So, I’m not sure if this is an issue that I need to be concerned about, but I’ve noticed as I’m fretting my fingers kind of slide across the strings a bit, which makes a localized sound but doesn’t seem to transfer to the amped sound. Is this something I need to address or something that is normal?
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Are you sure it doesn’t transfer?
Because if you really have some gain and loud output I suspect you hear it.
And that is the only criterium I would give to your question: Does it transfer to the amp? If not don’t worry about it. But make sure it doesn’t. Really turn your amp up to 11 just to test it one time. Don’t bust the amp while trying… but you know what I mean. It’s easy to miss subtle sounds when the amp is on a low setting to practice without angering neighbours.
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It’s normal and inevitable. Allegedly it can be eliminated with practice. But don’t worry, the only time it’s ever going to be heard is if you do a recording.
I still have that string noise, but then again I’ve not consciously made any effort to get rid of it yet. Flatwounds can help massively, but I don’t like flats and I would prefer to eliminate it using technique rather than rely on my gear.
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I’m not hearing it through the amp, though it might be masked by the dominant tone of the strings. I guess my question is, is it normal to slide your fingers when fretting?
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Thank You. I was concerned that this is an issue I need to correct. I will, of course, work on minimizing it as I progress. Thanks!
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To a degree, it is absolutely. You’ll even notice (now that you play an instrument yourself) that you hear the sliding and gripping sound in accoustic guitar recordings.
It’s not a sound you can eliminate completely.
So depending on your level I’d say don’t worry about it. There are probably more useful things for you to work on and I don’t think it’s one of the things one should already learn clean. It becomes cleaner the more you play. You just should not do it on purpose, except for actual slides.
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And weirdly, you will grow to like it 
Dead serious, it adds a nice human element to the sound.
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I sometimes get a similar mini slide noise when releasing a string if my fretting finger was in a very stretched position, because the finger lifts diagonally up, not straight up. Adjusting my wrist angle (pushing the elbow out) usually helps a bit. Maybe something similar is happening to you too, if you are pressing down on the strings diagonally, not vertically.
But as others have said it’s not a big deal, especially if it’s not audible through the amp.
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Keep in mind practicing alone is not real life (from a music perspective).
Once mixed up in a band, a lot of the little faults vanish, whether you are a bassist, guitarist, vocalist or horn player (esp sax players!).
It is really tough being tough on yourself in a vacuum, so don’t fret it too much (that is actually good advice for the problem at hand too, haha!).
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If even Victor Wooten lets fret buzz slide into a published track, I wouldn’t worry too much about that
You can hear it all over the track, but listen to 0:51 onwards
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These human elements, like the clacks Geezer has, just add texture. You won’t hear it in a mix though
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