Moved to a 2mm Pick

3notes · #1 04-22-2018, 08:22 PM

I have in the last month, by chance, conducted a pick test for myself. I go into Guitar Center about once a week.

A while back I bought a pack of picks, just for the heck of it. I like Dunlop picks so I chose a pack that I knew I didn't have. Nylon .88mm. Sounded great. Fairly stiff/hard so it was just a tad steely.

Then I picked up another pack of Dunlops...I think they're called The Gator... .71mm. Excellent pick.!! It feels soft in the hand and it plays soft/warm on the strings. Wow. The pick does make sound as you strike the string. Many don't like that but in many cases I do. It sounds like a soft boing, for lack of a better term. Very soft. Love that pick. It was #1 after playing a bunch I had laying around. Flatpicking and strumming, it doesn't matter. Really nice pick.

Then, I picked up another set... Dunlop Tortex. .73mm. I like this pick. Slightly oversized and very comfortable to hold. Really great tone but on the brightside. More so than the Nylon .88mm. So, I didn't find I could strum with this pick. But picking melodies and lead notes, really nice pick but not #1.

A few days ago I made a big leap and picked up another pack, Dunlop Big Stubby at 2.0mm.!!! This pick is a chunk. See through plastic of some sort, glass like.?? I don't know but it is hard and it is thick and it is #1 all the way to the finish line... I was amazed from the start. A dimple on each side of the pick so it is off the charts for comfort while playing. The pick is firmly in your grasp but without strength. A light grip is enough and no worries of dropping it. After 3 days of playing this pick I know my mistakes are fewer. It's accurate. It finds the string your after. You feel a real positive attack on the string. The tone is glassy but I am still getting a fantastic bass response out of the Larrivee OM-40. I'm just sort of blown away that this is my go to pick from here on out. Real nice pick to look at to, sort of a see through pink/purple color.

I encourage everyone to try a really heavy pick. You just might like it.

Placida · #2 04-22-2018, 08:35 PM

Lately I've been using a D'Andrea mandolin pick, I think 1.5mm. Least noise of any I've used and it brings out the tone..

3notes · #3 04-22-2018, 08:40 PM

I'll always have a variety of picks out and within reach but right now the 2.0mm is standing high on the podium. Pretty cool.

Charmed Life Picks · #4 04-22-2018, 08:41 PM

3notes: I haven't gotten up quite that thick. I stop at around 1.50 mm, same as Placida here. However, many go even thicker. HHP, the local pick maven, will probably jump in here, and to him 2.0 mm is too thin. I think he likes it about 3.50 mm, somewhere. Heck, my strings aren't even that far apart.

BTW, a few questions:

1) What kind of guitar(s) do you play?
2) What gauge and brand(s) of strings?
3) What kind of music? Bluegrass? Folk? Standard Pop?

Thanks,
scott memmer

3notes · #5 04-22-2018, 09:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Charmed Life Picks

3notes: I haven't gotten up quite that thick. I stop at around 1.50 mm, same as Placida here. However, many go even thicker. HHP, the local pick maven, will probably jump in here, and to him 2.0 mm is too thin. I think he likes it about 3.50 mm, somewhere. Heck, my strings aren't even that far apart.

BTW, a few questions:

1) What kind of guitar(s) do you play?
2) What gauge and brand(s) of strings?
3) What kind of music? Bluegrass? Folk? Standard Pop?

Thanks,
scott memmer

I play a OM-40 Larrivee with Mahogany b/s. I play Elixr Nano's .12/.54

I play nearly all my own music which is pretty boring to most. lol ... The best way for me to describe it is, anthems, lullaby's, lots of single note melodies and fills,(lead)but played slowly with sustain, hammeron's, slides... Etc.

Some will understand this... I get inspired by big news events, so to speak. Hurricane Katrina inspired a song of my own, Katrina. I've experienced Lake Effect snow in western New York, 95 inches in 4 days. I was inspired so I called it Lake Effect. I have a very dark song named Otto. Most all of my stuff is slow moving. I simply cherish the tone of 3 notes that work well together. Then I try to link them up. Acoustic guitar is meant for that, yet I see all these great players and know, I will never be them. I would play like Pete Huttlinger if I could. McGuires Landing... And many here are way up there in talent. Wow...

I play for my own enjoyment, and I do enjoy it. I prefer pretty over most anything. That said, I'm a deadhead, so I sometimes will play some of Jerry's leads.

Brucebubs · #6 04-22-2018, 09:21 PM

I've enjoyed trying out different Jim Dunlop picks.
The 'Variety Packs' are excellent.
12 picks per pack.
I bought the 'Acoustic' pack and the 'Light/Medium' packs pictured below... some doubling up but at $4.99 each I'm OK with that.
There is also a 'Medium/Heavy' Variety Pack available.

3notes · #7 04-22-2018, 09:48 PM

Oh wow... check that out. I have several of those but I see The Gator comes in different thickness. GC has quite a selection, I just hate bending over to see the bottom rows... Ha.!!

Jackson Browne says there's a song in every guitar. I just wish I could find a song in every pick. A lot less expensive.

bluesfreek · #8 04-23-2018, 05:31 AM

I have been a fan of those Dunlop Tortex picks since they were introduced. I use 1.5 to 2.0 thickness for both acoustic and electric guitar.

HHP · #9 04-23-2018, 05:35 AM

Thicker picks like 2mm and above can work very well if they are configured properly. The biggest advantage is that they become sonically transparent and what you really get is the sound of the guitar and strings without any contribution from the pick itself. Control improves as you don't have to put as much physical effort into the stroke which allows you to transition to the next stroke more easily. There doesn't seem to be a downside.

jojobean39 · #10 04-23-2018, 05:59 AM

These are my brand of choice:

https://www.fivestarguitars.com/prod...t-handed-bevel

3.5mm.

Goat Mick · #11 04-23-2018, 06:31 AM

My thickness happy place is between 1.25mm and 1.5mm, but I wholeheartedly agree that thicker picks are where sonic happiness lives. Now that you know the thickness you like start experimenting with different pick materials. It's a fun rabbit hole to run down.

tnez13 · #12 04-23-2018, 06:49 AM

I've been trying out different pick thickness and sizes for awhile. Ordered several picks from Gravity Picks at 1.5 to 3.0 mm so I could compare the same pick material across the board. Personally, I've been finding that the 2 mm size is kind of a poor compromise between 1.5 and 3.0 mm picks. The 1.5 has a crisp attack while the 3.0 has the bigger, rounded sound. The 2.0 has a little of both but something always seems lacking when I play that thickness. The one advantage is the 2.0 is the thickness that Gravity starts doing their grip holes.

The 2.0 will probably be my wallet pick. I'll carry it around and not worry too much if I misplace it. I can't bring myself to carry my Blue Chip or Whiskey picks for fear of losing them.

LyleGorch · #13 04-23-2018, 07:38 AM

I stopped at 5mm.

golfreggie · #14 04-23-2018, 08:09 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HHP

Thicker picks like 2mm and above can work very well if they are configured properly. The biggest advantage is that they become sonically transparent and what you really get is the sound of the guitar and strings without any contribution from the pick itself. Control improves as you don't have to put as much physical effort into the stroke which allows you to transition to the next stroke more easily. There doesn't seem to be a downside.

My question is how is this thick of a pick in doing some fast strumming? It obviously has no "give", so is it one that lends itself to fast strumming, as you say that control improves due to not needing as much physical effort? Thanks

Goat Mick · #15 04-23-2018, 10:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tnez13

The 2.0 will probably be my wallet pick. I'll carry it around and not worry too much if I misplace it. I can't bring myself to carry my Blue Chip or Whiskey picks for fear of losing them.

Lose all you want, we'll make more!!!

Quote:

Originally Posted by golfreggie

My question is how is this thick of a pick in doing some fast strumming? It obviously has no "give", so is it one that lends itself to fast strumming, as you say that control improves due to not needing as much physical effort? Thanks

When you move up to a thick pick you take the flex control away from the pick and control it with your fingers. If you need to do some fast strumming, then let your fingers and wrist control the angle or "flex" of the pick as it goes through the strings. I'm predominately a strummer (and a powerful one also) and I 100 times prefer to strum with a thick pick that has no flex over a thinner pick that is flexing on every strum.