Yes this topic has been discussed before. But looking at the past threads weren't helpful. Why do most of the top osu players single tap for most of the song they play while only occasionally using another key? I see some complete alternating key tapping players but they are very few among replays of a lot of songs. Is single tapping the better playing style for most people? How do people single tap so fast when alternating seems to offer more speed? Also don't rhythms feel weird from single tapping a key when playing a song? And how do you improve single tapping?


EDIT: so switch to single tapping or stay with total alternating tapping as a beginner?

Alternating has the highest potential, but I think it's a mental thing, mostly. Singletapping makes it easier to control your speed on most 1/2 so you don't get 100s, and also makes snapping easier for some reason.

Single tapping with your wrist just feels more accurate than using two different fingers to me. Trying to make one thing as consistent as possible is easier than making two things consistent. It is also pretty hard to throw on the breaks when alternating when there are multiple streams or stacked notes in between singles. Changing speeds frequently is harder than it seems. I personally struggle with alternating quite a bit, so I try what feels more comfortable for me, which is single tapping. It also feels more deliberate than alternating, which gives me an even greater sense of accuracy.

Singletapping is the easiest to start out with for most people. Alternating gives more potential but it is harder to learn.

you generally do fast stream by tensing up your arm, wich is easier or almost necessary while singletapping

Single tapping generally helps you stream better too imo as it later gives you an instinctive beat that your starting finger can follow while streaming whereas when u alternate everything, you just have to know the speed of the stream to switch from 1/2 to 1/4 notes.

And generally, most people consider single tapping a lot more easy and comfortable than alternating.Some people like you alternate when they start, but most people generally single tap.

Also do whatever feels the best. If you think that single tapping is really awkward and had to do, then stick with alternating. You can be pro with it if your practice enough. There are pro players who alternate, tho they are few. If you believe u have the ability to switch to single tapping and you wish to try, then do so. If you find that single tapping is still really awkward after trying for like a week, then you might want to consider sticking to alternating.

Liut wrote:

you generally do fast stream by tensing up your arm, wich is easier or almost necessary while singletapping

Tensing your arm makes you stream slower, you should relax it as much as possible to stream faster. This is bad information. This is what makes single tapping hard to master, is that tension is required to single tap faster, which makes your streaming bad. More tension gives less consistency, stamina, and accuracy while streaming. Alternating is theoretically a MUCH better way to play, but when you start learning it, you find very quickly that it is not easy at all. The mental aspect of playing an alternating play style is so different from single tap. It takes a LOT of work to learn alternating if you are a player who is already comfortable with singles.

Thatgooey wrote:

Liut wrote:

you generally do fast stream by tensing up your arm, wich is easier or almost necessary while singletapping

Tensing your arm makes you stream slower, you should relax it as much as possible to stream faster. This is bad information. This is what makes single tapping hard to master, is that tension is required to single tap faster, which makes your streaming bad. More tension gives less consistency, stamina, and accuracy while streaming. Alternating is theoretically a MUCH better way to play, but when you start learning it, you find very quickly that it is not easy at all. The mental aspect of playing an alternating play style is so different from single tap. It takes a LOT of work to learn alternating if you are a player who is already comfortable with singles.

Tensing makes you stream faster. 1key is better because it forces people out of their comfort zones unlike alternating. Most alternating players end up mindlessly clicking keys without much logic apart from rare, special occasions where alternating players push themselves. Without a push you're going to stay shitty which explains why alting players tend not to improve as much.

it's easier

Chewin wrote:

it's easier

this is really the only reason why people single tap.

jesus1412 wrote:

Tensing makes you stream faster. 1key is better because it forces people out of their comfort zones unlike alternating. Most alternating players end up mindlessly clicking keys without much logic apart from rare, special occasions where alternating players push themselves. Without a push you're going to stay shitty which explains why alting players tend not to improve as much.

Still do not agree with tensing makes you stream faster. Tension in your arm when trying to move fingers rapidly is not good. Grandmaster piano players spend the better part of a decade learning to play while fully relaxed before they gain full control of their fingers. Tension in your fingers will cause tension in your arm, which causes tension in your shoulder, which causes tension in your back. This tension in your back will create pressure and tension in your other shoulder, which disrupts the movement of you other arm, which causes the fingers in your other hand to behave differently. The only place that tension can be controlled well is in the wrist. It is a pivot point where tension will not spread to the rest of your arm/back/shoulder. Tensing your wrist while streaming does nothing, but it does help for single tapping, since it will cause your wrist to snap back quicker. You don't want to tense the top part of your wrist. You will feel a burning sensation if you do this incorrectly. The part you want to feel the slight tension in is the under side that connects to your palm. When streaming, you use muscles that are in the forearm to move the tendons that control your fingers. There should be absolutely no tension at all in your hand at any time. Wrist only.

I am not trying to tell you your way is wrong, just that tension is a temporary and VERY short term/short lived way to increase speed. It is a bad habit that will lead to big plateaus in your game play and limit what you can do. It will also lead to injury trying to push yourself by adding more and more tension, thinking that it is the proper way to become faster. I only say these things because I want to provide information that I think could help someone. I, too, used to be a young fledgling DT player who discovered that tensing up really tight could make me play slightly faster, and I ended up getting nowhere until I received guidance and applied my own critical thinking to this. You do not have to take my advice and are free to play as you like, but I just want to let people know that if you slow down and practice fundamentals first, that you can provide yourself with the tools to improve with much higher ceilings.

I alternate all the time, I don't know what kind of stuff everyone in this thread is on.

Jokes aside, I don't really see the benefit in singletapping besides ease of mastering. Yes, it's easy to learn, it works often, but it's a waste of potential. You're given two fingers/keys to use, it's such a waste to only use one 90% of the time. I find that alternating conserves lots of stamina because you're splitting the work roughly in half, making it easier to survive longer maps without your finger/joints getting sore.

But yes, alternating is a playstyle that nobody wants to practice, because by the time they find out about it, they've probably invested a few months into the game and are probably too lazy to switch playstyles.

Chewin wrote:

It's easier

Also more accurate.

Changing speeds is too hard while alternating.

chelly wrote:

I alternate all the time, I don't know what kind of stuff everyone in this thread is on.

Jokes aside, I don't really see the benefit in singletapping besides ease of mastering. Yes, it's easy to learn, it works often, but it's a waste of potential. You're given two fingers/keys to use, it's such a waste to only use one 90% of the time. I find that alternating conserves lots of stamina because you're splitting the work roughly in half, making it easier to survive longer maps without your finger/joints getting sore.

But yes, alternating is a playstyle that nobody wants to practice, because by the time they find out about it, they've probably invested a few months into the game and are probably too lazy to switch playstyles.

You can conserve energy just by switching which finger you use for singletap though.

Alternating has a much higher learning curve.
For songs that you can easily single tap, it'll become much more harder for you to alternate.
If you're practicing alternating, you're going to have to spend most of your time working on control rather than speed, and it's going to be a pain in the ass.

http://osu.ppy.sh/b/76306?m=0#

singletapping is for gaylords

CXu wrote:

You can conserve energy just by switching which finger you use for singletap though.

I may be able to left click 110, but I can only right click around 95, so I'm not sure this tip applies.

Can people just stop making these threads? Why does it matter who uses what fingers to click circles? It won't make your better, just do what you feel is comfortable.

Thatgooey wrote:

Still do not agree with tensing makes you stream faster. Tension in your arm when trying to move fingers rapidly is not good. Grandmaster piano players spend the better part of a decade learning to play while fully relaxed before they gain full control of their fingers. Tension in your fingers will cause tension in your arm, which causes tension in your shoulder, which causes tension in your back. This tension in your back will create pressure and tension in your other shoulder, which disrupts the movement of you other arm, which causes the fingers in your other hand to behave differently. The only place that tension can be controlled well is in the wrist. It is a pivot point where tension will not spread to the rest of your arm/back/shoulder. Tensing your wrist while streaming does nothing, but it does help for single tapping, since it will cause your wrist to snap back quicker. You don't want to tense the top part of your wrist. You will feel a burning sensation if you do this incorrectly. The part you want to feel the slight tension in is the under side that connects to your palm. When streaming, you use muscles that are in the forearm to move the tendons that control your fingers. There should be absolutely no tension at all in your hand at any time. Wrist only.

I am not trying to tell you your way is wrong, just that tension is a temporary and VERY short term/short lived way to increase speed. It is a bad habit that will lead to big plateaus in your game play and limit what you can do. It will also lead to injury trying to push yourself by adding more and more tension, thinking that it is the proper way to become faster. I only say these things because I want to provide information that I think could help someone. I, too, used to be a young fledgling DT player who discovered that tensing up really tight could make me play slightly faster, and I ended up getting nowhere until I received guidance and applied my own critical thinking to this. You do not have to take my advice and are free to play as you like, but I just want to let people know that if you slow down and practice fundamentals first, that you can provide yourself with the tools to improve with much higher ceilings.

that's cause while playing a piano you don't want to tense up your arm, cause it will make your hand/fingers stiff and for playing a piano you usually want to have waaay more elasticity (mainly because you are just not using 2 fingers or doing 220 bpm streams), for what i could see fast streamers don't really move their fingers really much, they just vibe them.
But, hey those are only opinions and i'm totally not an expert on this argument

those wrote:

CXu wrote:

You can conserve energy just by switching which finger you use for singletap though.

I may be able to left click 110, but I can only right click around 95, so I'm not sure this tip applies.

Well it totally would apply for 95bpm then

having relaxed arms while playing piano has nothing to do with speed or anything, it only helps the piece "breath" and stay steady. It is all for musicality. However, tensing your arms does give you an extra burst of speed, tho as previously stated, it cannot be sustained for long whereas being able to relax while streaming will give you a lot of stamina, but that's kinda self-explanatory.