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floating thumb techniqe

#343
That's very true for that low B because it will ring for no good reason if you don't put your thumb on it to shut it up.

SGT. BAKER said:
Time ago I learned to play my 6 string with this technique. I won in clarity´cause now I got having all the strings under my control, avoiding undesired resonances for instance in B low. Even my 4 string basses seems they sound better when I play´em with the floating thumb technique, especially when I´m soloing.
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#344
I started using the floating thumb a few years ago. It is the most comfortable to me. I cannot adjust to anchoring my thumb on a pickup. On rare occasion I have rested my thumb on the B string until I needed to use the B which is not all that often with Classic Rock. That helps me to locate the E somewhat easier of a 5 string. No resting thumb on a 4 string.
 
#346
There's no right or wrong way to play. Geddy plays with one finger, Billy Sheehan plays with 3, Victor Wooten slaps with his thumb going down and up. It's definitely good to learn all of the different styles you can; but ultimately, do whatever works for you. If you are playing what you need to play cleanly, then whatever you are doing is working. If you're consistently encountering a problem, it's time to break down your technique and figure out what needs to change for you.
 
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#347
Hello!

I finally decided to re-learn my right hand technique for floating thumb after 2 years of fixed anchor.

So here a couple of questions for you:

1) When playing floating thumb, what part of your hand/forearm is touching the body of the bass? Does the heel of your palm rest on the body?
2) The tip of you thumb, is it aproximatively in axis with the tips of the index and middle finger (as if you took a pinch of salt) or is the thumb to the left of the axis?
3) If the thumb to the left of the axis, when plucking the lowest string, the index and the middle are not stopped by anything after the pluck (no rest stroke)?
4) As for the transition between achor and floating thumb, should I use floating thumb ALL the time (even for rehearsals/gigs) even if I'm not yet comfortable with this technique?

Thanks!
 
#348
Hello again!

How long did it take you to get comfortable with this technique?

I've been working it into my fingers the last 3 days, and starts to rub in. It sure is softer on the wrist and fingers. But I can't play intense string skipping without anchoring yet. But even when I anchor the thumb, I put much less strain and pressure on it.

So far, so good!
 
#351
I've been playing bass for years but would consider myself a novice. I find this forum very interesting and informative. I'm surprised that what we do with our thumbs is such a hot topic. Surely it's a case of doing what's right for you? I pluck with my right thumb and fret with my left thumb. Probably not considered acceptable techniques but it works for me! I think I've naturally developed a technique which gives me the tone and flexibility I need but not been taught it. If I'd taken bass lessons maybe it would be different!
 
#352
Relearning my plucking hand technique now- luckily I've only been playing for months. When I first learned, it was "Anchor your thumb on top of the pickup." Not in front, but on. From multiple sources. Fast forward to yesterday, practicing, and slowly working my way through Ed Friedland's Bass Method Complete Edition to get my music reading down, I spot the sentence "When playing on the G string, make sure your right thumb drops down to the A string (muting the bottom two open strings)."* Which I haven't been doing- and I did note that my muting has been a bit messy. (I probably should be muting proactively, rather than only when I start hearing the ring.) So I completely stopped reading music and even fretting notes to just focus on plucking, until I get this down.

Moving the thumb down from its anchor point, in my mind, is pretty slow- that thumb wants to stay there. Even when I rest it on the front of the pickup, I find the effort to move it forward, then down, is annoying- it seems magnetically attracted to those pickups! So now I'm trying to just let it float in the air beside the E string when I play it or the A (so a quick thumb tap can mute the E,) then drop it so the side of my thumb- near the middle of my thumbnail- is resting against the E when I hit the D, then, on the G string, slide it just a little further down so the side of my thumb by the bass of the nail's on the E, and the tip is resting on the A. The D gets muted whenever I pluck the G by the follow-through, and a quick move of my pinkie on my fret hand mutes the G when I go back up to D. I'm finding myself favoring the G and D strings right now while I'm relearning, because having my thumb just sort of floating in the middle of space still feels a bit weird. I think I'm going to spend a practice or three just working on spider and string skipping in combination with my new plucking technique.

That said, two questions-
1. I'm curious how to best mute the D string with this technique when I'm moving up to the A or E.
2. Is this technique okay, and is there anything else I should focus on with my plucking hand while I'm relearning the muscle memory, just so I don't have to relearn it all again at some point in the future?

---
* Bass Method Complete Edition, 2nd Edition, by Ed Friedland, page 28.
 
#353
You could try using left hand to mute everything above the string you're plucking, and right hand everything below. If you're using light touch you're basically resting your fingers on the muted strings and pressing lightly down onto on the string you're playing, rather than arching your wrist and coming at the strings from a greater angle. It's the complement to floating thumb on the other hand, both aiming for maximum relaxation and minimum wrist angle/stress. Works for me, but YMMV.
 
#354
I was wondering what this was called. This was the technique I used when first starting on bass. It just feels more natural to me than gluing my thumb to the pickup. I've got a six string recently and have played it exclusively. The technique is more useful than ever when playing fast runs across the neck, especially when the neck is the width of an ironing board.


I had to modify the technique a bit when I play things on the G or C string however. I have to put the entire side of my thumb on the rest of the strings while anchoring the string I'm muting so all of them don't ring out.
 
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#355
I noticed that this technique has given me the free stroke picking technique as a freebie! Scott Devine posted a lesson about free stroke few days ago, and I thought I have to learn that. Then I picked up my bass and noticed, that I'm already using it, thanks to floating thumb. Cool! Although now I have to pay attention to rest stroke so I can use that when it suits me.
 
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#356
sg101 said:
I had to modify the technique a bit when I play things on the G or C string however. I have to put the entire side of my thumb on the rest of the strings while anchoring the string I'm muting so all of them don't ring out.
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Is your thumb parallel to your plucking fingers?

If so, I picked up my first 6er in 5-6 years last week and just noticed I do the same when playing the G and C strings. Generally when playing up high.

Looks goofy, but it doesn't affect my other fingers when playing and does a great job of muting the strings.
 
#357
Baird6869 said:
Is your thumb parallel to your plucking fingers?

If so, I picked up my first 6er in 5-6 years last week and just noticed I do the same when playing the G and C strings. Generally when playing up high.

Looks goofy, but it doesn't affect my other fingers when playing and does a great job of muting the strings.
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yep its parallel

people told me playing like that looks odd, but its comfortable and works well. ill upload a picture of it later to better explain it
 
#358
MusicmanBassist said:
I've ve been taught that the proper technique should mean that you do not use the pickup as an anchor point with your thumb when plucking the E and should just have it floating when playing A, D, and G you can use the string above an an anchor point. Also, pluck with your index and middle fingers alternatively at 90 degrees to the strings close to the bridge. It's hard to begin with but this makes such a difference.

What do you think?
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I dont belive there is such thing
As "proper teqnique"
at one point your teacher would havr told you slapping and poppling was improper.
If you watvh Jacos modern electric bass video he anchors o. The back pick up. So uour tescher says Jaco
Had improper teqnique?!
James Jamersom usec one finger
( the hook) improper.
Dont get sold on one teachers ideas
There are advantages to each teqnique. Experiment.
 
#359
sg101 said:
yep its parallel

people told me playing like that looks odd, but its comfortable and works well. ill upload a picture of it later to better explain it
Click to expand...
this is along the lines of what i'm talking about

bODqPQyh.jpg
 
#360
Muting your strings of any unwanted ringing is the point of all these techniques..
It might not be a natural fit for everyone at first, however to get a solid timbre, every bassist at some point in their journey discovers good technique dealing with this issue.
The floating thumb works beautifully. So do other techniques I might recommend. Stuffing some foam underneathe your strings at the bridge does a similar function. I prefer a left hand muting technique made popular by Tower of Powers Rocco Prestia.
Necessity being the mother of invention comes into play immediately after being told by a soundman, or a band mate that your bass sounds horrible, because you are not muting.
Another popular muting technique is the plucking hand palm mute.
Online you can check out these various techniques performed by master players. Discover for yourself which one works best for you, aiding in achieving your desired timbre.
And while discovering your sound, don't forget your groove. That's priority!!
 

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