Guitar pics/plectrums

Gear & Tools Talk
1

Hi guys,

I’m just wondering what plectrums/pics people use.

I started off with something really flexible, then ended up with the red tortex (0.50). However I’ve recently been trying lead playing and some pinch harmonics and a more rigid pick seems to be best, I’m trying out the jazz III and JP ones, I also kind of like that they are smaller.

So what do you use and do you use the same one for everything or change according to the guitar and the style?

Looking forward to your answers :smiley::guitar:

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2

I like tortex oranges think they are 60mm . I will use them for acoustic and electric. But I’ve got some others too , I’m less fussy now I’ve been playing a long time.

I think if I was playing more electric and playing more single notes a lot I would maybe go up to 1mm.

I used to use 1.5mm as a kid when I played in a band but now I just find I don’t like thick picks and I feel they don’t give as nice a sound and strumming doesn’t sound as musical (to my ears when I’m using them, when I’m listening to other players I can’t tell what pick they’re using).

I think if you’re playing super technical metal it is likely easier with a thick pick , but really all personal preference

3

Yeah I agree, at least so far, that strumming needs a more flexible one to sound nice :+1:t2:

4

I’ve got about two dozen picks so there’s definitely a lot to choose from. Sometimes I have “why haven’t I used this pick more often?” moments when I change them around. I rarely go thicker than 1.5 mm, staying close to 1 mm most of the time.

My gripe with small picks is that it’s easy to inadvertently mute strings with my pick-holding fingers when I want to let them ring out.

Also, I tend to use thinner picks for strumming when I want the volume to be lower.

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5

I mostly use Gravity standard 2mm. However, I also have a cool metal pick that was made from a 5 Yen coin that I’ve been using more recently, and I’m considering getting a Chinese Feng Shui coin from the company that made these.

For strumming an acoustic, I sometimes use something a lot thinner and more flexible, although nothing specific. It tends to be whatever I have around if I feel the thicker pick isn’t working for me.

Cheers,

Keith

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6

For me, I’ve presently settled on Tortex - yellow (0.6) and orange (0.73), and Dunlop Nylons ( .73 and .88). Seems to cover all the bases for me at present.

Cheers, Shane

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7

I decided I didn’t like pics/plectrums.

I have a bunch of random pics if any one wants some. I can drop a few in an envelope. Not sure how that would work internationally.

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8

Unless they are exotic or high-cost picks, I would be surprised if it’s worth doing.

Cheers,

Keith

9

I have a whole bunch of picks, but basically just use orange tortex (0.60 mm).

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10

When I got serious about playing guitar, I amassed an assortment of pics, cycling through the various ones. After about two years I find I have narrowed the choice down to three pics. For electric I use either a Fender medium or a D’Addario Classic .7. For acoustic guitar I use a Dunlop .5.

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11

@LizW
A lot of this is covered here Liz.
What picks do you use?

12

I use the bogstreet lead pick for strumming, it’s ergonomic (doesn’t move around like other picks) and a thumb pick for when I do fingerstyle

13

Thanks!