Sweep Picking woes....

[JacksonVHT]

Guys, I've come up with a problem that I've been trying to get around for while now, but I want to overcome my inability to perform these.

I have an issue with consecutive frets while sweep picking, for example:

e-------------------------
B---16---------16--------
G------16---16-----------
D---------16-------------
A-------------------------
E-------------------------

I'm using the same finger to perform this sweep, but is this something that I have to keep working at with a metronome or is there a specific technique that I have to use to get past this?

I've strictly trained myself to lift my finger after every note in order to perform clean arpeggios, should I continue using this rule for these or do I have to sacrifice that for consecutive frets?

Thanks folks.

[<-Mitch->]

You should barre that one fret with one finger so it's in the right position to cover all 3 strings nicely, and then "roll" your finger in the direction of the sweep so only one note at a time is fretted down to the wire. It's called rolling and is something everyone gets stuck with when first learning to sweep pick. You can either leave it in that position, or move it up to the high 3 strings to make it easier to play. A metronome is definitely required, but that's after you can play it cleanly at a slow speed first.

[JC_Denton]

Ill add that those rolls are easier to do if you place the lowest string at the edge of your fingertip. If the lowest note is like a little past your finger tip´s middle section then they are much harder to do clean.

[Spivonious]

I've just started working on sweeps, but when I do them I kind of slide my finger to the next string so it's always my fingertip fretting the note. It gets rid of the wasted motion of lifting your finger and (IMO) is more consistent than rolling.

It's almost like a pull-off but not.

[<-Mitch->]

I've just started working on sweeps, but when I do them I kind of slide my finger to the next string so it's always my fingertip fretting the note. It gets rid of the wasted motion of lifting your finger and (IMO) is more consistent than rolling.

It's almost like a pull-off but not.

Post a video, this seems like it would be more work, to me!

[JacksonVHT]

Thanks Mitch, I love your Bodom videos.

So instead of fully lifting my finger for each note, just lift it at angles so that the string vibrations are killed while I roll towards the next string on the fret?

[Soap]

Go to youtube and type in their search sweep picking or sweeping arpeggios and you will have so many videos to check out.

[Spivonious]

Post a video, this seems like it would be more work, to me!

I have my guitar with me now, and it seems that I'm really doing a roll like Mitch described, but without barring beforehand. So the first string is the fingertip, the next string is the pad of my fingertip, the third string is the first knuckle, etc. The key is to make sure that you're not fretting more than one note at a time. It takes some practice.

[MartinBarre]

I don't have the time to learn sweeping, so I console myself with the fact Marty Friedman says it's a big waste of time and no one should learn it.

[JacksonVHT]

I don't have the time to learn sweeping, so I console myself with the fact Marty Friedman says it's a big waste of time and no one should learn it.

Marty is my primary influence when it comes to playing guitar!

But even Marty uses sweeps in most of his solos!

[MartinBarre]

Marty is my primary influence when it comes to playing guitar!

But even Marty uses sweeps in most of his solos!

Can't find it now, but he says it's a hard thing to master with no payoff.

[JacksonVHT]

Can't find it now, but he says it's a hard thing to master with no payoff.

I know Marty said that, I remember reading the same interview.

But it pays off for Marty that's for sure!

[MartinBarre]

I know Marty said that, I remember reading the same interview.

But it pays off for Marty that's for sure!

Did he use sweep picking a lot in Megadeth? Seems stupid for him to be saying there's no payoff if he's using the technique himself all the time.
I know Paul Gilbert also says he doesn't sweep much at all, does Marty maybe use the same technique (string skipping)?

I don't know, those guys - while massive favourites of mine - are way above my level of playing!

[VitaminG]

Marty did sweep in Megadeth. Not like Yngwie does where he would do an arp section, and not just up and down the same arps like a lot of the YouTube heroes do. Marty would insert it into flowing melodic lines and was always very musical with it.

PG doesn't sweep much at all (if ever). He uses string skipping to play the same arpeggios. He takes a pattern like:

e------------7-----------
B----------8---8---------
G--------7-------7-------
D------9-----------9-----
A---10---------------10--
E-------------------------

and alternate picks it like:

e----------------------------
B------------8-12-8----------
G-----------------------------
D------9-12---------12-9-----
A---10-------------------10--
E----------------------------

[JacksonVHT]

Did he use sweep picking a lot in Megadeth? Seems stupid for him to be saying there's no payoff if he's using the technique himself all the time.
I know Paul Gilbert also says he doesn't sweep much at all, does Marty maybe use the same technique (string skipping)?

I don't know, those guys - while massive favourites of mine - are way above my level of playing!

Yep, like Vitamin just said. Marty did sweep but he would use arpeggios in between sections. He never over did sweeps, they were very classy.

The second solo after the first Mexican interlude solo of Holy Wars starts out with about two full bars of sweeped arpeggios.

The ending of A Tout Le Monde are sweep picked arpeggios.

He does them in many solos, but they're not pointless noise.