Fingerstyle tone..

[Wrighty]

I am interested in thoughts on developing a warm / fat tone when playing fingerstyle and any tips that may help with achieving this.

Being able to play quietly whilst preserving a fat tone is very challenging, and likewise playing louder without compromising tone is also tough.

Right hand technique seems to be critical and I am looking for insight into areas such as;

How the strings are plucked - what sort of action am I looking for?

Do you pop the stings inwards a little?

Nail/flesh combination - what does this look like?

Any insight much appreciated.

[Rogerblair]

The warmest sound I’ve achieved has come from flesh only playing. I am reminded immediately upon playing when my nails are even slightly too long. It doesn’t take much nail to brighten the sound. The downside, of course, is that you sacrifice some definition.
I am more sensitive to the sound when it is me playing. Others can play using nails and it doesn’t seem as bright or harsh to me. Sort of strange.

Rb

[rick-slo]

Consider modified (or regular) rest stroke movement. If using fingernails their shape and degree of polish (smoothness) very important.

[Paraclete]

I can’t figure out how to post an image. I’m not sure how to describe a good picking hand technique in words. You want solid without plucking too hard. Basically, you are pulling the string up and out slightly, using the meaty tip of your finger. Your nail will catch the string enough to clarify the tone. If you are playing right handed, your fingers should be canted slightly to the left so you are plucking with your finger at a slight angle, not completely perpendicular to the string. Your fingers should be doing the plucking movement, not your whole hand. I play with a very light touch, classical style. I don’t know if other fingerstyle players do it differently. I started on classical. Also, make sure your nails are shaped, not square at the sides, or they will catch on the strings. I hope this makes some sense.

[Misifus]

Look into “Rest Strokes”. That helps deliver the tone you’re looking for.

[mercy]

Paraclete said it well

[Gcunplugged]

Assuming you want to play with fingernails, rather than just your fingertips, the best piece of advice I’ve received so far:

If you are a right-handed player, ramp your fingernails up and to the right. AND, polish the underside of the nails to be glassy smooth. You do not want to strike the strings with the left edge of the nail.

I was amazed at how much “rounder” my trebles sounded when I did this. Of course YMMV...

The same person also suggested I move up to a .013 1st string. Since I was playing 11’s, I’ve moved up to 12’s so I’m halfway there. More specifically, the advice was not necessarily to change the entire set, just to increase the gauge on 1st and 2nd strings.

Hope that helps,
Gary

[jed1894]

Great thread guys. Just asked a similar question on different topic. I'm also a forefinger strummer and struggling with sound and tone. Flesh playing is ok but I cannot jam with anyone. Having a long fingernail drives me crazy.

[jed1894]

Originally Posted by Gcunplugged

More specifically, the advice was not necessarily to change the entire set, just to increase the gauge on 1st and 2nd strings.

Hope that helps,
Gary

Didn't think of this. The first 3 strings is where I'm having tone issues. Didn't think of going up a gauge there.

[high]

i liked this video:

[high]

same with this one, different approach though, more what the OP was asking for.

[erhino41]

Don't neglect fretting technique. The angle you come down onto the string, where you fret in relation to the fret itself and the pressure you use can drastically impact tone. I would suggest trial and error. If you try something and it gets you into the tonal ballpark you are looking for explore that further and find out why and how to make exactly what your looking for.

The instrument will play a key roll in all of this also. Different instruments will respond differently. This can be a pain if you are chasing a certain sound, but it also means a different instrument can be a whole new pallet of sound to work with.

As far as the right hand, I always liked the sound of flesh on mahogany guitars. To me it seems the warmth of the flesh and the focused fundamentals that mahogany tends to provide go very well together. For the same reason I found flesh to be less than ideal on rosewood guitars. I found the fundamental got a little to muddy with flesh, I love nails on rosewood. I personally like to dig into my guitars, I would suggest a higher action than a typically low fingerstyle setup. This will allow you to dig in more with out slapping the frets. You may sacrifice a little bit of the ease the lower action gets you but that is easy to overcome.

[GGSanders]

If you closely observe those proficient in fingerstyle, you will realize that they use a variety of techniques to achieve their desired effects.

Sometimes flesh only, sometimes nails of varying lengths, thumbpicks, fingerpicks of different types, and so on. Some people have naturally thin nails, and resort to nail treatments like Hard as Hooves, or artificial nail applications.

What I've learned over the last year or two as I began to dabble in fingerstyle is that you just have to experiment to find what works best for you and the sound you are trying to achieve.

[DukeX]

I play without nails, in the classical style, usually with my right hand hovering over the strings as a classical guitarist does (no part of the right hand is touching the guitar top or bridge).

This creates a picking angle almost perpendicular to the strings and allows me to pluck the strings with an upward motion (if I choose). With subtle (and not so subtle) variations of this type of stroke I can get soft/warm tones that are still clear and dynamic, to meaty/warm tones with presence and projection, to loud/snappy tones with more brightness.

Also, since I do not use nails I maintain good callouses on my right hand thumb and fingers.

And lots of practice.

[TBman]

I play flesh only and one of the things I mess up on often is my attack angle isn't always perpendicular and you can actually hear my thumb scraping the bass strings instead of just the tone of the string. I do palm mute often which sometimes helps hide this mistake, but I'm fighting this all the time. Often its just a matter of picking the neck up a bit, but my bad habits prevail and it drops while I concentrate on other things.

Something to think about anyway.