My tapping sounds like poop!

[Decoyx7]

Ok, so I've been working on my tapping with both my hands, and...I don't know if it's just the fact I suck, my amp, or action, or whatever, but my tapping is not very prominent at all. You can't hear it all that well. I think it's probably my amp, or my action is too high. But I'm sure it's pretty darn close, because any lower, my strings are literally rattling on my pickups and leaving marks and indents.

I just want to know why my tapping notes seem so quiet.
Same thing with my harmonics, they don't stick out at all, especially when I'm practicing Geddy's YYZ solos.

[kevteop]

Tapping on bass does sound awful, so maybe you're doing it right? If all you're hearing is a load of mechanical scrapes and clanks and buzzing sounds, then well done! From what I've heard that is exactly what it's supposed to sound like.

[Tampabass]

my poop sounds like tapping. Help!

[JamesGoodall]

Originally Posted by kevteop

Tapping on bass does sound awful, so maybe you're doing it right? If all you're hearing is a load of mechanical scrapes and clanks and buzzing sounds, then well done! From what I've heard that is exactly what it's supposed to sound like.

I'm sure you're familiar with Jean Baudin. That man can tap, and i never hear any scrapes, clanks, or buzzing sounds.

I set my action low for tapping when i first started, and it sounded worse. you need the strings to have a good mid-level action to strike them harder on the frets. Lighter gauges usually help with that so your not straining your fingers, but you can still have them at a high enough action.

Mess with your amp settings. Tapping has a very different timbre, fingering being bassey, picking being trebly and tapping being somewhat in between.

Hope that helps! My tapping isn't all that good yet either, so if you have any tips let me know!

[Vincent P]

Originally Posted by JamesGoodall

I'm sure you're familiar with Jean Baudin. That man can tap, and i never hear any scrapes, clanks, or buzzing sounds.

I set my action low for tapping when i first started, and it sounded worse. you need the strings to have a good mid-level action to strike them harder on the frets. Lighter gauges usually help with that so your not straining your fingers, but you can still have them at a high enough action.

Mess with your amp settings. Tapping has a very different timbre, fingering being bassey, picking being trebly and tapping being somewhat in between.

Hope that helps! My tapping isn't all that good yet either, so if you have any tips let me know!

Agreed,

Messing around with my amp has improved the sound greatly.

@ Kevteop, if thats what your used to hearing, check this out arambedrosian's Channel - YouTube

[Phalex]

Originally Posted by Tampabass

my poop sounds like tapping. Help!

Huh..... Mine sounds like splashing.....

[chaosMK]

I've used tapping often in the last 5 years.

It helps if you have a quality bass... low action, hifi total orientation, active. I don't think you see epic tapping ever done on ancient Fenders (I haven't anyway) with retro rigs.

I made limited progress tapping on my old Ibanez SR 885 (a mid-range late 90's bass). When I picked up my current Cirrus things really got facilitated.

[Vincent P]

Agreed, most of the fluent tapping is usually done on a boutique-ish model of bass; part of the reason I guess my tapping never sounds quite like some of the videos I watch.

[GLEN18INCHSPICA]

I don't do that kind of thing much, but the best recording of me playing that style was when I had an old Jazz bass that had emg active pickups installed, something about those pickups made them great for tapping & slapping, but not as good for the other finger styles I play 99% of the time.

[Jay2U]

Tapping on a guitar works well, but on a bass it doesn't work for me. It hurts my fingers. I think you need to have fingers like hammers to tap a bass well.

[jay tay]

try hooking your right thumb behind the neck to give you more power, also if your harmonics sound weak their is a chance you have a little too much bottom. for harmonics, tapping and slap, I usually solo my bridge pickup, that's why Jazz style bass' usualy favour these techniques over precisions.

+1 on light gauge strings, and also try and hit dead on the fret not between the frets, It's also easier to tap on a fretted bass over a fretless.

hope that helps, and good luck! keep at it!

[sammyp]

honestly ...there are some sarcastic remarks here ..but tapping is the last thing a bass player needs to be concerned with ....as far as a paying pro gig goes ..you prolly won't tap or slap a note and that's the the plain truth...

if you must ...try tapping with your middle finger ..tends to be stronger or grab the neck with your thumb and middle finger while tapping with your first finger ....as another member pointed out ..adds stability!

[stevellss]

Originally Posted by kevteop

Tapping on bass does sound awful, so maybe you're doing it right? If all you're hearing is a load of mechanical scrapes and clanks and buzzing sounds, then well done! From what I've heard that is exactly what it's supposed to sound like.

This is the kind of attitude that comes from people who have sex with their clothes on. Missionary, lights out.

Tapping might not be for everyone, but some people like it and can do it well!

for example: Swims -- (Pop) The Bubble Boy [album version] - YouTube

Decoyx7, perhaps posting a video of you playing (if possible) would help some folks on here identify ways to improve your amp settings or technique, whatever might be the issue. Also, in my experience, you can tap effectively on a fender style bass; you don't really need active pickups. EMG's and other active pickups do often sound excellent for tapping - the advice that some have given on here is good, all I am saying is that it is not necessary if that isn't practical for financial reasons, or if you already like the bass you've got. Really, the most important thing is to just keep practicing the technique and build up finger strength and it will come more naturally.

[Epitaph04]

Originally Posted by sammyp

honestly ...there are some sarcastic remarks here ..but tapping is the last thing a bass player needs to be concerned with ....as far as a paying pro gig goes ..you prolly won't tap or slap a note and that's the the plain truth...

Because the guy totally said he's looking for a pro gig.

This forum really amazes me at times...if you don't like it just don't freaking post in it or about it.

[Rage1331]

Originally Posted by stevellss

This is the kind of attitude that comes from people who have sex with their clothes on. Missionary, lights out.

Tapping might not be for everyone, but some people like it and can do it well!

for example: Swims -- (Pop) The Bubble Boy [album version] - YouTube

Decoyx7, perhaps posting a video of you playing (if possible) would help some folks on here identify ways to improve your amp settings or technique, whatever might be the issue. Also, in my experience, you can tap effectively on a fender style bass; you don't really need active pickups. EMG's and other active pickups do often sound excellent for tapping - the advice that some have given on here is good, all I am saying is that it is not necessary if that isn't practical for financial reasons, or if you already like the bass you've got. Really, the most important thing is to just keep practicing the technique and build up finger strength and it will come more naturally.

+1

I love me some finger tapping. And my bass of choice when I do so is a 4 string Fender jazz with passive quarter pounders in it. I also find some flatwounds (Chromes IMO) are good for really smoothing over your tapping tone. But be prepared for quite a different tapping sound.

[MustacheJoeII]

Originally Posted by chaosMK

I've used tapping often in the last 5 years.

It helps if you have a quality bass... low action, hifi total orientation, active. I don't think you see epic tapping ever done on ancient Fenders (I haven't anyway) with retro rigs.

I made limited progress tapping on my old Ibanez SR 885 (a mid-range late 90's bass). When I picked up my current Cirrus things really got facilitated.

This implies that ancient Fenders with passive electronics and an Ampeg SVT rig is inferior. A "quality bass" must have "low action, hifi tonal orientation, active."

Please qualify if ancient Fenders are inferior in only the tapping method, or in general. Many posters will put you on the Crux for this.

[naetog]

If you are anything like me, your right hand probably isn't nearly as strong as your left hand.

When I first started attempting tapping I had to really work on my right fingers and working up the strength to tap with authority.

I still feel like I have to work my right hand harder than my left, but that's because I still suck at it and probably don't practice it enough.

[ShredderMaximus]

I think tapping is great for bass, but I think alot of times when people think tapping, they think Eddie Van Halen shred tapping, which isn't the case in most cases of bass tapping. I think just do to the nature of the beast, we have to play more horizontaly than guitarists, especially us 4 bangers, and 2 hand tapping makes the entire neck much more accessible for long arpeggios and the like, and almost turns the bass into an almost piano-esque instrument. And for people that really want to embrace every aspect of their instrument and give themselves even more options to fully express themselves through their instrument, tapping can be an invaluable tool.

So yeah, Kevteop, go suck an egg.

As for your problem op, I find that for me to get my best rounded tone from tapping, I use the very tip of my right hand fingers, so that me finger is pretty close to a 90 degree angle with the string, since this is that is where the bone is shallowest and makes for that much less effort to get a full sound. And unlike some other people here, I actually prefer tapping the string pretty much dead center between the frets, since again, I find that area to give me the fullest tone and alot less susceptability to fret buzz, and when you tap right on top of the fret, if your even just a little off you can end up easily accidentally muting the note if you tap it even a just little too far past the fret. And also just one more thing, I also predominantly use my middle finger for most of my tapping unless I'm doing some alot of aprpeggiated/chordal type stuff, as I find thats my finger with the most "snap," but I think its almost like a right hand/left hand thing, where some people are more comfortable with their index finger, and some people are more comfortable with their middle finger.

But pretty much, it'll just take practice to really build "the touch" of the pressure you need to apply and to build accuracy of where to tap, your ears will steer you to where you gotta go.

[kevteop]

Looks like I brought some truth home to some posters.

I just don't like the sound. It's either 50% note 50% fret noise or it just sounds weak. I've heard one or two examples of it sounding good but hardly anybody makes it sound good and yet every bedroom Youtube warrior insists on doing it.

Fair enough if you can't express yourself fully without playing bass behind your head or with your schlong or blindfold up a stick whilst breathing fire or whatever. In that case keep dedicating your practise time to your party tricks and maybe you'll turn out to be one of the lucky few who doesn't sound terrible doing it.

[Stealth]

You must've listened to different bassists than the rest of us. Billy Sheehan, John Myung, John Entwistle, Stu Hamm, Victor Wooten, Michael Manring - that's six bassists right out whose tapping has very small if any amount of fret noise - in fact, in Manring's case there is none whatsoever since he taps on a fretless and remaining accurate.

For that matter, if tapping is a trick, what about slapping, which is even more prominent, practically defined funk as we know it... is that a party trick? Or hell, playing with anything but a thumb because that's how the bass was originally played. The truth is that you consider it a gimmick - did it ever help or hinder you from landing a position in the band? It certainly landed me my current progressive rock band position.

To answer the OP, a decent setup and a bit of fiddling on the EQ goes a long way, particularly setting midrange slightly boosted. As far as the technique goes, I learned tapping mostly from Myung's video tutorials, so my left (fretting) fingers are parallel to the frets and tap the deeper strings, while my right (picking) fingers are at an angle and tap the higher strings.
You can go with that, Emmett Chapman's parallel hands approach (both hands parallel with frets, slightly problematic since it's originally used on a Chapman stick which has no body) or John Entwistle (whose right hand was parallel to the strings).