5 months later, still getting string buzz

[Troyboi]

Well I’ve been playing since the start of June this year and I practice at least 1 hour a night and even 2-3 hours on a weekend.

I can play a number of songs changing between A AMin C D Dmin E Emin G E7 B7 C7 Fmaj7 Cadd9 Asus4 however I’m still getting string buzz especially on high e with chords like Cadd9 A and D.

Also I can finger an F and a Bm bar chord with all strings ringing out properly but when I try to change to these chords in a song I end up with muted strings.

It’s frustrating that with so much practice I still have these problems. I’m worried that I might have gotten into some bad habits?

[SunnyDee]

Originally Posted by Troyboi

Well I’ve been playing since the start of June this year and I practice at least 1 hour a night and even 2-3 hours on a weekend.

I can play a number of songs changing between A AMin C D Dmin E Emin G E7 B7 C7 Fmaj7 Cadd9 Asus4 however I’m still getting string buzz especially on high e with chords like Cadd9 A and D.

Also I can finger an F and a Bm bar chord with all strings ringing out properly but when I try to change to these chords in a song I end up with muted strings.

It’s frustrating that with so much practice I still have these problems. I’m worried that I might have gotten into some bad habits?

Very frustrating, but that you care to play it cleanly is a good thing. There may be bad habits/technique, but if so, probably pretty minor and probably easily fixed if you find them. I was rolling my ring finger away from the fret on an open C and getting buzz for quite a while before I slowed down (super slow) and saw what the problem was. It was easy enough to correct in a few days, then. On the high e, maybe you're touching it slightly with the ring finger on the B string? The muting, when I place the barre first, my finger is straight and everything goes well. Occasionally when I change into it, my finger is not straight and some muting will happen, more practice with the clean shape fixes that, I think. Try slowing everything down till you see whatever the minor issue is.

When things like this were really bugging me, I detuned and capoed back up to shorten the distance between frets. Practicing where it was easier for me and getting it right made it easy to go back to the full fretboard with better technique.

[TBman]

Take the F and Bm chords and make an exercise with them. Make sure you go at the pace you can change back and forth with no buzz, go no faster. You want to do 100 chord changes between those 2 chords a night at the minimum.

[SunnyDee]

Originally Posted by TBman

Take the F and Bm chords and make an exercise with them. Make sure you go at the pace you can change back and forth with no buzz, go no faster. You want to do 100 chord changes between those 2 chords a night at the minimum.

TBman - I would question this practice, and feel free to correct me, but there are no common keys (outside of blues) that would play these two chords together, so I wouldn't, personally, spend a lot of energy putting that particular change into "muscle memory."

[mickthemiller]

First, we all have times/certain guitars when we have fingers that seem to get in the way and cause buzzes. Often a new guitar's string pacing takes some getting used to with just minor shifts in the way a chord is fingered. Practice the chords that cause the problems slowly, picking each string and adjusting if it sounds dull or buzzy. This should teach your fingers memory to go where they should. Alternatively, you may need to try a guitar with a wider nut or even wider string spacing. Strangely, the odd millimetre across the string spacing can make a world of difference. Hope things improve, but don't give up, there is so much pleasure to come from a guitar.

[arwhite]

Man, I've been playing guitar for 25 years and I still get string buzz and muted strings on different chords at different times. I quit worrying about it 24.5 years ago.

[TBman]

Originally Posted by SunnyDee

TBman - I would question this practice, and feel free to correct me, but there are no common keys (outside of blues) that would play these two chords together, so I wouldn't, personally, spend a lot of energy putting that particular change into "muscle memory."

Dexterity first, music second.

[Twincam]

Considering you have only been working on this for five months, you are doing exceptionally well! Don't get discouraged and keep working on those difficult chord changes, it takes a lot of time and effort to achieve the competence you strive for. You are on a life long journey.

[reeve21]

I will also say that you are doing very well for 5 months in.

Your barre chords will continue to get better. I had been strumming them with a flat pick for decades and thought I had it barre chords down cold--until I began fingerpicking! I was blissfully unaware that not every string was sounding on my strums until my fingers had "settled in" to the chord change.

Don't obsess over this, especially if you are a strummer. By the second strum after the chord changes your fingers will learn to settle in and all strings will ring out. The first strum just has a little extra percussive effect!

Again, this is probably not something you can force. Progress isn't linear. Try not to focus on the result, pick a process for practice and commit to it regardless of whether it is working well or not on any given day. One day you will be playing them easily without even realizing it.

[roylor4]

Originally Posted by reeve21

I will also say that you are doing very well for 5 months in.

Your barre chords will continue to get better. I had been strumming them with a flat pick for decades and thought I had it down cold--until I began fingerpicking!

Don't obsess over this, especially if you are a strummer. By the second strum after the chord changes your fingers will learn to settle in and all strings will ring out. The first strum just has a little extra percussive effect!

Again, this is probably not something you can force. Progress isn't linear. Try not to focus on the result, pick a process for practice and commit to it regardless of whether it is working well or not on any given day. One day you will be playing them easily without even realizing it.

Well said and I concur 100%.

You should also make sure that your strings are sounding clearly at the frets used to make these chords. You can do this simply by playing single notes.

While it's most likely just part of the learning curve there is always the chance that you actually are getting fret buzz that you are not causing. My .02

[Mr Fingers]

Good post, Troiboy. I've been playing for a lifetime and experience buzzing on various "big" chords often enough myself, that's for sure. Short fingers and big knuckles sure don't help! As others have said, it's a combination of right placement to begin with, and then pressure (of different kinds and degrees). Most of us go through the stage of just getting comfortable with the actual chord shape, and then moving into and out of it, and then getting all notes to sound, and, eventually, cleaning it up. In my experience, that last step can take years, and depending on the chord sequences you encounter, there are some moves that are nearly impossible to execute cleanly. Because they're hard! You sound like you're doing really well, so I would definitely not be discouraged. You wouldn't believe how long it took me to get my LH pinky to perform!

[Swamp Yankee]

Pfft - it's obvious to me that you need a new guitar.

[la palma C]

Originally Posted by SunnyDee

TBman - I would question this practice, and feel free to correct me, but there are no common keys (outside of blues) that would play these two chords together, so I wouldn't, personally, spend a lot of energy putting that particular change into "muscle memory."

The point isn't to commit particular chord changes to muscle memory. The point is to work up the dexterity and ability to finger either of those chords quickly and cleanly in the context of a timed exercise.

Since you mention it though, at your stage you might maximize the efficiency of your practice time by splitting this up into two exercises -- one that switches between Bm and G or Bm and D, and another that switches between F and C or F and Am. Obviously you would get half as many reps on your problem chords for a given amount of time, but you would also be getting the feel of common chord changes in the process.

[amyFB]

Has the guitar been checked to verify the setup is as it should be?

seems worth eliminating that possibility.

[TBman]

Originally Posted by la palma C

The point isn't to commit particular chord changes to muscle memory. The point is to work up the dexterity and ability to finger either of those chords quickly and cleanly in the context of a timed exercise.

Since you mention it though, at your stage you might maximize the efficiency of your practice time by splitting this up into two exercises -- one that switches between Bm and G or Bm and D, and another that switches between F and C or F and Am. Obviously you would get half as many reps on your problem chords for a given amount of time, but you would also be getting the feel of common chord changes in the process.