Category Archives: guitar strings

Getting a Metal Sound

January 18, 2012 — Leave a Comment

This is a very common question, specially among young students; How do I get a metal sound?

Many people start playing guitar, because they hear a super heavy hardcore riff on the radio and it inspires them to become a musician. That’s cool because heavy metal is a fun genre of music that is also a rewarding genre for guitarists. The sound of a hardcore metal guitar is awesome; however getting ‘that’ sound can be difficult.

First let me note that there are many variations in metal sounds depending on the bands style and how heavy they are. Just like any genre of music there are many variations depending on the band or song. Also lead players need a different tone when they are playing.

However there is a basic ‘metal tone’. This is essentially loud and as distorted as you can be. Often it is common in metal to ‘scoop’ the tone. This means that you should put your bass and treble near full and pull your mids back to around 3 or so. The results this can have may vary wildly depending on the kind of amp you have, so experiment with your equipment.

When it comes to your guitar, generally metal guitarists use humbucker pickups. This is because they reduce feedback and give off a warmer fatter sound. For this reason if you find you are having trouble getting a good sound out of your guitar maybe you need to think about whether you have the right kind of pick ups.

So try these ideas if you are having trouble getting the right metal sound. Remember these are only guidelines for you to experiment with. Remember turn your amps up to eleven and rock out.

Another way to get a good metal sound is the use of distortion or effects pedals. This gets into an area that really can’t be covered in the Tech Tips section of this newsletter, but it’s an important topic to talk about. It can’t be covered because guitar sound is very personal, and the ideal sound for one guitarist won’t sound good to others.

Here is one of the most innovative Metal bands with a great and classic metal guitar sound:

moses Getting a Metal Sound

Posted by Moses Robbins.

Posted in amplifiers / pickups, Electric Guitars, gear, guitar effects / pedals, music, Rock | Tagged , ,

Alternate Picking

January 18, 2012 — Leave a Comment

Let´s start, for those of you who do not know what Alternate Picking is…
It is a guitar playing technique that employs strictly alternating downward and upward picking strokes in a continuous run, it is just as simple as that. (Thanks Wikipedia!)

But now, playing this technique is a completely different thing. If you are having problems with it, this is what you can do:

The main problem with alternate picking comes when you are picking a note in the opposite direction of the next string that you’re going to play. For instance, if your last note was a down stroke on the G string, and your next note is an upstroke on the D string, then your pick has to travel a more complicated path than if you are picking up on G and down on D. What to do?

Some people just refuse to let their picking hand do the more difficult move, by trying to put a hammer on or a pull off to time the direction of the pick to a more favorable direction. Others might just be using the pick to start the string in motion, but are doing all hammer or pull offs other than the first note on a string.

But let’s concentrate on what to do if you are using the versatile alternate picking method. Since we don’t want to limit the note choices, or string choices, in any way, we have to just get good at dealing with the problem.

Practice going back and forth between two strings picking in the opposite direction. For example, play a C on the 3rd string (5th fret) with a downstroke followed by an E on the 4th string (2nd fret)with an upstroke. Repeat the C and E one more time.

Next, bring the C down to a B (1 fret) on the 3rd string with a downstroke, followed by the same E on the 4th with an upstroke. Repeat the B and E. Just to make a slightly musical pattern, do the same thing, but change the B down to an A, doing the same pattern. To make the pattern symmetrical, return the A back up to a B and play B,E,B,E, just like the second pattern.

It will take a lot less time to play this than to read about it, so try to muddle through this explanation to get to the actual notes, it’s not hard to play this as long as you don’t try to play it too fast.

As with all exercises, do it slowly and as accurately as possible at first. Doing this exercise addresses one of the most important points about practicing and improvements.

If you have some free time, check out this video which is an extract from Paul Gilbert´s instructional DVD “Get Out Of My Yard” – It is insane what you can do when getting this technique right! Check it out:

Good luck with your practice. See you next week!

Posted by Moses Robbins.

Posted in acoustic guitars, Artists, Electric Guitars, guitar zen, learning, Uncategorized | Tagged , ,

More Guitar Strings

January 18, 2012 — Leave a Comment

Guitar strings can basically be divided into two types – steel and nylon. Nylon strings are used on classical and flamenco guitars; while steel strings are generally found on electric, flat top and arch top acoustic guitars. It is important to note that while strings are referred to as being steel or nylon, generally strings are wound with some type of copper, brass or nickel based alloy. Out of the six strings on acoustic guitars the 1st and the 2nd are generally ‘unwound’ while the 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th are generally ‘wound’. It is also common on electric guitars for the 3rd string to be ‘unwound’. Most guitars have a set of six strings of varying thickness, each of which is tuned to a different note. The main variation on this is twelve string guitars. They have twelve strings which sit in pairs and are tuned in octaves.

Wound strings are made by rolling wire around a hexagonal or round central string. These wound strings are found on bass strings as it is easier to tune heavier, thicker strings to lower notes. A large variety of materials are used to go around the central string. These materials vary depending on tone wanted and durability desired. However electric guitars need strings that are magnetically responsive. Therefore white metals are required; generally on modern electric guitar strings this metal is nickel or a nickel alloy.

There are three things that dictate the pitch that is produced when a guitar string is played: its length, tension and weight. Its length is simply the distance that the string is along the guitar. Length is changed when you depress a string with your finger. Tension is simply how tight the string is and can be changed by turning the tuning nuts. Weight is the size of the string with bigger strings vibrating slower and producing a lower note.

String sizes are generally talked about in terms of gauges. They are measured in fractions of an inch – the smallest common string being a .008 and the largest in common usage being a .060. Lighter strings are easier to bend and also don’t require much force to push down.

Lighter strings are therefore easier to use and many people who focus on speed prefer lighter strings so they may play faster. However lighter strings can go out of tune easily and have to be replaced often. Lighter strings also have less sustain and aren’t as loud. Heavier strings are more difficult to play but many guitarists prefer the tone and feel of heavier strings. The increased size also means that heavier strings are preferred for musicians who want to tune down their guitars. A light string tuned down too low will get floppy and give a muddy unclear sound.

One of the most annoying things that can happen when you are playing your guitar is having your strings break. There are several common reasons that strings break. The most common reason is being overly aggressive with your right hand. Often if you are playing hard with a pick you can snap the string by simply hitting it to hard. There is no simple way to fix this problem. In fact it is probably better to keep playing hard if that’s your style than toning down just to save strings.

Old strings are prone to breaking as well. This is because as a string gets old they become less elastic and wear from constant playing. Another way that you can break strings is by tuning them too high. Winding your tuning pegs up to high can snap one of your strings. This generally occurs when you are tuning you guitar. For this reason it is best to tune with the strings pointing away from your face.

There can also be sharp points on your guitar; particularly around the bridge or nut. These can lead to regular string breakages. Therefore it is something you should check if your strings keep breaking.

Strings are a key part of the equipment that defines and creates the sound you make. New strings sound rich and clear and different kinds of strings can give you music a different feel or allow easier play. Changing the strings you use and trying different types of strings, or going up and down in gauges is an excellent and cheap way to experiment with your equipment.

If you have 5 minutes, check out this D´Addario video on “How strings are made”:

Posted by Ben Edwards.

Posted in acoustic guitars, Electric Guitars, gear, maintenance

How To Tune A 12 String Guitar?

September 19, 2011 — 1 Comment

For those out there using a 12 string guitar and having problems getting it in tune…

I am having problems tuning my 12-string guitar. How do I do it?

how to tune 12 string guitar How To Tune A 12 String Guitar?

Answer. Even though it may look like a big challenge, ‘standard’ tuning a 12-string guitar is actually quite easy. For the bottom four strings (four thickest) you will tune each pair of strings to the same note but the thinner one will be tuned an octave higher.

An octave is the interval between a note and a note with the same name either higher or lower, example: E4 – E5. The top two strings (two thinnest) have both strings tuned to the same note at the same pitch so they sound exactly the same.

Sounds simple? In theory it is, however when strings are tuned in octaves it is easy to hear slight mistunings. For this reason it is important to tune your strings perfectly when you are tuning a 12-string. Also sometimes you may have a problem keeping some of the strings in tune as the some of the smaller strings are tuned quite tightly. For this reason it can be a good idea to get the best quality strings you can when stringing up a 12-string. Ask your local dealer about strings, hopefully they can help you out.

Hope this helps for now and good luck getting your guitar in tune!

dan How To Tune A 12 String Guitar?

Posted by Dan Orr

Posted in acoustic guitars, buying guitars, gear, learning, maintenance | Tagged , ,

Tech Tip: Touching the strings

June 24, 2010 — Leave a Comment

Question. When I play chords I always touch the strings that I should be playing open. How can I avoid this?

Answer. Touching the wrong strings when you play chords is a common problem that many beginners face when learning the guitar. Today we will look at some simple solutions.

1. Try and press your fingers straight down. Your finger should be at a 90 degree angle with the string. This means that only the tip of your finger should be connecting with string.

2. Are your fingernails short? If your fingernails are long, your fingertip will not be able to sit on the string and your fingers will touch the other strings on the guitar.

3. Place your thumb directly on the back of the neck of your guitar. This puts your hand in a good position to keep your fingers clear of the wrong strings.

4. Practice with chords you find easy. Look at how your hand sits when you play these chords. Try to use the technique that you use on easier chords with more difficult chords.

5. Using a capo at higher frets can make it easier on your fingers as the frets are closer together. However for people with big hands this can make it more difficult. So experiment with a capo to see if it helps you.

Each person has different size hands, finger shape and flexibility. For this reason there is no universal rule that will change your playing to avoid touching the wrong strings when playing. You should practice chords as much as you can until you feel confident and comfortable with them.

Good luck with your practice.

Posted in fingerpicking, learning | Tagged , ,
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