Jazz Guitar Pick

[jazzguy100]

at least with wes' pick you cant lose it, unless you're screwing around with a saw.

[Jabberwocky]

Guitar picks must be the most useless useful things around or equally useful useless things. We buy them, try them, lose them, only to buy some more. The cycle repeats. They collect like lint in your trousers pocket or paper clips.

All I know is that we won't stop buying them and trying new ones for that elusive perfect one until we switch to fingerstyle playing. It taps into some obsessive-compulsive-perfectionist streak in us.

Better than buying new guitars, I suppose. My drummer friends have the same problem with sticks! And drum heads! (Their equivalent of strings to guitarists.)

My latest acquisition is a bunch of Ibanez 1100gb picks, the George Benson picks!

[silverfoxx]

Fender medium, Gibson ditto plus a variety of Dugain picks for fat tone.

[EddieLastra]

My workhorse Blue Chip TPR 40 that I bought in 2007 and have played continuously ever since. This pick is indestructible, the edge has not worn at all. It's got the ideal tone and feel that's right for me

[55bar]

My workhorse Blue Chip TPR 40 that I bought in 2007 and have played continuously ever since. This pick is indestructible, the edge has not worn at all. Reason I play it is that it's got the tone and feel that's right for me

That looks vintage I must say that the lighter ones I use do wear I've been through 3 or 4 in around 3-4 years.

I still have them and use them.

[destinytot]

I haven't found any GB picks* yet, so I'm using a pick that a friend gave me: Cool Juratex medium* (excellent pointy 351 type). It's great for Benson-style picking. I'm now using a Pro-Plec for all other picking/strumming.

*Looks like I may have to order from the US.

[mrcee]

What is it about purple Fender mediums? I've been using the same one for over 2 years. Historically I've never had a pick for more than a few weeks at the most. They always get lost.

[coolvinny]

My workhorse Blue Chip TPR 40 that I bought in 2007 and have played continuously ever since. This pick is indestructible, the edge has not worn at all. It's got the ideal tone and feel that's right for me

Hey Eddie, did you find the pick needs to be worn in? Like do you have any brand new ones laying around that if you pick up will not sound as round/warm your worn in one? Just curious if your experience matches mine.

[kofblz]

Still searching, but using the round corner of a Dunlop 2.0 mm now, when not just going with the fingers.

[EddieLastra]

Hey Eddie, did you find the pick needs to be worn in? Like do you have any brand new ones laying around that if you pick up will not sound as round/warm your worn in one? Just curious if your experience matches mine.

Hey coolvinny, I have a spare TPR 40 that is practically new as I've rarely had to use it. Occasionally I take it out just to compare tone qualities with my old TPR 40 and I don't really hear or feel any difference at all. I think the durable qualities of the pick material helps to maintain the bevel angle of the edges. I think that bevel angle just happens to be a good match for my pick grip. That's what I love about Blue Chip is they are good to go right away

Before the Blue Chip I used Fender 346 extra heavy's and Dunlop 207 Jazztone's. I'd have to play them a while to wear in an angle on the edge, then I would take a ultra fine nail file and polish the edges so it would slide smoother off the strings, but it was hit and miss and the edge would eventually wear out and I'd have to re-polish. Thank goodness when Blue Chips came out, I don't have to do that anymore

[mwcarr]

I've been using the large triangle Pro-Plecs for years. I also play mandolin and for that I use the same pick but round off the corners a lot. I use the 1.5's. Two dozen is relatively cheap and they last a long time. Learning years ago to reshape picks, I routinely keep a good rounded edge on them.

[Dylanfan424]

I use a blue chip jazz 50 and love it as it has the feel and sound of tortoise shell. Kind of salty for a pick but sounds just great. If I forget that pick at home I just use a dunlop jazz III.

[Mr. Pocket]

I use a Dunlop 207 for everything. Electric, acoustic, mandolin. I just got a couple packs of their "Primetone" triangle picks but haven't used them much yet. I think I can pick faster with a pointed pick, but the 207 gives me a nice fat warm tone, and makes me pick through the string a bit more than a pointier pick. It also just feels good to hold and seems to wear in nicely. I haven't though about changing the bevel at all but might try it out.

[FatPick]

I need thick picks or my hand cramps really easily.

Pics from both sides:


L to R:

1. Dunlop 477R508 Primetone®, Large Pointed Tip, 5.0mm
2. Frankenstein pick: Dunlop 518P1.4 Primetone® Jazz III Sculpted Plectra, 1.4mm (part that contacts the strings) sandwiched between two freebie light junk picks, all superglued together for thickness
3. V-pick Dimension: perfect except a little clicky on acoustic, love the weird material that gets stickier as your fingers get moist
4. BlueChip Jazz LG 100 w/ Guitar Moose sticky dots for thickness
5. BlueChip TD 100 w/ Guitar Moose sticky dots for thickness

I love the sound and feel of the Dunlop Primetone series (the translucent brown ones like the 518P1.4) for both electric and acoustic. I just wish they produced one that's the Jazz III XL size and 2 or 3 mm thick. Until then, it's just me and my superglue I guess...

[reventlov]

I used Dunlop nylon 88s for years but recently I've been experimenting with 60s - the tone is virtually identical and I definitely have more control, particularly in faster passages. I tried for a couple of weeks using 31s after reading that Robert Conti recommended them but that was just too much of a change so I worked up from there in small increments till I got to 60, and found that I really liked them. I'm using 11-48 Ernie Ball slinkys on a 24.6inch scale length.

Having said all that, probably as much as 80% of my playing is done with the fingers - my pick of choice, really, is a Fred Kelly thumb-pick.

[lawson-stone]

I doubt anyone uses these for jazz; I still have them from my brief and unremarkable attempt to become bluegrass player:

[MarkRhodes]

I doubt anyone uses these for jazz; I still have them from my brief and unremarkable attempt to become bluegrass player:

I still have a National thumb pick. (Big Merle Travis fan.) Jack Zucker made some videos that are floating around hereabouts in which he's playing with a thumb pick. (A Fred Kelly Bumble Bee, IIRC.) I never found fingerpicks that fit---they always pinched and that bothered me so much I couldn't play with them long enough to get used to it. Which is neither here nor there, but I think there's plenty of room for a thumb pick in jazz!

[gcb]

Dunlop 2.06 USA

[Irez87]

I spend more money on my picks than I do my strings.

A set of Thomastiks costs what, like 25-30 bucks?

I had a set, and really didn't like the sound.

So I tried different picks, and found my sound with the gemstone picks over at picksandstones.com

I have two gemstone picks. One is clear and has a brown band, the other is a milky brown... I like the color brown

They are both Brazilian Agate.

I can get a vague approximation from those thick Jazz III teardrop picks, but they are no where as fluid. The gemstone naturally darkens my tone and gives me more of a round bell like tone when I really focus.

Downside is that you really have to practice working the pick to avoid all the clicking. My tone is much better now, but I used to annoy the crap outta my guitar teachers when I got my first gemstone pick 5-6 years ago.

So, I'll stick with the gemstones and continue buying D'addario ProSteel round wound strings. That combination, along with my guitar, seems like the best combination.

A sax player goes crazy over reeds and mouth pieces. Why not go crazy over the point of contact that creates sound (if you don't play with your thumb and fingers) on the geeeteeer

[Irez87]

I still have a National thumb pick. (Big Merle Travis fan.) Jack Zucker made some videos that are floating around hereabouts in which he's playing with a thumb pick. (A Fred Kelly Bumble Bee, IIRC.) I never found fingerpicks that fit---they always pinched and that bothered me so much I couldn't play with them long enough to get used to it. Which is neither here nor there, but I think there's plenty of room for a thumb pick in jazz!

Gilad Hekselman and Rotem Sivan used "thumb picks" when they play jazz.

[Boston Joe]

I used to use Dunlop nylons, but I got irritated with the 'snap'. I switched to the tortex green or purple.

But to some extent, a pick is a pick is a pick. I like 'em on the heavy side.

[Mr. Pocket]

I never found fingerpicks that fit---they always pinched and that bothered me so much I couldn't play with them long enough to get used to it.

Buy them a little bit small and wear them in the shower, or just run your pick under some hot water and the plastic band will bend and become comfortable. Eventually mine always break but they stay in the comfortable stage for many hours of playing after the warm water trick.

[mrcee]

I still have a National thumb pick. (Big Merle Travis fan.) Jack Zucker made some videos that are floating around hereabouts in which he's playing with a thumb pick. (A Fred Kelly Bumble Bee, IIRC.) I never found fingerpicks that fit---they always pinched and that bothered me so much I couldn't play with them long enough to get used to it. Which is neither here nor there, but I think there's plenty of room for a thumb pick in jazz!

I used to play the steel a little bit. A plastic thumb pick and metal picks on the index and middle fingers. It takes a while for the metal picks to break in and fit the fingers comfortably. Then it's like a worn in baseball glove.

[MarkRhodes]

Buy them a little bit small and wear them in the shower, or just run your pick under some hot water and the plastic band will bend and become comfortable. Eventually mine always break but they stay in the comfortable stage for many hours of playing after the warm water trick.

That's a great idea! Thank you.

[MarkInLA]

What I like is when you used to walk into an authentic mom and pop music store like Gilsonite's in Englewood N.J. and there'd be a large jar which says "Take your Pick"....A guitar pick used to be a little gift just for shopping there (No lie. Around 1975 I was at Gilsonite and George Benson came in and was fiddling with that same pick jar !!). Now they've found another way to gouge us; selling them in packs only, and no more single giveaways or 10c ones..
Anyway I needed a few and wound up buying a 5 pack of Dunlops for $5 at GC. I got home only to find I hate them. Why ? They're way too slick on the surface and so tend to spin around until they warm up. I knew I should have looked for Fenders, which were a standard at one time. The inscription on them gave them the grip needed. Wish I could find an authentic tortoise shell. Well, I've been able to un-slick the Dunlop with an emery board. Even that's tough to do, they're so slick. I admit they are of a very sturdy Delrin-like composition.. Maybe I'll get used to it...