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Fret click

felixxx

felixxx

Feb 6, 2008
464
376
Darwin, Australia
#1
Just to let you know, I did try to search for this, but was unsuccessful.

Most of the time I fret anywhere on E string I hear a distinct 'click' sound. Only on E.

Is this related to technique or setup? What are your experiences and/or opinions on this?

Many thanks.
 
#2
if i had to guess, and its just on the e string, it could mean you need to move your action up a bit, especially if its on most or all of the frets.

the closer you play to the neck, the more clack you will get, especially if you play hard. if it clacks playing back towards the bridge, it really probably is the action needing to be raised.

also, if its buzz and not clack, make sure your fretting hand is fretting hard, or at least not weak enough to where it buzzes.

but, like i said, try raising your action on the e string and report back. its hard to say for sure without more information.
 
#4
TOOL460002 said:
if i had to guess, and its just on the e string, it could mean you need to move your action up a bit, especially if its on most or all of the frets.

the closer you play to the neck, the more clack you will get, especially if you play hard. if it clacks playing back towards the bridge, it really probably is the action needing to be raised.

also, if its buzz and not clack, make sure your fretting hand is fretting hard, or at least not weak enough to where it buzzes.

but, like i said, try raising your action on the e string and report back. its hard to say for sure without more information.
Click to expand...

Spot on. :hyper:
I raised saddle a bit and also added a layer of superglue on nut under the e string. It is excellent now. Thanks a lot.
I am done with looking for the lowest possible action.;)
 
#6
Glad you got you fret click problem sorted. I'm having a similar problem. I've replaced the roundwounds on my Ibanez AEB8 acoustic with D'Addario stainless flatwounds which sound great, but I'm getting fret click on the E string between the 2nd and 8th frets and the action is not adjustable because of the transducer under the saddle. I've tried pressing harder which does help sightly. Has anyone any further suggestions? I'm a relative beginner by the way so it might just be my technique.
 
#7
If you can't adjust your action, adjusting your plucking technique a bit. If you don't already, make sure you pluck parallel to the fretboard to reduce any unwanted contact (I'm notorious for not doing this, my low B can sound like a mess sometimes). Besides that, you may just have to raise the action somehow. Or if that doesn't help, because I have a hunch it's an action-related click, the action would probably be the only choice. Unless you're talking about whenever you fret, which is the problem I have. It can be annoying when you're fretting the low notes and you hear the string hear the fretboard every time. To fix this, I turn my treble down and adjust my bass EQ to minimize the sound. hope this helped, I tried to think of every situation possible :P
 
#8
most (all?) acoustic bridges have a blade that can be replaced/shaved to raise/lower the action without removing the whole bridge.

another possible cause of "clacking" is worn-out frets. I had a Rickenbacker 4001 (soft nickel frets) and used Stainless Steel Rotosound strings on it for about a year (before I knew better) and wore the frets out prematurely. If you looked at each fret edge-on you could see the flat spots on them under each string.

The Rick 4001 is designed for flatwound strings. The 4003 model has harder frets made for roundwounds. Those are both electric basses, but the same principle applies for acoustic.

to make a long story short (too late) worn-out frets can cause clacking.
 

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