Clicking noice

[frode]

Hi.

Have you ever heard "clicking" from your rick when playing? I have that problem on both 4001 1975 and 4003 1984. A friend of mine has this problem on two of his ricks. Is this a common problem because of pups?

[rictified]

If the strings hit the buttons yeah, and if they do, you have the pickups too high for your playing style. 99% of the time it will be the bridge pickup.

[bugman]

I noticed this one time awhile back with my Rickenbacker while I was playing through an Ampeg B100R. I thought maybe something was wrong with the amp. I'm a lefty that has always played righty and like a lot of lefties I wear my watch on my right hand. The pickups were amplifying the tick tock of the watch. Does this sound like the problem?

[scottpro1969]

Hey Geoffrey, are you in Pest Control?? I did that for 11 years.

[jwr2]

get a compressor and adjust the pickup heights or play with a pick ...

[bobcat]

I actually had this happen too, but when I lowered the bridge pickup, I didn't get the kind of sound I wanted when playing both pickups at once. I tried using a compression pedal, but it seriously messes with the sound (it yanks the guts out of it . . . makes it sound very generic and tinny, no matter what settings it's on; I completely lose the character of the sound) and doesn't really add that much output. I just learned to live with the clicking sound. It actually comes in handy if you want to make some weird or overly distorted sounds.

Also, when I first started playing and I had this ****** Squier P-bass, I also noticed a clicking noise even though I never hit the poles. I'm left-handed and play right-handed, and, sure enough, it was my watch. I actually keep my watch in my pocket when I play, and, in case I need a clock sound effect (you'd be amazed at how many songs have one), I just pull it out and place it on my bridge pickup.

[charlyg]

Is the clicking noise amplified? I had clicking when my action was too low. It had nothing to do with the pickups, it was the frets.

[bassduke49]

Yeah, Charlie, I'm getting that, too. It's a kind of fret buzz but I hear it only on the initial attack, sort of a clack, not a buzzzz (and not a pop noise you would get if the strings hit the poles). I don't have a truss tool and am trepidated by the idea of adjusting the neck. Guess I'm going to have to do it someday.

[jblakey]

The clicking noises are a terrible problem! But as a service to you I'll take these problem basses off your hands for ten bucks.. I'll even pay shipping.

[rictified]

Yeah I have the same problem with certain basses, I adjust the bridge P.U. down and I lose the sound I like so I compromise.

I have also has the strings hitting the last fret before, that also is an annoying noise, but I've had that happen with other kinds of basses also, I've usually fixed that by straightening the neck and raising the action. They're simple to fix, try it paul, you won't hurt anything. All you need a 1/16" allen wrench for the bridge and a 1/4" nut driver for the truss rods.

[80stingray]

A very common problem with low action. The sound you are probably hearing is indeed the strings hitting the upper frets upon attack of the strings. As Bob has said, the action may need to raised slightly and try playing with a softer attack.

[agplate]

Try different strings too; as an example, I found that Elixirs tend to click more than others, depending on the bass itself. I finally had to remove them from my Yamaha BB1100s, but they were then fine on my Yamaha BX-1. I've more recently had D'Addario EXP's on my 4001CS and they were much less clicky. I'm a low action player too, by the way.

[frode]

Thanks.

I normaly play with my fingers, but with a pick the clicking goes away. I also try to play less directly over the pickups, and that helps.