Speed Kills 2010 Reviews

[Doug Marks]

I've spent much of the last two months working on this project. Now it's your turn. I want to hear what you think about Speed Kills 2010 both positive and negative. Your comments have helped improve our products for the past twenty-eight years. Don't stop now!

Speed Kills 2010 can be ordered here: http://www.metalmethod.com/speedkills2010/

There is also a video on that page that explains what is taught in the Speed Kills 2010 DVD.

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Here are other YouTube videos currently associated with Speed Kills 2010:

Part One: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T3J9nXO34KM
Part Two: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8XQMaCDOoVw
Part Three: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lRdFZq62ayY

[daveotr]

Let me know what you think of SK 2010. I've been editing the video off and on for the past couple of months. It's been quite a project and I think it turned out great but I like to hear what "users" have to say about it.

I got my copy in the mail yesterday. My original intent was just to watch it all the way through, but it didn't take long for me to grab my guitar and play the exercises. I spent about two hours watching it and have only made it up through the third economy picking exercise. My thoughts so far:

1. I like that MAB spends more time explaining what he's doing and why than he did in the original SK. You can see the difference in his teaching style--he's much more relaxed and thorough on camera than in the original SK. You can see the difference making the additional Speed Kills and Speed Lives videos, writing all those columns for Guitar World, and giving (probably) thousands of seminars can make.

2. I love the picture-in-picture video when MAB is playing the exercises. Being able to clearly see what both his picking and fretting hands are doing is a BIG help. My one complaint with the original SK was that it was single camera and most of the close-ups were on MAB's fretting hand (still very valuable). Being able to clearly see what his picking hand is doing is extremely helpful (to say the least).

3. (I hope I'm not giving away too much here) Possibly the best tip I've picked up so far from SK 2010 is to watch my picking hand rather than my fretting hand when doing the alternate- and economy-picking exercises. I noticed there was a lot less excess motion in my picking hand just in the short time I was practicing last night.

4. IIRC, adding a alternate-picked string-skipping exercise was one of the suggestions submitted by one of the forum member here. Well he added it and it's a terrific challenge.

5. The Guitar Pro tab files are a very welcome addition.

I'll try and post my thoughts on the rest of the video later this week but so far, I'm REALLY impressed.

It wasn't supposed to ship until the 14th but I couldn't wait to get it into your hands.

Yeah that was fast. What did you do Doug, serve Red Bull and double espressos to everyone in the mail room?

[thegroovemusiclife]

Let me know what you think of SK 2010. I've been editing the video off and on for the past couple of months. It's been quite a project and I think it turned out great but I like to hear what "users" have to say about it.

It wasn't supposed to ship until the 14th but I couldn't wait to get it into your hands.

I've already gotten through the first page of exercises. I don't remember but I think the first or second economy picking exercise held my attention for awhile, too.

Love the whole DVD. My wife thinks MAB looks like Alice Cooper though (not sure where she got THAT comparison!)

[LPSWR]

Have only spent a little time with the DVD but I like the format. Just the type of instructional DVD I like. Specific techniques are discussed and demonstrated. The "why" a particular technique is used verses another is very valuable information as well as why is it important to learn this technique as a guitar player. Details of playing a riff and the techniques used when playing it are very important. I really hate instructional videos that basically do "Here are the notes", now "watch me play it fast". Yeah, that sounded great, but HOW did you do it AND how did you make is sound like you did? That is the type of info I'm looking for in an instructional DVD and that is what I got with SK '10! Good job MM!

The DVD includes an easy to print tab in PDF format and includes Guitar Pro files too. Nice.

There are only two things that come to mind that I would change:

• A menu screen that lists exercises by name instead of by number so that I can easily jump to the lesson(s) I'm interested in watching.
• No outtakes. "Registered Students" area bonus?

Later, got to go work on my legato technique.

[Doug Marks]

Thanks Cris. It would be difficult to isolate outtakes for our "registered students" because Michael has a forum too. Still, that's a good idea. Actually, there's not too much more in the way of outtakes that I haven't posted. I intended to put all outtakes on the DVD but ran out of room. I don't like to go over 60 minutes on a program. Yes, movies are up to 2 hours but they're a different format than our DVDs. We may do a Blu-Ray version of the program. If so, there would be room for lots of extra material.

[LPSWR]

Thanks Doug. I would be in for a Blu-Ray version of the program if enough additional material was added to warrant purchasing it again. Perhaps SK '11 for the Blu-Ray?

[Caspyr]

I love this course! The one thing I would loved to have seen would be a song. The greatest motivator for Metal Method, in general, to me was that Doug would make our "finals" the completion of a song. It would have been great for MAB to give us a song to strive for; and I know I can buy song instruction in dvd form so that's good. I just want to make the point that accomplishing those 40 second songs is a very big deal for me, and probably for others too. Just a thought for future productions. Please keep up the absolutely amazing work. To me, this form is an archetype of any video instructional series and the only thing better would be to have the master three feet away from me on a weekly basis.

[daveotr]

I love this course! The one thing I would loved to have seen would be a song. The greatest motivator for Metal Method, in general, to me was that Doug would make our "finals" the completion of a song. It would have been great for MAB to give us a song to strive for; and I know I can buy song instruction in dvd form so that's good. I just want to make the point that accomplishing those 40 second songs is a very big deal for me, and probably for others too. Just a thought for future productions. Please keep up the absolutely amazing work. To me, this form is an archetype of any video instructional series and the only thing better would be to have the master three feet away from me on a weekly basis.

Jason, MAB teaches three of his compositions in the Speed Lives series: No Boundaries in Speed Lives 1, Hands Without Shadows in Speed Lives 2, Finish Line in Speed Lives 3.

[Doug Marks]

Hi Jason. Yes, Dave is correct, you can learn three of MAB's songs in the Speed Lives series. The Speed Kills DVDs teach technique and the Speed Lives series teache songs, which of course, include techniques but not step by step instructions for those techniques.

A criticism of Speed Kills 2010 that I received via email is that it doesn't cover enough new ground. Speed Kills 2010 is a revision of Speed Kills. It is meant to replace the original Speed Kills in our lineup. It isn't meant to be a radical change of direction. If Speed Kills 2010 was too different from the original Speed Kills it would have been called Speed Kills 4. So, as I say in the video description http://www.metalmethod.com/speedkills2010/ Speed Kills 2010 includes about 70% new material, 30% is from the original course.

[daveotr]

Hi Jason. Yes, Dave is correct, you can learn three of MAB's songs in the Speed Lives series. The Speed Kills DVDs teach technique and the Speed Lives series teache songs, which of course, include techniques but not step by step instructions for those techniques.

A criticism of Speed Kills 2010 that I received via email is that it doesn't cover enough new ground. Speed Kills 2010 is a revision of Speed Kills. It is meant to replace the original Speed Kills in our lineup. It isn't meant to be a radical change of direction. If Speed Kills 2010 was too different from the original Speed Kills it would have been called Speed Kills 4. So, as I say in the video description http://www.metalmethod.com/speedkills2010/ Speed Kills 2010 includes about 70% new material, 30% is from the original course.

Doug,

Re-reading Jason's post, I suspect what he meant was he wanted the inclusion of a solo incorporating all the elements similar to the solos in Stages 4 & 5. In the original SK, the final alternate-picking exercise combined the previous exercises into a short solo--this is not part of SK 2010.

As to the criticisms you mention in the second paragraph, I'm personally baffled by it since you made it very clear that this was an updated version of the original SK video--something that is stated very clearly on the main Shopping page. I guess the best analogy would be comparing the current MM course to the original version from the 80's.

[Doug Marks]

Re-reading Jason's post, I suspect what he meant was he wanted the inclusion of a solo incorporating all the elements similar to the solos in Stages 4 & 5. In the original SK, the final alternate-picking exercise combined the previous exercises into a short solo--this is not part of SK 2010.

Oh, you're right. I misunderstood. That is a great idea.

[daveotr]

Re-reading Jason's post, I suspect what he meant was he wanted the inclusion of a solo incorporating all the elements similar to the solos in Stages 4 & 5. In the original SK, the final alternate-picking exercise combined the previous exercises into a short solo--this is not part of SK 2010.

Oh, you're right. I misunderstood. That is a great idea.

Perhaps you can create a bonus etude similar to the one in SK2 and make it available on request to people who have purchased SK 2010.

[Sarah Spisak]

Perhaps you can create a bonus etude similar to the one in SK2 and make it available on request to people who have purchased SK 2010.

Oh sure- I do one of those and now everybody expects it.

[thegroovemusiclife]

I only have one quibble about this DVD, and it concerns the tab.

For the hybrid picking exercises, the indications for the middle finger and pick downstroke are there. I wish they were there for at least the economy picking exercises as well. I sometimes wonder while sitting down with the tab if my pick is going the right way for the economy picking exercises!

[thegroovemusiclife]

Perhaps you can create a bonus etude similar to the one in SK2 and make it available on request to people who have purchased SK 2010.

Oh sure- I do one of those and now everybody expects it.

That's just because everybody here loves you, Sarah.