Sweep picking speed

I’m currently working on sweep picking my question is am I supposed to try and use the same concept as starting with speed? because my sweeping is ungodly slow

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Hi! Sorry for the delay. I think in general, if something is super slow, and feels awkward, and is much slower and more awkward than other things you do with picking, then usually what that means to me is that I’m doing it wrong. So one way or another, you have to find some way of moving that’s fast. If you can’t take that first step, even if that first step is crazy sloppy, then you might just be wasting your energies on the wrong approach.

That’s really what the “Starting With Speed” video is about. It’s not saying you’re going to magically be fast and accurate from day one. It’s basically saying, use speed as a test to determine if you’re even in the ballpark of the correct motion. Once you find that, then you can try and slow it down and make it accurate.

In terms of picking motion the first question here is whether you have a basic alternate picking motion happening on a single note on a single string, at a realistic rate of speed (> 150bpm sixteenth notes). I know alternate picking and sweeping are different motions, but if you can move in a fast, relaxed way with alternate picking, at a realistic rate of speed, then this gives a good idea what smooth and fast should feel like for other motions too.

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