DPS, UPS, 2WPS Critique Request

Technique Critique
#1

So I’ve been trying to find the right sweet spot for awhile as I posted elsewhere. I managed to record some video today. I apologize that my phone camera cannot do 120 FPS, or if it can, I cannot figure out how to set it to that mode. So there is no slow mo, I checked it on youtube and it looks OK setting it to half speed I think. If not I’m not sure what to do about that. I apologize in advance for the guitar jumping a bit, my chair is a bit bouncy, I’ll use a different chair next time.

I have trouble not tensing up, as I also mentioned. First video is how fast I can pick relaxed, and the rest are when I tense up a bit doing about 90% of my top speed. I’ve only been playing again for 2 months after 10 years off, so I’m not anywhere near peak form. Also I noticed that when I play rhythm, I hold the pick totally different (I noticed this later) and I can do that a lot long and pretty fast, so maybe I need to just do that and not use the suggested hand positions and techniques. I’ll take some video of that in a couple days.

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I can't find a motion, help
#2

I’m off to bed now (UK time!) but I did a quick edit so that your videos embed for easier critique!

For future reference, just paste the raw YT link in ints own line like this and it’ll embed:

some text

https://youtu.be/LKnGlRk-6ew

more text
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#3

OK will do, I thought there would be a hot link like on other forums, sorry for my confusion.

The videos won’t play for me that way, odd.

Good night!

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#4

@tommo So is this OK? does it suck?

#5

I don’t see any real difference between the four clips. It’s all essentially the same motion – downstroke escape. And since you’re playing with a black pick, we can’t see what the pick is doing!

Apart from that, I think your DSX motion looks pretty smooth and fast. Perhaps @tommo has something to say about the tension you feel!

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#6

no it doesn’t suck at all! :slight_smile:

especially the two middle videos - but I must say all your videos look like downstroke escape to me - so you may not be doing the motions you think you are doing and that could contribute to a feeling of discomfort/lack of control! Just semi-educated guessing of course.

In the first video you seem to start with something that could be upstroke escape, but then you speed it up slightly and I have the impression you revert to DSX straight away.

in the “2wps” video, it appears to me that you are still maintaining a steady downstroke escape motion. So that is not compatible with all the string changes in the phrase, which again may explain why you are hitting a few extra strings and perhaps feeling the extra resistance.

Re-watch them in slo mo and see if you agree/disagree with my observations, we can take it from there :slight_smile:

EDIT: and also I’d be curious to know what happens when you play a DSX-only phrase (only downstroke changes). Do you experience less tension there?

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#7

I think I should maybe get the camera closer to the pick so you can what I’m doing better. This is a learning experience in many ways I think. Yes, I’m using a Jazz III XL now, which is kind of hard to see with my black guitars too. Let me try to take some better video. I experiment a lot, sometimes I’m impatient too with myself. I have off and on days too. Some days I think I can’t do something, and right when I think ahh screw it I can’t do this… the next day I can. This is one of those days. I changed how I hold my guitar to a more classical position, and now I can pick faster without tensing. But rather than ramble I’ll go take some more videos.

Also if anyone knows a 3rd party 120 fps camera software for A Moto G7 , let me know. There seems to be but so many sites are full of crap and untrustworthy I tend to go by word of mouth from other people. I’m not a phone person so I have little experience with these things.

#8

@tommo

Ok maybe these are better? I’m still trying to get a decent angle so the slanting is clearer. I used an orange 351 in two of them so maybe it’s easier to see. I used my main guitar too, so it’s maybe a little better. I’m not much of a photographer :smiley:

Please excuse the amp, I hate it and can’t get a decent sound out of it.

I know my playing isn’t good right now, I’m not really worried about that as it will get better with time. It’s the technique I want to make sure looks correct.

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#10

“Not good right now”? This is a joke right?! If Vinnie Moore played this, it wouldn’t sound very different from what you’re doing here. In the '80s, if you were in a band that had a hit and this playing was in the solo, this level of scale picking technique would have put you on the cover of a damn magazine.

When you’re using this particular type of wrist picking motion and especially when you’re playing scale stuff like this, I wouldn’t worry too much about “pickslanting”. You’re not trying to influence the way the pick is slanted, you’re trying to change the picking motion so that it moves on a different diagonal. I think you probably already know this because it looks like youre doing it. But just to be clear, these are changes in the motion that you’re controlling, not really the “slant” of the pick.

Aslo, because you’re using wrist motion, these changes will be really tiny, because wrist motions are almost flat to the strings. That’s correct, that’s the way wrist motions work. So you’re doing this right.

Instead, I would just work on applying this motion to a wide variety of patterns and licks that you want to play. If you ever percieve any lack of hand synchronization, you can slow it down a small amount and see if you can hear what’s wrong and fix it. Don’t go down to super duper slow mode because the motions can get a little robotic. Keep them at smooth and natural speeds.

On a side note, if you have a Moto G7, your phone can already do slow motion. You don’t need an app. Here are the instructions:

http://motorola-global-en-roe.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/136175/~/using-the-camera%3A-recording-videos---moto-g7-plus

When you do this, point the headstock a little more toward the camera lens so we’re looking a little more down the strings. Then go into the videos and you can set the part that plays in slow motion using the sliders. Personally, I like when you just post the whole clip in regular speed, then post the same clip again completely in slow motion. This way you can compare each one back to back.

Thanks for putting these up and nice work here.

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#11

I know it’s probably obvious to some, but to me it isn’t. What are you playing in this last clip? I want to woodshed something on electric and this sounds like what I want to play, can you explain what you’re doing here? It sounds awesome and fast as hell btw!

#12

@Troy Wow thank you for the kind words. I actually think it’s pretty sloppy in this clip, I’ve gotten it smoother and cleaner now over the last day and more relaxed and extended it to 3 strings cleanly and now working on 4 for the Batio ascending lick. I’ll post some more video in about a week after I practice more and get things smooth.

Cover of a magazine? Naw I’m not professional level yet, I’ll get there, I’m determined though! I haven’t had this fire since I was 16 :smiley:

I have to thank you personally here, what you’ve created here has allowed me to get over a wall that I’ve had for literally 20 years!

Thanks for the link, old man learns new trick. Hehehe.

@JB_Winnipeg It’s ascending descending creating a set of two 5’s. In this pattern, 3, 3, 2, 2. Up Up Down Down and then repeats. I’m extending this now to 3, 3, 3, 2, 2 so that it becomes a 3 string ascending lick across the strings with 3 notes per string.

Side note, I try not to learn other peoples licks (Except Randy Rhoads because I love him), and come up with my own patterns and licks. If I do learn someone elses lick, I try to rearrange it so that’s it’s different in some way. Like play the notes in the reverse order, or play an ascending lick with the chunks descending, or similar if you get what I mean.

A simple example is like the opening lick to the Cowboy’s from Hell solo with the 3 hammer 3 note per string lick. Play the notes in the opposite order so it becomes 3 pull offs. It’s the same lick just with the note order reversed, it sounds cool as hell, pun intended.

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