muting strings when sweeping

[shadowcat]

How much ya wanna bet?

Ah screw it, I'm one ahead again!

http://www.jcfonline.com/forums/showthread.php?t=55794

[jjw]

That dude on that vid sweeps just like me.I can tell you the side part of the palm is used to lightly mute the phatt strings and the fingers on the fretting hand mute the top 3 strings lightly(enough to stop any unwanted ringing)
REMEMBER when learning to sweep to get the timing SMOOTH,otherwise you could end up rushing the notes with a raking method.Just keep sticking at it mate and you will nail it

[dvara]

You will hear "Slow down" alot, and it rings true, really. I used to have a problem with raking my strings too and my muting sucked.

I slowed down, but more importantly I paid attention to what my right hand was doing. When I forced myself to adjust my right hand so my muting was good at slow speeds, it didnt take too long for my hand to fall into the proper position naturally. I cant stress enough the importance of paying active attention to what the muscles in your hands are trying to do when you practice. Your fingers will do what your brain tells them to do without concious whether it's good or bad.

So slow down, and re-train your hand for the proper muting position, before you know it you will be a shredding for teh win!

PS: dont get frustrated, alot of people can sweep, but they all sounded like crap when they started, the good sweepers learned to adjust to what their hands were not doing properly, and they slowed down and built there chops back up.

Now a good legato technique, that what I am working on and i'll never be confused with George Lynch

Dv

[slash-ed]

Bah. Sweeping is something that has as yet eluded me, much to my frustration. I can't seem to make the transition from slow to fast without it sounding like arse. When I'm lucky I can get a 5 string A Major sorta shape going, but other than that, nothing seems to work for me... =(

[shredmonster]

To perfect sweeping takes a long time - lke 2 or 3 years maybe more. Its a continuous practice thing until you get it. One of the best ways to learn is to find someone who knows how to do it that can show you.

There are certain ways I found to practice them that will work but it takes a lot of time and dedication regardless.

Making them clean means you have perfected both the right and left hand technique. It is not easy and takes a lot of practice.

You mute with both hands at different times depending on what you are doing. The left hand is just as important when it comes to muting. You lift it up from the string but not off of the string with the left hand and this will mute the string.

Its not just a matter of muting with both hands either. Accuracy is involved. The more accurate you are the less noise. Proper circular picking eliminates string raking noise. The timing of the pick and left hand.

See if you do all these things properly you will have less noise to worry about and it will reduce but not elimiate your need to mute. But it makes it a hell of a lot easier to mute and reduces a lot of noise.

[slash-ed]

What exactly is circular picking?

[kenneth]

A couple of resources that really helped with my sweeping - there's a cool site - insaneguitar.com - the guy who runs it has an online video that demonstrates sweeping technique, along with an entire article and exercises to build up to 6-string arpeggios. Also, Paul Hanson's instructional video "Metal and Rock Improvising" has some really good basic exercises to help you get the hang of sweeping. He taught at GIT during the 80's - not only a great player, but a really, really good teacher. Paul Gilbert's first video - Intense Rock (I think?) also has some good exercises.

[demeyes]

Sweeping is one of those things you don't want to rush. I tried twice to learn doing it and gave up after a while. I went about doing it all wrong and just wanted to skip to playing fast. This set me back ages. Then I set about doing it right and picked it back up from the start.
You have to really slow it down and see exactly what you are doing with your left hand, right palm and also the pick. I mute the 3 lowest strings with my right hand and the 3 higher tuned strings with my left hand. Another thing I would recommend is to play exactly the same way when you speed up. Some people tend to alter their technique when they speed up which defeats the purpose of slowing down.
Also I would say to actually listen to how what your playing sounds. It should sound clean and no 2 notes ringing. If it comes to it even record your playing and listen to see how it sounds. It should sound right if not go slow down again and keep working till your happy with it.
Overall take your time and it will start to come together after a while. Everything will start working in unison and the motion will become more natural.

[Norton]

the guy in the video is named Russ.He posts to the official Megadeth forums.And his guitar is a KV2.

[Soap]

and the motion will become more natural.

Bingo, we have a winner!
This why many struggle with it.
Its the "motion", its not a natural motion like the other stuff you learn playing guitar. Its all in the motion, learn it correctly and you will overcome the difficulty of arpeggios.

For me, it wasn't so much the picking hand motion I struggled with, it was the fret hand. The fret hand rolling motion killed, it was a unatural motion to me.
Ex. Learn the "rolling motion" of the freting hand playing 3-4 string arpeggios.
I don't have the software that would make this easy, BUT, I'll try to explain and simplify the "rolling motion" of the fret hand.
I'm not gonna get technical or caught up in which finger/s you should or shouldn't use. Good rule, learn to use all your fingers on your frethand.

E 10 fret
B 12 fret
G 12 fret
D 12 fret
A 10 fret
E

This is a very basic shape, BUT, can be a booger to learn because of the not so natural "rollin motion" the arpeggio requires.
Not only the fret hand but also the picking is important as well on this shape. Even how you hold your pick can make it either easier or more difficult. So, you may have to change the way you hold your pick when arpeggioing, many do and have with success.
The B, G, and D strings on the 12 fret whether you use your ringer finger or pinky makes no difference. Learn the rolling motion when fretting these notes, like a bananna (arched) or something to that affect rolling over those notes. Its much easier to show you this stuff than try to explain it, sorry, its the best I can do. Others can elaborate.

Muting?
In time it will come, again learn the motion correctly and everything else will come together. Personally, I lightly lay the meaty part of my hand on the bridge and use it accordingly. Again, its difficult to explain this sort of thing and much easier just to show you.

A very good video to download to better explain the "dynamics of the picking hand and muting", Paul Gilberts Intense Rock2. He devotes a section to it and does a really good job showing and explaining it. Basic and simple stuff but needful to learn when advancing. Both hands need to and should advance in the journey of playing. Arppeggios forces that truth. You got a weak picking hand, haven't learned the basics of picking dynamics you'll know it once try arppeggios. The same for the fret hand. Its all in the "motion" get the motion learned and your on your way.

Happy playing