Pickin' Up the Fretboard

[man dough nollij]

I was watching a YouTube video of a fellow Cafe person playing a tune the other day, and noticed that they were picking way up around the 12th-14th fret.

I tried that on mine, really for the first time. I noticed that it seemed quite a bit louder, and had a nice tone to it. I'd noticed for quite some time that people chop from way up there, but haven't really played around with it much, myself.

I usually try to pick close to the end of the fingerboard extension. I sometimes play a little closer to the bridge for a little more attenuated sound.

I'm sure there are a hundred (thousand) threads here on the cafe about pick attack and where the sweet spot is, but I'm too lazy to search and too prolific to keep from just starting another gosh darned thread.

Do you folks put a lot of thought into where you're picking? Is there a certain technique to picking up the neck like that? You must really have to concentrate to keep from pick-clicking on the side of the fingerboard, not to mention the unsightly scratches! Eeek!

[Ravenwood]

I don't pick over the fretboard as I have a tendency to hit the board and interrupt my rhythm, but I do pay a lot of attention to where I pick according to the sound I want. If I want loud I am nearer the fretboard. If I want very fast and smooth such as a tremelo or triplet, I am closer to the bridge. Each of my instruments is a little different as to exactly where I want to be for a particular sound, but only in a minor way.

By the way, how's the weather down there? It's starting to warm up a little here.

[San Rafael]

Yup. Where you pick on the strings has a big effect on sound. It's a pretty big deal.

[billkilpatrick]

wasn't aware of a "sweet-spot" till someone mentioned it here - then i went looking. mine - that's to say "its" - sweet-spot is just over the extension of the finger board ... if i pick further up the fingerboard my right hand covers the sound hole and interferes with the sound.

[taboot]

I'll pick that high at times becuase of the big tonal difference, but usually I can be found just over my oval sound hole, or over the neck pickup on my electrics. To your point about "pick click," it's something that bugs the heck out of me (we've each got a few of them...) I don't mind hearing someone breathe on a record, but puh-leeze back off enough to stop the mandolin telegraph!

Christian

[woodwizard]

If mine had an extension I would be picking right over it but my goldrush doesn't have one. Don't have to worry about pick click. That's my sweet spot there however I like to pick a little further back closer to the bridge at times for a different sound sometimes.

[Rod_Neep]

The "sweet spot" isn't necessarily over the 12th fret.... it is half the length of the fretted string. I happen to like "mellow" and sustain and so that's where its at. But I wouldn't like to limit the instrument to just that one sound. Closer to the bridge gives a more "brittle" sound with more "bite" and attack.

Just experiment, and be glad that a good instrument can give a great range of colours for different tunes and different types of music.

Rod

[Mike Bunting]

There was a time when Mr. Bill wanted the tone that he got by picking close to the bridge.

[mandozilla]

If mine had an extension I would be picking right over it but my goldrush doesn't have one. Don't have to worry about pick click.

I'm with woodwizard;
If mine had an extension I would be picking right over it but my Kettler doesn't have one either. Don't have to worry about pick click.

However, If I'm looking for that Angel Band turnaround type of sound, I'll move back closer to the bridge. I think that sound is kinda neat on some gospel numbers.

[JeffD]

As you pick closer and closer to the tail piece you eventually reach the "banjo" spot.

[phlattgetit]

I was about to start my own thread on this and found yours.
12th to 15th fret is where I love to pick I don't even like the sound of the instrument elsewhere it's a nice round woody tone but it brings up several problems.
The already mentioned pick click I've tried rounded points and softer material and very light .38 picks.
Then that leads to the next problem playing over the the 12 fret with a thin pick is a delicate lovely sound which is fine practicing and maybe welcome by your neighbors but if you play with any other instrument you are pretty much drowned out.

[Philphool]

Originally Posted by phlattgetit

...
12th to 15th fret is where I love to pick I don't even like the sound of the instrument elsewhere .... but if you play with any other instrument you are pretty much drowned out.

If the instrument only sounds nice at the 12th fret, I wonder if you've found your proper mando. I would think that something like a Phoenix Neoclassical or an old Gibson Oval hole would make a lot more difference in the type of "delicate lovely sound" than would where you pick.

Oops! I now see on another thread that you are considering exactly that. Looking for a flat top. Not a bad idea.

[phlattgetit]

Phil,
I'm in the heart of bluegrass country(although I don't play it) about thirty miles from Big Mon's old home place and haven't had much exposure to non-f-hole mandos until youtube and it's opened a sonic world for me so far I've owned an old Gibson oval hole not the sound I was after a bit tubby . I recently got an even older bowlback which is about 90 per-cent there I actually love it for single lines but find chordal playing on it a bit too defined so I'm now looking for a second instrument to compliment it. I tried a 1920's Martin in a store and resisted impulse buying but I've found months later I can't get it out of my mind. I will only use flatwound strings but I'm beginning to think I need to switch to a restrung uke?

Apologies to Man dough nollij I think we are getting away from the spirit of your thread.

[David Miller]

A bit of Physics here... (sorry)

Pick placement on the string affects tone largely through the way that it affects the sounding of overtones on a particular pitch. For example, when you pick an open "A", the string is also ringing (at a much lower level) the a above that, the e above that a, the next a, etc. etc. All of those overtones mixed together creates the particular tone of a note (timbre / waveform).

If you pick a string right at one of the "nodes" that create these overtones, then you cut down or eliminate those overtones completely, and the tone of the note changes accordingly. For example, picking an open string exactly at the halfway point (12th fret) will eliminate a significant portion of the overtones, generating a much softer, rounder tone, since the edge of a tone comes from the higher overtones.

With that all said, I find myself moving around my picking point depending on the color of tone I want to get. Trial and error mostly, but it can go a long way to adding depth and variety to the tone of one single instrument.