I'm just now getting into some songs that require a lot of fretting above the 12th fret and it's quite a bit more difficult to play cleanly. I was wondering if you guys use your pinky while playing up high? I've seen some people do it but it makes it way worse for me. Any advice?
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Pinky Above the 12th Fret?
- Thread starter Bozzy
- Start date
I don't think I use my pinky as much above the 12th fret as I do below. I think I use my 1-3 more up there.
I do use my pinky up high on BG, I think always have, but I suppose how comfortable it is kind of depends what kind of neck joint you got. I got a BG with a contoured heel and I can use my pinky on the last fret, and I got a ABG with no cutaway that I dont think I could use pinky comfortably above the 12th fret.
I use it as much as I do below the 12th. Check out the guys who spend the time up there, get finger independence together.
I use all my fingers all the way up the neck. Getting the bass at the right height helps. But the real key for me is that as I get into those upper frets, my fretting hand thumb creeps down the back of the neck and I’ll even get to where it’s resting on the edge of the neck next to the G string, so it’s really the side of my thumb in contact with the neck. I just need something to stabilize my hand up there and moving that thumb around makes it easier to use all my fretting fingers.
I switch from 1-2-4 to 1-2-3-4 somewhere around frets 4-6.
So yeah I use my pinky on the whole board.
So yeah I use my pinky on the whole board.
It depends. I play a 6-string and my 4th finger words pretty well on the C string, but it become progressively less useful as I cross over to G, D, A, etc. I don't generally play much above the 12th fret. For context I use one finger per fret.
Also I tend to rotate my thumb out from behind the neck when I play up really high.
Ultimately it depends somewhat on the bass, how you wear it, and your physiology. IMHO, figure out what works best for you.
It's actually my third (ring) finger that gets less use. I tend to use a 1-2-4 whenever I don't need to adhere to "four fingers, four frets".
Yes I use my pinky also in the highest regions. Why wouldn’t you? It can only become a bit more awkward when playing really high on the E or B string.
Same here. I generally use OFPF up there, with maybe the exception of the E and B string as my pinky isn't that long. However, playing that high up on those two strings would be an extreme outlier case anyway, IMO.
For me, there's other issues to overcome that make playing high on the E and B strings a problem - like tone. Especially on the B string, anything past say, the 15th fret just sounds tubby, no real definition to it. I would rather switch positions.
I know I use my pinky a bit less than my other fingers over the whole neck. Not really a lot, but a bit. I had no idea whether I use it even less above the 12th fret so I went and played for a while and paid more attention. The answer is 'yes'. I use it a bit less than a bit less than the other fingers above the 12th fret. But it doesn't worry me.
I think it's a good idea to use your pinky all the time wherever you are on the fretboard.
Of course. Perhaps not as much when trying to span 4 notes on the same string, gets a little crowded but I've framed scale patterns the same way most of the time so it's pretty much muscle memory at that point.
Above the 12th position, it do not use the pinky.
What I do though is using the (left) thumb like on double bass. Because the thumb is by far the most mobile of all fingers, it gives access to plenty of notes in a very fluid manner.
This technique is used frequently by Steve Bailey. There is a TB thread discussing it.
What I do though is using the (left) thumb like on double bass. Because the thumb is by far the most mobile of all fingers, it gives access to plenty of notes in a very fluid manner.
This technique is used frequently by Steve Bailey. There is a TB thread discussing it.
What's more comfortable is preferred.
With Fender necks, I don't use pinky over 12th fret - only if it really can't be done otherwise - because it hurts the natural position of wrist. Even in fast tempos I prefer to switch positions, using only 1-2-3 or even just 1-3. 3 is strong enough for all of the bluesy bending and vibrato stuff. @Papageno 's thumb idea is great, I use it too, but I don't recall ever really needing this outside solo playing. It's a great help for playing nice jazzy chords.
On my Pedulla fretless with two octave neck-through I can safely use pinky up to about 18th fret.
With Fender necks, I don't use pinky over 12th fret - only if it really can't be done otherwise - because it hurts the natural position of wrist. Even in fast tempos I prefer to switch positions, using only 1-2-3 or even just 1-3. 3 is strong enough for all of the bluesy bending and vibrato stuff. @Papageno 's thumb idea is great, I use it too, but I don't recall ever really needing this outside solo playing. It's a great help for playing nice jazzy chords.
On my Pedulla fretless with two octave neck-through I can safely use pinky up to about 18th fret.
