Choosing DSX/USX?

Playing Technique
#1

Hi,

I went through the primer and I’m still left with questions. So much great material, but it shows really what is available and comes with great checklists for any motion.

I’m German, so obviously I want to choose the most efficient and quickest motions available. :crazy_face:
I am quickest when sitting down and performing a DSX escape, UWPS and I pick a lot from the wrist or even with the fingers, but I see a lot of changes when I’m trying to go fast.

Slow = fingers
Medium = wrist
Fast = elbow

And the faster I go, the smaller the motion gets. For example in tremolo the pick barely crosses the string.

I can go faster sitting down (guitar slanted so I see the frets more) with a DSX motion. I feel less tension with a USX motion.
Also, when I’m strumming and pick single notes in between it seems more natural to go into a USX motion with the pick slanted downwards because that’s already the direction where I’m coming from.

So

  1. Going fast on single notes = DSX with Upwards slant

  2. Playing with less tension and being able to effortlessly switch between strumming and picking = USX with downwards slant

Now, what do I do ? My ego wants to go as fast as possible of course.

Thanks
Stefan

2 Likes
#2

I would recommend you to just simply post your tremolo test in technique critique and then build up your speed from that motion.
Seriously, posting on technique critique was the biggest game changer for me and I regret not doing it sooner.
My main motion for fast picking is DSX elbow and it is really effortless compared to what i’ve been trying to do beforehand. I haven’t yet got secondary motion down so ascending after upstrokes doesn’t work for me but everything else just works. I believe some day it will also click for me and then sky is the limit.

3 Likes
#3

Good question. Generally speaking, we’ve been following the approach @YngwieFan45 outlines. Meaning, you don’t choose the motion, the motion chooses you. Yes, people can learn anything in the long term. But in the short term, most players don’t have multiple joint motions they know how to do, they have one. Whichever that motion is, that’s the escape you’re good at and that’s the one you should use if you want to begin playing right away.

I wouldn’t worry that one joint motion is “better” than another. I understand you want to choose the one that is the fastest, or capable of playing the most complicated lines, or whatever your criteria is. But as a “primary motion”, they are all equivalent.

Just as one example, Vinnie Moore is nominally an “elbow” player, but of course when you watch his old instructional videos, it quickly becomes apparent that this is not the full story. He activates wrist motion and small amounts of forearm at various points, and the result is the he can alternate pick just about any line, including one-note-per-string arpeggio lines.

So again, try not to decide ahead of time that a motion is good or bad. Instead, find out which one you can do and use that one.

6 Likes
#4

Great answers, @YngwieFan45 @Troy. thanks a lot.
I have some gear inbound in order to be able to shoot a high quality video.

DSX is the one for me, I’m fairly convinced. This is what I’m gravitating towards whenever I grab the guitar and just subconsciously noodle something.

But same like in Golf, some movements are perceived massively different than they are in reality.

I just spent two hours just on reviewing and trying different pick grips and more importantly Hand positions. I don’t know why, but I spread my hand out and anchor my pinkie. Especially in arpeggios.

On the other side I get my motion from the elbow, so actually the anchoring actually feels very limiting and yet I do it.
When I played with the trigger grip, my hand closed and actually much less contact to the body of the guitar my head went „whoa, you’ll never hit any string reliably“, but after a few minutes it felt really solid and this posture fits much more to my motion I feel.
When I tried Legato with the closed hand posture, I subconsciously put more of my wrist on the guitar.

The hand „posture“ - is that also where we assume it finds us rather than we find it?

#5

I’d still like to see your tremolo test, I don’t think anyone can give you any useful advice without seeing your picking motion in action first.

I’m an elbow picker too and I do anchor very often by the way. Also, I wanted to go for USX despite having a DSX primary motion. It’s not a choice, honestly. Maybe it can be in the long term, but I’m having way too much fun since February using my DSX motion to start experimenting with other motions. First, I’d like to max this out. I’d recommend the same to you. Spend time with the motion what feels the most natural for you, right now.

4 Likes
#6

Ok, here we go!
https://forum.troygrady.com/t/beginner-player/44365

1 Like
#7

I’m happy to finally hear that you are having fun :smiley:

You are usually pretty critical of your own playing, even when it sounds great to the rest of us.

By the way do you have any footage that clearly shows a before/after comparison? You made great progress in a very short time by changing your approach, and I think other people will benefit from seeing that :slight_smile:

3 Likes
#8

I really have days when I enjoy playing. But on the other days… :sweat_smile: Of course, after I can do something I couldn’t do before, I also have new goals, I feel like this will never end.

I’ll take a look if I can find anything but recording myself was something I rarely did in the past. Maybe I can find some old footage before I took my big break years ago.

1 Like