Ask Mike #1 - How To Stop Touching Unwanted Strings

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[@jasminealwedyan874]

I'm a beginner and I feel so discouraged from touching other strings. I think this will help me.

[@devin2151]

How r u now?

[@Uncharted8907]

@@devin2151 he gave up

[@charlesyoung8600]

Don't feel bad. I can't think of any one I know who hasn't had that problem when first starting out. Slow focused practice and patience will help you get passed it.

[@southam50]

​@@Uncharted8907 🤣💀💀

[@clash_VR]

​@@southam50 thats not funny dude smh 😔😔

[@gauravkashyap3410]

One tip of today changed my entire life and more than 6 months of practice. Thanks a lot buddy. God bless you

[@mhasikhonuokera5548]

M struggling to play D chord. No Matter how hard I try

[@blurvy1366]

@@mhasikhonuokera5548 my middle finger muting 5th string on G chord

[@aloksrivastava4950]

​@@mhasikhonuokera5548it's really true Mann I mean I am trying since 1 hr and still it has not played even for single time

[@viking21]

​@@mhasikhonuokera5548Same here. How's your playing now?

[@hatfieldrick]

Also helps to make sure your fingernails are short enough that they don't touch the fretboard before your fingertip. I'm just a beginner but that alone made a big difference for me.

[@martinpazienza1816]

Thank you I've started cutting my nails it does help keep getting better!

[@andrewyoung9516]

Cutting my fingernails helped me too. I was struggling with making my first chords sound clean, but then I trimmed my nails as low as possible and the chords sounded a lot cleaner.

[@williammills8953]

Thanks. Then how does dolly pardon play with her 9 inch nails? Huh? 😆

[@hatfieldrick]

​@@williammills8953 Darned if i know. All I can say is it makes a big difference for ME.

[@chrisbryan2333]

This helped me so much as a beginner, great tip

[@mcdevious2229]

"Practicing in the right way." Thanks. Long ago, a man said, "Practice makes permanent." How true. Very good presentation, Mike. Thanks again.

[@dakshsaijwal]

Thank you sir..I had literally started to doubt my guitar😂😂

[@snigdha3561]

Me too 😂

[@thexombie3225]

I was going MAD trying to figure out what I was doing wrong, and this helped a lot. Thank you!

[@williammills8953]

This is literally my problem I have. Especially the C- chord.

[@AryanKulkarni31]

can feel you bro same

[@williammills8953]

@Crowleone very annoying isn't it. I been playing for about 6 month now. My fingers are callused now. I'm starting to get used to that now. I think the more you play. The more your fingers adjust. Try bringing you thumb down and point it toward the tuner part about halfway for the c-chord. It helps some.

[@nischalgautam1282]

Same here

[@Journeyjunkie309]

@Crowleone yaaa

[@littleorange6361]

I tried your tips tonight. They made a huge difference thank you!

[@rajlakhani2958]

That is excellent advice and has made a big difference. Thank you so much.

[@user-nc6bm6sz8k]

This was the best video on the topic in entire youtube!! was going crazy for not being able to sound the chords right! thanks a lot sir!!

[@oweifhtuvj975]

Besides the video’s tips and the tip to keep your nails short is to to not press the fretting fingers down with too much force. Your finger tips will flatten and can end up touching the adjacent strings.

[@ecab992]

Oh crap this has been my problem! Thanks man! I didn’t think my fingers were *that* fat hahah

[@trevorb9281]

I’ve watched a ton of other videos about this and not one brought this up. It ended up being my issue as well. Thank you so much

[@timmanc]

Excellent vid thank you. This has helped me with some basic mistakes I’m making with the fretting hand position.

[@robordm]

THIS is what I was looking for! Watched so many videos looking for the solution, and here it is. Thank you! Gonna take some practice though, kinda like relearning the chords:)

[@thanatossassin]

Lowering the thumb is how I ended up figuring this out on my own years ago, but wish I had this video to guide me back then. Great advice.

[@passwordistaco1]

The wrist forward bit is solid gold advice. Been play for just over a year and that has given me a huge improvement in my playing. Thanks!!

[@drewdietz2115]

glad I found this channel!! keep up the nice work.

[@RubenJonkers]

This is the best guitar tip I've ever had and improved my playing loads in just a few minutes!

[@jessedorado4569]

These tips actually improved the sound of some of my chords! . Thanks!

[@jackdillinger7083]

I’m a beginner and have had this problem for days now! I don’t usually comment someone gave me a tip that actually worked but this one actually did! Thank you Sir!!!!

[@nedstar7378]

Excellent explanation and very helpful, thanks for sharing.

[@kalpanasharma479]

This is awesome! I was struggling with the same question. Thank you!

[@Joslemian]

Wrist forward was a great tip for this beginner. Thank you.

[@StBlazeyModelWorld]

Im a newbie with exactly that problem. This helped me so much, Cheers Mike

[@joanneteggart2058]

Thanks Mike! My son (7) has been playing for a few months started and some great tips for him!.

[@chrisstamoulis4056]

Great video. Thank you!

[@nick_merchant]

Very well done. I am new at this, this was quite helpful.

[@actie-reactie]

Thanks mate! This helps! Had the same problem, because I flattened the thumb at the neck...thought that was supposed to be! Subscribing.

[@knockout_strike3383]

This is very helpful vid for me as a beginner learning chords

[@Dakhaos-ou812]

never thought of that...Thank you..I start applying it right away

[@kamilsawicki1931]

Woooow, such a simple lesson but change so much! I couldn’t figure out what the hell was wrong with my hand, I even started to think I might have shorter pinky then other people 😂 But nope, turns out my hand position was out of place. Thanks a lot mate!

[@annprescott7723]

Thank you so much!

[@walther9161]

Great stuff and thank you for posting!!

[@danielraphel3033]

Sir your tips are very much useful, thank you sir.

[@saum]

Loved it....very good advice

[@SteveWellsNZ]

Very helpful, thanks Mike!

[@Mdice1]

Also a beginner. Thanks for the tips. Yeah, I feel like my ring finger is fatter than the others so I have the hardest time with that. I'm gonna try making that one finger a Vegan to cut some weight... Might put it on the finger treadmill for a bit, too, and see if that helps. Thanks again 🙏

[@qiqidouluvme]

ive kept watching videos on this topic and theyre all confusing. But this one actually helped me out alot

[@KawaiiMirasaki]

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOUUUU 😭😭😭 MY BRAIN WAS HURTING BUT THEN THIS HELPED SO MUCH AND I COULD FINALLY PLAY WITH MAY LESS OF THAT BUZZ SOUND GAAAHHH

[@pj8624]

Great tips!! Thank you!

[@gautamdeepkaur1619]

Thank you for the tips! My nail beds are long so even with no nails grown, it's hard for my index finger to be perpendicular to the fret.

[@StevenLeeYouTube]

Same issue, but I'll keep trying.

[@StephanieDass]

This guy has the best tips 👌🏼 To the point, practical, and actually helpful! Thank you Mike

[@LyteLounge]

very very helpful sir

[@Outdoorworldredneck]

I got so frustrated been having this problem since I started tried curving my fingers more and more. Never paid attention to thumb placement and wow that helps a lot!! Thank you so much for this video

[@val21704]

Does your wrist hurt too? mine hurts af

[@Outdoorworldredneck]

@@val21704 yes and I have arthritis in my left hand which doesn’t help. I’ve found getting comfortable on strings is 100% most important

[@PK-se2jh]

this is so helpful thankyouuu

[@yacoolbeats7959]

Very helpful tips!

[@amessenger3208]

Thanks! It helped.

[@jocelynelebon5230]

Thank you so much, Mike!!!!!

[@realthebirds]

great advice on the angle of the fingers

[@bondocanjeddrielf.gas11-c72]

this actually helped me tyy!!

[@wolfgangk1]

Thank you. I took a year of guitar in college and have been on my own since (15yrs). I play EVERY DAY for at least an hour. It sounds nice but I'm getting tired to muting strings-and I play on a classical guitar (fat fingers), you'd think that the strings were far enough apart that it would happen. Your video confirmed what I suspected was my problem.

[@wmauibill]

Great video thanks!

[@legent4k614]

great video. your video popped up exactly for what i searched for, and i gotta say that it helped so much as far as seeing how it's done. i thought i had it but when i tried it, my hand just didn't want to go where i knew it should and it hurt my wrist. Then i came back and watched it while having the guitar in hand, pausing it to make sure i got it but i can't get the fingers right. i kept hitting unwanted strings. im specifically practicing C Major and won't move on to learn another chord until i know i can hit that note perfectly. i watched this 5 times and see the effortless look of your hand wrist and fingers just rest on that guitar like it's nothing. i need help.

[@marcyrodriguez3174]

yo this is actually really helpful what the hell appreciate it

[@pop8590]

Thank you for this!!!!!

[@runningwithscissors0911]

Exactly the tips I need!

[@cherylsantos5332]

Thanks so much sharing this information💙

[@ajaybhaskar6558]

Awesome tips .. 😍

[@roscmon]

Lol... I pulled up this video because i was curious about how not to touch unwanted strings. I already knew the answer but was curious about tips. So I'm sitting here trying to find the best position for my guitar to be comfortable and be able to reach the hard to reach frets and was pushing the neck further away from my body when the video talks about not doing that. Good to know.

[@synchronicity67]

Wow ..am gonna try yr tips tomorrow 👍🎵🎸thanks 🙏(its 2am now😉)

[@a_carat_who_loves_seventeen]

Thank you so much

[@tomsmith8515]

I read this in the 80s-90s that if you place a pencil at the bottom of the fret board this can help teach you to learn the gap, try with an E chrod

[@callumsewell3473]

Appreciate ya!!

[@BrEaKiNg_Brad]

Tizzight. Thanks Mate.

[@e1mor3n06]

Thank you

[@shinziro9632]

useful information good video

[@kkhagendra]

God bless you!

[@ranhat2]

Bravo. Grt tips.

[@vishvajeetsinh_solanki]

By the way your voice is so soothing I almost fell asleep.

[@krishnchipz]

nice man, thank you :)

[@danparsons2765]

Came here after struggling with barre chords with fingers covering two strings so even when the barre worked the chord wouldn’t sound right. Very useful

[@shaliniamanna7920]

Thank you Bro, from India 🇮🇳

[@sama._.4220]

lol I have an assessment tommorow and I’m just watching these videos whenever I can😂😭

[@ignasiusryanhasim]

This is really practical. Thanks Mike! Greetings from Indonesia.

[@kellyojanen8168]

well said sir ty :P

[@reniside4357]

Nice one 🙂

[@rb0675]

Im having this issue. Im starting to think the guitar is more useful as a weapon than an instrument right now 😂

[@Lungdog]

Thanks I was struggling with muting the bottom string while trying the D chord, I was moving my thumb down, but my wrist was not going forward, that little tip now has me playing the D Ok..ish,

[@sydfarmer7694]

Hi Mike I find great difficulty playing b flat as I nearly always deaden a note, any advice for me, many thanks..

[@dilly-2-philly841]

Thanks a lot. I was however, watching folks like McCartney, Clapton, Hendrix on youtube playing the guitar and their thumbs almost invariably were curving on top of the fretboard. What are/were they doing differently?

[@luddylu9308]

I'm a beginner acoustic player. I'm having lots of trouble with my thumb placement behind the fret board. My thumb keeps curving at an odd angle and I can't get my thumb pad to lay against the back of the neck. My fingers also curve at an funny angle and I have to put my left arm in an unnatural position. How can I correct my thumb and fingers to not angle over the strings?

[@billiondollardan]

I tried learning guitar years ago but I thought maybe my fingers were too big or something. I was just positing my hands improperly! I think I might try again... just gotta get another guitar lol

[@StevenLeeYouTube]

It's so difficult, on E chord, I keep holding down the bottom two strings. I see that people have round small fingers, mine seem to be more pointed, which makes it hard, even with these tips.

[@pixelatedjug2494]

What about in guitar sizing is there a size that makes it easier for people with large fingers?

[@theedman22]

Thanks for these videos! Great idea. I’m a newbie. :-). I’m listening lol Can I ask a question here? How do I stop open strings from sounding out when I am changing chords? When I am changing from G chord to D chord the G and B strings continue to ring/play. What’s the email, please, I didn’t see it? Thanks!

[@ce8539]

Its hard not to feel like my hand is just not the right shape. Spent an hour a day for a week trying to get some chords to not sound like utter garbage but i cant find a position for my hand that leads me to be able to "relax" like every teacher says and still be able to reach the notes without flexing and becoming rigid. Was anyone able to get past this stage and if so how long did it take you. Never had any issues like this on piano or trumpet when I first started learning. It was just steady linear progress

[@BrimmFate]

I have problems with the fourth string not ringing out when im doing a g chord because my finger on the fifth string kind of lightly touches the string but ive only been practicing for a week so im hoping i get better

[@stevensmith4549]

Thank you Mike, so helpful as i have constantly been hitting other strings.

[@alancosens]

There are some chords that are simply impossible for me to play because my fingertips are so thick that, no matter how accurate, the flesh mutes the strings on both sides. After nearly 30 years of being frustrated about this I finally ordered a wide neck from Warmoth and voila! Very hard to find wider necks on a decent guitar though. You have to custom order the neck, which is pain because when you do that they don't come leveled, crowned and polished. So with a neck being around $250 to $300, plus paying a luthier to finish the frets, or getting a PLEK job, you end up spending as much to finish the neck as you could for an entire guitar. But, if you have sausage fingers like me, it's worth it.

[@paladingeste6897]

That's good tips but I think my fingers are too wide. As much of an angle I put, my fingers are as wide as two spaces and a string plus a little more touching another string. Even tried filing my nails down to my skin. But I'll try practicing anyways until I give up some day.

[@SamantaGothic]

its my biggest problem as a new guitaristXD

[@Comrade_Bread]

Question. Does the guitar neck size also matter? Like instead of playing a narrow neck, should I play a fatter neck since I have bigger fingers? Or can I make it work with a more slightly narrower neck? I see a lot of guitarists being able to do both it seems, so it doesn’t seem too worrying for me to have to change the neck.

[@SirdudeyPlayz]

I need help. No matter how hard I try, if I for instance play the 3rd string whilst having my finger on the 4th string, the vibrations of the 3rd string hits my finger ruining the sound

[@DaveTheFuckingBrave]

My problem with this is not so much the chords but bends when playing lead guitar. So if I bend say the 9th strong on the g string with my index or middle finger, that same finger (or sometimes others too) touches the other strings while bending, causing unwanted noise. I don’t get how to avoid that

[@memories762]

my pinky finger's nail is creating problem. i do cut it but only till one extent coz it touches the skin and hurts. while playing the nail touches first to the fredboard so the other string gets mute. i have mastered with all open chords but finding it difficult to progress with bare chords. can you help me with any solution to it?

[@chazzthepukeko5057]

Yeah!

[@anonvegeta]

I'm struggling with a D chord keep hitting the bottom string.

[@abinfp]

Same problem. My 3rd finger keeps hitting the E string.

[@williammills8953]

My issue is the C chord

[@get_flankedaxr2472]

SAME

[@nuclearguitar779]

If you are setting your guitar on your right leg, try setting it on your left leg when playing. This literally just fixed my issues with fingers numbing other strings. I noticed when guitar is on my right leg my left fretting hand doesn't have much room to move around. I had a better range of motion when left arm is further away from my body than closer towards it.

[@ArrogantBaSStard]

This is my biggest hurdle as a beginner. And my wrist feels like it’s straining trying to hit the chords. What am I doing wrong?

[@ShortFuseFighting]

catholic priests at orphanages : "oh, you said STRINGS....wrong video"

[@apache08]

Its easy to do it with classic guitar of course. So much space. I dare you to do it with electro...

[@essidrovital6397]

My finger angles are very obtuse and my finger always still touches the other string. It takes 3-5 seconds to squueze it in, but you cant play music if one finger needs 5 seconds to squeeze in

[@winstonbertie8038]

How to place thumb on the guitar neck without hurting the wrist