"Picking" a pick

Obviously anything called a Brainpick was designed by Albert Einstein. Now Albert may have been a frugal man, which is why Princeton University gave him his own place to hang out and dream up things just so he could be associated with their school, things like the Brainpick, but the Brainpick is hardly cheap since it was obviously funded by private donations, Princeton being a private Ivy League school, right?

Not to derail, but I went to Princeton.

Totally true, absolutely on the up-and-up.



It was just a couple weeks ago - April 11, to be exact. Drove through the campus on my way to Princeton Record Exchange. Did some shopping, left the store and realized I'd forgotten to go back and pick up a DVD I wanted. My son said, "We're still here." So I drove around the block, went back in and got it (it was a very good deal). I felt - and still feel - very smart.
 
A small yet often overlooked part of a sound/tone and style.

I've been on the quest for the perfect pick for me since I started. I've used everything popular - Tortex, Jazz III's of many times, Fender 351s, Dava's, Ernie Ball, D'Addario, V Picks, you name it.... Gels, Delrins, Gator Grips, Shark Fins, Teardrop, Thumbpick, whatever. I am a flatpick guy. Not a hybrid picker or a thumbpicker or a fingerpicker. I make my flatpicking sound plenty country and twangy just by using a compressor pedal heavier than a hybrid or fingerpicker would.

Someone gave me a Herco Flex 75 and a Herco Flex 50 and told me to try them - he swears by them. I had never tried them. I was sold on a Red Jazz III XL and very much enjoyed it.

I got home and tried the 75 first. Wow!! What a great pick. Fit perfectly, great tip, great grip, everything. Everything I had been looking for....Except I'd been missing the thinness and bounce of some of the picks I had used years ago like the Tortex.

So I tried the 50.... Needless to say it has changed my playing and sound for the better! OMG. Hard enough for single note runs, soft enough to get funky with rhythm and still can chug out power and barre chords! \m/ I'm a rhythm player at heart so I had missed the extra bounce to the thinner picks. I loved the precision that that JIII offered for leads but it was too stiff for me.

I then learn a lot of my favorite players use(d) Herco picks. Jimmy Page, Joe Walsh, Don Felder, Keith Urban, Billy Duffy, on and on. I wonder why I hadn't heard of them sooner.

I have 2 bags of a dozen each of the 50s and two 75 picks in case I ever want something heavier with the same grip and tone.

Anyone had a similar experience with finding the perfect pick?


GREAT thread!!!! I have been all over the place, mand try everything I can find. from plastic to shell to wood, to felt to stone to glass...you name it. Size, thickness etc etc. i always end up coming back to the fender jazz picks in extra heavy, but sometimes, for months at a time, i just need something else. I also use the round or rounder side of any pick, to get the most 'finger" like tone i can, but with the added articulation of a pick. I can say this will be a never ending battle for me. Also, try holding the pick at the opposite angle so the reverse side of the pick hits the the string first. It gives you a smoother and softer downstroke which is always the accented part due to downward pressure, and gives the upstroke more emphisis, which makes the up and down stroke much more even and flowing. Its part of how George Benson gets his other wordly technique and tone. Some great ideas and discussion here.. http://www.jazzguitar.be/forum/guitar-technique/3507-george-benson-picking-method.html
 
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Good timing, Scott just put up a video.

Guitar Pick Comparison. Hear The Difference By Scott Grove


 
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Seriously, did you lean one single thing from that Grove video besides who is the most annoying video creator on the planet?
 
I've always hoarded picks because I always see interesting ones and can't resist the urge to buy them, not that I'm gonna use every single one of them! But in my guitar-playing life, I've played:

Alice (a Chinese company) celluloids
Fender celluloids
Dunlop .73 and .88 Tortex
Dunlop .73 Ultex Sharp
Dunlop M and H Tortex Jazz
Dunlop 2.0 Ultex Jazz
Dunlop Nylon

My current favourite is the Ibanez Paul Gilbert pick. Thickness is perfect, the slightly bigger-than-Jazz size is perfect, it has the pretty funky drawings and it's got a nice celluloid-ish tone. And most importantly, the colour has a very cool Candy Apple Red metallic hue to it, it looks simply amazing. :rofl:....
 
Seriously, did you lean one single thing from that Grove video besides who is the most annoying video creator on the planet?

I learned its time to get a hair cut... I know my mop is getting a little long, and probably looks just as horrid as his does.
 
Dunlop Gels, the yellow ones. Tried everything over the years and these just work best for me.
DunlopGelPickXH.jpg
 
I keep seeing Howling Monkey Tauga (vegetable ivory) picks popping up on Reverb, I wanted to try them but 10 bucks a pick seemed to be Private Stock territory...then I went on the Bluechip web site. WOW. I guess I could always be spending more on SOMETHING lol.

Been using Dunlop Tortex Yellows. (.73mm) since as long as I can remember. Maybe it's time to try something new...
 
I stumbled onto Blue Chip picks a few months back, and they're wonderful. I'll still use the Ultex, and even celluloid picks to create a few sounds, but for the most part these are the ones I constantly use. I have them in Jazz III and a slightly larger version with the Jazz tip.

It's hard to describe the sound, I've played tortoise picks before they became illegal, but without a back to back comparison I can't really say they sound exactly like tortoise. However that doesn't matter, the tone quality is incredible (clear and crisp high end, but full low mids and midrange, too), they don't slip out of your fingers, and they wear like iron. After 4-5 months of constant use I'm not seeing any wear.

For some reason the material is not slippery in your fingers, but it glides through the strings faster than other picks, and did I mention how nice they sound?

Yes, they're expensive. Yes, worth it (unless you lose picks, in which case, you'll burn through a lot of dough!). Monogrammed, natch. The material they're made from is some kind of unobtanium product I think, and it only comes in brown.

In fact, don't even try one, because you'll be hooked permanently. Pretend you didn't see this post. ;) Pic:


Been using one of these myself recently, the TD40. I will probably buy more. I like the durability a lot. I bought mine months ago and it still hasn't worn down much.
For tone, to me, nothing sounds better than Red Bear. Blue Chip wins out because of durability and availability, but Red Bear has the edge for tone, particularly on acoustics.
If I'm in a pinch, Dunlop Ultex 1.0mm. Perfectly fine picks, sound great, almost as good as Red Bear, but tend to wear down faster. Still, more durable than Delrin (a.k.a. Tortex) or celluloid.

All that said, I have found that the shape and thickness of the pick have much more of an impact on tone than the material it's made of. I stick with the traditional teardrop shape.
 
Hope everyone's right, just ordered 3 combo packs to get a feel for everything they have available :)
I have only tried the rock combo ones I linked too.
I have around three six packs of them now.

I thought the .88 mm Tortex were my favorite until I tried the Davas.
And I agree with another poster who said they feel chalky.
 
I have only tried the rock combo ones I linked too.
I have around three six packs of them now.

I thought the .88 mm Tortex were my favorite until I tried the Davas.
And I agree with another poster who said they feel chalky.

I ordered the rock combo, jazz combo, and the grip tip combo to give me nearly every type they make. I'm already pretty sure I won't like the nylon picks, but who knows maybe they'll be better than Dunlop nylons.
 
I've been all over the board. I used to be Fender medium, but not for a while now. Some time ago, I finally got my hands on some Jazz IIIs. Liked the point, but the pick was too small for my stubby fingers. Found the Jazz III XLs. Still like those - bigger versions of the Jazz III, so they fit me. I've got some V-Picks that I really like as well - nice and heavy and fast (because I'm so speedy - it's like giving me sprinter's shoes - I mean, yeah, I have feet, but the shoes would not be living up to their potential!). But my current favorites are Ultex Sharps and a Red Bear that I bought off jfb.

Down in the collection, I have a metal pick, and another cut from cymbal brass. VERY thick on that one.

For acoustic, I'm very fond of the Wegen Bluegrass picks - big, meaty, and nearly indestructable.

For fingerpicking, I have three nails acryliced, and after years of never being able to get them to work, I found a thumbpick. Problem was, I didn't know what brand or where I got it (I tried a bunch). Finally found them again about two years ago - of all things, Picks By The Pound. But they're the only ones that work for me.

And I have a ton of novelty picks - Kiss, Friday The 13th hockey masks, South Park. And so on.
 
As a test yesterday before bed, I tried one of my Fender mediums and the Dunlop Tortex .88.
No love for them, and as soon as I got the Dava back between my fingers again, it just felt right.

41c-9Z2BicL.jpg
 
I ordered the rock combo, jazz combo, and the grip tip combo to give me nearly every type they make. I'm already pretty sure I won't like the nylon picks, but who knows maybe they'll be better than Dunlop nylons.
Did your picks come yet?
You got a few like in the picture I posted above right?

Would like to hear your take on them.
I tried the green .88 Tortex again the other day, I just do not like them like I did in the past.
Dava all the way for me now, so far my favorite of any pick I have ever tried.
 
Been using one of these myself recently, the TD40. I will probably buy more. I like the durability a lot. I bought mine months ago and it still hasn't worn down much.
For tone, to me, nothing sounds better than Red Bear. Blue Chip wins out because of durability and availability, but Red Bear has the edge for tone, particularly on acoustics.
If I'm in a pinch, Dunlop Ultex 1.0mm. Perfectly fine picks, sound great, almost as good as Red Bear, but tend to wear down faster. Still, more durable than Delrin (a.k.a. Tortex) or celluloid.

All that said, I have found that the shape and thickness of the pick have much more of an impact on tone than the material it's made of. I stick with the traditional teardrop shape.

I added a TD40 to the lineup, too. I like the pointy Jazz tip for single note picking, but strumming's a little smoother with a regular tip and the 1mm thickness. All of the others are Jazz tips in the 50 thickness.
 
Did your picks come yet?
You got a few like in the picture I posted above right?

Would like to hear your take on them.
I tried the green .88 Tortex again the other day, I just do not like them like I did in the past.
Dava all the way for me now, so far my favorite of any pick I have ever tried.

I finally got them a few days ago... boy do they ship slow, lol. At least ill say they were mostly worth the wait.

The jazz grip picks have a killer point on them, its almost like a precision tool easily picking out the perfect areas to do its work. That being said, I don't like them, they're just too small for my mitts... and I really don't have that big of hands.

But hey, good news, the regular grip picks have that same killer tip! From these, I do really like the gel picks, its smooth and glides right over the strings as if they're covered in astrolube... unfortunately the gel seems to wear quick and I lost my tip pretty quickly. Dava does have a better nylon than Dunlop, its actually pretty quiet, but it still doesn't change my mind about nylon picks. I have no complaints about the delrin at all. Its somewhat fast, pretty durable and quiet.

That must be why they used it on the rock control :) id say they're my favorites out of all of them. Unfortunately my natural pick holding position pretty much leaves me only using a "heavy" pick, and I get the strings caught up in the black grip stuff if I adjust to the "medium" or "light", but I can't blame the pick for that. In reality that doesn't bother me though, its an extremely comfortable pick, and it just feels natural for me to hold it on the "heavy" side.
 
Great choices everyone!!

I'm still in love with the Herco Gold Flex 50... It just "works" for me.... I have one of the Silver Flex 75's in case I ever want a same feeling but heavier pick.
 
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