Strap Height = Important ! Options

[Ben Higgins]

I just adjusted my strap height so that my guitar is sitting a little higher and it's made a massive improvement to my playing. Why ? Well, because it makes it easier to hold my picking hand at the angle that suits it best. Rather than resting over the strings from above it's more to the side which is much better for me. Also I noticed my shoulder is lower and at a more natural position so there's less tension.

Sometimes the needed adjustments are not in the way you hold the pick or the type of pick etc, but in the angle that your arm and hand approach the guitar and that's where strap height is important. We're all different so some of us need it low and some need it higher. There's no right or wrong way but there will be a way that is right for you

Any of you guys chance upon some dramatic improvements when you adjusted your strap height ?

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This post has been edited by Ben Higgins: Aug 10 2012, 11:36 AM

[snackajacks]

Yes when I just played my first gear I wanted to be as badass as slash, so I set my strap really low almost to my knees, Now I make sure that its more in my upperbelly this way I can get my thumb better at the back of my neck and makes me able to stretch my fingers more.

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[Ben Higgins]

Yes when I just played my first gear I wanted to be as badass as slash, so I set my strap really low almost to my knees, Now I make sure that its more in my upperbelly this way I can get my thumb better at the back of my neck and makes me able to stretch my fingers more.

Yeah, there's always a balance between looking cool and being able to function !

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[Gitarrero]

First of all I wanna look cool, so the guitar has to be low

Seriously, the strap height I use now is great for my right hand...but my left hand is struggling a bit. All in all I feel comfy with the strap height I use now.

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[Narzsa]

I just adjusted my strap height so that my guitar is sitting a little higher and it's made a massive improvement to my playing. Why ? Well, because it makes it easier to hold my picking hand at the angle that suits it best. Rather than resting over the strings from above it's more to the side which is much better for me. Also I noticed my shoulder is lower and at a more natural position so there's less tension.

Sometimes the needed adjustments are not in the way you hold the pick or the type of pick etc, but in the angle that your arm and hand approach the guitar and that's where strap height is important. We're all different so some of us need it low and some need it higher. There's no right or wrong way but there will be a way that is right for you

Any of you guys chance upon some dramatic improvements when you adjusted your strap height ?

This is insanely good advice. I used to try and look cool by having the guitar as low as possible, but after it bit me at a gig and I noticed that nearly all shredders carry it a lot higher I made the switch. Man, massive improvement. It also keeps you closer to how you play sitting down, making the transition all the more smoother.

Strap height and pick type and 2 of the easiest and quickest things to change that can have huge improvements to your playing

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[Ben Higgins]

First of all I wanna look cool, so the guitar has to be low

Seriously, the strap height I use now is great for my right hand...but my left hand is struggling a bit. All in all I feel comfy with the strap height I use now.

Haha, all I hear is:

1: I wanna look cool

2: I wanna look cool

3: I wanna look cool

4: I wanna.. etc

This is insanely good advice. I used to try and look cool by having the guitar as low as possible, but after it bit me at a gig and I noticed that nearly all shredders carry it a lot higher I made the switch. Man, massive improvement. It also keeps you closer to how you play sitting down, making the transition all the more smoother.

Strap height and pick type and 2 of the easiest and quickest things to change that can have huge improvements to your playing

Yeah, it just seems so blindingly obvious and people always talk about it but sometimes it takes years before you really get it right !

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[Mudbone]

I used to wear it like Tom Morello (really high) and that made playing much easier. But the past couple of years I've been playing strictly in the classical position when sitting down, so I try to replicate the same height when standing up.

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[casinostrat]

I keep my guitar fairly high when I play, someone told me once I was wearing it Beatles style rather than Slash style. Most of the time I use a Les Paul and I have to be able to reach everything. I'm only 5 foot 4 inches tall and if I wore that guitar slash style it would be practically bumping against my ankles!

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[Yash]

I have my guitar just under my belly, and till now, it works as good as I am sitting, I don't notice much difference yet
Is that the look cool height ?

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This post has been edited by Yash: Aug 10 2012, 05:28 PM

[Todd Simpson]

Yup Amazing eh? That one adjustment can make a HUGE difference. It's all of these small adjustments/bits that come together to really help make playing easier and eventually better/more expressive IMIHO.

The physics of having it a bit higher just help everything IMHO. Better angle for the hand and arm/Reduced tension/reduced fatigue/better fret access etc.

It does look cool around ones knees of course, but if you are playing complex stuff, you end up having to pull a Zakk Wylde and put your leg on the monitor and balance the guitar on your knee to raise it for leads

All that said, (insert disclaimer) as you mentioned everyone is different so some folks may somehow play better/faster/more precise with the guitar in Slash mode. Slash does fine with it But yeah, he does the same tricks as Zack for raising it up during complex leads.

Todd

I just adjusted my strap height so that my guitar is sitting a little higher and it's made a massive improvement to my playing. Why ? Well, because it makes it easier to hold my picking hand at the angle that suits it best. Rather than resting over the strings from above it's more to the side which is much better for me. Also I noticed my shoulder is lower and at a more natural position so there's less tension.

Sometimes the needed adjustments are not in the way you hold the pick or the type of pick etc, but in the angle that your arm and hand approach the guitar and that's where strap height is important. We're all different so some of us need it low and some need it higher. There's no right or wrong way but there will be a way that is right for you

Any of you guys chance upon some dramatic improvements when you adjusted your strap height ?

You are at GuitarMasterClass.net

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[Ben Higgins]

It does look cool around ones knees of course, but if you are playing complex stuff, you end up having to pull a Zakk Wylde and put your leg on the monitor and balance the guitar on your knee to raise it for leads

Indeed. And also notice (this is to everyone) that when Zakk is picking fast on the high strings how he really brings his forearm down and outwards so he's attacking it from the side. Almost as extreme as Friedman but not quite. My approach to that would be to bring the guitar up saving the need to drop your arm down.

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[ElHombre]

sorry but what is "strap height"
I would like to know

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[Ben Higgins]

sorry but what is "strap height"
I would like to know

How high you wear your guitar.. adjusting the length of the guitar strap

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[ElHombre]

aha a strap is the shoulderbelt (?)
I had some trouble with that, now I wear it kind of high though, and its almost as comfortable as sitting

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[Cosmin Lupu]

I have raised the hight of my strap as well, due to the fact that I wasn't able to play some parts of Voodoo's aongs without being stressed on stage. Indeed, the difference provided by the angles is significant!

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[Marcus Siepen]

I can't play when my strap is too high. Of course this would make things a bit more comfortable for my left hand, but then I really get into trouble with my right hand, picking (specially our fast stuff) just doesn't feel right anymore, and when it doesn't feel right it mostly doesn't sound right as well ;-), all the chunk and the punch of my picking disappears like that. Of course the strap being too low is also bad, at some point things get bad for my right hand as well and I lose control over my playing, and since we play with In Ear on stage I can't even do the Zakk Wylde trick with the monitor (there are no monitors on stage in BG shows) For me a kinda medium hight is fine, the perfect balance between working and looking cool ;-)

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[Cosmin Lupu]

I can't play when my strap is too high. Of course this would make things a bit more comfortable for my left hand, but then I really get into trouble with my right hand, picking (specially our fast stuff) just doesn't feel right anymore, and when it doesn't feel right it mostly doesn't sound right as well ;-), all the chunk and the punch of my picking disappears like that. Of course the strap being too low is also bad, at some point things get bad for my right hand as well and I lose control over my playing, and since we play with In Ear on stage I can't even do the Zakk Wylde trick with the monitor (there are no monitors on stage in BG shows) For me a kinda medium hight is fine, the perfect balance between working and looking cool ;-)

I have recently raised the position of my guitar, because it was simply too low and playing was difficult...to difficult to jump around and do stuff from the perspective of showmanship Now I look A BIT geeky (because I am tall) but hey, if Tom Morello can pull a stunt like this and looks so damn cool on stage, why wouldn't it work for me?

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This post has been edited by Cosmin Lupu: Aug 16 2012, 10:43 AM

[Ben Higgins]

and since we play with In Ear on stage I can't even do the Zakk Wylde trick with the monitor (there are no monitors on stage in BG shows) For me a kinda medium hight is fine, the perfect balance between working and looking cool ;-)

I wonder if you could request some dummy monitor speakers for your side of the stage, with the speakers taken out so it's lighter to transport ?? Just so you can do the 'foot on the monitor' pose !

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[Cosmin Lupu]

I wonder if you could request some dummy monitor speakers for your side of the stage, with the speakers taken out so it's lighter to transport ?? Just so you can do the 'foot on the monitor' pose !

John Petrucci has some special foot holders out of what I know They are actually part of his pedal board!

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[Ben Higgins]

John Petrucci has some special foot holders out of what I know They are actually part of his pedal board!

Now that doesn't surprise me...

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