Please help! Getting very frustrated!

bmsrv311 · #1 03-07-2007, 03:52 PM

Hey all,
I am new to Talkbass, and it seems like a great site! I've played guitar for about 6 years now, but once i started messing around with the bass, I FELL IN LOVE! I started messing with the bass about a year ago, and bought my first bass around 6 months ago. I kind of felt like a natural since ive played guitar for a while and thought i was making great progress. I first bought a small Ampeg combo which was good enough for practicing and whatnot. I started studying a little theory, and started admiring bassists such as Billy Sheehan, Flea, the amazing VIC WOOT. I started practicing quite a bit, AT LEAST an hour a day. I thought i was getting quite good. Then about a month ago, i decided to move to the chicago area to really persure my musical dreams. I bought a damn decent bass setup (GK 700RBII, 4x10SBX+, 1x15SBX), ready to take it to the next level. Anyways, to make a long story shorter..... I seem to have fallen in a rut or something. I dont know if im not used to such a big, loud setup, or what the deal is. I am always hearing this damn "click" kind of sound when i play that i never really noticed before, and now im going crazy, especially when trying to record. I always play fingerstyle but this recent problem has made me feel like trying to play with a pick (which i said i'd never do) I recently read a few pointers to try to get rid of this such as try to pluck the string toward your chin instead of towards the body of the bass. it seems to help a little but not enough. im sure i just need to practice ALOT more, but are there any other tips you can offer me? Maybe i need to work on the setting of my amp?? anyways thanks for reading my post, and thanks in advance for any tips!

Joe Nerve · #2 03-07-2007, 04:16 PM

A similar thing happened to me when I bought my first "real" bass, a Warwick. I got a clacking sound that drove me out of my mind, and had to alter the way I played (by playing more lightly), or EQ it to death until I found the click and removed it. Ultimately, I realized the Warwick was simply not the bass for me - when I played other basses the click was non-existent. Started playing a Sterling and the problem was gone. Before driving yourself crazy I'd suggest trying different basses and seeing if there's one that better fits your style, or playing with the EQ on your new GK until you get it right. Good luck.

And welcome!

Johnny Crab · #3 03-07-2007, 04:19 PM

Experiment with or check:

The TREBLE control on your amp(cut some?) and the tone control on your bass ESPECIALLY if the bass is active. A few Line 6 Bass POD models had really bad "clicking" if the treble was boosted past a certain level. You may also want to try the Hi-Mid and Mids also. Fool with them to extremes to see EXACTLY what they do and where to your sound. You may THINK that cutting TREBLE or highs will hurt but boosting mids a bit will more than compensate for that usually.

If the "Clicking" is because your action is too low for your playing style, maybe having that adjusted might help. Do you know an experienced(years) bass player? Have them play your bass to see if they get the same clicking. If so, ask them what is causing it.

Welcome to the low end.

Joe Gress · #4 03-07-2007, 04:20 PM

It could be the action of the bass. If it’s too low then you may want raise the strings.

Vanceman · #5 03-07-2007, 04:55 PM

Here's a funny thing that happened to me. I kept getting this click on any note, fretted or not, on the A string. I kept raising the saddle, but the click did not go away. I finally realized that the click came from my finger striking the E string and the E string hitting a fret, after plucking the A string.

I lowered the A string saddle, raised the E saddle slightly, and changed my technique to not hit the next string so hard.

All_¥our_Bass · #6 03-07-2007, 05:04 PM

Are your strings really new? New string are REALLY REALLY bright (esp. if they are roundwounds).

Lonnybass · #7 03-07-2007, 05:05 PM

Welcome to Chicago! You mention that you are hearing it when you try to record. Can you post some sound clips? I'm curious if it's something we notice too.

Lonnybass

vcs700s · #8 03-07-2007, 08:24 PM

Check the length of your nails. I had a similar problem. I play guitar and went to bass and noticed that my nails were making an irritating clicking noise. I cut them off and no problem although I still like playing with a pick too.

bmsrv311 · #9 03-08-2007, 12:17 AM

Thank you all for your quick replies! I will take it all into consideration. I still like the feel of this p-bass as compared to most other basses ive played (except ernie ball stringray's which i cant currently afford). I feel like the action on my bass is decent but i will have someone more experienced check it out to know for sure. as for the setting on my 700RBII: i use the the suggested settings in the manual (there are settings for slap, rock, reggae, jazz/fusion) as a guide to different sounds for different songs. The tones are amazing for slap, but the rock setting im not too fond of. I really like the reggae setting, but its really bassy and contoured and only good for certain songs. i also seem to notice i lose the click when i turn up the contour, but lose the aggresive tone for punkish style songs. As for the strings, i use DR MR-45 (45-105 with round core) which i love way more than any hex-core strings, which are way too bright for me. I also have a DBX 166XL compressor/ limiter/gate thru my effects loop and i dont have the knowledge to use that to its full potential either. any tips on how to use that properly would also be appreciated. As for the nails, ive already noticed how much of a difference that makes and i make sure to keep them very short. LonnyBass, i will post some sound clips as soon as possible for you to check out. Thanks again everybody, BASSISTS ROCK!

Dsmalls · #10 03-08-2007, 12:45 AM

Ah, the notorious "clicking" noise.

Actually, I have no idea what you're talking about however there have been several threads about this "clicking" noise. I myself have never experienced it. My guess is either 1) you're not fretting properly or 2) your bass needs a setup. The amp I doubt would cause this problem. Post up a soundclip then maybe somebody can help you.

JLW · #11 03-08-2007, 02:34 PM

Call me crazy but I absolutely love that noise.

Guess there's something wrong with me.

jsbass · #12 03-09-2007, 07:17 AM

I like that too - it's what I call tone. Noise like that is what gets a bassist through the mix.

eric atkinson · #13 03-09-2007, 07:29 AM

I have noticed that i can get a huge difference in tone depending on what finger i am using at the time.. If i am playing more of a solid fill line i will mainly use my middle finger or thumb and add what tone i need with my index. My index finger gets a much brighter tone to it because i have the tendency to get more of a popping sound out of it..

Try turning up a bit and relaxing the fingers a little more. Try and play more of the solid lines with the middle finger.. Does that make any sense? If not just ignore it... I have a horrible time trying to explain this stuff with out hands on showings.

And like mentioned above you might grow to love that clicking sound. That might become part of your style if you like it or not. I love bassist that can use things like that for a good tone.

JLW · #14 03-09-2007, 12:59 PM

Flea has that real clicky thing going and I really like it.

Clicking noises can be avoided by simply playing softer. And this works out, because the clicking noise doesn't sound so good when you're playing more of a soft, groovy song.

vbsurfer3001 · #15 03-09-2007, 01:58 PM

I haven't been at this very long either, just a couple of years. I noticed the same clicking noise, but not on all of my basses or amps. It seems, at least in my case to be a combo of my playing style & the bass itself. It's most notable in my Jag bass when playing finger style up above the neck p/u. If I move back between the neck & bridge p/u's it fades & at the bridge it's gone altogether. It also seems to fade if I play less aggressively with fingers, with a pick or if I use a solid state instead of tube amp.

I just figured it was the "ghost in the machine"

Rakie · #16 03-11-2007, 05:00 AM

Trim your nails ?
Use a lighter touch ?
Raise the action ?
Have the bass setup Properly ?

Try different strings, or Dead strings ?

Thats all i can think of. (other than whats been said)

Dsmalls · #17 03-11-2007, 11:59 PM

Well, I can't freaking stand it.

I trim my 2 finger plucking nails earlier than my other fingers just to avoid that darn sound. IMO fingernail bass sounds like crap.

Zappstorius · #18 03-12-2007, 12:19 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jsbass

I like that too - it's what I call tone. Noise like that is what gets a bassist through the mix.

+1

Swift713 · #19 03-12-2007, 12:31 AM

I think I had this problem once. I was in a studio and the engineer was going nuts because of this sound. I was playing my old super cheap fretless J copy. It was probably in part from playing too hard but also a habit of slapping the strings with the fingers of my right hand (I play righty) on beats when I'm not playing any notes. So with my left hand muting and my right hand slapping perhaps the strings were hitting the fingerboard or even a pickup? Anyway, I must have outgrown the habit because I haven't really heard it since.
You might also try lowering your pickups or turn up your amp and play softer.

Dsmalls · #20 03-12-2007, 01:11 AM

Noise doesn't get a bassist through the mix, a GOOD mix does. Also it don't hurt if there's a good bassist backin it up. For example I give Cryptopsy, Suffocation and Cannibal Corpse. Now, as a theoretical adventure, let's imagine those bands without heavy bass tone for a second. Oops, they AREN"T HEAVY ANYMORE. I'm sorry, the guitars are ****ing the bomb and all but there IS NO HEAVINESS WITHOUT THE BASS!!!!

I wouldn't be buying death metal albums that had no bass players so that just goes to show ya that a good mix is essentail!