The Pick Thread

[Inflames626]

So I've never settled on The Pick. I think it's a struggle all guitarists have throughout their lives, some more than others.

I've noticed the boutique wood pick trend and others. I thought maybe you guys could post your favorite picks.

I started with Fender Mediums with the glossy plastic. Then moved on to Claytons, then Dunlop Tortexes, then metal Dunlop TeckPicks.

I tend to use Clayton Metallics metal picks now--more or less 1 mm or so in thickness. The intention is to have more of a Dimebag style slashing effect with palm muted down picking, almost as if the presence is being boosted. Material doesn't seem to matter much. I feel like metal picks last longer than plastic picks and don't fray on the edges, either. (Although IME Dunlop TeckPicks will produce uneven edges and burrs with lots of use. These will catch on the strings and the pick will have to eventually be discarded.)

Lots of metal guys seem to prefer Dunlop Jazz picks. I actually prefer larger, triangular picks (Dorito picks as my brother used to call them). I feel like I can get a firmer grip and I don't like choking up on the pick very closely because the strings tend to painfully catch cuticles.

I dig in fairly hard with the pick at a 45 degree forward slant between thumb and index. I hold the pick fairly far back, which makes higher speeds more difficult but makes each attack cleaner and more pronounced. These days probably 16ths at 170-185 is as fast as I can go--maybe 160 bpm for sustained playing (I do five minute drills to simulate a song for endurance and 8 bar bursts at upper tempos to build speed).

I may try the special picks Chris Broderick invented with the finger loop to keep from dropping them, but honestly grip isn't as much of a problem for me as finding a pick with the right combination of firmness, give, and finding the proper location to hold the pick so it's neither too stiff nor too rigid.

Thanks.

Edit: a large triangular pick will also give you 3x as much pick since you can alternate between points. I have more issues with smaller, rounded picks.

 

[solspirit]

I use 2 picks, a Dava for acoustic and picks I cut & grind out of discontinued Costa Rican 5 colone coins, for electric.

 

[beaubrummels]

I change picks to match string gauge, song tempo, song style and picking technique. So lots of different picks.

 

[Seashore]

Dunlop Tortex standard. Orange or yellow for guitar, yellow or green for bass.

I like some of the other shapes sometimes - the "flow" and the pointy standards - but I always wind up coming back to the standards. I liked the translucent white Claytons and the Dunlop Ultex, but they both wore down too quickly and the Claytons got a little rough in a way that dragged.

I could use thicker picks and honestly I could probably enjoy a much wider variety of guitars if I didn't tremolo pick so much, but everything I write has a lot of trem picking and it's hard to do well so everything has to be just right. A pick will last me 2 or 3 days if I'm playing regularly, and then it's ground down enough that it throws me off. I'm a special snowflake.

My comfort tempo for trem picking is 170. I can get the comfort zone up to 180 with constant careful practice. It takes a lot of maintenance for me; solid trem picking is the first thing to go if I ever don't practice for a little while. Fastest I've ever played tremolo picked parts tight is 210, but that's in short bursts. I know people who can do it way faster and/or with less effort, I'm a little jealous.

 

[GuitarStv]

I like Jazz IIIs for playing electric. The red or black max grip are both pretty awesome, as is the ultex version. They were the first thick, small pick that I ever used and I got addicted to them because it made my playing so much more controlled and precise than the regular sized .073 tortexes that I was using before. There was a learning curve though.

On acoustic it depends on what I'm doing with the song . . . I find that strumming parts sometimes sound better with regular size light picks because of that bright clicking thing that they do. Big thicker picks (2-3 mm) with a polished edge make a nice, deeper sound that I like for arpeggiated songs. But I still use Jazz IIIs a lot of the time for acoustic as well.

 

[Hsb]

I prefer the carbon fiber Jazz III picks but can be a little scratchy. I started with the tiny Fender jazz picks (small tear drop) in heavy but once I moved to the JIII I got rid of the Fender ones, think I sent a box to someone on here.

The regular black JIII are a bit slicker and less scratchy than the carbon fiber ones.

I tried metal picks yrs ago, hated the sound and had a terrible fear of the pick running down the face of my guitar and gouging it.

 

[dave74]

cf max-grip jazz3 for me, but I also like those petrucci trinity picks which are super durable and have three identical tips on each pick

 

[Securb]

I use Brossard picks made of horn or bone for most things. I use super thin Dunlops for acoustic strumming and 2.0 Tortex for my daily drivers. I also have 2.0 custom picks I use a lot

 

[Mincer]

I am not a metal player, but I like the Jazz 3 shape, but made of Delrin. I use 1.1mm, and get them custom made through InTuneGT.

 

[Inflames626]

I wish thick picks had the feel and flex of a thin pick on an acoustic but kept the attack of a thick pick. I like the pick to feel like a brush at high speeds, not like something I'm fighting against at higher bpm. Choking up on the pick doesn't help because I feel I can control it less with less tip showing (fingers hit the strings), and playing with a lighter touch blurs the pick attack.

 

[Inflames626]

Dunlop Tortex standard. Orange or yellow for guitar, yellow or green for bass.

I like some of the other shapes sometimes - the "flow" and the pointy standards - but I always wind up coming back to the standards. I liked the translucent white Claytons and the Dunlop Ultex, but they both wore down too quickly and the Claytons got a little rough in a way that dragged.

I could use thicker picks and honestly I could probably enjoy a much wider variety of guitars if I didn't tremolo pick so much, but everything I write has a lot of trem picking and it's hard to do well so everything has to be just right. A pick will last me 2 or 3 days if I'm playing regularly, and then it's ground down enough that it throws me off. I'm a special snowflake.

My comfort tempo for trem picking is 170. I can get the comfort zone up to 180 with constant careful practice. It takes a lot of maintenance for me; solid trem picking is the first thing to go if I ever don't practice for a little while. Fastest I've ever played tremolo picked parts tight is 210, but that's in short bursts. I know people who can do it way faster and/or with less effort, I'm a little jealous.

I think I used the pink/purple. I forget what thickness that is. This was back in the 90s.

 

[Inflames626]

Also a benefit to metal picks I have found is sharper sounding pick slides if you want that effect.

 

[Seashore]

I think I used the pink/purple. I forget what thickness that is. This was back in the 90s.

I need some flex and snap. The really thick ones and stiff materials just don't work for me.

 

[Phantasmagoria]

I alternate beween yellow Ultex Jazz III's (or the regular red/black) & 3.0mm Big Stubby's (both purple & grey) .been doing that for at least twenty years. I've tried plenty of other's but those are what I keep coming back to....right now it's the Stubby's. :bigthumb:

 

[Securb]

Also a benefit to metal picks I have found is sharper sounding pick slides if you want that effect.

Never found a metal pick I gelled with and I have tried a lot.

 

[Rex_Rocker]

Oh, man. I've been down this rabbit hole for years. I've honestly just settled on something for now.

It's been like 15 years or so that I've used Jazz III picks. At first, I was sold the idea that they have more control, and whatnot, all that BS. I don't think they do. At least not for how I play (heavy-handed palm-muted downstrokes, gallops, and tremolo picking). But I kinda forced myself to get used to them thinking they would improve my playing somehow. They didn't. But now, I can't go back to the larger picks because they feel unnatural, LOL, so I just stick with the Jazz III shapes.

I've tried pretty much all Jazz III variations that Dunlop offers.

For me, the red Nylon Jazz III's last the longest. I don't know why. It's not the hardest material. They just last long for how I play. Hence why I like those. They do have kind of a smooth attack, which I'm not in love with.

Purple Tortex Jazz III 1.14 mm are the best-sounding. I dig the lighter picks because they have the most TWHAP kind of attack rather than thuddy like some of the heavier picks. I shred through them like they're made of chalk, though. They're cheap enough so that I can buy them in bulk off amazon and have a bunch to go through. I honestly think I might go to 1.0mm next time I order. But if I go too light, the fast palm-muted gallops get kind of hard with the pick flopping around if I'm still trying to maintain power.

The usual happy medium for me are the yellow Ultex Jazz III's. I do wish they were slightly lighter, though. Like 1.14mm. The downside I see to those is the attack gets kinda chirpy at times rather than THWAP like a Tortex if you don't hit the strings just right. Also, they're not as easy to find as either the Tortex Jazz III's or the regular Nylon/Stiffo/CF Jazz III's.

Quick mention... I HATE all of the Petrucci picks, LOL. They all seem so thuddy-sounding. Like I was hitting my strings with a thick pencil eraser that weighted a pound. The attack is so dark. Also, they seem to be on the thicker side with a really hard material. At the time I was practicing the most, They actually fatigued my wrist way faster. After long sessions, my wrist also ended up kinda sore. I guess it's because they're so hard and heavy, I just picked even harder than I usually do.

 

[Chistopher]

Whichever one is within arm's reach usually does the trick for me. One less thing to be anal about

 

[Securb]

I wish thick picks had the feel and flex of a thin pick on an acoustic but kept the attack of a thick pick.

I think this is something we would all want. The only time I use thin picks is on acoustic songs that are solely strumming. We do "Ain't No Sunshine When She's Gone." I use an acoustic guitar, but I would not call it an acoustic or mellow version of the song. Seeing I have a lead on it, I use my heavier picks. I have found if you hold the pick lighter between your fingers you can get some of that light pick brushing feel. I have also found when you hold the pick that light a lot of times, it will fly out of your fingers.

 

[Chistopher]

Have you tried the fender mojo grips? They are just a medium fender pick with a thick rubber sleeve on half of it. I think they are alright, but a lot of people think they are the bees knees as far as being a thin pick with solid attack

 

[GuitarStv]

I think this is something we would all want. The only time I use thin picks is on acoustic songs that are solely strumming. We do "Ain't No Sunshine When She's Gone." I use an acoustic guitar, but I would not call it an acoustic or mellow version of the song. Seeing I have a lead on it, I use my heavier picks. I have found if you hold the pick lighter between your fingers you can get some of that light pick brushing feel. I have also found when you hold the pick that light a lot of times, it will fly out of your fingers.

Yep. Light grip helps. By angling the pick with your wrist more than you normally would as you strum you get much of the light pick feel and less chance of it flying out of your hand too.