High End Picks vs. standard picks

[nobis17]

I've been using the Dunlop primetone standard grip .88 for about a year. I think they are great. I don't drop it and it doesn't move around in my grip. That is a big plus in my book!

 

[this_grackle]

Good ole Fender Heavy... never failed me yet. Occasionally a Fender Medium... I’ve tried others, but they never work for me.

 

[Chiogtr4x]

I prefer Dunlop Primetones. They have a better tone to my ear than regular tortex. I use .88s.

Tried some coin ones for a bit and it was too intense.

I like using Dunlop Primetone .73's ( no grip) for Bluegrass picking- they are same thickness as Fender Mediums ( my fave acoustic pick), but stiffer for lead picking.

Most bluegrass guys like more expensive and much thicker picks, but not me!
( just find .73's/ Mediums to be the perfect thickness for me on acoustic or electrics)

 

[Steerforth]

A few years ago, I conducted the most sweeping plectrum research inquiry ever carried out in the history of human scientific endeavor.

After months of hands-on research, I can say with certainty that it doesn’t get any better than Dunlop Ultex or Tortex, no matter how much money you spend.

I still have a big tin from some Danish butter cookies, full of some of the weirdest picks you’ve ever seen. I was thorough.

 

[telepraise]

mandolin: BC CT-55, Dunlop Primetone larg triangle smooth 1.4 or 1.5 for back up
flat top: BC TAD 50, sometimes CT-55 for flatpicking
archtop: BC TP-1R 50
electric: Dunlop Primetone 88 (standard shape) they don't wear out at all.

 

[drumtime]

I like whatever I haven't lost yet. Sometimes that turns out to be a quarter.

I don't care for those little ones - can't keep my fingers out of the strings.

Fender mediums are fine.

 

[Wyzsard]

their effects on tone

Absolutely

I use different picks for that reason but don't have any I would call high-end. Unless the Fred Kelly Bumble Bee is considered such. I bought a banjo last year and tried one. Love it for guitar as well.



I think it was 4 bucks

 

[zippofan]

I like the thin V-Picks, but my favorites are the Tusq vintage, both 351 shape, medium (.7, .8) thickness like the good ole Fenders I've been using since 1979. I have tried some of the thick ones and I'm definitely missing the point as I find them hard to hang onto.
I like trying different picks, nylon, Ultam (have some yellow ones from Clayton), Tortex etc. but most days I use a Tusq, or Fender celluloid, maybe a Herco nylon. I can't hold onto the Jazz picks at all, but my technique isn't very good anyway.

 

[medownsouth]

I sometimes play Gravity 1.5mm classic standards (even though I probably won't buy any more), sometimes D'andrea Pro Plec 351 1.5mm, but my #1 atm at least are ultex 1.14mm

 

[Unison Bend]

Dunlop Primetones. I have standards, Jazz 3, and Jazz 3 XL. Notes project better and are more dynamic. Anyone that says Tortexes or Gators sound as good need a hearing test.

 

[Tony Forman]

Orange Fred Kelly Slick Pick, White Clayton small jazz 1.26mm, Dunlop Jazz III XL.

 

[imwjl]

The used Blue Chip I got really is nice but I can't bring myself to pay for another at full price. I find it really hard to beat the Wegen Bluegrass model that have only been $3 each vs the picks that fetch $20-$40.

Confession: That Blue Chip with my semi-hollow guitar and Princeton Reverb really do sound nice. That more pointed Red Bear with my 000 acoustic will defy it's size and work at a bluegrass jam.

 

[Pcs264]

Fender Medium 351s, "tortoise" colored...I buy a gross about every 10-12 years, never worry about losing them and always have plenty. They feel good & sound good.

 

[srblue5]

I experiment every so often but always seem to come back to Fender or Dunlop celluloid 351 medium picks or Tortex yellow.

 

[beninma]

I have tried a bunch, early on when learning I was having wicked trouble with picks slipping.

Tortex picks for example totally disagree with my skin chemistry.. they're like trying to pick with a wet chip of ice. I have some Wegens, and they are not much better, even with the holes drilled in them. And they sound scratchy/thin/bright. It seems like the Wegens might be a similar plastic compound.

My overall favorite is Blue Chip.. I never lose picks so I have a few Blue chips. They sound great and they never slip.

For medium price I Like the Taylor Ultex ones, for cheap I like Celluloid.. Celluloid agrees with my fingers and mostly stays put, so do the Taylor ones. There's a lot of speculation that the Taylor Picks are made by D'andrea.

I have a couple of Gravity Picks I got free.. JHS gives you one in the box when you buy some pedals. The Gravity Picks stay put but I find them to sound scratchy/thin. But the ones they send are also super thick, moreso than I'm used to.

I don't really care about the prices of expensive picks.. they're just not very expensive. If you've got a collection of expensive guitars/amps/pedals the picks are small money.

 

[matman14]

Spent about 20 minutes with a guitar player auditioning picks for an acoustic part we were recording yesterday
Ultimately some generic 0.6mm derlin pick gave the right blend of string attack and body we needed for that part.

I don't know if it's something I'd pursue if there weren't a couple of thousand dollars of mics pointed at the guitar though.

 

[_MementoMori_]

I've got a super fancy $35 guitar pick that I won in a contest when I was still on Instagram. It's pretty, but I don't find myself reaching for it more often due to any magical properties.

 

[Telecaster88]

I like picks because they're colorful and you can buy a new pack for relatively cheap and relieve some GAS on a budget. I have thick picks, thin picks, chewy picks, inflexible picks, bargain picks, and crazy expensive picks. And yet I basically always use Red Tortex. Sometimes I go wild and use the orange ones.

 

[Old Deaf Roadie]

I had been playing with picks made from stone for some time. I have one of jasper & another of agate. Recently, I have been moving away from them because 1- They are a bit too bright, 2- Because they can break if you drop them on a hard surface. Now I use a standard Fender heavy pick that looks like blue tortoise shell.

 

[blue17]

I've learned a lesson from buying nice sunglasses. Once you buy nice ones (Ray-Ban for me), you'll be spoiled and can never go back to the cheap ones, so when you inevitably lose them or drop them into oncoming traffic (who me?), you'll need to buy them again because you're too used to the good stuff.

Are nice picks better? Probably. But i'll stick to Tortex 1mm in bulk.