Thick guitar pick that does not chirp/click?

[mr. beaumont]

Fender picks dont chirp. Really most regular "acetate" or "celluloid" picks don't.

I like the pro-plecs. Quietest picks I've ever used, I think.

[jzucker]

Agreed regarding the Min'd picks. In fact, I just ordered a bunch of agate picks thinking back to those min'd picks and after 1 minute, put them away for good, lol.

He was also experimenting with Sea Shells back then. However, when I studied with Dennis Sandole (right down the block from Pat), dennis advocated the extra heavy fender picks.

Which Ibanez picks are you referring to?

It is a gear forum, so I suppose unpacking the fine variations of picks fits best here.

There seems to be considerable variation in what sounds chirpy to a given player.

Some of the suggested picks here are major chirp machines in my opinion.

Maybe we hear chirps differently, or maybe there actually is a different chirp-o-sity from one player to the next while using the same pick.

Most find that Pro-pleks are extremely un-chirpy. But they also can be too rounded at the high end for some.

The Dunlop primetones sit really interestingly between the classic Fender and the Pro-Plek on the international chirp scale (ICS). So that might be just the ticket for someone.

Maybe Pat Martino just chirps less that others regardless of the pick.

Funny that in the late 70’s he was promoting the old “Min’d” picks make of stone. Those were the chirpy-est things ever.

**********

In my view, chirp comes from striking an already vibrating string. Some players have a style of damping and playing very clean notes on non-vibrating strings. Others have a very fluid style, especially in chord-melody, where you are constantly picking already vibrating strings.

I think this is where much of the varied views (on the chirp-o-meter) of a given pick originate.

Fun thread. I want to try those Ibanez picks.

[ptchristopher3]

Jack,

I meant the Ibanez “Elastomer” picks.

I ordered a soft and a hard to try in the 2.2mm thickness.

[jzucker]

Jack,

I meant the Ibanez “Elastomer” picks.

I ordered a soft and a hard to try in the 2.2mm thickness.

they look like polyesterine / Acetal which is a self-lubricating polymer used for kitchen cutting blocks.

Possibly the same as these? I love the clayton material but their acetal picks are stamped and so they have a squared off edge which I am not crazy about.

[ptchristopher3]

I have no idea what the Ibanez Elastomers will be. I assume notably softer than the Clayton material.

I ordered one Hard and one Soft 2.2m on the ‘bay, shipped from Japan.

We will see.

[sgosnell]

I find it hard to believe that rubber makes a good pick. OTOH, the picks may not actually be elastomers, but just use the name for marketing.

[ptchristopher3]

I find it hard to believe that rubber makes a good pick. OTOH, the picks may not actually be elastomers, but just use the name for marketing.

I think you can describe elastomers as having a remarkable range of surface hardness. Further, an elastomer can have all sorts of bug-juice in the formulation to avoid the grabby nature of genuine caoutchouc.

In any case, we will find out soon enough.

[sgosnell]

Not all elastomers are rubber, but by definition an elastomer can be stretched out of shape, but will return to the prior shape. If it isn't elastic, it isn't an elastomer. I suspect this might be the case with the Ibanez picks, but as you said, we'll see.

[zigzag]

Jazztone 204 or 205.

[Greentone]

Several thoughts: I play archtops because they sound better than semis...even if Martino plays the latter. I play thumb sometimes and pick sometimes. To the OP who doesn't like horn and stone picks--me, either. I wouldn't own tortoise, but I have tried it. Simply put, best pick I'very ever used. Closest? Blue Chip and Dugain acetate.

[gggomez]

Such an under analysed impact on tone is that $2 dollar plastic thing that seems to have a life of about 1 week and then it is gone and magically appears again every year or so.

A music shop near me was shutting and was selling Gibson picks cheap.

They are my favourite by along ways the medium are reasonably thick and have a tone that I really enjoy. Its a fleshy kind of sound but not flat and dull it is round and warm if that makes any sense.

[stevus]

Such an under analysed impact on tone is that $2 dollar plastic thing that seems to have a life of about 1 week and then it is gone and magically appears again every year or so.

Interesting observation, the same happens to some of my socks after laundry. After about a year, the missing one magically appears again!

[stevus]

These are my favourites. In the video you can hear the difference between a Pleks and the Jazz III on acoustic guitar. Handmade in Italy, not cheap, but in my experience a good investment if you want a really smooth pick.

[jonh]

Jon,

Welcome, long-time lurker. The picks look interesting and your review is compelling. I went ahead and ordered a pack. Thanks.

GT

Greentone or sgosnell, how do you like your Ibanez picks? I had to cut mine down to size, just too big for me. Here's a photo of them resized, with some other picks for size comparison, and the original size at the top. The material is from Du Pont-Toray in Japan...if I had to guess, I'd guess they're made from Hytrel polyester elastomer.

(In case anyone's wondering, you can get a smaller Ibanez pick, but not in a 2.2mm thickness, that's why I ordered this size.)

I'm still experimenting but I like the tone on an acoustic, sounds like finger picking to my ears.

[Greentone]

Jon,

I like your resize. I got the 2.2mm Hard picks. So far, I haven't even reached for any of my expensive picks. I am carrying the Ibanez picks everywhere.

Good tone production and good feel.

[ErikWasser]

Where can one order Pleks picks? I’ve been googling, but no result.

[coolvinny]

I've still yet to lose a Blue Chip pick! I just keep little snap-closure pick holders in all my guitar cases/gig bags, and generally will wear jeans (built in pick pocket) when playing out of the house. At home, my pick has a designated home. I've literally been using the same custom (unbevelled, no text expect '60' thickness) KS60 for like 5 years. But I have spares and have experimented with both the 50 and the 40 models. The 50 was nice when my HB equipped guitar was a bit too dark. Now that I have a CC (HB size) in there, I'm back to the 60 model full time.

I did recently order their Jazz60 model (not the large one) but haven't picked it up yet. I figured I might as well give it a try.

Anyways, I highly recommend the Blue Chips. Try an unbevelled one if you haven't yet.

[One_Note]

I haven't tried a lot of picks, but using the side of a Fender heavy pick gives quite a nice, mellow attack.

[Irez87]

I played stone picks for a while, until my current teacher tried my setup and said "I think I found your problem".

Thing is, with stone, it's really hard to articulate your lines with dynamics. When I played with stone, it evened out everything in my sound--including my dynamics. Stone does feel really good against the string.

I switched to a BlueChip Jazz80 2 mm (I had only played 1.5 up until then). Yes, I paid $50 for a pick. Cue the horde with the pitch forks yelling "blasphemy". I've been playing it for a year and I love it! My lows sound really deep, my highs are crisp and detailed, and I can get dynamic variation. I think the pick sounds best when you play acoustically as it seems to pull the sound directly out of the guitar.

I do take issue that the same people who spend thousands on a vintage or custom instrument who frown upon more expensive picks. I'm not just saying here on the forum, but on Youtube as well. I politely called out Richie Zellon when he was talking about "overly expensive" picks on his channel. He plays a really beautiful custom archie and several Heritage guitars. He said that he would try a BlueChip, and that I had a good point. I wonder if he made good on his word (he seems like a really nice dude).

Play what works for you, BlueChip or not. But don't write off BlueChip picks just because they are "too expensive". If you don't like 'em, return 'em. I tried a couple of Gibbys and a Heritage, and I didn't like those guitars. I think I'd give them another go at another vintage shop as I think I tried a bad batch (c'mon Norms!). But, I didn't just knock them cause they were outta my price range.

I still wanna try a Bennie or a D"An... one day

[stevus]

Where can one order Pleks picks? I’ve been googling, but no result.

I think the easiest would be to get in touch with Pedro through blogspot or his facebook page.

Pleks Handmade Picks - Home | Facebook

These picks are amazing!

[DMgolf66]

I read a few times that Robert Conti promotes the use of very soft picks, but I never saw his explanation. Has anyone?

[whiskey02]

Is the chirp/clicking sound just a natural effect of thick picks, or are there any picks out there for me? I have tried big stubby, ultex, flow etc., but they have all made way too much noise. Tortex is like heaven compared, no noise, no friction. Are BlueChips better when it comes to noise? Why do I want a thicker pick? Well I want that round jazz sound, and I don’t think a tortex 1 mm gives me just that. Perhaps that’s more related to the guitar though. Haha.

I believe that if all of those picks are chirping that much for you, the issue is more likely how you are holding the pick, rather than the materials.

[Greentone]

For the last three months, I have been playing and gigging with the Ibanez Hard Elastomer 2.2mm picks that I ordered after reading this thread. The results have been outstanding.

I use a Joe Pass-style right hand technique. That is, I shift back and forth between a pick, fingerstyle, and thumb playing very freely, and within the context of the same song. I use the pick for articulation and speed--I'm afraid that, lacking a double-jointed thumb--I cannot muster Wes' thumb speed. If I had Wes' right hand, I would probably lose the pick altogether.

The main thing I notice about the Elastomer picks, relative to either the Blue Chip or my favorite Dugain acetate picks, is that the tone production doesn't shift noticeably from pick to fingerstyle and back (as was mentioned above by another member). The thumb, of course, is another matter.

I have gotten quite drawn to the similarity in tone production between fingers and the elastomer pick. The result is that switching to the pick becomes more of a gear shift, or speed change, than some abrupt change in tone production.

Some players may, however, miss the sharp, blunt attack of the pick. It's kind of similar to the sax player's use of the tongue--ticka, ticka, ticka. I employ a fairly legato style of playing, OTOH. For me, the Ibanez pick is quite useful.

[krusty]

Just wondering if anyone has tried Dunlop Flow picks? They look on paper like a possible winner. I tied Blue Chip, and was really happy with the feel and sound of the first one I tried. Then I opened up an identical one, and the sound was totally different in an unpleasant way. I chalk it up to potential bevel differences, but I have no intention of spending time with sandpaper to attempt to correct it. I might, just on principle, but I prefer having a bag of identical sounding picks I can just dig into.

[Greentone]

I would be ticked, PO'd, (picked off!) if picks as expensive as Blue Chip exhibit such inconsistencies.