Dimebag Squeals 2 - NOT pinch harmonics

[MartinBarre]

Sorry to start another thread on this, but the other one seems to have been totally misunderstood and it's got lost. I am not talking about pinch harmonics here - they aren't hard to do. I'm talking about where Dime drops the bar, hits a harmonic, then pulls the bar up. So:


Someone tell me - did he use a pedal to help him with those squeals? I've seen mention of flangers, whammys and stuff.
I know, in theory, how to do it, but I have a hard time managing it, and certainly can't come close to doing it the way he did. Him and Joe Satriani can both do those crazy harmonic squeals and I'm wondering if there's an easy way to do it.

I'm using high gain pickups like the JB and Duncan Blackouts, but I still can't get this right. DO I just need to practice the technique more, or was Dime using something to help him get it sound even more insane?

[sevser]

He pulled off (with his fretting hand and the bar depressed) and openg G...As its coming back up he would lightly touch that string just over ther 3rd fret...and even over the second frett for an even higher squeal. Keep bringing the bar back till you get what yr lookin for...

I do this all the time...works great...

I thing the vid I have in my sig below might even have a visual example...Hope this is what you were lookin for...

[sevser]

Just checked...a few times you can see what I am talking about....40 seconds in...again about half way through but the best example is probably close to the 4 minute mark...I bottom out and do again...My action is VERY low so...I bottom out rather quickly...

[Dreamland_Rebel]

satriani does a similar thing where he depresses the bar till the strings are loose, and does a pinch harmonic over both the b and high e string at the same time somewhere between the 2 pickups.

you can find a youtube vid of Dime doing what you're asking about. just look up Dimebag guitar lessons. - once youtube comes back online.

[MartinBarre]

Okay, cool - thanks guys! So, it's simply a question of practice and technique. There isn't a stompbox that does this thing.

[MartinBarre]

Just checked...a few times you can see what I am talking about....40 seconds in...again about half way through but the best example is probably close to the 4 minute mark...I bottom out and do again...My action is VERY low so...I bottom out rather quickly...

That's some awesome playing there! You're a great player!
However....!
This is exactly what I mean. You're clearly a very technically accomplished player, and yet the three or four times there where you try to hit that type of squeal you don't manage it exactly right. If even you can't hit it, how the fuck do I do it?!
This is exactly why I wonder if there's an easy way to do it. Dime always pulls it off so well, even at lower volumes, as does Satch. It doesn't seem to be a question of technique to me, it's like there's an element of good technique AND some kind of pedal helping it along.

[zeegler]

Hey, if I can do it, it can't be that difficult.

[sevser]

Dime also used the Digitech Whammy stompbox but...that came later on...

Another thing that gives easy harmonics is the Sustainer...There is a switch that doubles the viberation for that harmonic...Check it...http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wgRJs...lated&resnum=5

[sevser]

Hey, if I can do it, it can't be that difficult.

Its just one of those things that you have to keep up on...If I am playing every day and initiating that paticular technique, it comes easy...er....

Thanks BTW...

[drockilles]

Don't know what he did in the studio, but live, I seem to remember saying he would have his tech Grady open his noise gate up (or adjust something else) when he hit the squeals or something like that. In one of the home videos, you can actually see Grady at the board turning some dial while you hear Dime doing a squeal in the background.

[sevser]

That makes good sense...That would be so awesome, to have a tech on all that shit!

[slash-ed]

That's some awesome playing there! You're a great player!
However....!
This is exactly what I mean. You're clearly a very technically accomplished player, and yet the three or four times there where you try to hit that type of squeal you don't manage it exactly right. If even you can't hit it, how the fuck do I do it?!
This is exactly why I wonder if there's an easy way to do it. Dime always pulls it off so well, even at lower volumes, as does Satch. It doesn't seem to be a question of technique to me, it's like there's an element of good technique AND some kind of pedal helping it along.

Dime's way is harder, because there is no pick attack to bring the harmonic out compared to the string noise you're bound to get from flopping the strings around with your trem.

IIRC Satch actually depresses the bar and then PICKS the string at the appropriate natural harmonic, which is way easier.

All you need is practice, seriously! When I was in my Dime stage it took me some practice but in the end I had it down.

Kinda can't do it anymore now though

[bibz]

Clean strings for maximum vibration, pickups that will actually grab those frequencies, plenty of gain stages, plenty of volume helps too.

jackson dr3 (dimebucker bridge w/gotoh floyd) + ts10 + jsx = 20second harmonics

[Grandturk]

Dime went nuts with the Whammy pedal on Far Beyond Driven, IIRC. There's a lot of "ice pick" kind of sounds that he produced. Basically, you hit a note and step on the Whammy which raises the pitch of the note - the pedal lets you set what you raise it to. Tom Morello did this a bunch too. You can sweep the pedal as you play to get some cool harmonized note effects as well.

[ozzuk1]

Theres Dimes way and satch's way, I tend to pick the harmonic on the G string on the 9th fret, bridge pickup then depress the bar and raise it to make that squeal sound...

So i just hold my index/pointer finger, or whatever finger you want to use hoovering above the G string on the 9th, you can use any harmonic node though, pick it and quickly depress and raise the bar.

Dime's way is probably the hardest to learn as you have to get the harmonic over the string fairly fucking accurately if the strings really loose...

Good luck, and happy squealing...

P.s. using some compression would also bring out the harmonics a lot easier too..