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playing with fingers vs picking...


doezer

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Hi folks...

yes,  lets flog that dead old horse just once more shall we :).

i use a thumbpick,  but very often i will use it the normal way at home,  i.e. picking with the thumb and using the fingers on the other strings,  ie fingerstyle..

but then gigging in order to get the volume i revert to picking and strumming, still using the thumbpick (its a Herco medium pick) theyre great ;)..   and just using fingerrs occasionally... the reason i do this is the volume just DIES DIES DIES  when i pick with the fingers..   this would be for tracks with backing tracks and a second guitarist too,  so the guitar has to cut through you know what i mean??

and it works live too,  but i have to say the sound of the thumbpick + fingers is SO much better. when youre just playing at home you really hear that,   anyone picking away in that kind of setup??  i dont just mean a one guitar fingerstyle setup..   but a full band sound with backing tracks etc..??

what would help? a compressor on teh guitar? eq pedal to boost when finger picking.??  any suggestions?

 

thanks

D

 

 

 

 

 

 

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I never use a pick, even with a band. But that means that I use an electric with a band, my acoustic simply doesn't cut through.

Bottom line is that you have to look at the overall sound, not just your guitar's sound. If you want to fingerpick an acoustic over your backing tracks and still be heard you'll need to adjust both. Figure out what frequencies in your guitar you want heard and then cut those frequencies in the backing tracks either by remixing or eqing them out and likely bumping those frequencies on your guitar. If that doesn't work, I'd say give it up--use a pick or drop the BTs.

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Thanks Pogo..

nice and to the point..  i hear you and think youre right. its a case of not having enough volume end of story. just hoped someone had invented something that could have worked there.. :)

as for the  solutions.. i will stick with picking for now..but im trhinking maybe a nice semi-acoustic, archtop or something like that.  so its electric but a bit of a mix of both.  ??

thanks d

 

 

 

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This not an insurmountable issue, and you do not need an electric guitar. It is about the mix you are working with, as noted, a compressor will also help, but will not make the finger notes as loud as the thumb picked notes; but  a very simple addition to your technique may help: get finger picks

They take some getting used to, but the increase in volume is noticeably worth the effort.

 

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Notes_Norton wrote:

 


doezer wrote:

 

(...snip...)

what would help? a compressor on teh guitar? eq pedal to boost when finger picking.??  any suggestions?

 


Notes_Norton wrote:

 


doezer wrote:

 

(...snip...)

what would help? a compressor on teh guitar? eq pedal to boost when finger picking.??  any suggestions?

 

 

 Have you thought about a simple volume pedal?

 

 Notes

 

I use a volume pedal. I set the volume fingerpicking and then pull it back a bit when I use a pick, which is most of the time.

 

 Notes

 

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I really need to spend my time dialing in my acoustic tone. The Guild sounds fine, but there's a tone knob and a volume knob inside the sound hole with no markings for reference, and they both always seem to find their way to be adjusted.

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I use a flatpick for lots of material from r&r to Doc Watson. I also use a flatpick with fingers for Jerry Reed style stuff. I use a thumbpick for Atkins style and just fingers for folk style songs a gut string guitar or Knophler stuff on electric. I also will sometimes  just put my index finger against my thumb and use it as a pick. Never had a problem live getting the sound out. It's about developing your right hand attack and dynamics.:thu:

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