I Suck Without a Jazz I Pick

Silence Kid

New member
Anyone else in this club with me?

I'm wondering if I should call it a handicap and start attempting to play with gigantic floppy noodle celluloid to rectify, or just take it as a given that I'm just a Jazz I person now. Anyone screw themselves up doing that?

On a good day I can pick up a Jazz III and not feel slowed by the additional friction from the point, but the thick purple Jazz I is my safety blanket.
 
Re: I Suck Without a Jazz I Pick

It is so easy to get used to a certain pick and when you switch it up, it can really throw you off! For me, though, it's a different pick: Fender Celluloid Heavy picks, preferably confetti.
 
Re: I Suck Without a Jazz I Pick

I am also in that arena.. I have used Jazz picks for 20 years and currently I am using the John Petrucci Jazz picks. They are awesome!
 
Re: I Suck Without a Jazz I Pick

I suck without a Jazz III of some kind. I've been really digging the Ultex 2.0's but I go back and forth with picks a lot. The only constant is the Jazz III shape. I like the Tortex 1.14's as well.

For acoustic, however, I'm fine with a Tortex Standard .60mm but I've also been liking the Ultex Sharps .73mm and the Tortex TIII .60mm. I like thin picks for acoustic.
 
Re: I Suck Without a Jazz I Pick

but the thick purple Jazz I is my safety blanket.

Thick purple jazz 1? Are you talking about a stubby?

Jazz 3 guy here, love the shape. Using a 'regular' shaped pick can reduce the cleanliness of shred, but I can get by no problem (choke up!). Actually I switch to a thinner/ bigger pick depending on style (i.e. funk).
 
Re: I Suck Without a Jazz I Pick

Not that I'm a student of a jazz college at the moment but I think I belong here, too, in a way. What Jazz I to you is the Ultex Sharp or Stubby 2mm to me. I can't play a single note that I feel to be right without that. Ages ago I was totally into 1mm celluloids but not anymore. I feel to be insecure if the pick is not heavy, rigid and glassy enough.
 
Re: I Suck Without a Jazz I Pick

When I studied jazz in university I was using those tiny Fender teardrop picks in either heavy or extra heavy. If you want something to really mess up your right hand technique, try some of them. They screwed up my ability to play with ANY other style of pick for years after, and even worse limited me from a lot of strumming techniques. Like the Jazz I picks they have a fairly unique shape that doesn't jive with a lot of other standard picking styles.

When I started to play in soul, funk and slightly rock-y bands after that I made a slow, painful switch to jazz 3's, mostly the Eric Johnson one and the Ultex models. I find both to be very comfortable, they sound great. Jazz 3's are basically just smaller versions of the 'standard' pick shape, so I've found since making the switch to the 3's, I've been able to branch out and use just about any other pick. I'm on Dunlop Gator 1.5mm at the moment, they have a nice solid feel and grip to them, while still having a decent tone.
 
Re: I Suck Without a Jazz I Pick

I like the regular (small) sized Jazz III's (or even Jazz II's occasionally). I can rotate between the different types/materials but mostly just stick to those & have for the last 20+ years.

My faves are the translucent yellow Ultex ones & the red Eric Johnson sigs..

Other picks are usable but don't ever feel right.
 
Re: I Suck Without a Jazz I Pick

I just bought a ton of Jazz iis to, with luck, transition myself. I'm ok with Jazz iiis until I try to do a pinch harmonic or get the tip "stuck" doing fast runs.

Correct, the purple/thick Tortex stubby is my favorite. Another side effect of the pick: darkens the tone of my guitars, which is mostly fine, I like single coils so it can attenuate some ice-pick, also adds some girth to the tone of my Soloist with a Floyd. Doesn't always work well with the sound of an acoustic I'm afraid :p I have a "carbon fiber" Dunlop Jazz III that works better for that, not like I want to pinch/squeal my Breedlove.
 
Re: I Suck Without a Jazz I Pick

I've developed a real liking for the Tusq .88's, warm, and the 1.0 bright.

Sent from my MotoE2(4G-LTE) using Tapatalk
 
Re: I Suck Without a Jazz I Pick

What I do is take any standard shaped pick, and sand them down on the sides so it has a really sharp point (it's an idea I found when I was watching a Steel Panther video and Satchel talked about how he sands the sides of picks for a sharp point). You can turn any pick then into the type of pick you normally use, and once in a while I'll just use a regular pick or something odd like a quarter.


Basically this, except I don't follow the curve of the pick - I just sand it straight so the pick looks more like an isosceles triangle with a rounded top.

IMG_2896.jpg
 
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