Crazy Satch Harmonics?

[Stormwatch]

If you've seen Joe Satriani's live DVD (San Fransisco) you'll have seen him pull off, effortlessly, some sort of harmonic which sounds awesome. He seems to have both hands over the pickups, around the whammy bar, and I'm wondering HOW THE FUCK he does it?!

 

[highrangeslang]

I think I know what you are talking about...He calls this move 'lizard down the throat' or something.


He has an effects pedal which changes his guitars pitch. He uses that and his guitar's whammy bar at the same time--One going down, one going up.

This might not be exactly right, but I think it's what you're talking about.

 

[sumairetsu]

He has an effects pedal which changes his guitars pitch.

Is he using the Digitech Whammy Pedal? I think they stopped making it.

 

[Razorjack]

Is he using the Digitech Whammy Pedal? I think they stopped making it.

No, they released a re-issue of the original Whammy after the Whammy II bombed.

 

[sumairetsu]

No, they released a re-issue of the original Whammy after the Whammy II bombed.

Oh, sweet! I'll have to look for it.

 

[Stormwatch]

I think I know what you are talking about...He calls this move 'lizard down the throat' or something.


He has an effects pedal which changes his guitars pitch. He uses that and his guitar's whammy bar at the same time--One going down, one going up.

This might not be exactly right, but I think it's what you're talking about.

So I can't do it then? I'm not entirely sure if you're right, it really just sounds like a really powerful piched harmonic.

 

[sumairetsu]

So I can't do it then? I'm not entirely sure if you're right, it really just sounds like a really powerful piched harmonic.

If you don't have the pedal, no - that's going by what's described here.

 

[ChrisBuckler]

Yo, i might know what ur talkijng about, ive never seen the video, but if u got awhammy bar, u can make any sick harmonic u want, what i think he might be doing is, on a guitar u can make any fret u want into a harmonic, as long as u go 12 frets back. for example if u want a harmonic on the first fret, hold down the first fret, use ur picking hand 12 frets up and just hang it over the string, and pluck behind it with ur thumb, if u said both his hands are over his pick ups this might be what he was doing, he might have put his finger over the pick up past the end of the fret board, and guessed where twelve frets away would be, its possible, try it :hotjump:

 

[sumairetsu]

It's not just 12 frets - you can also find the harmonics virtually anywhere on the fretboard, though 5, 7 and 12 frets distance from the root note are easiest to achieve.

 

[ChrisBuckler]

yeah, 15, too i was guessing he knew that, i just said 12 frets kus he wasnt playing a note on the fret board, satr was playing an invisible not past the end of the neck

 

[ChrisBuckler]

ohhh never mind i see what ur saying, sweet i didnt know u could do that with 7 too, thanks bro, taught me a lesson

 

[Mottley.]

He holds the whammy bar with his fingering hand (left hand). Then just does open-string pinch harmonics(like between the pickups, you can get different pitches just move your pick around to find good spots), then bends the whammy bar up. Try and do two strings if you can, like hit the G and B string (as pinch harmonics). I use to do it when I had a whammy bar, it sounds good.

 

[Stormwatch]

AH, thanks guys, that sounds more like it! Have to give it a go, it sounds amazing when he does it.

 

[Regulus]

He holds the whammy bar with his fingering hand (left hand). Then just does open-string pinch harmonics(like between the pickups, you can get different pitches just move your pick around to find good spots), then bends the whammy bar up. Try and do two strings if you can, like hit the G and B string (as pinch harmonics). I use to do it when I had a whammy bar, it sounds good.

Yeah, I think Satch refers to it as the crazy alien sounds or something like that. You can also get cool open harmonics by hitting the G open then diving down with the bar and touching the string lightly with the side of your right hand, setting off the harmonic, then raise the bar and you get a really cool 'moan/scream' kind of sound. It looks very cool as well as your fretting hand isn't involved at all so when I do that at shows most people wonder how the hell I manage it..