These 4 Easy Exercises will Solve your string crossing problems!

[@BenHigginsOfficial]

Guaranteed way of increasing SPEED, ACCURACY & TECHNIQUE on Guitar - FREE course: courses.benhigginsofficial.com/maximum-guitar-gains

[@CroneRaven1810]

Thanks for this mate. You haven't ditched that white Ibanez, have you?

[@BenHigginsOfficial]

@@CroneRaven1810 No, it's still there, loud and proud!

[@michaelcraig9449]

Ok so what do we actually do? Where is the tabs

[@theguy8034]

Really nice work Ben. This problem isn't addressed much anywhere. I do own quite a few of your courses and they are all good, to the point, no b.s.

[@BenHigginsOfficial]

Thanks, I like to keep it no B.S!

[@jimmccall8030]

Enjoying your clear, concise teaching style where you demonstrate things in small incremental chunks that build on each other. Presently practicing with your legato, synchronization, alternate and economy video courses and my speed, accuracy and fluidity are improving. Thanks

[@BenHigginsOfficial]

Thank you Jim - that's great to hear!

[@jimmccall8030]

What first got my attention and accelerated things quickly for me are your Speed - Anybody Can Do This and Speed - The F*cking Answers vids combined with using a minimal picking range keeping the pick in contact with each string. Combining slow perfect 100% relaxed practice with practicing as fast as possible regardless of tension or accuracy is very effective for me and being stuck at 90 bpm opened up to 120 when I realized I could tremolo pick at 160 and legato at 140 and combine them with synchronization practice

[@jimmccall8030]

...and for anyone wondering if you are too old or you have been playing for 5, 10 or 20 years and you think you’ll probably never be able to get up to speed shred like the greats I’m 67 and been playing since I was 10 and I am now seeing massive improvement in my speed, accuracy and fluidity. The brain can learn at any age

[@BenHigginsOfficial]

@@jimmccall8030 Exactly! 67 and still kicking ass and making improvements. More people need to hear this, Jim!

[@RikJSmith]

@@jimmccall8030 I'm only a few years behind you Jim , and I started when I was 11. I've been struggling my whole life to be able to play like these young people do now on KZbin. Now , because of Ben , I think I might actually get close to that skill level sometime soon. Best of luck to you and stay safe.

[@anthony27436]

Thank you Ben! Your videos are wonderful, direct and informative ... no bullshit!

[@BenHigginsOfficial]

Cheers Anthony, that's the plan!

[@prstorero]

I've been enjoying your tutorial videos since I finally got back into playing recently. Keep it up :)

[@hetfield30]

Thanks for helping me be a better guitarist!!

[@SkyscraperGuitars]

I love the way you break these picking patterns down.

[@JDODify]

Excellent. Cheers, I’m gonna come back to this when i have a guitar in my hands. I found the last one really useful too.

[@n.h.moreno]

Greetings from Pueblo, Colorado, USA!!! Great lesson! Starting it now!

[@michaelcraig9449]

What is this outside and inside picking term? Never heard that. I heard jazz guys say playing outside was playing out of the key.

[@tajulafham94]

All of your tips are so valuable ben

[@AzSamad]

This is such a good lesson, thanks Ben!

[@BenHigginsOfficial]

Thanks Az, you're welcome!

[@alandzavalamederos1783]

Thaks Ben!! String crossing is the point, by the another video with this subject is blocked..🤘🤘

[@BenHigginsOfficial]

Hi Aland, can you tell me which video is blocked?

[@alandzavalamederos1783]

Yes, was 'spred picking-pincking across the strings' but now is fixed, was blocked by some age requirement from KZbin

[@jfo3000]

Nice ideas Ben, thanks. Lick 1 is definitely EVH and George Lynch approved. Ascending I reverse it, down, hammer, hammer, then on higher string up, down, up. I can get it sounding more aggressive this way, IMO.

[@tmarti3207]

Yeah you mean Paul Gilbert style

[@DingGullberryGuitar]

Love it!! Thanks!

[@loveguitars]

Hey Ben, Awesome Lesson. I bought a few of your courses. The hardest thing for me is descending pull offs in this video at 2:07. I don't know if I am doing it correctly? When descending on the pull offs is the index and middle finger planted down on the D string? When you go slow it likes your fingers are planted and when you go fast they don't look planted. Thank you!!

[@BenHigginsOfficial]

Hi, good question. My fingers are not planted on the fretboard. It could look that way because they are quite close to the strings. But in the order the lick is played, when my little finger is about the fret the D note on the D string, 12th fret, my index finger lifts off the G string and stays above the D string until its needed. My middle finger is also just hovering in place over the D string by this point. After I've played the D note with the pinky, I pull off to the C note which is now being fretted by my middle finger. At this point my index finger is still above the string. I then pull off from the middle finger to the index finger. Hopefully that all makes sense?

[@loveguitars]

@@BenHigginsOfficial Hi Ben, Thank you for your help!! Is the 3 note per string descending lick on the D string almost like a backward hammer on, with the pinky and middle finger independently pulling slightly instead of hammering on? I think i analyze too much, but I want to learn it correctly from the start.. I can hammer on pretty good but the 3 note per string descending lick is changeling to get smooth and clear. Thanks, Ben!!

[@BenHigginsOfficial]

@@loveguitars Yes, the descending version uses pull-offs. Funnily enough, I looked at this subject in depth in a recent video.. 'Your Legato Sounds Like Ass?' check it out, it covers this exact subject

[@loveguitars]

@@BenHigginsOfficial Hey Ben, Thank you, man!! I greatly appreciate your help!!

[@HankCoffey]

Great video 🐻👍

[@iganpparamarta8813]

Thank you for the key to the Porsche

[@velocity4761]

i like the last bit , "take no sht" lol

[@samuelvega9882]

Thanks for this, now I can play some Buckethead licks

[@levin2880]

What do you recommend for practice routins? Should I practice every technique (like Sweeping, Speed picking, Tapping...) every day or more like only one technique per day for a few hours. Or even only one technique per week?

[@BenHigginsOfficial]

I would practice the techniques that interest you the most. Make sure you're doing those techniques because you really want to, not because you think you have to. But if you do want them all, then yes... mix them up every day

[@siderminerkgl8193]

What about muted licks like bark at the moon ending solo? Sniper bullet 80% bulletproof😂😂

[@jfo3000]

Jake is a beast, and, it looks like he didn't anchor his picking hand either, kind of strummed on single strings while muting too. Not easy to do with consistent tone.

[@joshm4382]

I gotta quick question, if you take like a week break from guitar, say you go on vacation or something, you can usually get back into your normal groove and abilities pretty quickly, but what about 2 or 3 or 4 weeks? Does anyone have experience where they took a month long break or so then started playing again? I want to know how long I could be away from my guitar and when I come back not be super rusty

[@BenHigginsOfficial]

Hi Josh, whilst you will get some decline in performance it's something that comes back fairly quickly. You don't forget how to do stuff, it's more a case of needing to get 'fit' again.

[@manwithapan9481]

I just started playing again after 10 years, I got a nerve injury. While I'm not picking new things up as fast as my son does to be honest what's gone is mostly age related. A few months exercising the hands and I will be good as new. What a great time to be learning guitar, when I started we had to rewind and stop and rewind and stop cassette tapes to learn riffs by ear.

[@manwithapan9481]

Haaa the last video that brought me here was years old, it was some guy who looked like Jesus what have you done with him :) And great video by the way :) subscribed

[@daniellynch562]

Ben, Just started watching videos? What is you signal chain for you videos? what marshall are you using ? any boosts> thanx !!

[@BenHigginsOfficial]

Hi Daniel, I use Overloud TH3 for tuition stuff and the Marshall JVM for songs.

[@komobg6403]

Can you cover of why we sometimes would struggle so to find me self in tune while playing with other instruments specially when i check the tunning again and intonations are perfectly tuned..i sometimes hate my guitar and wont touch it because of this

[@BenHigginsOfficial]

The best solution is just to blame everybody else instead!

[@komobg6403]

@@BenHigginsOfficial hmmmm..so i should quit ..thanks

[@BenHigginsOfficial]

@@komobg6403 I was just kidding, man... if you are in tune yourself then it can't be you. But if you keep going out of tune it could be a few things.. the humidity of the room. How hard you play, maybe the strings need stretching properly before you tune them and leave them. I always find that if you just twist the tuning pegs and leave it at that, it's not enough. Pull the string away from the fretboard by an inch or two and wiggle it. Then tune it back up. Doing this at least 2 times on each string gives more stability.

[@komobg6403]

@@BenHigginsOfficial yup i ill do that man .appreciate it cheers

[@Celticsaint777]

Does this guitar have stainless steel frets?

[@sammendez3381]

The part that gets me is the my fretting hand it's when it speeds up I can't keep that control and motion while doing it fast

[@BenHigginsOfficial]

Eric, watch video 2 in this series. In fact, watch the whole series! kzbin.info/aero/PL9t1h0FnbQAvlekadQQlWb6ZbcNLhQ2U3

[@BenHigginsOfficial]

If you still want more guidance with the fretting hand then you need Legato Gym! courses.benhigginsofficial.com/legato-gym

[@sammendez3381]

Thanks

[@HarbingerOfAnarchy]

Like it)

[@davidbaron8330]

Hey Ben, I know you're digging the new axe, but from a viewer's perspective, things are a little easier to follow and place visually with a guitar that has fret markers on the fingerboard.

[@BenHigginsOfficial]

Yes that's a very fair point David, I'm beating my technicians at Castle Higgy until they come up with a solution!

[@guitarfreakkkkk]

@@BenHigginsOfficial I was going to comment the same til I saw this comment - ass-kickin axe but for instructional purposes you probably need to use fret markers

[@vacant4]

Its a picking video. why are you looking at the fretboard? Also its not as if what he is playing is important melodically.

[@richardjones2811]

Sorry but if you can't figure that out by listening then music might not be best for you. B is the 9th fret of the D string. It's 9 10 12 on the D then 9 10 12 on the G

[@aloksingh-ei8zl]

Hello sir I am from India .. please make a video on phrasings like when i try to make own solo only one kind of melody comes up, cannot develop Any more 😐

[@MachineHeadDissent]

What is considered the hardest lick to play on the guitar???...

[@siderminerkgl8193]

Beyond the sun

[@MrCgar18]

you got four licks? THATS WHAT SHE SAID!!!!!!

[@AliJr_MetalGames_MetalGuitar]

Meow

[@andrerichard628]

Sorry to say and what's it matter but dude carbon guitars, just throwing it out there; Couldn't give me one.