What pick do you use?

[Baird6869]

Orange Brain (1.0 or 1.14, not sure). Great grip and pretty cheap (3 or 4 for a buck). I buy them by the dozen and they are all over my house.

Really loving the clear triangle V-Picks though.. My guitarist bought me a few and they are great. $4.00 each is crazy though... And they are clear, so you lose them easily. They last forever though.

I use a pick MAYBE 10% of the time.

 

[smperry]

Moved to Miscellaneous, since it's not about basses or picking technique.

 

[Stolow]

I was asking myself the same question. I did some research on the youtubes. These seem to work

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http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ksT3CY_wlbk

 

[Webtroll]

My preferred bass pick (I alternate with my fingers depending on mood) is the Dunlop 1mm nylon

 

[Hector_G]

I use the Dunlop Big Stubbys. Dark purple 3.0. They're massive. I like these because they don't produce any of the "scraping" sound you get with thinner picks. Just a huge heavy strong pluck.

I used to buy the Big Stubby triangle picks, but I haven't been able to find them anywhere any more. This makes me sad. I loved those.

 

[Casting Thunder]

I use a miraculous medal...

 

[Vintage Guy]

Flip tabs from beer cans. They are free,and last forever!

 

[bassjnky1]

I am a dedicated fingerstyle player, but, there are certain things that you can only do with the pick.
I was a guitar player before a bass player and in my studies of the Django jazz style I discovered that the gypsy jazz picks are perfect for bass...especially the Wegenpicks handmade in the Netherlands. They are not cheap but last forever.
You typically will not find these at guitar stores. Order them from the djangobooks.com website.

 

[Dave W]

Dunlop Jazz III's in Ultex. I started using them (the reds) way back in my guitar days and I can't really play with anything larger. I also greatly prefer picks with a sharp pointy tip.

I used to play with a pick almost exclusively, but now I'm only using a pick in certain songs and playing with my fingers most of the time. I do whatever the song calls for or whatever tone I want. No bias from me...

 

[mglinski]

Wedgie 5mm Hard Rubber Picks. All the goodness without the audible click

 

[Feral Feline]

I like trying different picks, and my pick grip is unconventional. Nobody told me how to hold one, so I did what felt right –*a triangulated grip between thumb and index & middle fingers. I started on lighter guages, but based on a friend's advice I tried thicker picks and now prefer them as they don't flex under my weird grip technique.

I like pick technique for certain riffs that just can't be duplicated with fingers (*sure you can play it with fingers, but it doesn't sound the same in tone or in time-feel). I like pick for aggressive surf tunes. Boils down to whatever the song/riff calls for.

I've tried to like the Jazz IIIs, but they're just too small for my grip technique and it feels weird having one of my pick-grip fingers floating about. I tried for a long time and it still feels weird. Nonetheless, I have a bunch and keep trying them. The big triangular ones feel bulky, in spite of the fact they lend themselves well to my grip style. I've also tried the Wegen-style super-thick gypsy jazz pics and they're fun. While I like to mix it up, the ones that get the most use from the pick jar are conventional sized/shaped picks around 1.0mm.

My recent favourite is the GraphTech TUSQ!. They sound different, they're light and super stiff for their thin-ness. So I get the thin-light feeling of the picks I started out with, without the flex, with better tone. Amazing picks!

Just for giggles, I've been experimenting with a white Dunlop thumbpick. Sounds pretty cool with the 51P clone and leaves my two regular plucking fingers free to do all kinds of fun stuff. Haven't gigged with it yet, still in the experimental stages.

I've got some thumb picks, never thought to try them on bass, but will do so now.

Flip tabs from beer cans. They are free,and last forever!

I've used these from time-to-time and bread-bag clips as well.

 

[lowendmetal]

Check out v-picks, you can find one in a size your comfortable with. One of the few picks that don't go flying out of my hand

 

[stingray2112]

I rarely play with a pick but I've always found that the Fender extra heavy picks work for me.

 

[Epidrake]

V-picks are great. Thick and nearly impossible to drop, once you're warmed up.

I have been making my own super thick hardened leather picks for a while now. Great control and virtually no click.

 

[BassClefJean]

Dunlop 3 mm Big Stubby

 

[Stevorebob]

Dunlop Ultex .60. I cut them down to a teardrop shape, using an old Gibson teardrop pick as a template. The smaller size makes it easier to choke up on the pick stiffening it and facilitating thumb muting.

 

[hsech]

In the very rare event I use a pick, I use felt.

 

[zhollywood]

.73 Ultex. They are light in comparison to most bass picks. Ultex doesn't bend as easily so you get the best of both worlds; size and stiffness. Give any ultex a shot! I was a diehard tortex fan for years until my local store ran out of tortex and only had ultex. I use them for both guitar and bass.

 

[Desirsar]

My preference is Dunlop Teck Pick, but they aren't made anymore and I can't find mine.
After that, Ultex 1.14.
After that, Tortex 1.14.
After that, any Cool 1.0.

 

[Jeff Bonny]

My recent favourite is the GraphTech TUSQ!. They sound different, they're light and super stiff for their thin-ness. So I get the thin-light feeling of the picks I started out with, without the flex, with better tone. Amazing picks!

I have to agree that these Tusq picks are amazing. The quick wear is a little annoying though especially since the Blue Chip picks I've been using the last year are so durable I have yet to see any wear on one at all. The unique combination of a very thin, very stiff pick make the Tusq incredibly responsive and clear sounding. Great picks.