Do you use you pick as a tone knob?

[Osage]

The cheapest and easiest way to change your tone is by changing your pick.

That said, I always use the exact same picks for everything. I've found the one I'm most comfortable with and it's all I use. I just can't be bothered to be changing picks mid set. I can vary the tone all I want by moving where I hit the strings.

[Birdbrain]

In Silly Moustache's demo clip, there's very little difference. The picks are too similar, differing only in thickness. But if you tested different brands, with differing materials and bevel cuts, you'd find a much larger difference.

[FrankHudson]

Oh yes! Being nutty about picks, and also using different picking points and attacks too.

On acoustic guitar I'll use different pick point shapes and materials as well as different thickness.

On electric I'm not nearly as picky, but then there are real tone knobs and effects boxes, and so on.

[Gordon Currie]

Originally Posted by Osage

That said, I always use the exact same picks for everything. I've found the one I'm most comfortable with and it's all I use. I just can't be bothered to be changing picks mid set. I can vary the tone all I want by moving where I hit the strings.

+1.

I use only one gauge pick (.77) and one shape (teardrop) but I'll play with angle, location and rotation (point vs shoulder) to get the tone I desire.

[rstaight]

I use different pick thicknesses and materials to get different tones. I will even pick or strum near the bridge to over the fret board.

I also will change the grip tension on the pick. Hold the pick loosely to be quit. Tighten your grip you are louder. A real easy way to add some dynamics to your playing.

[Charlie Bernstein]

Originally Posted by Gibson1990

Hey guys, just got a J45 and I never had a guitar that changed tone so differently with pick thickness.

Basically a .50 pick is like tone knob at 10

.60 is like 9

.70 is like 8

.80 is like 7

I actually settled on liking the .70 but I’ve never had a guitar that changed so much tone based on a pick. Is is maybe because the J45 having a pronounced upper mids, means the pick has a big impact on its sound?

I’d love to hear if others have had this experience with other guitars

Pick choice certainly affects sound. I've never noticed that it's more pronounced with Gibsons, but maybe you're on to something.

A .70 is light. You might try, say, a 1.5, and see what that does.

And casein plastic picks are all the rage these days. They say they're ultra-fast. You might want to invest in one of those and see what it does.

Mandolins are highly sensitive to pick thickness, shape, and material. So mando players are fanatics about picks. Many will pay over $50 for one.

I like fingerpicks. I vary the tone in two ways:

- Picking closer to the bridge for more treble and closer to the neck for more bass.

- Playing on higher strings for more treble and lower strings for more bass. The same riff played on lower or higher strings will sound vastly different.

Keep on pluckin'!

[Brent Hahn]

Here's a rabbit hole: even if you don't like Fender Celluloid Mediums (or Heavys, pick one) buy a pack of tortoise, a couple different solid colors, and Clown Vomit if they have it. Compare tone, feel and "bendiness."

[Keith Lee]

Originally Posted by Cameleye

Between the angle of the pick as it hits the strings, pick location relative to the bridge and palm muting one can change tone across quite a spectrum.

Pretty much what I do

Half inch from bridge is my Tele sound, go all the way (rarely) to where neck meets body

Not a strummer, kind of use bluegrass based flatpick technique with minimum 1.5 pick but don't play bluegrass

[Charlie Bernstein]

Originally Posted by Gibson1990

Yeah I guess having different picks for different songs makes no sense . . . .

. . . unless you play mandolin!

[Charlie Bernstein]

PS -

And it just occurred to me that since I fingerpick, the choice of whether to put them on or play bare makes a huge sound difference — on any guitar.

[EZYPIKINS]

I use a pick as a ball marker.

[tinnitus]

I went through all that trying-different-picks business last century. Settled on the kind I like best and learned how to use it.

Whether a pick costs 40¢ or $40, I find there's quite a span of open string to use between the 12th fret and the bridge, not to mention dozens of ways to hold a pick while alternating between countless methods of attack. Huge variances therein without swapping one pick for another.

Said another way, Danny Boy and Rock n' Roll Hoochie Koo are played differently - no matter what one uses for a pick.

[nspeer]

After playing guitar for 40+ years and never giving my picks a second thought, I recently had a pick epiphany. I wasn't getting the tone I expected from the Yamaha FG5 I acquired. After experimenting with 3 sets of different strings, I happened to try different thickness
Picks and BAM! I'm startled at how different my tone is with a 1.2mm vs 0.6mm or 0.73mm (I'd always used 0.5 or 0.6mm). So, yes, picks are amazing tone controls!

[Bluemonk]

Originally Posted by nspeer

After playing guitar for 40+ years and never giving my picks a second thought, I recently had a pick epiphany. I wasn't getting the tone I expected from the Yamaha FG5 I acquired. After experimenting with 3 sets of different strings, I happened to try different thickness
Picks and BAM! I'm startled at how different my tone is with a 1.2mm vs 0.6mm or 0.73mm (I'd always used 0.5 or 0.6mm). So, yes, picks are amazing tone controls!

\\

1.2 mm is pretty much my sweet spot. If all that were available were .5 or .6, I'd be doing finger style exclusively.

[Bluemonk]

Originally Posted by nspeer

After playing guitar for 40+ years and never giving my picks a second thought, I recently had a pick epiphany. I wasn't getting the tone I expected from the Yamaha FG5 I acquired. After experimenting with 3 sets of different strings, I happened to try different thickness
Picks and BAM! I'm startled at how different my tone is with a 1.2mm vs 0.6mm or 0.73mm (I'd always used 0.5 or 0.6mm). So, yes, picks are amazing tone controls!

1.2 mm is pretty much my sweet spot. If all that were available were .5 or .6, I'd be doing finger style exclusively.