThatBass]

Originally Posted by st-anger1221

ya there seems to be contact on the pickups aswell as on the frets closest to the pickups, but themain clacking seems to be coming from the strings bouncing off the frets.

Have you tried lowering the pickups?
Maybe you need strings with more tension.

[SGT. Pepper]

Originally Posted by LoveThatBass

Have you tried lowering the pickups?
Maybe you need strings with more tension.

+1

[oathbass462]

i get that sometimes on my squier when i kick the tone all the way up, and also when i first started playing i would fingerpick the strings the wrong way, until i learned to just roll my fingertips across the top of string instead of curling my finger and plucking at the side of the string. both these caused clanking noises.

[flatwoundfender]

get flats and raise your action/ add some relief to truss rod.