Noise in engine but goes away almost when clutch lever pulled in.

the noise when in neutral is a bearing noise
it can be from a failing throw out bearing that is rattling until you put pressure on it ( will have to be replaced eventually) or an input shaft into the gear box which will have to be replaced sooner rather than later
IF it is hydraulic system with the engine idling see if you can manually pull the release lever away from the throw out bearing ( pushing the clutch slave piston back into the cylinder. If the noise stops it will be a throw out bearing
unfortunately if the slave cylinder is a concentric type (inside the bell housing )and not external you will not be able to test it

The news are not good, you need to replace the clutch pack.

It is because the clutch plates are rattling due to wear and tear. The plates wear with mileage and are cheap enough to buy and easy to fit. Buy a manual and follow the instructions. These books also contain the most common faults and how to fix them.

If noise goes away when clutch is pulled then it is a loose clutch basket,you need to replace clutch basket and clutch,They make complete replacment kits.Its not a big deal but I would stop riding it till you replace worn parts.Running it the way it is will result in a blown clutch and could do more damage.If you have some mechanical ability you can change this yourself.Good Luck Brian.....

No oil chain is behind the clutch I think. It's either the clutch (does the noise go away when you pull in the lever?) or the cam chain.

I'm not sure what you mean by "engage the clutch". If you mean when you pull the clutch lever, the noise goes away, I'd check the tension on my final drive belt. If the belt is loose, when the engine tries to slow the motorcycle down, the final drive belt tries to rise up off of the front belt pulley making it rub the underside of the starter to inner primary housing. When you pull the clutch lever in, you disengage the engine from the transmission and the engine breaking force is removed from the front pulley and the belt goes back down on the pulley.

Good Luck
Steve

Not a lot of information to go on. I really need more. Is the sound coming from the engine, transmission, rear wheel, front wheel, or you just can't tell? Does it tick when going down the road with the clutch lever pulled in? While you have the clutch lever pulled in, turn the engine off and see if it goes away. Try different things in order to get a "change" in the noise. Once you find something that makes the noise change, then figure out why.

Now, you're ticking could be an exhaust leak somewhere. Look for black soot around the exhaust pipe joints. I could also be rock hung in your drive belt. Roll the bike and look on the inside of the belt for a small rock or something hung in it.

Ride Safe
Steve

I have the same thing on my 2002 750 Honda Magna I have 20,000 miles (32,000 kilometers) The motorcycle operates flawlessly except for this noise. What it is, is the wear in the clutch plates allowing them to rattle. When you pull the clutch you have put pressure on these plates and the rattle stops. Also when you increase the revs a little the plates tighten up from centrifugal force. I'm just putting up with it until I have to replace the clutch, after replacement of the worn parts the noise will be gone as well.

try this. start the bike and let warm up. after warm up, pull in the clutch lever and notice if any of the noise goes away.this will help determine what part of the clutch the noise or(problem) could be in. if it goes away mostly when you pull in the clutch it could just be that the discs are beginning to wear enough to require replacement. this noise isnt unusual. its because of the extra clearance caused with the wearing of the discs. does the clutch "slip" any under hard acceleration? another indicator of clutch wear. check these items and verify your problem.

it is the same with my VT and when the engine is hot, the noise will go, so in my case the sound of the clutch is normal.