Pick Choices. . .

[lefty007]

This thread is intended for pick users. (Pick haters, please stay away. . . lets keep it clean and focused...)

Because there are so many pick choices out there regarding materials and shapes (anything from hard Dunlop Jazz nylons, to traditional Fenders tortoise heavies, etc.) I wonder if you care to share what works best for you.

Seasoned pickers know that a pick's material and thickness changes the sound drastically.

I have been using traditional Fenders mediums with a Jazz bass with rounds, and both pickups on.

I also have a P-Bass with flats that sounds really good picked when recording, but no so much when playing it by itself -- too boinky boinky, clakity. . . if those are words...

Regarding picks, I find that heavy picks give the best sound (thicker, more attack, less "click") but are a bit too hard when playing fast. I like the small amount of flexibility I get with medium picks.

So, I wonder, if others have developed a recipe.

Name your best pick-sound combination, for example:

Bass type + string type + pick thickness + pick material.


I really like the sound the Graham Maby got on those older Joe Jackson CDs (late '70s) as opposed to the sound that Steve Swallow gets (less attack).

[Surly]

Fender heavy w/ roundwounds when you want that bright sound. Sounds nasty with a wah too.

[Sarbecue Boss]

Big Stubbies or any thick tapered pick, you have to use a light toch and a lot of control, but they give you the best tone

[vindy500]

fender heavys for me

[TheApostlePaul]

Green Dunlops here.

[jonpopu]

Whatever I can steal from the guitarists in my band. I can never keep track of those things, and don't use them all the time. If I can pick though I generally use about a medium (yellow dunlop?). I find that heavier picks are harder to control? if thats the word.

[bassgod0dmw]

Dunlop Jazz III's...the red ones. That's all that I've been using for the last 10 years or so...on guitar first, then on bass. I can't use anything else. They are small, stay sharp for a long time, and are pretty heavy.

[JazzBassJuke]

Fender MIA Jazz
Ernie Ball Regular Slinky
Clayton Acetal Rounded Triangle 1.00mm

This has been my setup since the early-mid 90's. I don't get much clicky and the pick gauge doesn't slow my playing. Sometimes I hold the pick with my ring finger and pinky while I play finger style. It's easy to switch back to pick without having to hunt for the pick tip since it has 3 playing surfaces.

[cowsgomoo]

i'm feeling empathy & brotherhood with a lot of the stuff in this thread

I use Dunlop Jazz III's ... the red ones, not the black ones (they wear down too quickly) ... I get on better with their little size than a standard sized pick (I get more mobility because it doesn't interfere with my first finger's 1st joint )and they last a long while... they're thick enough and flex just about right to give me the sound I need... the only drawback is they can get a bit slippy when the gig's on and the sweating starts... if they could make fluorescent ones so I can find them on my amp head durign a gig they'd be perfect

I'm not fussy about strings provided they're nickel 105-85-65-45's... at the moment i've been going for Boomers, which are fine

as for basses, i'm a Fender guy, so it's either my P or my J and I'm a big fan of Graham Maby like the original poster... that kind of punchy but defined, crisp & attacking sound, a bit like Andy Rourke from the Smiths or Scott Thunes in Zappa's 80's bands...

[acleex38]

Either Dunlop Stubbies (2.0mm), Dunlop tortex (1.35mm) or a heavy "Picks by the Pound" thumb pick which helps if I'm switching between picking and fingerstyle (I have trouble palming the pick).

[saxnbass]

Usually don't use picks, but when I do, I use my guitar picks:
Dunlop Tortex (3 different shapes (small teardrop, regular, large triangle) all the blue ones, can't remember size).

[jrduer]

Dunlop nylon 1mm (black).

~John

[rob2966]

I usually use a standard shape pick at about 0.8mm thick (is that an medium-thick?). This is the same ones I use on my guitar. I only pick on about 10% of the songs we play.

Later
Rob

[lemur821]

I use what seems to be a 1mm Dunlop Jazztone 208. The only picture I can find online makes them look like they're made of a different material than mine, but everything else matches up. They're just slick enough and the edge is just rounded enough to slide over the strings perfectly.

[bifbugie56]

i've always used a teardrop shaped min'd pick.
i love the bright sound of polished stone! they're
really hard to find these days $15.00 picks don't
exactly fly off the shelf. i've found an acceptable
substitute in those polished heart shaped stones
you can find in giftshops and new-age boutiques.

[anesthetist]

i use everything between 0.70 - 3.00 mm depending on mood and the groove of the music, strings are DD chromes.

mostly fingerpicking though!

[Sparkdog]

I play fingerstyle and pick style, but I always use 2 different basses to do it. I use a Jazz for fingers, but can't get a pick sound I like out of it to save my life.

I play a Fender MIA Precision with the pick, using Fender 8250 nickel rounds. To my ears nothing sounds better than a Precision played with a pick, and I say that having tried Ricks, Thunderbirds, and various active basses. The P just has the exact combination of bass, treble, and drive I like, particularly when I mute the notes with my palm while picking.

For the pick I use old Fender rounded triangles, heavy guage. I have a stash of them I bought many years ago, and they are completely different than the ones Fender sells now. The old ones are a real thick, super smooth plastic and seem to last forever, especially since there are 3 sides to work through. The new ones are much less stiff and made of a different material. I can't stand them. I guess when my old ones are gone I'll give up the pick

[DarthEntity]

I rarely us picks, but I do one a few picks, I don't know why.

I use felt picks, preferably one that has been used a bit so it has some flex. They cost a dollar peice though.

5 String Jazz Bass, DR LoRiders
Ovation Acoustic Labella Tape Wound

[mkettner]

I love Big Stubbies. I am not a pick player, but when I do use it for chording I love thick picks.

[JAUQO III-X]

Dunlop .38mm Nylon