about 2-3 months ago i started playing bass wth my fingers (id been playing pick style for years), i tihnk im starting to get good with it, however when play with my fingers (mostly at faster speeds) i get a lot of clicking of the strings. is this normal?
clicking when playing with fingers?
O
odominguez
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Yes greg might have a good point. Can you confirm this to us? Some people actually like the clicking...
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Could also mean that you need to lower the PUs a bit if you have them very high. Fingerplaying can move the string in a more up/down movement (towards the PU) than the pick does. But of coarse, trim the nails very short as well. Good luck / mats
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yea i jsut cut my finger nails over the weekend, it seems like the clicking is the string when i pluck it a little faster or a little tougher. the click picks up in the amp as well, and it dosent sound too great. maybe click isnt the best word, it almost sounds like a harsh quick pop of the string.
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Yeah, it`s quite normal to get that clicking if you pick your strings very hard/fast. I had to adjust myself to pick lighter, but still maintain speed. Turn your amp higher, and try it out. A compressor might also help to maintain volume.
Also, the clicking appear in certain frequencies, so you might want to adjust your treble down and fondle with your eq.
Also, the clicking appear in certain frequencies, so you might want to adjust your treble down and fondle with your eq.
Perpendicular fingers....
Righty.... I hate clicking!
When plucking the strings loads of people play with their hand above the strings so their fingers are almost parallel to the guitar body.
If you push you hand so it is more in front of the strings so you fingers in front of the strings you should find that your fingers now pick in a more prependicular motion to the body of the bass.
This means that the strings will be moving across the pickup more effectively and the strings won't be whacking the frets or pickup.
It may change your tone too.
Hope this makes sense and helps...
Righty.... I hate clicking!
When plucking the strings loads of people play with their hand above the strings so their fingers are almost parallel to the guitar body.
If you push you hand so it is more in front of the strings so you fingers in front of the strings you should find that your fingers now pick in a more prependicular motion to the body of the bass.
This means that the strings will be moving across the pickup more effectively and the strings won't be whacking the frets or pickup.
It may change your tone too.
Hope this makes sense and helps...
Hey; I just had a private message on this same subject. My reply echoes a bit of what Maleercan posted, but I figure it can't hurt...
So... clicking. It could be fingernails... but it's not. It could be strings hitting pickups... but it's not. That leaves the most common form of "click" we bassists experience: the strings hitting the frets. When your right hand fingers attack the string, they really don't make much noise... try it on a fretless if you want to experiment. The "click" comes from the string hitting the frets, and depending on how hight the action is set and how hard you attack the strings, it will happen more or less often. There are ways to address the "click": you'll hear you should lighten your touch or raise your action, but if your bass was just set up, I think the best approach may be in training yourself to pull the strings differently.
The angle you pull the strings at will have a dramatic effect on the sound. When some people play aggressively, they will tend to land their fingers on the string from the top aiming DOWN; they HIT the string before actually pulling it, and the click is most definitely going to happen that way.
Try slowing down a bit and concentrating on your right hand; get the meat of your finger tips on the string, and pull it back towards your thumb; release it a little slower than you think you should... it's not so much a "snapping" of the string as it is your finger sort of slipping off. This way, there shouldn't be much click, if any at all. Once this feels comfortable, increase your speed.
Hope this helps... keep me updated, and I'll try not to take so long in replying in the future!
be well,
Seth
So... clicking. It could be fingernails... but it's not. It could be strings hitting pickups... but it's not. That leaves the most common form of "click" we bassists experience: the strings hitting the frets. When your right hand fingers attack the string, they really don't make much noise... try it on a fretless if you want to experiment. The "click" comes from the string hitting the frets, and depending on how hight the action is set and how hard you attack the strings, it will happen more or less often. There are ways to address the "click": you'll hear you should lighten your touch or raise your action, but if your bass was just set up, I think the best approach may be in training yourself to pull the strings differently.
The angle you pull the strings at will have a dramatic effect on the sound. When some people play aggressively, they will tend to land their fingers on the string from the top aiming DOWN; they HIT the string before actually pulling it, and the click is most definitely going to happen that way.
Try slowing down a bit and concentrating on your right hand; get the meat of your finger tips on the string, and pull it back towards your thumb; release it a little slower than you think you should... it's not so much a "snapping" of the string as it is your finger sort of slipping off. This way, there shouldn't be much click, if any at all. Once this feels comfortable, increase your speed.
Hope this helps... keep me updated, and I'll try not to take so long in replying in the future!
be well,
Seth
I cured my clicking by raising my action. Most players like a low action - particularly when starting out, as it makes the bass easier to play, but as your hands get stronger, action isn't so much of an issue - so you can raise it, and a higher action seems to give a better tone - now why is that?
strings clicking on the frets
I spent years worrying about this, adjusting my setup and technique - but many famous and respected players don't seem to worry about this and they just play on regardless - there does seem to be 2 camps 'tho - many of the great session cats (Lee Sklar, Nathan East, Neil Stubenhaus, Michael Rhodes, etc) claim to have medium to high action, which would solve this problem, but many more other famous players (Victor Wooten, John Entwhistle, Billy Sheehan, John Patitucci, Stu Hamm, Flea, Dave Larue, Steve Harris, Jaco, etc) have low action with lots of string noise, clacking , buzzing, etc. and noboby seems to mind.......
the solution seems to be to have 2 basses, one set up for soloing and fiddly bits, and one set up for grooving and big tone? -
I spent years worrying about this, adjusting my setup and technique - but many famous and respected players don't seem to worry about this and they just play on regardless - there does seem to be 2 camps 'tho - many of the great session cats (Lee Sklar, Nathan East, Neil Stubenhaus, Michael Rhodes, etc) claim to have medium to high action, which would solve this problem, but many more other famous players (Victor Wooten, John Entwhistle, Billy Sheehan, John Patitucci, Stu Hamm, Flea, Dave Larue, Steve Harris, Jaco, etc) have low action with lots of string noise, clacking , buzzing, etc. and noboby seems to mind.......
the solution seems to be to have 2 basses, one set up for soloing and fiddly bits, and one set up for grooving and big tone? -
