Im just trying to figure out how hard it was for you whne you first started slapping, and figure out if its just me:P What help did you have? Did you have trouble hitting the string and getting even tone? And did your wrist tire?
Also, did you get sound when you slapped when fretting notes? I only get a sound on open strings. Otherwise it just clicks (i defretted the bass now, but i believe it was like that before too)

I got taught it at lessons. I started doing some very basic exercises but they worked, co-ordination and endurance etc was all improved. To get to a good level it did take several hours over a few weeks to get to a decent level, this may have just been me though !? After that i started mainly working around octaves which today i still mainly do. You will have be tired of people telling you this perhaps but the only way to get better is practice, there is unfortunatly no substitue as effective. Try looking at slappin' and poppin' lessons on youtube or some sort of equivalent ? Hope this has been of some sort of help :)

I started with lessons, but sadly it turned out my teacher taught me some bad habits. Starting with good technique is so important. Slap-it and a CD by Ed Friedland really got me on the right track.

Good luck!

http://www.edfriedland.com/
http://www.slapit.com/

Ok, but is it usual to suck this much at slapping when you first try it?:P Just wanted to know if i was really untalented or something:)

Could be your bass. Some are not as slap freindly as others. Also make sure you have your tone knobs set right.

All i have is a volume knob and another that ihavent noticed any changed when turning. Its a squier.

Ok, but is it usual to suck this much at slapping when you first try it?:P Just wanted to know if i was really untalented or something:)
Not unusual at all. There are probably few that have a natural talent for slapping. Work on getting good with you thumb first then move on to adding dead notes and pops. I can't stress enough getting good instruction. Developing bad habits will cost you later.

Since I was essentially self-taught in this department, I'll chime in. YES I stunk at it when I first started. But watching other players do it, as well as figuring out what worked for me, then PRACTICING a LOT did wonders. A couple of points that work for me (but might not for you):
1) Use the side of your thumb
2) You don't need to hit as hard as you might think
Good luck and keep working at it!

Easy as pie.
It took me a couple days to get a decent thumb tone and I worked from there.

Easy as pie.
It took me a couple days to get a decent thumb tone and I worked from there.

Yeah pretty much the same. I didn't get it totally at first, I got Stu Hamm's instructional video and that cleared up a lot for me. Then I got Larry Graham's and Louis Johnson's and now I'm a funk machine oh yeah!! (well, maybe not that great:smug: )

Otherwise it just clicks (i defretted the bass now, but i believe it was like that before too)

Does this mean that you're trying to slap on a fretless bass?

No reason not to. It sounds great.

No reason not to. It sounds great.

Cool. I didn't know that was possible. Can you slap with flatwounds?

Its a cheap defretted squier and im upgrading soon;) Besides, from what i seen from my abuse, the fretboard hasnt been damaged:P

Slapping was one of the few parts I picked up NATURALLY. It really just came to me after watching a Red Hot Chili Peppers video, I just followed Flea's technique and I do little drum bits to start off songs since I just jam with a guitarist, I can make dead notes sound damn funky.

The trick is to just watch your favorite slap-bassist and copy his technique, then learn another slap bassist's technique and then copy his, then try and feel your own out, it's really different for everyone.

It was hard for me when I started. I blame part of it on having a super crappy bass, dead strings, no instruction, a 5 watt amp, and sucking! When I defretted that bass, I could no longer slap on it.

These days (9 years later) I slap all the time. It's one of my most developed techniques. I just slap though, rarely pop.

It was hard for me in the beginning. And the first bass I started learning on was a fretless.

I went to shows and watched bass players slap, I watched ppl slap in music stores and asked questions, I asked my slap happy bass playing friends for tips, I hounded bass players in other bands and asked 'em to show me stuff, and I bought a couple books and videos - some good, some not so.

The more you do it the easier it gets. Devote maybe 40 min a day in your routine and you'll have it down pretty quick

I still slap my fretless and it works fine (a little darker than fretted), but a fretted guitar with good strings is a lot easier IMO. And like the earlier poster said, you don't have to hit the string all that hard - although Louie Johnson says smack the hell out of it! Get his DVD - it's a kick in the butt cuz he's so funny! I'd only give it a 5 out of 10 as an instructional video, but his attitude is so right on!

[QUOTE=ryco;3616285]Louie Johnson says smack the hell out of it![QUOTE]

Oh yeah, I'm all for hard slapping. But you need to know volume control. When I play on my amp i tend to tone it down a bit, if I'm playing acoustically or just on an EB for a few friends really fast I let 'er rip, and even then it's too loud sometimes.

Slap is something I really picked up quickly. I could get a nice slap tone immediately. I guess I have a natural ability for it. On the other hand, I'm inacapable of playing with a pick well. So, you win some, you lose some.

ok don't try to learn slap from flea!!! even he admits his technique is sloppy tho he does use flats now hehe, try someone like larry graham 1st as he breaks his style down on his slappin and poppin super chopper bass lesson vid (you tube it) and some of his sly stone lines are pretty straight forward.

now on to the bass, i had a tangle wood MM copy and my slappin was meh mediocre at best then i got my yamaha 5 still didn't improve much (damn B string got/gets in the way) then my Jag and P bass (tele style) im slowly learning slap properly, and im loving the P for slap so to me a good bass made the difference but that is just me.

and yes i sucked for quite a while when i 1st started, but i took my initial style from flea so got the claw slap instead of the thumbs up slap for ages (watch flea do get up and jump to see what i mean)

I started slapping right after I got SlapIt! and practiced its exercises.

Ok thanks guys. Iwasnt planning on any super advanced slapping. Just simple slower stuff here and there. Not planning on popping either since its hard to fit pops into metal.

it is extremely important to start with good technique as well as a good fresh setup on the bass i would say. a new set of roundwounds. make sure to keep your thumb parellel to the strings or close to it and done do that dead hand twisting of the wrist downward slapping ala fieldy. this will only hurt you in the long run...i guess i will add an IMO, although i dont think it is necessary:-P

I would say learn popping also. Slap/pop is more about percussions than playing a melody, and learning some funk slap lines will help you and your technique alot to get the rythm right and be in the pocket when slapping.

It was tough for me, at first, because the bass I was using at the time was not slapper friendly. I can achieve the slap tone, but I can't employ it and put it to good use.

Slapping has never really been something I really wanted to learn, but I figure I will develop my skills, so that they are up to par sometime soon.

Slapping came easier then popping. Doing it with a metronome and using headphones to ensure proper intonation really helped me. I've been playing bass for nearly 10 years and writing a slap style bass line for my bands music is still challenging. Then again it could be the kind of music we do.

Since I was essentially self-taught in this department, I'll chime in. YES I stunk at it when I first started. But watching other players do it, as well as figuring out what worked for me, then PRACTICING a LOT did wonders. A couple of points that work for me (but might not for you):
1) Use the side of your thumb
2) You don't need to hit as hard as you might think
Good luck and keep working at it!

Pretty much the same for me. I was so bad at first I didn't bother pursuing it. A new bass did make a difference (went from an old Hagstrom to a Schecter Custom 4). The tone was better for slapping so it sounded better to start and inspired me to continue. 1) and 2) and the end suggestion are right on. Wehn you find yoruself getting it, it will take off.

Your Squier should have an ok tone for slap. Adjust your amp too. I find more treble helps.

Cheers

I started slapping right after I got SlapIt! and practiced its exercises.

+1

It was a comlete mystery to me before I got Slap It! - After, I was slapping in days! Freaked my other bass playing friends right out! There I was, a lowly high-school freshman in the 2nd jazz band. We were backstage at a school concert and I was slapping away showing off an exercise I just learned from Slap It! and the bass player from the top jazz band was all blown away!

"Do that again!" Damn! What are you doing? Show me! Damn!"

Slap it! Tony Oppenheim - get it!

All i have is a volume knob and another that ihavent noticed any changed when turning. Its a squier.

:crying:


You know, when I got my squier p-bass, I had no idea that it had NO tone at all until I bought some shiny new flatwounds. The answer to your problem may be as simple as changing the strings.

You might be right since the string i changed (one broke) has a tad better response. But im getting a fretted G&l tribute l2500 in a week, so problem solved:) But imight not be as bad as i thought. Ican atleast hit the right string (fairly well:), i just didnt try enough, since i didnt get any sound it didnt appeal at the moment. Ill get some kinda instruction book/dvd too.

Mmmmm Larry :)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eQzyt0KUxCQ

Slapping actually came pretty naturally to me when I first tried it, but I ended up developing some bad habits. It's been hard, now that I'm serious about bass playing and trying to improve my technique, unlearning them.

But like, how many hours/Days of slapping did it take for you guys to be able to hit the right string and get some decent sound?

But like, how many hours/Days of slapping did it take for you guys to be able to hit the right string and get some decent sound?

Right sound? Straight off the bat. Accauracy? That takes quite a bit longer...