Noisy when using a pick/Drop C tuning

toomuchstraw

toomuchstraw

Dec 30, 2021
33
44
821
Champaign, IL
#1
Hey everyone! This might be a stupid post so sorry in advance, but it's really noisy when I use a pick in standard tuning, I think that my E string is hitting my pickups. To add onto it, a band that I just joined is playing a song in drop C, and it's even more noisy. I also think that my picking technique might be... not ideal... but that's a different story that I might make a post in the technique section of TB to figure out (I've always played w/o a pick before joining this band).

For some additional info, I've been on winter break w/o my amp for the past month, and when using a headphone amp I didn't notice extraneous noise. Now that I'm reunited with my amp and playing relatively quietly on it I can hear it loud and clear though. I can try recording a short video to show you what it sounds like if that would be helpful.

The thing is, I want to be able to play songs in standard tuning and in drop C, what's the best way to do this -- should I lower the pickups, change my string gauge, etc.?

I'm going to take my bass into the shop as soon as it opens today, just wanted to hear what you all think first so I have some idea of what makes sense!
 
#2
can you post a pic of your bass?that shows the pickup height ?

also drop c is 1 1/2 steps down on the low string
and the other strings are tuned a full step down in d standard
by standard do you mean d standard? if not how are you achieving this?
 
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#3
ryan pate said:
can you post a pic of your bass?dhi weigh the pickup height ?
Click to expand...

How do you want the picture perspective-wise? like should I take the pic from the side so you can get a better sense of the distance between strings and pickups?

I also forgot to mention that my action is pretty low I think. I'm kinda a new bassist so I don't actually know how most people's action is though.
 
#4
PXL_20220119_103123789.jpg
 
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#5
ryan pate said:
can you post a pic of your bass?that shows the pickup height ?

also drop c is 1 1/2 steps down on the low string
and the other strings are tuned a full step down in d standard
by standard do you mean d standard? if not how are you achieving this?
Click to expand...

Oh, my bad. By standard I mean EADG. And yeah, my biggest issue is with drop C because of how low it is. The C open string is required for a couple songs we're playing. For one song, it only uses the low C so I can get away with just tuning down the low E string, but another song utilizes the tuning CGCF.
 
#8
There’s no set of strings that will sound good being changed back and forth from standard tuning to drop C, unfortunately! Your intonation won’t be great either, and the strings will go dead/lose their top end more quickly.

i used to use these string gauges for drop C:

.120
.90
.70
.50

i bought single Rotosounds to achieve this, rather than a pack. Note the proportionally fatter low string as the interval is greater!

The best solution would be a second, budget friendly bass, set up with thicker strings and proper intonation for drop C. However i realise this may not be the answer you’re looking for.

You could try a reasonably heavy set for EADG ie a 105 or 110 low string, and then just drop them to C as needed. It won’t completely get rid of the problem or sound as good, but might help.
 
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#9
toomuchstraw said:
All I have to do is tighten those screws on the pickup in order to lower it, right? If that works then maybe I don't have to take my bass in at all! Thank you :)
Click to expand...

Yes some advice. make certain you have a proper fitting screw driver and keep firm down ward pressure as you turn the screws clockwise slowly and evenly move from one to the other every 1-2 revolutions so you do not to strip the screw head or “cock” the pickup and break the ear off the pickup cover. when you get it tuned also check intonation/string length and adjust if necessary.If the string is too floppy in the lower tuning you can fix that with a heavier string gauge.IE.;on my drop c basses (all are 4 stringers) I buy 5 string sets and use the b thru d strings. .065-.130
 
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#11
toomuchstraw said:
Oh, my bad. By standard I mean EADG. And yeah, my biggest issue is with drop C because of how low it is. The C open string is required for a couple songs we're playing. For one song, it only uses the low C so I can get away with just tuning down the low E string, but another song utilizes the tuning CGCF.
Click to expand...

For those three different tunings you may want (if you don’t have a second bass atm ) to look at a digitech “drop pedal” as an option.
 
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#12
knumbskull said:
There’s no set of strings that will sound good being changed back and forth from standard tuning to drop C, unfortunately! Your intonation won’t be great either, and the strings will go dead/lose their top end more quickly.

i used to use these string gauges for drop C:

.120
.90
.70
.50

i bought single Rotosounds to achieve this, rather than a pack. Note the proportionally fatter low string as the interval is greater!

The best solution would be a second, budget friendly bass, set up with thicker strings and proper intonation for drop C. However i realise this may not be the answer you’re looking for.

You could try a reasonably heavy set for EADG ie a 105 or 110 low string, and then just drop them to C as needed. It won’t completely get rid of the problem or sound as good, but might help.
Click to expand...

This is all great information, thank you! I'm sure that buying a second bass is the best option but my main bass is already a budget bass and I'm a college student so maybe I'll hold off on that haha. I'll probably end up buying a reasonably heavy set and tuning down as needed in addition to lowering my pickups a little. I'm hoping that if I turn the amp to a reasonable volume it won't matter if the noise doesn't completely go away since when I wore headphones I didn't really notice it.
 
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#13
ryan pate said:
Yes some advice. make certain you have a proper fitting screw driver and keep firm down ward pressure as you turn the screws clockwise slowly and evenly move from one to the other every 1-2 revolutions so you do not to strip the screw head or “cock” the pickup and break the ear off the pickup cover. when you get it tuned also check intonation/string length and adjust if necessary.If the string is too floppy in the lower tuning you can fix that with a heavier string gauge.IE.;on my drop c basses (all are 4 stringers) I buy 5 string sets and use the b thru d strings. .065-.130
Click to expand...

Great advice, thank you! Interesting that you roll with the 5 string sets, I will definitely consider that.

ryan pate said:
For those three different tunings you may want (if you don’t have a second bass atm ) to look at a digitech “drop pedal” as an option.
Click to expand...

I should look into this more. I've heard about the drop pedal, but what I've heard has been kinda hit or miss. I'm afraid to spend money on something I might not like the result of though
 
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#14
toomuchstraw said:
This is all great information, thank you! I'm sure that buying a second bass is the best option but my main bass is already a budget bass and I'm a college student so maybe I'll hold off on that haha. I'll probably end up buying a reasonably heavy set and tuning down as needed in addition to lowering my pickups a little. I'm hoping that if I turn the amp to a reasonable volume it won't matter if the noise doesn't completely go away since when I wore headphones I didn't really notice it.
Click to expand...

Look into the digitech drop pedal. they work excellent and change your tuning with one click of your foot...affordable witchcraft.
 
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#15
Update: I've decided to give my bass a full setup + new strings (Ernie Ball Power Slinkies where thickest gauge is 110 so I can play reg tuning/without a pick too) + adjust the pickup height if the previous steps don't fix my problems. I've never done a setup before, but I watched a couple videos and it doesn't seem too bad to do myself! Will try it later today. Any advice about setups that videos don't normally touch on?
 
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#16
Just do the steps in order and, if you’re new to it, stop and look and think about what the next step is as you move on.

I typically go:
Neck relief
String height
Nut height
Intonation
Pickup height

There are exceptions if something is really out. For instance, if the pickups are obviously too close to the strings I’ll lower them first then go through the steps and adjust to right height in order.
 
#17
Matt Liebenau said:
Just do the steps in order and, if you’re new to it, stop and look and think about what the next step is as you move on.

I typically go:
Neck relief
String height
Nut height
Intonation
Pickup height

There are exceptions if something is really out. For instance, if the pickups are obviously too close to the strings I’ll lower them first then go through the steps and adjust to right height in order.
Click to expand...

Awesome, that confirms what I've been reading! Based on the picture I posted do you think that the pickups are obviously too close to the strings? Or is it too difficult to tell that just from a below-average phone picture?

And thank you :)

For context, I think I'm mainly going to roll with these two sources in addition to everybody's advice on this thread:
How do I set up my bass guitar properly? · Customer Self-Service
 
#19
Matt Liebenau said:
Just do the steps in order and, if you’re new to it, stop and look and think about what the next step is as you move on.

I typically go:
Neck relief
String height
Nut height
Intonation
Pickup height

There are exceptions if something is really out. For instance, if the pickups are obviously too close to the strings I’ll lower them first then go through the steps and adjust to right height in order.
Click to expand...
I would suggest reversing the last two steps and set your pickup height before you set your intonation because if your pickups are too close to the strings, the magnetic string pull will throw off the intonation making precise adjustment difficult if not impossible.
 
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#20
toomuchstraw said:
Awesome, that confirms what I've been reading! Based on the picture I posted do you think that the pickups are obviously too close to the strings? Or is it too difficult to tell that just from a below-average phone picture?

And thank you :)

For context, I think I'm mainly going to roll with these two sources in addition to everybody's advice on this thread:
How do I set up my bass guitar properly? · Customer Self-Service
Click to expand...



It’s always hard to tell from a picture but the pickup does appear too close to the strings so maybe lower that a bit before you start the setup.
 
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