Bit late on this one great idea Scott getting us all back to the basics..

Here is 16ths at 88bpm
And second video
16ths downstrokes 32nds alternate at 100bpm






NOt happy with those upstrokes
Really gonna work on bringing those inline with the down strokes..

Sounds good delta

Were we asked to post our progress?

Well, after noticing that my upstrokes were 10bpm slower than my downstrokes I decided to practice upstrokes.

Yesterday I got in 4hrs of practicing and everything I practiced all I allowed myself to use was upstrokes. I started off very slow to warm up. Then I switched between very slow and building up to sprinting, going all out to the point of fatigue... the point where I was tense and hurting and had to stop. Then I would shake it off and start very very slow again. I was always mindful of the notes, making sure I hit them all so I was also concentrating on accuracy.

I did this 4hrs of practice without the metronome.

After 4hrs I got out the metronome and my upstroke speed had increased by 5 bpm. Will it stick? I don't know. We'll see what more practice does.

Pure dedication !

I am glad everyone's energy levels and enthusment are running high for the betterment of their instrument. I hope that I to can draw to myself some of this good juju and keeps them candles burning along.

Oh yeah, by all means I'd love to see/hear everyone's progress reports as the week goes by! Funny how basic stuff can just explode through one's playing, eh? Awesome guys! Thanks so much for sharing!

(Thanks to PB for checking in!)

Was only able to get in 2hrs of practice today. All upsrokes. Upstrokes are holding at a consistent 16thnotes @ 85bpm which is a 5bpm improvement after 6hrs total of nothing but upstrokes at various tempos from super slow to much faster than I am able. Downstrokes still stuck at 90bpm but I havent practiced those. Hopefully tomorrow.

Looks like nobody else has time to play guitar

hahahah Ursin, you are a practice maniac! I decided to try this also using 2 picking methods I DON'T know how to do as well; Just for fun, and in case I actually learn something.

Painfully slow; Started at 60 BPM for scalpel downs and ups isolated. Ended up at 80BPM for isolated strokes, and a max of about 144BPM for Alternate strokes. Using 'Pebber' grip; I'm giving it a good try, especially after seeing how you guys all do it. You know, the way it was intended. Hell, I can always go back to how I normally do it, that's not going to go away.

Also trying Sarod; I think I have the basic motion, it's even slower. hahah About 50 BPM for Isolated Ups and Downs. same thing, utilizing strict Pebber rules. The speed gains seem to be greater though, it just feels really alien to play that way.

I think that muting, and trying for a mute was actually making things way more difficult in my previous attempt; Perhaps speed gains at a technique, and the polishing of said speed are two totally different processes?

Anyways, It will be interesting to see how 1 week with one hyper developed technique vs one not developed at all fare, I'm investing the same practice time in everything, we shall see...

Also, is anyone else using Guitar Pro6? I love that software. Best practice tool EVER hahaha I love the loop/speed Trainer functions...

looks like I am just about last in line up here for this video dare...Its just my pride that checks me from posting a video of something before the contents depicted therein are measuring to an equal to or greater level of what I am looking for...otherwise I can make the video...but then I cant get no satisfaction then because I still fell below my target line that I had arbitrarily chosen for myself from the get go.

Like ursin i too have been going overtime at the upstrokes yesterday 1 hour upstrokes all strings
then neo classical patterns just upstrokes.

today gonna add ladders and some scale work with mainly upstrokes not gonna check on any speed
progress until the weekend..keep at it guys

upstrokes 66bpm downstrokes 66, alternate 100 bpm

Good stuff Ashan! I enjoy seeing that Pebber has helped guitarists develop good timing! It's so important!!!! If you can't play in time you can't play at all. So many musicians have shitty timing. Like they say, be in tune and be on time!!!!

I never even used a metronome before watching Pebbers videos. Such an idiot I was LOL

thanks ursin. taking pebbers lessons have helped me immensely and i will never give up on his teachings. and thank you for your guidance as well. will post again in a few days. i did this before even practicing today. i should have done it after I've warmed up practicing for a few hours. i'll try to do better next time. have a great day guys and practice hard.

Ashan; Killer man! It's fun to see everyone do their thing.

Nick; You are completely missing the point: the idea here is to see where you start, and then where you finish a week later. The only thing being measured is improvement. Along the way, everyone can see what each other is doing, and maybe offer up some tips. Nothing to prove here...

ok after hours of practice today I got to up to 69 on upstrokes 72 for downstrokes and 84 on alternate. Ups tire my hand pretty fast, but seeing improvement here!

Took me a few days to get just downstrokes and upstrokes playable(only ever do alternate). I think this challenge ends this weekend and my goal is get it clean.

Anyways, Downs, Ups, and Alts all at 60 bpm

Today I only had 1hr to practice and I wanted to work on downstrokes. I thought, "Who has the most insane downstrokes?" James Hetfield! At 00:40 he shows off his downpicking speed. So I took that riff and played it all downpicked for 1hr. When I started cramping up I took it down really slow and then sped back up again.

Yesterday 1 hour down strokes 1:30 hours alternate 2:30 hours. on upstrokes.

Love that riff Ursin used to play it alternate. Till I found Pebbers site

Little breaks allways seem to help as the hand relays the new information to the brain.

I really like the idea of including well known sample songs/videos along with these challenges. This could make things more interesting, could have us compare our progress to working pros, and could have us applying the technique at hand in a practical setting.

Ursin has done this for us at least twice now; downstrokes = a Metallica riff, 2-string sweeps = Malmsteen/Wylde. Very cool.

I can't wait for a new thread. Is it Saturday yet?

Oh yeah delta I like those hours!!!! I agree with dlraben that a real world example can be beneficial.

My progress after the week; not where I expected...

You know, I discovered a lot about my playing this week. Being forced to really isolate my picking strokes, and take a long hard look at how I do them has given me a lot of ideas! Looking forward to your posts, guys!

Like a kid rushing to catch his early morning Saturday cartoons, I await this weeks picking/lick challenge.
It is the first day of a new month and this means my practice routine will incorporate new exercises. I just started doing a month long practice routine rather than 1 week and like the results. With the weekly challenge it will help keep things fresh.

I'm pretty happy about the progress I have made over the week with this, also learning how important it is to practice upstrokes and downstrokes.

Downstrokes 72bpm


upstrokes 72bpm


Alternate 84bpm

Mat; that's big improvement, man. Thanks so much for posting. All of you guys, you have no idea how much you are helping me out by participating in this?

Your confidence and timing are MUCH better. Faster, too. Clean hits, nice tone. Wicked. I'd like to see just HOW fast you go on alternate? lol Hey even if it's a bit sloppy, post it anyways.