A lot of layers seem to find inside string changes harder than outside string changes. Could you give some examples of what happens when you try to do fast inside picking if inside picking is something you find difficult or used to have trouble learning? Thanks.
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I think this often has to do with swiping. You can swipe through the next string when doing an outisde string change. This doesnât work so well with inside picking. On the other hand, there are people (like me) who find inside picking easier. In my opinion this is caused by the fact that with inside picking, thereâs more room for the pickslant change to happen. When doing an outside string change while switching the pickslant, the pick moves closer to the next string both because of string tracking and because of the pickslant change, which makes swiping more likely to happen unintentionally.
When the whole line is playable with one way pickslanting, I dont think there is any difference between inside and outside picking at all.
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I feel thereâs still a small difference in that case (one-way pickslanting): with outside picking the momentum from the previous pickstroke points towards the string you will play next, while with inside picking it points away from it. This gives me the feeling that inside picking is always a bit more athletically demanding. On the other hand, outside string changes play themselves in a one-way scenario!
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Youâre right, I just tried this and noticed that there is a difference. Probably only a small one, but itâs something I never realized before.
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I believe the biggest difficulty encountered in inside picking is this: Suppose you are going to play a note on the B string with a downstroke and then a note on the G string with an upstroke. When picking the downstroke on the B string th pick must clear the string, then change direction to go back and hit the G string with an upstroke.
Well, once the pick has cleared the B string and itâs time to move the pick back and downwards at the same time, the player runs a risk of accidentally hitting the B string a second time. Itâs somewhat similar to a swipe. The faster you play, the less time you will have to indulge in the luxury of clearing the B string by a significant margin. This gives the player very little room to avoid hitting the B string again while on the way back down and across to picking the G string!
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I think Troy would say something along the lines of, âWell is it really harder? Because if you play an ascending pentatonic scale as a DWPS, you donât even think about how each string change is inside. You donât feel it either.â I agree with this, however what youâre describing seems to be an inside change which is counter to your pickslant. For example, a DWPS is gonna notice this âinside difficultyâ whilst trying to change strings after a downstroke during a descending lick. Meanwhile, and UWPS will notice difficulties switching strings after an upstroke whilst ascending.
With pure alternate playing, I have categorized it into four different encounters while switching strings. Two of which are going to be easy for someone and two are not depending on their pickslanting orientation. They are: Ascending inside change (dwps), ascending outside change (uwps), descending inside change (uwps), descending outside change (dwps).
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Thank you but unfortunately I slant the pick the way you and Troy suggest for the inside string changes and on the downstroke on the g string (for example) allowed by the upstroke on the D string, I accidentally hit the G string twice in a row - first the intended pick stroke and then a sort of accidental swipe as Iâm trying to move the pick downwards and across to the D string.
Doesnât this happen or at least used to happen to any of you? How did you fix the problem?
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I slant the pick the same way. Never had a problem with what you are describing, but when I try to go inside the strings while descending I sometimes double pick the downstroke on the higher string so I get what youâre saying. Just need more slant or a straighter angled trajectory.
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Yes! I double pick the downstroke on the higher string! Thatâs what happens to me when I am playing fast.
Which way did you fix the problem - use more slant or use a straighter angled trajectory?
@Troy, if youâve been reading this thread, did you ever have the problem I have and how did you fix it? If you never had the problem I had, then still, what do you suggest I do to fix the problem?
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Yeah I still have trouble with it sometimes but I have to really think about rotating my wrist more and pick away harder from the string upwards. Itâs like a rotational movement.
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I think this is one of those âa picture is worth 1000 wordsâ situations. Put up a clip and I think it will be a lot clearer whatâs going wrong!
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I remember hearing somewhere that its almost âacceptableâ to double-pick as long as you can mute it somewhat⌠sorta like âswipingâ. But I guess it depends on the style.
Thank you Troy! I will need to get the necessary equipment first though. I suppose all I really need to get is a camcorder and a tripod on which to put it. Is there anything else I would need?
While I have your attention (and I appreciate it!) I know that some peopleâs cell phones record like what I suppose would be the equivalent of a low-level camcorder. My question is, and keep in mind my computer is a Macintosh laptop, regarding these types of phones. Are there any cell phones which offer better than just the equivalent of a low-level camcorder and if so, could you tell me which are the best ones for roughly $1,000 or less? Is it important that I get an Apple iPhone to make music videos of myself since my computer is a Macintosh, or would, say, a Samsung Galaxy be just as easy to use with my laptop regarding transferring the music videos from phone to laptop, and other related functions? Thank you very, very much Troy! 
That is what swiping is: a muted alternated picked note to make string changes easier. If it happens and you canât hear it, and the player doesnât know theyâre doing it, and the listener doesnât know itâs happening, and nobody can even see it with out high speed video, then it is like the tree that falls in the forest. Who cares?
If you can hear it a little, but only on certain lines, and not at all in a mix, then also, who cares? Use what works.
One issue that is more problematic is when some people can hear it, and think it detracts, and others, possibly the player, cannot. Then you have a judgement call on your hands.
Developing critical listening skills is really important. It is very, very easy to convince yourself you are doing or hearing a thing. The more you can hear, the more you can make that judgement call of whether a thing actually detracts. But if you canât hear it, and your audience can, then you canât make that judgement call.
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The spec you are looking for is 120fps video. Any phone that can do this is good. The newer models will have better picture quality at 120fps than earlier phones that can do 120fps, but all 120fps phones will have better picture quality (for analysis) than phones that can only do 30fps.
Any iPhone since the 5s can do 120fps. The cheapest new iPhone out right now is totally fine. And probably any recent model Android phone. Again, just look for 120fps video as the spec.
Weâll try and make a short video about filming your own playing for study purposes. This way everyone is on the same page.
Thanks Troy. Just one more thing: How important is it that the brand of the phone is Apple since my computer is a Macintosh, or can I get a Samsung Galaxy and will it be just as or almost as easy to use with my Macintosh as far as transferring videos from home to computer and anything else I might have to do with the music video recorded on the phone after it gets transferred to my laptop Macintosh? Thanks Troy!
Thanks⌠interesting topic. And interesting how totally different approaches arise to solve a problem.
This I havenât tested. Android is the most popular device so I would think apps like Photos, iMovie, or FCPX would import their photos and videos in similar fashion as they do for IOS. Anyone try this?