I have a question, it's incredibly rudimentary because everybody works around it and I'm sure it's got a completely obvious answer once you see it, but I can't actually find anything on it via google. Basically, I can only seem to make any real sound on an acoustic guitar with an open string; the moment I try and get any different pitches out of it via the frets and strumming, I only get a little "plink" noise no matter how I hit the string or hold it at the fret. Everything I've found online has said to make sure you aren't inadvertantly touching other strings but that has nothing to do with it; I can't get anything but a plink even plucking each string seperately. Forget the right pitch, I'm talking about making a non-plink! The plink I mean is very different from the sound of an open string; it is very short and kind of like what happens when you twang a rubber band (which I guess you are) only on a guitar string. It doesn't ring or anything - even looking at the strings, play it open and it vibrates for a while; touch a fret and play and it moves once or twice and stops.
This is kind of an amazing thing to have trouble with - needless to say I'm an absolute beginner, got a hand-me-down guitar and have only played it a few hours trying to work out the plinks. It's something anyone with any experience will probably laugh themselves silly at - but the fact is I can't figure it out. Any help would be appreciated, and any ridicule will be taken with (reasonably) good grace so long as the plinking stops.
Sounds like you aren't fretting the notes properly and you are choking them off. Place your finger right behind the fret and pick the note. Does iit ring out? If not adjust your finger until it does. Same for any chords except you'll be dealing with multiple fingers.
After you are comfortable that the notes are ringing out then start strumming.
"It's all about stickin it to the man!"
It's a long way to the top if you want to rock n roll!
That would be my suggestion too.. it sounds like you are putting your fingers ON the frets, rather than behind them
Go to this web page:
http://justinguitar.com/en/BC-000-BeginnersCourse.php
Follow the beginners course from the beginning, and when you get to your first chord, he shows you clearly in the video where your fingers should be placed.
Once you are making sounds, you are off to the races! Keep at it and enjoy it!
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http://fsguitar.wordpress.com
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There may be an easy fix to this one - you say you've got a hand-me-down guitar, have you changed the strings on it? If you've got old strings on it, they are NOT going to ring out like bright shiny new strings.
If you HAVE put new strings on, ignore what I just said and concentrate on finger placement. One other thing - a fretted string will never, ever sound as clear as an open string. String gauge, age, the type of wood on the fretboard, etc etc will all have an effect on tone and sound quality.
If you haven't put new strings on, do it ASAP. Then try the difference between an open string and, say, the same string fretted at the first fret. The first thing you'll notice is a slight loss of volume on the fretted string. This difference in volume (and tone) will only increase as your strings get older.
As for finger placement - put your fingers BEHIND the frets. It may sound obvious to those of us who have been playing for a while - but for newbies, maybe not so obvious. Try playing any string at any fret, just experiment with your finger placement till you find the best possible configuration for YOU. It might be just behind the fret, it might be halfway between frets - you'll only find out by trial and error.
I wish you luck, and many happy hours of making music once you get this problem sorted!
:D :D :D
Vic
"Sometimes the beauty of music can help us all find strength to deal with all the curves life can throw us." (D. Hodge.)
As suggested above, it could be you're not fretting properly - don't press the string down right on top of the fret, press down just behind the fret.
Vic is right that if it has old strings on, this could be affected the sound, creating a deadened tone on fretted notes you play. Also, is the guitar electric or acoustic? Both can suffer from neck relief and string height issues, but electric guitars tend to get "tampered with" more, so it may be that the previous owner tried to lower the string height and abandoned it when doing so created this problem. The procedure for fixing this type of "fret buzz" will depend on which guitar you have (i.e. a different process for acoustics than for electrics, but also a different process for Stratocasters than for Les Pauls). A quick trip to your local guitar tech can get this sorted pretty easily. If it is neck relief, that might be caused by the strings being too heavy/thin. It may need a truss rod adjustment if this is the case. Again, your local guitar tech is your best bet for getting things resolved quickly.
Make sure you're fretting properly and have new strings on before considering these techie points; I'm posting about them because they've yet to be discussed, and would be the logical next step in fixing the problem.
Edit: My bad - just reread and you said it was an acoustic. Still could be a set up issue though, especially if the guitar has been sitting around unused and uncared about for a long period of time.
I would agree with the string theory if he didn't already say that when he strummed the strings open they rang out. There's surely no harm in changing strings but by your description I wouldn't think that's the main cause.
"It's all about stickin it to the man!"
It's a long way to the top if you want to rock n roll!
Thank you all so much! It looks like I wasn't putting my fingers far enough behind the frets - all is well now. As it turns out the poor thing was in a flooded basement at one point (in a waterproof case but still) so I should probably get new strings as well. I was getting extremely frustrated about this - thank you!
