Pick Thickness

[shirojiro]

1-1.5mm is a good place to start. When I first started, someone gave me a 3.0mm "Big Stubby" and it sounded like crap, you'll want some flex and a LITTLE bit of that scraping sound to give it some character. Dunlop, Fender, whatever as long as you're getting something in that 1.0mm+ range.

I didn’t use picks for the first twenty years or so of my playing. For the last twenty, I opened my mind and started using a pick for specific tones.

I actually like those Big Stubbies to get a hard attack and no flex so the feel is very consistent.

I also like a triangular felt pick for that thuddy tone it creates, and for regular songs, those Dunlop picks with the turtle on them work great for me. I use the yellow ones. They feel a tiny bit thinner than a Fender medium, which for me is kind of the industry standard.

 

[Hundred proof]

I went from Herco .75 nylon for round wound strings
To Dunlop .73 nylon for TI flats

 

[ulgeby]

When I use a pick on bass I like the orange Dunlop Tortex picks, for guitar I switch between the orange and red but mostly the red on guitar. I'd have to look at them when I get home for thickness. Basically though, try some different ones and see what you like. Picks are cheap and most music stores have a variety so it's easy to experiment.

thank you for your advice, but i think that picks you use for your bass is not thick enough for me. good luck

 

[ulgeby]

Tortex blue if you like a little flex...
Purple if you don't.
And in my case..."Hey, do you have an extra pick?"...in a pinch.

i dont like flex, but i dont have a mate who has a pick thank you for advice and good luck

 

[ulgeby]

I bought three "sampler" packs with 15-20 different size/shape/widths in each one. Then I played all of them. And formed my own opinions of which worked better than others, and why. You need to make your own choice on this one! The experiment won't cost more than $40 or so. Have fun.

sir im glad you found your perfect pick, but $40 is to much for me. thank you for your advice and good luck

 

[ulgeby]

Can't help with a pick., never used one. I "pluck" or play with 3 fingers so my speed has always been there. I wish I would have learned both ways, more versatile, IMHO.

yes, picking technique is so useful when you play pick bassists riffs such as lemmy, jason, david etc. and its never too late to start to it. thank you and good luck

 

[ulgeby]

Clayton white acetal triangle in either .63 or 1.0. I tried all kinds of picks over the years, and these just felt right, so I've been using them ever since.

View attachment 7184841

those look sick, but i think i should play with 1.50. thank you for your advice and good luck

 

[Rayjay]

For me its a box of Dunlop Tolex .88, Dunlop Gator .96, and Dunlop Gator 1.14 - and depending on factors I'll chose what's best. Am I playing on rounds or flats, am I doing a lot of strumming or palm muting, etc. The thickness and material will change the tone. Like Vernon Reid said, a pick is like a golf club - different clubs for different shots.

 

[lowplaces]

I keep these on top of my amp. And just grab one. Either one works.

 

[retslock]

I like the Dunlop Stubby range, they don't flex. They have textured indentation that really helps your grip. The thumb sits nicely in the depression. I have a variety and they're all nice. The 3mm Triangle works well if you like a bigger pick and the 2mm Big Stubby is smaller but also nice. Thicker picks have a fatter tone than thinner picks and believe me that is a real thing. Picks definitely affect your tone differently so try out a few to see what suits you best for grip and tone. It won't break your bank.

 

[Passinwind]

sir im glad you found your perfect pick, but $40 is to much for me. thank you for your advice and good luck

If you're in the US, Strings By Mail sell a very wide variety of picks individually, many priced in the 30-40 cent range. If you dovetail that with a string purchase the hit from shipping is pretty minimal. I've just been going through this exercise for my acoustic and electric guitars, but can't really help on the bass end as I've always been a fretless/fingerstyle kind of a guy, barring a few problematic recordings where a pick seemed like an easy solution.

 

[Ritter667]

Bobby Vega begs to differ, he used a Dunlop Tortex .073mm pick.

And he is probably THE pick guy when it comes to bass.

Perosnaly, as I already mentioned in this thread, I feel I get more control and better tone with a Dunlop Tortex .60mm pick.

Also you can't just generalize and disregard material.

Different materials have very different flexibility.

Also personal technique has a huge influence on what pick is right to you, why there doesn't just exist one ultimate pick.

Just went through trying out all my picks, including some thick rubber ones, and the Dunlop Tortex .60mm wins again.

Though with the twist that I preferred both the tone and feel of picking with one of the round corners, that way the pick is slightly stiffer than the tip, and I feel like the rounded edges gives additional control over the pick.

I seem to remember that Bobby Vega also actually prefer using the round corners of the pick to pick with, though, as said, he uses the Tortex .73mm pick.

Regarding material the ,60mm Nylon pick is considerably more flexible than the .60mm Tortex one, and curiously the Max Grip variation of the Nylon pick is stiffer than the regular plain version, though still more flexible than the Tortex.

 

[ryco]

Started with the standard Dunlop 1mm.
Have grown to prefer the 1.5 PrimeTones and the 1.5 Flows.
Plenty stiff, with just a little bit of flex.
Think a stiffer pick gives a fuller tone.
But differ'nt strokes for differ'nt folks!

 

[Watchootognbout]

Six years ago I was on a pick buying tear.
I mainly bought thicker Agate and Manoche(Gypsy jazz)picks.
3,4,5mm.
These provide a thicker
sound and slip off the string.
They don't flex.

 

[0260n25]

.96 to 1.1 for me. Love the Dunlop Max Grips.

 

[edwinhurwitz]

Bobby Vega begs to differ, he used a Dunlop Tortex .073mm pick.

And he is probably THE pick guy when it comes to bass.

Perosnaly, as I already mentioned in this thread, I feel I get more control and better tone with a Dunlop Tortex .60mm pick.

Also you can't just generalize and disregard material.

Different materials have very different flexibility.

Also personal technique has a huge influence on what pick is right to you, why there doesn't just exist one ultimate pick.

Bobby Vega is A pick guy when it comes to bass. Carles Benevent, Steve Swallow, Phil Lesh, Anthony Jackson and many others who play all kinds of genres are also equally expert at using a pick. Bobby is a fantastic player, don't get me wrong (and I have a great Bobby Vega story, for another time), but appeal to authority doesn't really add weight to any argument.

"Also personal technique has a huge influence on what pick is right to you, why there doesn't just exist one ultimate pick."

This. All day long!

All that said, I just ordered some Dunlop Tortex .073mm picks. I'll try anything.

 

[Ritter667]

Started with the standard Dunlop 1mm.
Have grown to prefer the 1.5 PrimeTones and the 1.5 Flows.
Plenty stiff, with just a little bit of flex.
Think a stiffer pick gives a fuller tone.
But differ'nt strokes for differ'nt folks!

One mans fuller tone is lacking bite, snap and crispness to another, maybe even harmonic complexity.

But sure, thicker picks do in general emphasis the fundamentals.

And as you say, to each their own.