Pedal Height

James Winwood · From: New York, New York

Do most guys play with the heel of their foot on the ground when no pedals are pressed? I don't, my foot is off the pedals and jumps on when needed. But I'm 2 footing it now and I can't do pedal changes unless one of my feet is pressing down on either a pedal or floor.
Not too big of a problem but it makes things tricky sometimes. Was wondering what other players do.

Ken Williams · From: Arkansas

I play with my heel on the floor, unless I'm using a vertical lever. If I sit in on someone's guitar, it bugs me if the pedals are uneven when they bottom out. I guess it's a matter of choice since they don't seem to be hampered by it.

Ken

Donny Hinson · From: Glen Burnie, Md. U.S.A.

I play with my heel on the floor as well, and the tip of my shoe rests lightly on what I call the "home pedals" (A&B). These are the pedals I use the most, so I find it convenient to "park" my foot there, rather than remove it all the time.

James Winwood · From: New York, New York

I think whether you have a heel on your shoe makes a difference. I only wear, and play, in sneakers (with no heel). Does your calf muscle gets tired suspending your toe in the air? Mine does. My pedals are low enough so I could play that way, but I opt to keep my foot on the ground. I'm also using multiple pedals on a 6th tuning, but 5 and 6 would be home. On E9 I clearly see the relevance of keeping your foot in that home position.

Bobby Lee · From: Cloverdale, California, USA

My foot is on the floor when I'm not pushing a pedal. I've trained my leg to find all five pedals from a "home" position on the floor.

It was a bit of a trick when I first got the Williams. I had to change the pedal spacing to match my Sierra, because I was missing the pedals sometimes.

This is why I've settled on a 5+5 copedent, and why I like the Williams crossover so much. My muscle memory is trained for exactly 5 pedals, and my seated position is always very comfortable. I don't have to think about the physical movements - all I think about is the music.

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Bobby Lee - email: quasar@b0b.com - gigs - CDs
Sierra Session 12 (E9), Williams 400X (Emaj9, D6), Sierra Olympic 12 (F Diatonic) Sierra Laptop 8 (D13), Fender Stringmaster (E13, A6)

James Winwood · From: New York, New York

I certainly don't want to be watching my feet that is for sure. Muscle memory seems to be the key word. To minimize movement, I've split my pedals between two feet. My left foot has the standard 5 and 6 and my right gets 7 and 8. It's a lot quicker. I don't need to use 7 and 8 much either. I've found you can do almost everything with pedals 5 and 6 and 4 knees.
Actually that brings something up. I've been playing pretty much all day for a while now. After playing for a couple of hours, my right knee would get really stiff and painful. This started happening more quickly with each playing session. I realized I wasn't even doing much with the volume pedal anyway, just used to having my foot there. So I decided to start playing without the volume pedal, which, after getting comfortable, led to me splitting the pedals for both feet. I like it better and most of all, the playing and tone and volume dynamics are all in my hands, where they should be. Sorry for getting off topic, I was thinking maybe somebody has the same experience with the volume pedal/knee pain thing.

John Lacey · From: Black Diamond, Alberta, Canada

I haven't had that particular problem, James, but I would suggest that you take frequent breaks during your practice. It's easy to get engrossed and not watch the time, but several hours without a break is probably unhealthy. Unless your 22 and invincible

James Winwood · From: New York, New York

21 actually...and only invincible on good days. The pain is gone since I've playing off the volume pedal. Works for me and like I said, I like it better. Or I should say, it fits the stuff I play better.

[This message was edited by James Winwood on 03 May 2002 at 08:09 AM.]

Doug Seymour · From: Jamestown NY USA (deceased)

I would say keep you foot resting on the pedals with you heel on the floor, don't put your foot flat on the floor and then back to the pedals....why all that movement. You of course can't press the pedals at all when you're not using them, but I think if you get the action set right you won't have to hold your toe up in the air off the pedals,
you can rest it lightly on them & be ready for action. The only time it seems to me to put your foot flat on the floor & off the pedals is when someone else is filling or taking their ride or doesn't any of the new
groups take turns anymore!! The young bands I've seen lately all seem to play w/amps on 10 right over the top of one another with the poor guy in the cowboy hat trying to shout!the lyrics over top of all this racket.
How did I get side-tracked into this!?

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