My First Bass Pic and Right Thumb Placement?

[TripleB67]

In my first post someone mentioned you all like to see pics of gear...so here is my very first bass and amp (at age 51).  Yamaha RBX170Y and Ampeg BA108V2...both new for a total of $220!

If you didn't read my first post, here's a quick summary: I've tried the six string electric three times throughout my life with the longest stint being about two months.  It just never felt right....everything felt so mechanical.  I bought another six string (4th time is the charm right) last Thursday...haven't taken it out of the box.  While at the grand opening of the store I was listening to about ten people playing six strings all at the same time and it was so painful to my ears.  But off to the side there were two gentlemen playing the bass by feel (it seemed to me anyway) and just feeding off each other.  At that moment I realized that was what was missing every time I tried the six string....it felt so mechanical....I've been wanting an instrument that was more about feel!  Two days later I picked up the RBX170Y for $130 and the day after that the BA108V2 for $90!!

The question I have before I move on to my second day of playing is: where is the best place to have my right thumb while I'm plucking the strings?

I see some rest it on the upper edge of a pickup, others on the E string, and others allow it to move up and down along the strings depending on which string they're plucking.

I want to start out doing it the "best" way so I don't learn a bad habit that will eventually have to break.  So, which of those places is best for my right thumb placement?

Today I watched a beginner video that showed resting it on the E string.  This felt pretty natural for me (with 2 finger plucking) but I did feel like I was pushing down on the E string slightly.  I did a quick try resting my thumb on the top edge of the split pick up and also on the bridge pickup...it seemed to work fine but didn't feel as natural as resting on the E string and plucking the area right between the neck and bridge pickup.

One last newbie question: is it tough to tune the E string?  Both of my tuner amps had a hard time picking it up.  I'm try my Korg TM-60 tuner tomorrow to see if it will pick it up easier.

Although I would like to know about right thumb placement, the main reason for the post is that I wanted to make sure I said thanks to everyone who took the time to respond to my first post!  Your help was instrumental (bad pun intended) in making sure I got the best newbie bass and amp I could afford!!!  You can't believe how excited I am to start this bass learning journey!

TripleB67

 

Edited October 5, 2018 by TripleB67

[Newfoundfreedom]

Simple answer, wherever it feels the most comfortable. There is no right or wrong. I tend to alternate depending on what bass I'm playing and even song to song. 

Edited October 5, 2018 by Newfoundfreedom

[Delberthot]

If your tuner is having trouble with the E then play the harmonic on the 12th fret by lightly touching the E string right over the 12th fret an pluck the string

Some tuners, including some fitted to a bass amp, aren't sensitive enough to hear the E string, let alone the B so I've had to do this in the past.

Regarding the thumb, as per Newfoundfreedom's post, do what feels comfortable to you. there is no right or wrong. Depending on the bass I will use either the pickup or the E string, sometimes both

[Norris]

I tend to anchor my thumb on the top edge of the pickup. There are many who will espouse "floating thumb" technique, which is probably better for extended range basses (5, 6 or more strings). As has been said, whatever is most comfortable for you. Try not to press too hard if you're going to use the pickup - you might press it into the body reducing the response from the E string, or worse still induce stress in your thumb. It should be used as a point of reference rather than an "anchor"

Your next challenge will be damping the strings you are not playing. I tend to use both hands to do that, although it's not something I've done consciously, so I'd have difficulty explaining how I do it - I don't know! 

[EssentialTension]

Thumb on the pickup is fine, either P or J ... but remember also that you can alter tone and attack by moving right hand nearer to neck or to bridge. Playing over the end of the fretboard feels and sounds different to anchoring on the J pickup near the bridge. On the P is somewhere in the middle. Different songs, different sections of songs, might call for a different approach. But whatever works for you.

 

 

[Teebs]

3 hours ago, EssentialTension said:

Thumb on the pickup is fine, either P or J ... but remember also that you can alter tone and attack by moving right hand nearer to neck or to bridge. Playing over the end of the fretboard feels and sounds different to anchoring on the J pickup near the bridge. On the P is somewhere in the middle. Different songs, different sections of songs, might call for a different approach. But whatever works for you.

 

 

^^ This

Nice bass & amp - I hope they bring you lots of enjoyment

Edited October 5, 2018 by Teebs

[TripleB67]

10 hours ago, Delberthot said:

If your tuner is having trouble with the E then play the harmonic on the 12th fret by lightly touching the E string right over the 12th fret an pluck the string.  Some tuners, including some fitted to a bass amp, aren't sensitive enough to hear the E string, let alone the B so I've had to do this in the past.

Is a tuner attached to the bass (such as a Snark SN-5) any more effective than one sitting beside the guitar? 

TripleB67

[EssentialTension]

1 minute ago, TripleB67 said:

Is a tuner attached to the bass (such as a Snark SN-5) any more effective than one sitting beside the guitar? 

TripleB67

When you say 'sitting beside the guitar' do you mean tuning via the tuner's microphone and not plugged in with a lead? If so, then the clip-on tuner will be more effective. But the 'use the harmonic' advice is good.

[TripleB67]

56 minutes ago, EssentialTension said:

When you say 'sitting beside the guitar' do you mean tuning via the tuner's microphone and not plugged in with a lead? If so, then the clip-on tuner will be more effective. But the 'use the harmonic' advice is good.

Yes, via the tuner's microphone (through my phone with the two apps I tried or with the Korg 60).  Not plugged in.

Thanks!

So as to not to start another thread: After learning the basics, is it best for a beginner to learn notes (as with the original Hal Leonard Bass Method books) or to learn to read tablature?

Although I'm learning through videos right now, I would sort of like to have a book as well....just trying to figure out if I should order one that has me learn through notes or one that starts out with tablature.

TripleB

Edited October 5, 2018 by TripleB67

[Coilte]

Re thumb placement :   While there are no "right" or "wrong" places to put the thumb, there are tried and trusted safe places. Placing the thumb on the pick up causes the wrist to bend fairly sharply. Over time, this can lead to injury problems like carpel tunnel syndrome. To reduce your chances of experiencing any injury problems it is more beneficial to have BOTH wrists as straight as possible. 

For plucking, there are two techniques worth checking out.

1. The Floating Thumb Technique.

2. The Moveable Anchor. 

 

 

[Geek99]

Plus thumb plcking ...

[TripleB67]

On 05/10/2018 at 02:54, Delberthot said:

Some tuners, including some fitted to a bass amp, aren't sensitive enough to hear the E string, let alone the B so I've had to do this in the past.

Regarding the thumb, as per Newfoundfreedom's post, do what feels comfortable to you. there is no right or wrong. Depending on the bass I will use either the pickup or the E string, sometimes both

Interestingly, my Korg TM-60 tuner had absolutely no problem picking up the E string...must be a problem with my phone since neither app I tried was able to pick it up.

On 05/10/2018 at 03:07, Norris said:

I tend to anchor my thumb on the top edge of the pickup. There are many who will espouse "floating thumb" technique, which is probably better for extended range basses (5, 6 or more strings). As has been said, whatever is most comfortable for you. Try not to press too hard if you're going to use the pickup - you might press it into the body reducing the response from the E string, or worse still induce stress in your thumb. It should be used as a point of reference rather than an "anchor"

Your next challenge will be damping the strings you are not playing. I tend to use both hands to do that, although it's not something I've done consciously, so I'd have difficulty explaining how I do it - I don't know! 

I tried several different areas of thumb placement today as I practiced with my bass for about 75 minutes.  I think if my split neck pick ups were reversed, the top one to the right of the bottom one (if looking down on the bass while playing), then I could anchor my thumb there.  Resting my thumb on the E string is probably what is going to work best for me right now because I like plucking the strings between the neck and bridge pick up for the simple fact that I don't have to worry about hitting the pickups while plucking....and my arm/hand feel comfortable at that position.  Anchoring my thumb on the front split pickup seems to add some stress to my hand that doesn't need to be there.

But resting it on the string above the string I'm trying to play (ie: resting it on the A string when plucking the D string, resting it on the D string when plucking the G string, resting it on the E string when plucking the A string, and resting basically in the air when playing the E string) felt really comfortable as well.  Not sure how that will work when I start playing faster but for right now it felt pretty comfy.    

I found out what you mean about damping the strings I'm not playing.  At the end of my practice I looked for a super easy song intro for bass and stumbled upon Eye of the Tiger by Survivor.  I only learned the first 10 notes but at times I could hear the G string "rattling" through my amp...and I was taking it slow in order to make sure I got the notes right and didn't accidentally hit any other strings.  Definitely going to have to work on a technique for that!

TripleB67 

Edited October 7, 2018 by TripleB67

[Norris]

The main thing is to enjoy it and not to worry too much at this stage. There no single "right" way to play, just whatever is comfortable

[Reggaebass]

As Norris says     And imo    You can overthink these things just get some solid  Basslines together  play how you feel comfortable and then you can start refining your techniques in time ,the more you play you will find you start to do these things automatically 

[TripleB67]

2 hours ago, Reggaebass said:

 You can overthink these things just get some solid 

I tend to do that with new things...just trying to make sure I don't pick up any bad habits when starting out 😀

The method I described above (that I thought was the "floating thumb") was actual what Scott calls his "hybrid" style in this video.

Again, thanks for all the help!

TripleB67

[Reggaebass]

You are definitely doing the right thing trying different approaches, 2 years ago I decided to really improve my muting techniques and switched to the’ moveable thumb’ technique and it really works for me, just find what works for you  😀

[EssentialTension]

16 hours ago, TripleB67 said:

Definitely going to have to work on a technique for that!

It's good to improve technique ... but you don't need to listen to many isolated bass tracks to realise that what sounds good in the song and good in the mix may not be technically perfect.