Tremolo picking too quiet?

ddciszar

Joined: Feb 08, 2015
Posts: 2

Posted on Feb 15 2015 09:02 AM

Hello, I've been working on tremolo picking for a few months using some of the great advice found on this forum. So far, I'm pretty satisfied with my speed, endurance, and consistency. But my trem picking is always much quieter than the rest of my playing. It seems like I have to sacrifice volume for speed. This wouldn't matter on something like Misirlou, but many songs use a combination of regular picking and tremolo picking. Should I be able to make my trem picking as loud as my regular picking? Or should I just play everything else softer and turn the volume knob all the way up? Thanks in advance for the help!

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JakeDobner

Joined: Feb 26, 2006
Posts: 12159
Seattle
5 News Pins

Posted on Feb 15 2015 10:04 AM

Yes, you should be able to make it as loud as your regular picking.

Even if it sacrifices some of your tempo/consistency/endurance you should practice really laying into the strings while double picking to get more volume out of them. Just as you learned how to double pick in the first place, you will learn to control your picking at this new intensity.

It is important to double pick very loudly and very softly and to be able to switch between the two seamlessly!

Practice, practice, practice!

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HallmarkSweptWinger

Joined: Jul 27, 2006
Posts: 1284
Berlinesia, Germanifornia
9 POTD Pins

Posted on Feb 15 2015 10:29 AM

Yes, as Jake said, practice practice practice…
Where are you with your pick while double picking? Near to the neck? Near to the bridge? In the middle? This is important for your volume. Do you play both pickups (I prefer playing both pickups for typical surf sound)?

Sometimes I prefer hard and fast double picking as close to the bridge as possible. This is louder. With a Jaguar for example this is the "typical" surf sound for my ears.
Try it with this things in mind. You will see what sounds and works best for you.
Hope it helps.
best cheers!

—

Twang cheers!

Ralf Kilauea

www.kilaueas.de

https://kilaueas.bandcamp.com/album/touch-my-alien

Last edited: Feb 15, 2015 10:30:11

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CrazyAces

Joined: Jul 31, 2012
Posts: 4052
Nashville, TN.
3 News Pins

Posted on Feb 15 2015 11:25 AM

ddciszar,
I have problems with dynamics and tremolo picking as well.
Ideally you should be able to take any picked notes, tremolo or not from a whisper to a roar dynamically and simple as it sounds, and as stated by Jake and Ralf - I can do it better when I practice it more.
When I haven't been practicing this technique suffers more than any in surf music for me.

By the way, welcome to SG101!

Cheers,
Jeff

—

http://www.facebook.com/CrazyAcesMusic
http://www.youtube.com/user/crazyacesrock
http://www.reverbnation.com/crazyacesmusic

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ddciszar

Joined: Feb 08, 2015
Posts: 2

Posted on Feb 15 2015 02:17 PM

Thank you all for the quick replies! I'll start practicing slower but louder and work my way back up to a high speed. Ralf, I've been playing the bridge and middle pickups and picking about an inch from the bridge. But that seems much softer, not louder, as opposed to playing closer to the middle pickup. Is it different on a Jaguar as opposed to a Strat?

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stratdancer

Joined: Dec 11, 2013
Posts: 2533
Akron, Ohio
United States

Posted on Feb 15 2015 02:40 PM

I have the opposite concerns. Very loud, hammering picking but keeping the cadence and not bouncing the pick off adjacent strings is what I work on. Adrenaline helps when it comes to trem picking IMHO. The more pumped up I am the louder, faster, more precise I play.

—

The Kahuna Kings

https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Kahuna-Kings/459752090818447

https://thekahunakings.bandcamp.com/releases

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JakeDobner

Joined: Feb 26, 2006
Posts: 12159
Seattle
5 News Pins

Posted on Feb 15 2015 02:47 PM

Also, experience from when I was learning... My double picking wasn't precisely in time when I was learning, I was just going to town. Remember to keep in time, this also goes when playing quietly. You aren't going to master double picking if you don't play in time, it add precision. While you would be in time switching from note to note, your picking still wouldn't be true.

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slopoke

Joined: Dec 24, 2013
Posts: 145
Maribor
Slovenia

Posted on Feb 17 2015 02:25 AM

I had to change the way I hold a pick to get tremolo picking to work. I used to hold it between the thumb and the tips of the first and index fingers, but couldn't get enough speed that way. Now I bend the first finger and hold the pick between the thumb and the side of the index finger. It works much better that way.

—

https://striciizozadja.bandcamp.com/

Last edited: Feb 17, 2015 02:25:59

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da-ron

Joined: Jan 02, 2009
Posts: 1307
The original Plymouth, UK.
United Kingdom

Posted on Feb 17 2015 03:53 AM

Regarding volume of your picking - I read an article by Dave Wronski who wrote thata guitarist should control their volume (this applies to all guitarists, not just surf guitarists) to add some dynamics to a song. He writes that you should be able to have your amplifier loud, but still be able to play at the right volume for the song and to fit in with the rest of the band. Actually, he wrote it a lot better than that, but I hope you see my point. This was a bit of an eye opener for me, and a good tip.

My tremolo picking is pretty poor, and needs practice. In fact, I think I'll practice it this evening! Changing strings is the hardest part of tremolo picking. Most amazing tremolo picking I ever saw was the guy from Dave & the Pussies at Surfer Joe last year. His hand was just a blur, and it didn't even look like he was trying!

—

http://thewaterboarders.bandcamp.com/

Top

ElBirkerio

Joined: Dec 17, 2012
Posts: 519
Vienna
Austria

Posted on Feb 17 2015 05:37 AM

Hi!
yes, david knows his tremolo picking.

i run into problems when doing tremolo picking at a very fast pace (~ 160 - 170 bpm) because it gets washed out. i do switch to a bridge position in such a case as the transversal travel of the string is smaller there - and yes, then the picking is more quiet. i have a t-rex twin booster on the board which i use in this case. a compressor might help as well, at least in a recording situation ...
yours
wolfi

—

http://www.surfgrammeln-san.org
https://www.facebook.com/BaluUndSurfgrammeln
http://greencookierecords.bandcamp.com/album/coming-out-soon-los-chicharrones-del-surf-10

Top

ddciszar Joined: Feb 08, 2015 Posts: 2	Posted on Feb 15 2015 09:02 AM Hello, I've been working on tremolo picking for a few months using some of the great advice found on this forum. So far, I'm pretty satisfied with my speed, endurance, and consistency. But my trem picking is always much quieter than the rest of my playing. It seems like I have to sacrifice volume for speed. This wouldn't matter on something like Misirlou, but many songs use a combination of regular picking and tremolo picking. Should I be able to make my trem picking as loud as my regular picking? Or should I just play everything else softer and turn the volume knob all the way up? Thanks in advance for the help! Top
JakeDobner Joined: Feb 26, 2006 Posts: 12159 Seattle	Posted on Feb 15 2015 10:04 AM Yes, you should be able to make it as loud as your regular picking. Even if it sacrifices some of your tempo/consistency/endurance you should practice really laying into the strings while double picking to get more volume out of them. Just as you learned how to double pick in the first place, you will learn to control your picking at this new intensity. It is important to double pick very loudly and very softly and to be able to switch between the two seamlessly! Practice, practice, practice! Top
HallmarkSweptWinger Joined: Jul 27, 2006 Posts: 1284 Berlinesia, Germanifornia	Posted on Feb 15 2015 10:29 AM Yes, as Jake said, practice practice practice… Where are you with your pick while double picking? Near to the neck? Near to the bridge? In the middle? This is important for your volume. Do you play both pickups (I prefer playing both pickups for typical surf sound)? Sometimes I prefer hard and fast double picking as close to the bridge as possible. This is louder. With a Jaguar for example this is the "typical" surf sound for my ears. Try it with this things in mind. You will see what sounds and works best for you. Hope it helps. best cheers! — Twang cheers! Ralf Kilauea www.kilaueas.de https://kilaueas.bandcamp.com/album/touch-my-alien Last edited: Feb 15, 2015 10:30:11 Top
CrazyAces Joined: Jul 31, 2012 Posts: 4052 Nashville, TN.	Posted on Feb 15 2015 11:25 AM ddciszar, I have problems with dynamics and tremolo picking as well. Ideally you should be able to take any picked notes, tremolo or not from a whisper to a roar dynamically and simple as it sounds, and as stated by Jake and Ralf - I can do it better when I practice it more. When I haven't been practicing this technique suffers more than any in surf music for me. By the way, welcome to SG101! Cheers, Jeff — http://www.facebook.com/CrazyAcesMusic http://www.youtube.com/user/crazyacesrock http://www.reverbnation.com/crazyacesmusic Top
ddciszar Joined: Feb 08, 2015 Posts: 2	Posted on Feb 15 2015 02:17 PM Thank you all for the quick replies! I'll start practicing slower but louder and work my way back up to a high speed. Ralf, I've been playing the bridge and middle pickups and picking about an inch from the bridge. But that seems much softer, not louder, as opposed to playing closer to the middle pickup. Is it different on a Jaguar as opposed to a Strat? Top
stratdancer Joined: Dec 11, 2013 Posts: 2533 Akron, Ohio	Posted on Feb 15 2015 02:40 PM I have the opposite concerns. Very loud, hammering picking but keeping the cadence and not bouncing the pick off adjacent strings is what I work on. Adrenaline helps when it comes to trem picking IMHO. The more pumped up I am the louder, faster, more precise I play. — The Kahuna Kings https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Kahuna-Kings/459752090818447 https://thekahunakings.bandcamp.com/releases Top
JakeDobner Joined: Feb 26, 2006 Posts: 12159 Seattle	Posted on Feb 15 2015 02:47 PM Also, experience from when I was learning... My double picking wasn't precisely in time when I was learning, I was just going to town. Remember to keep in time, this also goes when playing quietly. You aren't going to master double picking if you don't play in time, it add precision. While you would be in time switching from note to note, your picking still wouldn't be true. Top
slopoke Joined: Dec 24, 2013 Posts: 145 Maribor	Posted on Feb 17 2015 02:25 AM I had to change the way I hold a pick to get tremolo picking to work. I used to hold it between the thumb and the tips of the first and index fingers, but couldn't get enough speed that way. Now I bend the first finger and hold the pick between the thumb and the side of the index finger. It works much better that way. — https://striciizozadja.bandcamp.com/ Last edited: Feb 17, 2015 02:25:59 Top
da-ron Joined: Jan 02, 2009 Posts: 1307 The original Plymouth, UK.	Posted on Feb 17 2015 03:53 AM Regarding volume of your picking - I read an article by Dave Wronski who wrote thata guitarist should control their volume (this applies to all guitarists, not just surf guitarists) to add some dynamics to a song. He writes that you should be able to have your amplifier loud, but still be able to play at the right volume for the song and to fit in with the rest of the band. Actually, he wrote it a lot better than that, but I hope you see my point. This was a bit of an eye opener for me, and a good tip. My tremolo picking is pretty poor, and needs practice. In fact, I think I'll practice it this evening! Changing strings is the hardest part of tremolo picking. Most amazing tremolo picking I ever saw was the guy from Dave & the Pussies at Surfer Joe last year. His hand was just a blur, and it didn't even look like he was trying! — http://thewaterboarders.bandcamp.com/ Top
ElBirkerio Joined: Dec 17, 2012 Posts: 519 Vienna	Posted on Feb 17 2015 05:37 AM Hi! yes, david knows his tremolo picking. i run into problems when doing tremolo picking at a very fast pace (~ 160 - 170 bpm) because it gets washed out. i do switch to a bridge position in such a case as the transversal travel of the string is smaller there - and yes, then the picking is more quiet. i have a t-rex twin booster on the board which i use in this case. a compressor might help as well, at least in a recording situation ... yours wolfi — http://www.surfgrammeln-san.org https://www.facebook.com/BaluUndSurfgrammeln http://greencookierecords.bandcamp.com/album/coming-out-soon-los-chicharrones-del-surf-10 Top

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Tremolo picking too quiet?