Thinner picks are better?

[Keregioz]

I could say the same thing about guitars, pickups, amps, cabinets, and microphones - that doesn't change the fact that each one is a huge part of the cumulative tone.

I believe most of the things you mentioned have much more significant impact on the tone than what pick you use. It's more important HOW you use the pick.

Changing the pick changes a lot about the timbre of the guitar. As for you not having tuning issues... maybe you should pick harder.

Ι believe I pick hard enough, but I'm wondering, picking softer isn't in some ways the same thing as using a thinner pick? In both cases the result is less hitting power on the strings.

 

[Lasse Lammert]

I actually think the size and material of the pick has a rather stunning influence on the final tone!
even comparing JazzIII of the same size and thickness but different materials (Ultex vs. Nylon etc) shows a pretty big difference in sound.

So for me it's always a compromise between playability and sound....
the perfect pick for me and my playing is:

perfect size, just a little bigger than the regular Jazz3, great sound (almost as good as the amber coloured Ultex)

 

[Keregioz]

One other thing I've noticed is that the difference in tone between picks is much more exaggerated if you listen while playing rather than hearing the recorded track only. I've found myself comparing picks and while playing a thicker one thinking wow that really sounds much heavier. But it turns out the feeling you get with the hard hitting and the bigger resistance from the strings and the vibration on your body from the wood all have a big influence on how you perceive the sound. Later, when I listen to the recorded tracks the differences are more subtle than I originally thought.

Keep in mind that I'm talking only about heavy rhythm guitar tones. For clean sounds or acoustic guitars of course the pick influences the sound much more.

 

[Lasse Lammert]

Yeah, I'm always doing blind tests

 

[~BURNY~]

I can only use fender triangle (346) picks because of my awkward way of holding them. I like them thin and rigid.

 

[Frantick]

lol i thought that it was only my subjective point of view, but dam there more like me . I was using dunlop tortex 1.14 exclusively for over a decade until one day i haven't any around me and only thing that i could find was a 0.6mm copy of a Tenacious D 'pick of destiny' witch was given to me as a collectible from my gf and I was blown away how my sound get sharper and more clear. And from that day i switch to lighter picks with a pointy edge (and that is a story of my life )

 

[texisthebest]

I was using the Jazz III, and thin picks only for the acoustic guitar
but after reading this I have try thin picks to hi gain rythm and It´s amazing, thank you guys!

 

[Ermz]

I did a large Dunlop pick A/B test a while ago which revealed some interesting things. Apart from being easier to play with, the thinner picks tended to generate a more flubby, low-mid heavy tone. The hard picks (1.14mm and up) tended to generate more upper midrange exertion. They'd also get caught on the strings like mad, and put the guitar way out of tune whenever I played at my normal level.

I've hit a happy medium with the 0.73mm TIIIs. Not that I've played guitar any time in the last few months, though if I were to start again, they'd be my pick of choice!

PS. I should mention that much of the pick viability comes from the tuning you're playing in and the gauge of the strings. The lower you go, generally the thicker the pick needs to be in order to generate any kind of clarity from what you're playing. I tend to hover around C as my ideal tuning range, and the 0.73mm is perfect for it.

 

[FrancescoFiligoi]

Dunlop 0.88 Green TIII is my absolute favourite, both on rhythm/lead/clean/bass. Perfect amount of firm bass response without it being too much (like 1+mm) and amazing clarity and "zing" like the thinner ones, expecially on single note stuff.

I've tried an absurd amount of picks and Tortex is imho THE best pick material, hands down. That, right point and right size will help a lot achieving the perfect tone.

 

[abt]

hahaha! Priceless!

I actually think the size and material of the pick has a rather stunning influence on the final tone!
even comparing JazzIII of the same size and thickness but different materials (Ultex vs. Nylon etc) shows a pretty big difference in sound.

So for me it's always a compromise between playability and sound....
the perfect pick for me and my playing is:

perfect size, just a little bigger than the regular Jazz3, great sound (almost as good as the amber coloured Ultex)

Yes sir indeed, it makes a huge difference to the sound. I like those JP Jazz IIIs for lead but I find them too smooth for rhythm, not enough bite. These also sound different to the small size Jazz III imo. When the first came out I though they were the best thing ever because I've always struggled a bit with the size of the Jazz III.

lol i thought that it was only my subjective point of view, but dam there more like me . I was using dunlop tortex 1.14 exclusively for over a decade until one day i haven't any around me and only thing that i could find was a 0.6mm copy of a Tenacious D 'pick of destiny' witch was given to me as a collectible from my gf and I was blown away how my sound get sharper and more clear. And from that day i switch to lighter picks with a pointy edge (and that is a story of my life )

Haha! The Pick of Destiny strikes again!

I did a large Dunlop pick A/B test a while ago which revealed some interesting things. Apart from being easier to play with, the thinner picks tended to generate a more flubby, low-mid heavy tone. The hard picks (1.14mm and up) tended to generate more upper midrange exertion. They'd also get caught on the strings like mad, and put the guitar way out of tune whenever I played at my normal level.

I'm finding that the thicker picks have a higher more clicky attack then a lot of fundamental in the note which then decays away more quickly. The thinner picks has a slightly lower frequency attack then less fundamental but more upper harmonic content. It's subtle but you can hear it.

PS. I should mention that much of the pick viability comes from the tuning you're playing in and the gauge of the strings. The lower you go, generally the thicker the pick needs to be in order to generate any kind of clarity from what you're playing. I tend to hover around C as my ideal tuning range, and the 0.73mm is perfect for it.

This is probably the most important factor. I'm actually finding the opposite to be true, the thicker the string the thinner picks have more clarity.

Dunlop 0.88 Green TIII is my absolute favourite, both on rhythm/lead/clean/bass. Perfect amount of firm bass response without it being too much (like 1+mm) and amazing clarity and "zing" like the thinner ones, expecially on single note stuff.

I've tried an absurd amount of picks and Tortex is imho THE best pick material, hands down. That, right point and right size will help a lot achieving the perfect tone.

Yeah, I think Tortex rules! It gives you plenty of bite without being too scratchy. Something that hasn't been mention much is the difference in material vs the difference in the thickness. A 0.6mm Tortex doesn't have the same flexibility as a pick made out of Nylon, or Ultex.



I bet in a year or two there will be a "Thick picks rule, thin picks suck" thread.

 

[crillemannen]

James Hetfield Ultex by Dunlop 1.14 mm awesome !! Only those !!

Didn't he use those green hmm.. Tortex .80 ones before?

Maybe that's why he hasn't got as good tones as he did in the 90's

 

[Keregioz]

I bet in a year or two there will be a "Thick picks rule, thin picks suck" thread.

+1. I'm sure it will, it will go along with the "EMGs rule/passive PUs suck" and "thick strings suck/lighter strings rule" threads

 

[Kazrog]

Another pick shape I quite liked for electric playing was a tortex 'the wedge', but I didn't like the sound of these on acoustic. They're like a normal tortex but with a sharper tip.

+1

I use .73mm wedge picks myself, have for the past 10 years. I've done many shootouts with other picks, not only listening but looking at the shape of the transients on DI guitar tracks, and these win every time if you are looking for the absolute fastest and most aggressive "snappy" attack possible. If there is something out there better in that respect, it's never made its way into my studio (and I've tried almost every pick that's commonly available.)

However, I will agree that on acoustic these sound absolutely ridiculous. You will sound like a belligerent, drunken deathmetal guy invading a coffee house open mic night.

 

[Mago]

One other thing I've noticed is that the difference in tone between picks is much more exaggerated if you listen while playing rather than hearing the recorded track only. I've found myself comparing picks and while playing a thicker one thinking wow that really sounds much heavier. But it turns out the feeling you get with the hard hitting and the bigger resistance from the strings and the vibration on your body from the wood all have a big influence on how you perceive the sound. Later, when I listen to the recorded tracks the differences are more subtle than I originally thought.

ah yeah, that's a pretty valid thing to remember...haven't done any recording A/Bs yet wit the last jazz iii shootouts...

I think I even remember the last "which pick" thread...iirc you and me where pretty much on the same page thinking that the pick you're used to the most will sound best.
I guess for a valid comparison you'd have to play with every bit for a good while before recoding anything.

Not saying that the material/thickness/shape doesn't affect the sound, but I think at first the awkwardness of using something you're not used to covers
up those differences.


Those Petrucci JazzIII got me curious, are they similar to the stubby more rounded 2mm jazz iii?
I can't play with those, they are way too round for me in general.
(those I mean http://www.jimdunlop.com/product/ultex-jazz-III-2mm)

 

[HCL]

I don't care about thickness, I just want picks that are relatively stiff and have a good shape. Thicker picks tend to have those two characteristics so I think that's why they get used.

Pickboy that do a series called carbon nylon, that are pretty thin but really hard and they're absolutely fantastic. Great shape to them too.

 

[JonWormwood]

I think I might pick up some of those ^ But they are more then a dollar each

 

[Nimvi]

I think all of you people are nuts.

That won't keep me from trying those thinner picks again though

 

[mva801]

Whoa I just found out they make those tortex Jazz III's in all sorts of thicknesses. I thought they just made the thicker ones. Guess all the music stores around here only stock the one.

Everyone have a look at these if you like the Jazz III size but aren't into the nylon: http://www.jimdunlop.com/product/Tortex-Pitch-Black-Jazz-III

Nice and small for my tiny girly hands, varying thickness, tortex material, sharp tip! Perfect. I'm gonna try the .60's instead of the 1.14's I've been using. Maybe keep both around as options depending on the part.

 

[Melodeath]

I use the green Dunlop Sharp picks. I found those easiest to play with. I have way more attack and control with a sharp tip than the normal Dunlop style. However, I do not like this pick on my acoustic. It has too much attack and brightness. A rounder tip is good, and a thinner pick would probably be good too. I guess what I'm saying is for me, semi-thicker and sharp picks are easiest to play with, and are better for tone on electric (IMO). On acoustic, thinner and rounder sounds better, but is harder to play with.

 

[MatrixClaw]

Weird.

I used thin/medium picks the first few years of playing and then someone turned me onto heavier ones... Now I use 1.14mm Dunlop Tortex (for acoustic & bass) and Jazz III Tortex (for electric) almost exclusively, because of the tone and durability. I still have a ton of .58 Tortex and others and I just can't use them anymore.