hammer ons

[jagstang21]

lets start by saying tis site is awesome. i only wish i'd found it sooner. i've been playing for a few month now. my question is how do i keep from losing all the volume when i play hammer ons on my acoustic?

also could anyone tell me where to find a jagstang? a friend of mine got lucky and found one in a pawn shop. other than that i can't find one any where.

[StoneDragon]

Hammers and pulls are tough to "pull off" (pun intended) on an acoustic. There's really no way that you will get them to be a loud as a plucked note.

The only thing that you can do is be exact in your technique. Hammers need to be crisp and sharp... pulls need to snap off of the string.

All this without letting your hand tense up.

[DiGiTAL]

Hello................. hello hello hello
Can someone please explain EXACTLY step by step by step... how you do hammer ons and pull offs.. i think maybe you should cut down on the nummber of public forums, just a suggestion

[DiGiTAL]

hmm sorry bout the spelling, i cant even spell in my own language. So be nice :)

[StoneDragon]

I don't think I could explain it any better than I did in the lessons. Go here (http://www.zentao.com/guitar/lesson3/left-hand.html) to check that out.

Anybody else care to take a stab at this one?

[Gazaridis]

Hammer-ons - be quick, be nimble, and mind the candlestick ;) You have to be very fast and accurate to get hammer-ons on an acoustic audible, so ensure that you hit the string with your fingertip. Callusses help, as they make your finger tip harder so they dont dampen the strings but hit them instead. Tricky at first, but once you get that the hammer is often louder than the note you plucked!! PS: Try hammer-ons with the pinky WITHOUT bending the string as you hammer - one of the best exercises Ive found for strength and accuracy (both important on the acoustic - it's much easier to spot a bum note on an acoustic than a distorted electric)!

Pull-offs though...I can't get them at a decent volume yet, so someone else needs to share their pearls of wisdom. All I can say is to pull off ASAP after plucking the string - that way even though you lose volume it can still be heard

[StoneDragon]

The trick to a pull off (without tons of amp and distortion) is to pull the finger off the string downwards (towars the floor) so that the finger tip actually plucks the string as you do the pull off. You have to experement to get just the right amount of pluck without slowing you down or accidentally causing any higher strings to ring.

[jagstang21]

thanks i appreciate the advice.