t.coyle said:
I kind of resemble one of the people from wal e hahaha. I do have a lot of physical problems and mental disorders that make guitar playing in general somewhat of a challenge though. Im for whatever makes it easier for me to play. I would never run all 3 of the pickups at once or even in stereo, i just like the idea so I can concentrate on playing while being able to change everything else with a tap of the foot. I understand that It is unnecessary for the majority of people to have this set up especially people can more smoothly navigate a guitars controls and switching channels while still playing well. But this could be a good solution for the rest of us lazy people who arnet as coordinated.
Having some defects of my own, I can appreciate timing/coordination problems. But, while I can't cite any kind of studies or empirical data, I believe it takes more skill to coordinate your hands and feet together than it does either or hands or feet on their own. I'm also a strong advocate of simple guitar controls - the less there are the better off you'll be. There often just isn't time to be goofing around with numerous switches and knobs at the same time you're playing. Look at the pros - they don't have 137 switches and knobs on their guitars. They know better.
That said, all you have to do is watch a multi-keyboard + bass pedal organ player to know that it's certainly possible to gain that skill. It involves an activity with a name so foul that four letters aren't enough to invoke it - PRACTICE.
I took lessons from a top Berkeley grad for a couple years and for all his futile efforts to educate me, I did come away with some basic but ultra-important truths that are often overlooked because they seem to be too simple to pay attention to:
- Always practice with a metronome
- The only way to speed up is to slow down, and
- Dare to suck
If you're having trouble switching pickups, you need to slow down to where you can do it without breaking stride, and practice at that speed. Use a metronome to keep you honest, or you'll screw it up, guaranteed. An evil side effect of not doing that is you'll actually learn to screw up, and
that becomes the norm. You have to practice correctly, or the bad behavior becomes the learned behavior.
After a week or two without mistakes, speed up a couple ticks. It probably won't be a problem, but give it a day or two. If it's still not a problem, speed up a couple more ticks. Lather, rinse, repeat until you start making mistakes, then drop back and practice there. Works like a charm, and you won't need goofy equipment that nobody else on the planet has found a use for.
