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Question about slapping noise while plucking with right hand also need come feedback on right hand plucking.

Q: I have a bad habit of sort of slapping my strings slightly to keep time...I've done that on guitar and it doesn't hurt anything but on bass...this habit is annoying and makes a loud noise...I'm trying to rid myself of it..

My action is 5/64 at the 12th fret large E string no capo on 1st fret while measuring...just for reference in case it's an issue that's making things worse.

Also..am I plucking to (upward) or am I plucking ok? I feel like I'm plucking straight across the strings but when I look it seems like I'm pulling up a bit

Can someone help me?
 
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What you may be doing is plucking OUT instead of UP. 5/64 is fine on the E but if you are vigorous player you may need to give a little more relief. I used to pluck out. I needed to lighten my touch and increase amp volume, once I figured out what I was doing.

Relief is the first thing I would check then I would check plucking technique.
 
Thanks Guys! I suspected that...I'll raise the action and follow up...
You might able to leave your string height alone and just go with a heavier gauge string instead.
Raising your string height is free and buying strings is not. So dealers choice there.
I use to use light gauge strings but I found I’m not gentle enough to use them without them flopping around.
So I went to medium and I found it was a good compromise in string tension to make. Little more tension but less orbital movement.
 
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If that tiny tweak solved the problem, great -- you don't really need any more advice. But, this being TB, I feel compelled to offer some anyway. :cool:

It seemed to me in your video that you're getting the slap sound mainly when you play the D (and probably G) string, but not the A or E. I think that's because as the distance between your thumb-anchor and plucking finger increases, the angle at which your finger meets the string changes so that you are pressing the string more vertically (down toward the bass body) and less horizontally (toward the next string). You're using a "moveable anchor," which is great, but ideally this technique would mean that your plucking position and finger angle remain exactly the same across all strings. You're already anchoring on the pickup to pluck E, and on the anchoring on the E to play A, so maybe try anchoring on the A to play D and on the D to play A.

Long ago I experimented with both the moveable anchor and the alternative "floating thumb" technique, and came to the conclusion that I preferred the latter. The basic idea is the same, except your thumb lies and slides horizontally across the strings instead of anchoring anywhere, and you move your entire hand and arm when crossing strings with the thumb in tow. Just for giggles you might want to give it a try and see if you like it:



The main reason I personally prefer this is that I just find it easier to "float" the thumb this way than having it jump from the string to string in order to keep my plucking motion identical across strings. But the bonus benefit I discovered is that this technique makes it difficult to "dig in" and pluck harder than necessary. My plucking fingers just brush across the tops of the strings rather than really "plucking" them -- and I really like playing with a very gentle touch (and super-low action).

None of this is necessary for you, of course, but you seemed curious to learn so I thought you might find it helpful.
 
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A couple suggestions:

First, your plucking motion is incomplete. You're scraping across the string with no follow through and only using a bit of your fingertip. If you put more meat into the pluck, and go all the way back so your finger actually catches on the string behind (IE plucking on the A string means your finger lands on the E string) you'll get a much fuller sound and it will help a lot of technical issues like muting. You don't have to do it with force, you can use a very light touch, but more pad and a fuller plucking motion will help with follow through.

Second, you are playing the snare hits by smacking the strings. It's a common habit for people who play alone and usually without a metronome, drum machine, or other accompaniment. That habit will destroy you when you try to record, though! Practice with a drum machine, or just find a loop on YouTube (there are tons of play along loops) and let the snare dictate the 2 and 4 without trying to fill that space yourself.
 

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