3 fingered technique

[inspire thy...]

I am am looking to move from plucking with 2 fingers to plucking with 3 fingers and was wondering if there is any pointers that anyone could give me.
I have tried it a few times and I am realy un-coordinated.

I am pretty quick with 2 fingers - 3 would make me like a pick player

Cheers, Simon

[Wasim]

Someone posted this a while back, might help you

http://www.harmony-central.com/Bass/...s/Hanging_Ten/

I don't have the patience or perserverance to develop 3 finger technique. 2 fingers works for me so far.

[inspire thy...]

I will check it now and get back to you. Simon

[inspire thy...]

Looks good - thanks a million!

[purduebass]

not to hijack the thread, but it's the same topic:
Does anyone have any techniques for mastering the two types of 3 finger technique? (the article is about 4 finger)
The two types being: 3213 2132 1321
or 3212 3212 3212
3=ring 2=middle 1=index
The second is the Steve DiGiorgio method, the other is used by other extreme metal bassists such as Alex Webster from Cannibal Corpse.

[inspire thy...]

HIJACKER!

Nah, that is fine, that is the technique I am after aswell, I have only glanced over that article. I want to learn the 3 fingered technique, not 4 - that is just stupid, may aswell just slap...

[Poop-Loops]

I use 1-2-3-1-2-3-1-2, etc. It's really simple. Just keep going in that pattern. Use a metronome and go slow.

3-2-1-2-3-2-1-2 is inefficient as you use your 2nd finger twice as much as your other two. You might as well be using 2 finger style. So I recommend either 123123123 or 321321321. But just take it slow and remember to stay consistent.

[purduebass]

Originally Posted by Poop-Loops

I use 1-2-3-1-2-3-1-2, etc. It's really simple. Just keep going in that pattern. Use a metronome and go slow.

3-2-1-2-3-2-1-2 is inefficient as you use your 2nd finger twice as much as your other two. You might as well be using 2 finger style. So I recommend either 123123123 or 321321321. But just take it slow and remember to stay consistent.

Any tips on how to avoid going into "triplet mode"? That's my problem right now

[chaosMK]

Originally Posted by purduebass

The two types being: 3213 2132 1321

This is cool, but you cant get much of an accent this way.

I've been working on ways of playing super fast fingerstyle in metal for a few years. One method I like is this-

3-2-1-2/1-2-3-2

You can get fairly strong accents on the downbeat, but it can take a while to train the (second) reverse motion.

However, the most effective technique that I've come up with for playing fast 16th notes with 3 fingers is like this-

T-3-2-1

The thumb hit creates a very clear accent. You can do triplets this way too T-2-1.

[Planet Boulder]

Originally Posted by purduebass

Any tips on how to avoid going into "triplet mode"? That's my problem right now

My advice is simple: When you practice using three fingers, slow down. The "triplet mode" is usually the result of a Steve Harris-like "gallop" which is used for higher tempo stuff. If you can play steadily with three fingers at slower tempos, you can gradually work your way up.

[inspire thy...]

This is great guys, keep the tips coming, I really want to get good with 3 fingers, I am thinking I might try either the 3 2 1 or the 3 2 1 2 3 2 1 2 3 etc.

[Poop-Loops]

Originally Posted by purduebass

Any tips on how to avoid going into "triplet mode"? That's my problem right now

Metronome. The best way I've found is to think in terms of 2.

i.e. you're playing 1-2-3-1-2-3-1-2-3 but in your mind think "one two one two one two" with a metronome of course. This will get you to play things like steady quarter, 8th, or 16th notes well. In order to actually play music you'll have to apply the same method, but to a different rythem is all. Just slow down if you can't your fingers to do what you want.

[purduebass]

Originally Posted by Poop-Loops

Metronome. The best way I've found is to think in terms of 2.

i.e. you're playing 1-2-3-1-2-3-1-2-3 but in your mind think "one two one two one two" with a metronome of course. This will get you to play things like steady quarter, 8th, or 16th notes well. In order to actually play music you'll have to apply the same method, but to a different rythem is all. Just slow down if you can't your fingers to do what you want.

I had been trying something similar by thinking 1-2-3-4. Gonna have to whip out the metronome and learn this stuff!!!

[Poop-Loops]

1-2-3-4 is just 1-2 twice.

I too did the 1-2-3-4 thing for a while, but 1-2 is easier to keep track of and keep steady.

For example, the bold parts are where "4" would land:

1-2-3-1-2-3-1-2-3-1-2-3, etc. After a while you get confused.

Whereas with 1-2-3-1-2-3-1-2-3 you shouldn't really pay attention to where the "two" lands, as long as you're with the beat. It just won't make much sense to keep track of the "two".

[Correlli]

This three finger demo is basicly 321 ascending, 321 descending


http://www.talkbass.com/forum/attach...8&d=1138058471

[905]

I learned playing with three fingers when I was practicing Eulogy (by Tool) - I don't (have) use a pick. Using only two fingers was exhausting, so I decided to give the ring finger a whirl and it worked. I'm still far from perfect though.

Basically, my tip is:
Play songs that have room for you to add in a triplet or something, maybe play 16th notes instead of quarters - don't try, DO.

On a sidenote, when I'm playing upwards the neck (skipping strings upwards or shifting from fret 1 to 3 eg), I do the 123 thing, and backwards when I'm playing down the neck. Weird.

[yaniv]

to avoid triplet just do this:
123212321232 (and so on...)
that way you get a 4/4 beat and you only emphasize your index finger
you can do some FAST stuff with it (i do 16th notes at 160bpm this way)

[Poop-Loops]

Originally Posted by 905

On a sidenote, when I'm playing upwards the neck (skipping strings upwards or shifting from fret 1 to 3 eg), I do the 123 thing, and backwards when I'm playing down the neck. Weird.

Good thing you mentioned this, as I had this problem too. The only solution is to bust out the metronome and practice scale runs and chord arpeggios ascending and descending and remembering to go in the same direction. Don't settle for switching finger directions depending on what you're playing--that just gives you room to mess up during a song.

Originally Posted by yaniv

to avoid triplet just do this:
123212321232 (and so on...)
that way you get a 4/4 beat and you only emphasize your index finger
you can do some FAST stuff with it (i do 16th notes at 160bpm this way)

DO NOT DO THIS!!!

Count how many times you use your 2nd finger there.

TWICE as much as the other fingers. That's an inefficient method. You can play just as well 2 finger and don't have to worry about the 3rd finger.

The whole point of adding the 3rd finger is spreading the load across 3 fingers instead of 2. Here you're only spreading the load of the 1st finger to the 3rd and the 2nd finger stays the same. Inefficient.

[ThunderSix66]

It may be inefficient sounding to some...but I can now do 16th notes at 175bpm after a lot of practice with 3-2-1-2/3-2-1-2. Even though you use the middle finger twice as much, the motion your hand creates makes it very fluid with a lot of practice. I can only do 16th notes with 2 fingers at 140 bpm. +40 bpm for me, I still have a little improvement to do with getting rid of some note accents, but there is no reason why not to try to learn this method, it works well for me and others too.

I do triplets, however, with 1-2-3/1-2-3 or 3-2-1/3-2-1, I can't quite get the same speed playing 16th notes this way, and find it more awkward too.

[Poop-Loops]

Originally Posted by ThunderSix66

It may be inefficient sounding to some...but I can now do 16th notes at 175bpm after a lot of practice with 3-2-1-2/3-2-1-2. Even though you use the middle finger twice as much, the motion your hand creates makes it very fluid with a lot of practice. I can only do 16th notes with 2 fingers at 140 bpm. +40 bpm for me, I still have a little improvement to do with getting rid of some note accents, but there is no reason why not to try to learn this method, it works well for me and others too.

I do triplets, however, with 1-2-3/1-2-3 or 3-2-1/3-2-1, I can't quite get the same speed playing 16th notes this way, and find it more awkward too.

I bolded the key words. If you had spent that time on just 1-2-1-2-1-2 or 1-2-3-1-2-3- OR 3-2-1-3-2-1 you'd be just as fast, but it would be more efficient with the latter 2.