double thumbing advice

[malcthebass]

Decided to try and master this once and for all. When the thumb comes up should it be on the nail? When I have tried it just slightly off the nail on side off thumb it bleeds after about 5mins of practice!

Cheers

[doctor_of_the_bass]

Ouch!

Try using the nail - I find I get a clearer tone on the `upstroke' etc.

Be careful!

Nick

[Bilbo]

I have recently discovered this technique and argue that it can be done without the nail (I hve hardly any nails) but not for more than a few mintes at a time at first. You need to build up a callous on the top side of your thumb the same as you did the bottom side so take your time an be patient. Its a case of practising the techique until it is 'automatic' and confortable, same as most other aspects of technique (PS I haven't used it on a gig, yet, and feel that I am unlikely to!)

[urb]

[quote name='bilbo230763' post='503544' date='Jun 2 2009, 09:32 AM']I have recently discovered this technique and argue that it can be done without the nail (I hve hardly any nails) but not for more than a few mintes at a time at first. You need to build up a callous on the top side of your thumb the same as you did the bottom side so take your time an be patient. Its a case of practising the techique until it is 'automatic' and confortable, same as most other aspects of technique (PS I haven't used it on a gig, yet, and feel that I am unlikely to!)[/quote]

+1 - be careful when starting out with this technique - one thing that is kind of essential is that you lower your action as you are in danger of hurting yourself quite badly if you have your strings too high - which means there will a lot more tension in them and far more resistance when playing 'through' and 'up' on the down-up motion. The ideal wrist/arm action for this should actually be quite light, keep you thumb rigid but your wrist quite loose... Marcus shows you all you need to know in 18 second...



And then Victor explains how to add in a pluck with your index finger...



Hope that helps - take your time, build up the calluses and a muscles and in six months or a year you should be well away - but ma sure it grooves!

Cheers

Mike

[Uncle Balsamic]

I cannot do the up stroke part with my thumb at all. How is it done exactly as I can't grasp it from the videos.

[YouMa]

Its hard,my thumb is slim which doesnt help.

[Bilbo]

The pull off with the thumb is almost imperceptable (like a ghost note version of a thump) and you don't need to pull hard as much as 'brush past' the string with your thumb - just enough to make it click. The rest is about your sound and how balanced the various aspects of the technique are in teh overall effect.

[51m0n]

[quote name='bilbo230763' post='506130' date='Jun 5 2009, 09:44 AM']The pull off with the thumb is almost imperceptable (like a ghost note version of a thump) and you don't need to pull hard as much as 'brush past' the string with your thumb - just enough to make it click. The rest is about your sound and how balanced the various aspects of the technique are in teh overall effect.[/quote]

+1 you see some guys doing this (Alain Caron and Michael Manring come to mind, but I may be wrong) and they are slapping right over the fretboard, several frets in, their return stroke seems to just clip the string such that it flicks back and strikes the frets just hard enough to give a nice ghost note. They are super smooth at it as a result. In fact Alain Caron's slap technique may well be the most refined out there, appears totally effortless compared to Vic even.

I find the hardest aspect of this is consistently not digging in, but then I first saw this demonstrated on a Beaver Felton video and he whacked hell out of it, and that has led me down the wrong path a bit on this technique. [Note to self, sort that out Si!]

For instance:-

Edited June 5, 2009 by 51m0n

[Ballie]

Lower action is definitely easier, depending on how low you want to make it. Could drop a string guage too if it suits ya. You shouldn't be forcing your way through the string, it's just about training the muscle memory to the point where it just happens. It's like any other technique, once it's second nature, it'll sound really smooth. I however am not at that stage xD

I only wanted to go as far as using the technique on a fill to mix things up a bit. Might have a bash at a couple of Wooten's easier tunes sometime.

Setup of the bass is really important though. Action should be lower so less force is needed to bring the string into contact with the fret. I've seen guys trying to DT with action like 6mm with minimal results. Everyone has their own way of doing it, hand position and what not. Just find the way that feels best for you!