Well I've been playing the guitar for about 2 months, recently I've started playing songs requiring high distortion, and I noticed when I lift my finger off of a string it creates a lot of noise, almost like I would be doing a pull-off, only it's not a pull-off...all I'd do is lift my finger off the string to play a note on another string.
I fiddled around a bit with it, even when I lift my finger off slowly it still makes noise, could it be a problem with my amp or that I set the gain way too high? Or maybe my fingers are naturally sticky or something...this problem isn't as noticeable if I turn the volume down and play clean notes, or if I only stick to a single string, but then the song doesn't sound right.
Any vibration creates noise, when you lift your finger you are causing the string to vibrate. Use one of your hands to mute the string quickly and move to the next note.
"That’s what takes place when a song is written: You see something that isn’t there. Then you use your instrument to find it."
- John Frusciante
And a distortion pedal picks up every little sound.
You should also try to make sure your fingers come "up" when you release a note, rather than just "off"
Best,
A :-)
"Be good at what you can do" - Fingerbanger"
I have always felt that it is better to do what is beautiful than what is 'right'" - Eliot Fisk
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Keep doing it over and over and over and over and ........ and over and over. Concentrate on eliminating the noise. There are all kinds of little nuances envolved in muting unwanted noise. It's a feel thing really and the only way to get there is by practice and repitition. The good news is that you can and will get there if you really want to. just focus on "NO NOISE" and understand that it has to do with many factors - like lifting the finger straight up (don't pull or pluck the string at all), damping or muting with your pick and/or your fret hand and timing. Your fret finger should be in sync with the pick of the string.
Keep at it!
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Ok, well after doing it over and over, I finally realized what I was getting. It turns out the note I'm trying to play, between the 7th and 8th fret on the G string is actually supposed to be one of those natural harmonics! So it turns out that annoying buzz tone that I hear while playing, seems to be the harmonic ringing after I lift my finger off.
I kind of fixed it by fretting the note near the middle, I have to play the note with my freaking pinky finger, so I guess I just need to develop some more control in my pinky, since it tends to spaz out sometimes...
I actually have the same problem when trying out distortion. And it's not because of harmonics or anything like that, for me. Any little movement that I make seems to be processed and magnified. However, I just got my electric guitar yesterday so I'm hoping I'll get a grip on things somehow, with time...but not too much blood, sweat or tears. :P
I have that problem sometimes and I find that if I just go through the selection real slow a few times and make concentrated efforts between changes I can find the moments where I'll need to mute or move my hand differently and memorize those little movements as well as the song itself. I'm sure those things become second nature after a while. but for right now I find just slowing way down and watching my hands closely solves a ton of my problems as I learn.
When playing electric guitar at high volume (clean or distorted), you are going to hear every little noise. In this area, electric guitar is far more difficult than acoustic.
You just have to learn to mute strings you aren't playing or stop unwanted noises. You do this with both hands.
For instance, when I am playing electric on the high strings G, B, and E, I will rest the side of my picking hand on the lower 3 strings. Even if I accidently strike them they are muted. And you do the same with your fretting hand too. You can gently rest your fretting fingers over the strings to stop unwanted noises.
Or, let's say you are playing on the G string only. You can mute the strings above with the side of your picking hand, but also you can let the free fingers on your picking hand gently touch the B and high E string to mute them. This is how you do it. I will do this with my pinky on my picking hand.
You have to use smaller motion with your picking hand on electric. You don't strum wildly, but keep your picking motion as small as possible, only striking the strings you want to play. It takes a little practice to play precise like this.
This seems very difficult at first, but you just have to practice playing guitar at volume and stopping these noises. After awhile you will naturally stop these noises without even thinking about it. :D
If you know something better than Rock and Roll, I'd like to hear it - Jerry Lee Lewis
When playing electric guitar at high volume (clean or distorted), you are going to hear every little noise. In this area, electric guitar is far more difficult than acoustic.
You just have to learn to mute strings you aren't playing or stop unwanted noises. You do this with both hands.
For instance, when I am playing electric on the high strings G, B, and E, I will rest the side of my picking hand on the lower 3 strings. Even if I accidently strike them they are muted. And you do the same with your fretting hand too. You can gently rest your fretting fingers over the strings to stop unwanted noises.
Or, let's say you are playing on the G string only. You can mute the strings above with the side of your picking hand, but also you can let the free fingers on your picking hand gently touch the B and high E string to mute them. This is how you do it. I will do this with my pinky on my picking hand.
You have to use smaller motion with your picking hand on electric. You don't strum wildly, but keep your picking motion as small as possible, only striking the strings you want to play. It takes a little practice to play precise like this.
This seems very difficult at first, but you just have to practice playing guitar at volume and stopping these noises. After awhile you will naturally stop these noises without even thinking about it. :D
Sounds like good tips. Also encouraging. :D
Yeah that's the hard part about playing with distortion and high gain, you get EVERYTHING amplified. Keep at it, and it'll wear off.
Well, I've had some requests, but I'm going to play anyway.
