Loud clicking noise

Could be. Did you try and restore settings?

Yes, if your iPod hasn't failed yet, it certainly will soon.. look forward to getting a sad face icon on your iPod's screen soon.. The sad truth is, you'll have to buy a new one. I had the same thing happen to me, i took it into "Fix That Mac", a Bay Area repair shop for Apple computers, iPods, &iPhones.. After being dishonest for weeks(please believe i left a yelp review!), they finally told me it was more expensive to repair it than buy a new one. After swapping my mint condition parts, they gave me back a hunk of junk! #jerks!!