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Benefits of a lighter touch!

P

Psycho

Jun 24, 2008
346
4
#1
I was always against using a lighter touch. I felt it was an "easy way out" of building endurance, an all too used method. Having to use a massive amount of attack to get more than a muddy toneless note out my Line 6 amp, I struggled and struggled with playing anything for more than a minute or two. Gallops eventually slowed to a halt, 16th notes became 8th notes, and my right forearm simply locked up.

After playing through a Genz Benz head and cab, and actually hearing what my bass sounds like (which is amazing, in my opinion) I realized a harder attack was not needed. I improved my posture, and the final step to endurance and this little rave was what I had first despised; a lighter touch.

I've worked more and more on letting my finger tips just brush the strings, a sort of gentle tap if you will, and can play on and on now! I'm a little amazed I hadn't figured it out earlier. :bassist:
 
#6
Wasted Bassist said:
Aggressive playing = Aggressive tone. For me at least. I play with a soft touch when it's called for (Jazz, accoustic, soft parts) but for me, I have to dig in to get my bass to sound the way I want it to.
Click to expand...

Exactly. I DO play with a light touch 80% of the time these days but If U really wanna grind the crud outta the roundwounds, I feel U GOTTA dig in hard, when it calls for it.:bassist:
 
#7
rodl2005 said:
Exactly. I DO play with a light touch 80% of the time these days but If U really wanna grind the crud outta the roundwounds, I feel U GOTTA dig in hard, when it calls for it.:bassist:
Click to expand...

Yeah, for heavy parts in songs I kinda slam the string with the whole tip of my finger, there's a clank that's more of a "clank" than the usual "ping", if that made sense.
 
#8
boy, oh boy, when did we all become wussies? yeah, ok, you don't have to kill the strings at all times, but there are times you have to play like a man. and i don't mean playing so hard you bang the strings into the pickups or clank all over the place. i mean playing with some cojones to it...getting a really strong fat tone with max volume and some depth to the attack. it really does make a difference to dig in and play harder when it's called for.
 
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#9
I used to dig in because I prefer the response or the "feel" of the strings (flats) that way. But I've been doing more recording and to a higher caliber lately and finally noticed what I hadn't all along - that my attack often clanked the strings against the frets. My more experienced bandmates noticed it too, and advised me to work on the "professional" tone. It was dead-on advice. For me. Now I let gain do the work for me.
 
#10
I agree with the benefits of a lighter touch, and have made good progress with it. The problem I am having is with louder, more intense songs. It's not a tone issue really, but a rhythmic feel issue. I can't seem to generate a rocking intensity when plucking softly, even if the amp is turned up. I find I need to turn the amp down and hit harder to really groove in a hard groove where the drummer is smacking the skins. Also with the amp real loud I have trouble playing quietly enough on ballads- my palm muting skills are zip (it sounds ok on the E and A but I get no tone at all from the D or G when palm muting...). I've been thinking maybe a volume pedal is what is called for, so I could "ride the seam" on being the right volume to be able to use a medium-hard attack when the groove-space seems to require it, but still avoid overly stressing my plucking hand.
 
#12
Psycho said:
I was always against using a lighter touch. I felt it was an "easy way out" of building endurance, an all too used method. Having to use a massive amount of attack to get more than a muddy toneless note out my Line 6 amp, I struggled and struggled with playing anything for more than a minute or two. Gallops eventually slowed to a halt, 16th notes became 8th notes, and my right forearm simply locked up.

After playing through a Genz Benz head and cab, and actually hearing what my bass sounds like (which is amazing, in my opinion) I realized a harder attack was not needed. I improved my posture, and the final step to endurance and this little rave was what I had first despised; a lighter touch.

I've worked more and more on letting my finger tips just brush the strings, a sort of gentle tap if you will, and can play on and on now! I'm a little amazed I hadn't figured it out earlier. :bassist:
Click to expand...

It's ironic that past a certain point, harder plucking actually weakens the sound. Usually a muddy clop-clop-clop with less actual note, especially on a fretted bass.

The bass can really make a difference too. I've always had to dig in just a little more than I've liked on every bass I've owned until I discovered Carvin. On my bunny you hardly have to touch the strings and you get this really nice velvety note with a very audible initial attack. And I think it records better than anything I've ever played before.

Ditching the frets will also go a long ways towards cleaning up the sound and eliminating the need to hammer on the thing so hard. It also greatly reduces that awful click/clop/click that'll just absolutely drive you nuts. You'll still get some slap of the strings on the fingerboard, but not nearly so much...

LS
 
#16
JimmyM said:
boy, oh boy, when did we all become wussies? yeah, ok, you don't have to kill the strings at all times, but there are times you have to play like a man. and i don't mean playing so hard you bang the strings into the pickups or clank all over the place. i mean playing with some cojones to it...getting a really strong fat tone with max volume and some depth to the attack. it really does make a difference to dig in and play harder when it's called for.
Click to expand...

I completely agree. But when you've got weak arms like me, you gotta distribute the mojo well, or you use it all up! :p
 
#17
billoetjen said:
I used to dig in because I prefer the response or the "feel" of the strings (flats) that way. But I've been doing more recording and to a higher caliber lately and finally noticed what I hadn't all along - that my attack often clanked the strings against the frets.
Click to expand...
well see, i wasn't talking about playing THAT hard ;) some folks are looking for that sound, but i'm not a big fan of clank, either. you can dig in hard and still have what you referred to as a "professional tone." playing light is cool, though, and probably makes sense more often than not. got to have dynamics, and if you start out full on, where do you go from there?
 
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#20
JimmyM said:
well see, i wasn't talking about playing THAT hard ;) some folks are looking for that sound, but i'm not a big fan of clank, either. you can dig in hard and still have what you referred to as a "professional tone." playing light is cool, though, and probably makes sense more often than not. got to have dynamics, and if you start out full on, where do you go from there?
Click to expand...
What JimmyM just said.
 

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