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Palm muting

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(@bjourne)
Trusted Member
Joined: 16 years ago
Posts: 37
Topic starter  

Can someone please explain this technique to me?

For example, when you play rock n roll power chords with a pick without palm muting it sounds awful because the strings ring to much and to high. So I think you are supposed to palm mute them while strumming by resting your palm over the bridge. How is that possible? If I try to hold the guitar like that my right hand comes in a very uncomfortable position and strumming just becomes impossible.

Surely I'm missing something here??


   
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(@dogbite)
Illustrious Member
Joined: 19 years ago
Posts: 6348
 

nope, you are not missing something. that's how it is down; light pressure on the strings where they meet the bridge. it takes some practice is all. if you hang your guitar down to your knees , forget about it. sitting is very easy.
you pivot at the wrist for strumming.

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(@notes_norton)
Noble Member
Joined: 16 years ago
Posts: 1497
 

Yes, holding the guitar too low might look cool, but it really cripples your playing ability.

Of course, that might not be your problem, we don't know where you hold your guitar.

The type of guitar also makes a difference. I find it much more difficult to mute a Strat than I do most common gibsons like LP, SG, ES guitars. That bridge with the tremolo bar so close on the Start makes it difficult for me to get the hand in the right position no matter how I hold the guitar.

Notes

Bob "Notes" Norton

Owner, Norton Music http://www.nortonmusic.com Add-on Styles for Band-in-a-Box and Microsoft SongSmith

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(@moonshine)
Eminent Member
Joined: 17 years ago
Posts: 20
 

I think Can someone please explain this technique to me?

For example, when you play rock n roll power chords with a pick without palm muting it sounds awful because the strings ring to much and to high.=?

This is part of what I meant in my thread about cleaning up my chords. I don't like the sound of all of the extra string ringing blending my chords together. I was wondering what the best technique to counter this was.


   
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(@blueline)
Noble Member
Joined: 17 years ago
Posts: 1704
 

phildo, I was thinking about your question this weekend and wondered if distortion was an issue. Same applies to this thread. If you have too much distortion on the guitar, letting open chords ring out for too long will sound like mud. Changing open chords will also tend to sound bad. So I think that learning to palm mute may help assuming this is the issue you are having.

Teamwork- A few harmless flakes working together can unleash an avalanche of destruction.


   
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(@bjourne)
Trusted Member
Joined: 16 years ago
Posts: 37
Topic starter  

Damn. I'm playing an acoustic and I think I'm holding it correctly. But if I put my palm perpendicular on the bridge of the guitar, then how should I strum the strings when I can't move my hand? Also when I try to strum like that I get a much different tone than when strumming normally as the pick hits the strings far away from the sound hole.


   
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(@dogbite)
Illustrious Member
Joined: 19 years ago
Posts: 6348
 

the trick is pivoting at the wrist. and yes, it is awkward until you get used to it.
on acoustic I mute differently than electric....same reason as you.
mute on the strings in front of the bridge. that way you play over the sound hole. also, I descend on to the strings the nano second after a (muteless) strum. east.

http://www.soundclick.com/bands/pagemusic.cfm?bandID=644552
http://www.soundclick.com/couleerockinvaders


   
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(@boxboy)
Noble Member
Joined: 18 years ago
Posts: 1221
 

darn. I'm playing an acoustic and I think I'm holding it correctly. But if I put my palm perpendicular on the bridge of the guitar, then how should I strum the strings when I can't move my hand?

I wonder if you're trying to mute all 6 strings all the time, bjourne? That will make things pretty rigid.
Maybe just concentrate on a light mute of the strings you're playing at a given time.
For example, if I'm playing an E shuffle on the 2 lowest strings, I probably mute only the bottom 3 (or 4) strings. If I then switch to an open A chord, I sort of 'rock' or pivot my strumming hand downward to mute the appropriate strings for that.
That way you get the freedom in the wrist that dogbite is talking about.

Take this with a grain of salt btw. I only tackled palm muting a short while ago. I put it off forever because of that initial awkward feeling you've spoken of. Good news though: it's really addictive once you get going at it!
:)

Don


   
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(@blueline)
Noble Member
Joined: 17 years ago
Posts: 1704
 

There is a way to mute with both the fretting hand and your pick hand. Kind of a hybrid muting if you will. You'd have to be real comfortable muting the strings at different times and for different reasons. I realize your not asking about this kind of technique, just thought I'd mention it.

Teamwork- A few harmless flakes working together can unleash an avalanche of destruction.


   
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(@georgejw22)
Trusted Member
Joined: 16 years ago
Posts: 40
 

When I mute I use some of the heel of my hand and some of the palm running up to my pinky. If you use just the heel then you may be to parallel to do any good. Maybe it is a bad way to do it but it works for me at the moment. Plus you don't need to mute all the strings if your not strumming all strings as someone mentioned earlier

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(@moonshine)
Eminent Member
Joined: 17 years ago
Posts: 20
 

phildo, I was thinking about your question this weekend and wondered if distortion was an issue. Same applies to this thread. If you have too much distortion on the guitar, letting open chords ring out for too long will sound like mud. Changing open chords will also tend to sound bad. So I think that learning to palm mute may help assuming this is the issue you are having.

Bluline, thanks for thinking more about this. I play clean channel on electric as well an acoustic, so distortion probably isn't the culprit. Your point about changing open chords sounding bad is more what I think I'm talking about. Its actually not so bad on barre chords because I've gotten okay at muting with my fretting hand on barres. Its the palm muting with the right hand that I believe may clean up my chords when changing between them.


   
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