@totallyfrozen - "I try to have the style of "no style"--if that makes any sense. I believe in tools not styles of playing."
Exactly right on and very well said.
Spin
Exactly right on and very well said.
Spin
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floating thumb techniqe
- Thread starter Torvus
- Start date
- Nov 9, 2009
- 360
- 100
- Disclosures
- Endorsing Artist: Reunion Blues, 64 Audio, Mesa Engineering, Ernie Ball.
I keep my thumb on my lowest string as to prevent any unintentional vibrations on 'em from stage noise. When I go down to play on the E or B, it's really up in the air if my thumb will find a pickup or hover in the air. Depends on the bassline.
i've been pondering this one for years. personally, the best way for myself and from watching other bass players is to either anchor the thumb on the string above the one you're playing (which automatically mutes any lower strings) or lay it across the unplayed lower strings, like floating.
also, when playing the B/E string very aggressively - to dig in really hard and still keep the (lowest) string from vibrating out of control and lose good tone, i anchor the heel of my palm right around where the body contour starts on a P-bass. i press with a lot of weight on that spot and pluck the string with a little bit more up-pull toward the ceiling than normal. thumb doesn't need to do anything. when it gets real loud, that really works (for me)
also, when playing the B/E string very aggressively - to dig in really hard and still keep the (lowest) string from vibrating out of control and lose good tone, i anchor the heel of my palm right around where the body contour starts on a P-bass. i press with a lot of weight on that spot and pluck the string with a little bit more up-pull toward the ceiling than normal. thumb doesn't need to do anything. when it gets real loud, that really works (for me)
I got into this with my teacher a few weeks back. He prefers anchoring the thumb on the pickup and feels by moving your hand less you are more efficient and play with more fluidity.
My deal is that I am a natural lefty who has always played right handed and I have fractured most of the bones in both hands, my right thumb area twice. Having to stretch my hands using his technique gave me a minor case of carpal tunnel. My right hand just doesn't want to open that much.
By floating letting my thumb rest on the lower string as I play I am more comfortable and can avoid sounding messy when my clumsier right hand brushes the wrong string on a riff.
My deal is that I am a natural lefty who has always played right handed and I have fractured most of the bones in both hands, my right thumb area twice. Having to stretch my hands using his technique gave me a minor case of carpal tunnel. My right hand just doesn't want to open that much.
By floating letting my thumb rest on the lower string as I play I am more comfortable and can avoid sounding messy when my clumsier right hand brushes the wrong string on a riff.
I find it easier to move my finger from the knuckle, not all the joints in unison to pluck a note. When you relax your hand complete you find the "neutral" position for your finger. That's how I play. I move my fingers around the neutral position and it's them most effortless way to do it. I switch around my "anchor" from PU, E, A string, to free floating when doing fast string skipping to D when I need to do fast G string runs.
With strict floating thumb my hand has to flatten a lot. Which makes my fingers curve a lot and in constant tension. It just isn't relaxed. Also my bony thumb doesn't have enough fat touch each string properly at all locations. I will continue to practice it to see the usefulness in certain situations and for future x-stringers. For now, it just doesn't work for me. You'd probably understand if you saw my hands.
With strict floating thumb my hand has to flatten a lot. Which makes my fingers curve a lot and in constant tension. It just isn't relaxed. Also my bony thumb doesn't have enough fat touch each string properly at all locations. I will continue to practice it to see the usefulness in certain situations and for future x-stringers. For now, it just doesn't work for me. You'd probably understand if you saw my hands.
I just started playing bass Dec. 2009, and in the past day or two concluded that I was going to have to move my thumb at least over the A string if I were to have control over the damping. There is this temptation to put something under the A, D, and G strings by the nut and forgo using them as open strings, and use the thumb to damp only the E string.
That will be like playing with only half a guitar... 
Rather learn to use everything available on it. You'll thank yourself on the long term...
Ok maybe someone had already replied the way that I'm about to but I don't have time to read all 12 pages of this thread.
Moveable anchor: Just as Adam Nitti described. The thumb is anchored to the string below the one that is being plucked. The plucking fingers tend to be fairly straight, at least for me. I don't know why Adam calls it a floating thumb but hey he knows a lot more about this instrument than I do.
Floating thumb: The thumb rests not on top of but ACROSS the string below the one that is being plucked. It's isn't anchored at all. Todd Johnson has a video of this on Youtube or you can find the link to it in the pro section of this forum. My fingers tend to be a bit more curled like a classical guitarist with this technique.
Either technique effectively mutes the string.
I'm starting to prefer the floating thumb method more, especially for intricate passages that involve skipping strings a lot. It feels a bit unnatural at first but and it's harder to use a heavy touch but because the wrist stays straight it's much more comfortable.
If I'm simply banging out a bassline on one or two strings, going from root to 5th or major 3rd or an octave up then I usually anchor my thumb.
I don't advocate either position because they both work well for me in certain situations.
Moveable anchor: Just as Adam Nitti described. The thumb is anchored to the string below the one that is being plucked. The plucking fingers tend to be fairly straight, at least for me. I don't know why Adam calls it a floating thumb but hey he knows a lot more about this instrument than I do.
Floating thumb: The thumb rests not on top of but ACROSS the string below the one that is being plucked. It's isn't anchored at all. Todd Johnson has a video of this on Youtube or you can find the link to it in the pro section of this forum. My fingers tend to be a bit more curled like a classical guitarist with this technique.
Either technique effectively mutes the string.
I'm starting to prefer the floating thumb method more, especially for intricate passages that involve skipping strings a lot. It feels a bit unnatural at first but and it's harder to use a heavy touch but because the wrist stays straight it's much more comfortable.
If I'm simply banging out a bassline on one or two strings, going from root to 5th or major 3rd or an octave up then I usually anchor my thumb.
I don't advocate either position because they both work well for me in certain situations.
I think the movable anchor and floating thumb are the same technique.
I am a former Adam Nitti student and he taught me the floating thumb technique but called it the movable anchor.
My thumb is never anchored anywhere but instead simply rests on the strings not being played. When moving across strings the thumb slides to the correct position to keep the strings not being played muted.
Hope this helps...
I am a former Adam Nitti student and he taught me the floating thumb technique but called it the movable anchor.
My thumb is never anchored anywhere but instead simply rests on the strings not being played. When moving across strings the thumb slides to the correct position to keep the strings not being played muted.
Hope this helps...
I am not an expert, but AFAIK they are similar, but not quite the same.
With the FT, the thumb is not anchored or rests anywhere, but "floats" (hence the name) across the strings.
Here is Todd Johnson demonstrating the FT.
I learned on a 5-string and I've anchored my thumb to the neck pickup from the beginning. It's the only way I can play really. I just can't play right if my thumb isn't anchored, especially on the low strings. That's why I can't really play acoustic basses. One of the factors on whether I like a bass is if the pickups are of a shape that allows me to anchor my thumb on them.
am slowly getting around floating thumb the sympathetic open string vibrations have become a lot more annoying to me, but am not very very natural with floating thumb yet either so its a struggle but i can not leave a string open and undamped no way
That's how I started too. Practice, you'll get it. Now it feels unnatural to anchor my thumb on a pickup.
Well, honestly, I prefer my current method. Maybe when I start trying to learn Dream Theater stuff I'll switch to the other method out of necessity.
Funny i started out being taught to anchor but just sort of naturally ended up using both techniques but never really noticed till reading this thread...which is a great read btw! Very interesting. You guys great are thanks alot!
my first technique ever was the anchor technique. I think I may be getting more into the floating anchor technique, only, in my case, I'd be skipping a string, rather than using adjacent strings. opinions?
Every time I try that I wind up going back to anchoring on the pickup. For me it's either pickup or an adjacent string.
I have been practising this method, its very tricky at the moment but am confident things will improve soon 
I still find I get tired fingers and wrist after 6 months playing bass, its hard work compared to guitar
I still find I get tired fingers and wrist after 6 months playing bass, its hard work compared to guitar
