Do thich picks (1.5mm+) suck?

[Anant Naag]

More treble == faster sounding tone
Thicker picks imo tend to reduce your treble to some extent.
You have to find your compromise. Then adjust your amp/patch settings around this.

I found my compromise in the Winspear standard Shiv mini's (1.7 mm's)

Sometimes I love using the 5mm battle axe plectrum to hammer away heavy chugga chugga pinch harmonic type riffs.

 

[vilk]

I swear by Big Stubby 3.0mm. the center of the pick is concave so it's not actually 3mm where you grip it. Anyway you should get one.

Personally, I can't stand a flat pick. I want an angled edge.

 

[gnoll]

Just find something that works and use it.

There's no objective truth to be found here.

 

[p0ke]

No, they don't suck. IMO it doesn't matter, it's just a matter of getting used to whatever you wanna use. I started with .73's (that's what I was given along with my guitar) but when I lost those picks I changed to 1mm because those were most widely available. The shape was the more important factor, I prefer the smaller Jazz III shape, and also the kind of plastic they're made of. I used Ibanez picks for a while, but they were so soft they'd become completely shapeless in a matter of weeks.
Oh and the color definitely makes a difference. Bright colors ftw. I can't even count how many black picks I've lost by putting them on top of my amp

So now I use red 1mm Jazz III's, but if someone swapped it for a 1.5mm I probably wouldn't even notice...

Oh and that's for electric guitar. I instinctually go for thinner picks when I play acoustic, something like .6mm just feels better for strumming. And for bass I just grab the thickest one I can find, I think the one I've used most recently was something like 2.5mm.

 

[TheBloodstained]

I recently made the switch to these for both guitar and bass:
https://www.jimdunlop.com/tortex-flex-triangle-pick-1-0mm/

I'm super happy with both the tone and feel I get from them

I do have some of these laying around too, but I usually go for the 1mm Flex:
https://www.jimdunlop.com/tortex-triangle-pick-73mm/

I went for the Triangle models for 2 reasons; they're larger and thus easier to hold for me, and they effectively have 3 functional tips for playing, so they last longer.

 

[Asdrael]

I also use triangle dunlop tortex, but 0.88mm. Compared to the classical pick shape, I find that they make it much easier to add dynamics and can feel thicker than they actually are depending how you grip them.

So yeah, buy picks, find what you like, buy more picks, change your mind. It's basically like guitar and amps, but cheaper.

 

[odibrom]

I swear by Big Stubby 3.0mm. the center of the pick is concave so it's not actually 3mm where you grip it. Anyway you should get one.

Personally, I can't stand a flat pick. I want an angled edge.

I tried and have a few of those (different materials deliver different feel), but always felt that the shape/area and that concave design to be bit too far from the pick's tip for my fingers' sizes... hence my preference for the Jazz III, which have added grip with the raised inscriptions. I have no problem with the Big Stubby's thickness but in the matter of nitpicking preferences, it annoys me a bit that concave design and overall shape proportions.

 

[Neon_Knight_]

I bought probably a hundred different picks and kept going back to the 1.5mm jazz iii's. I found some nice ones with grips on them that I really enjoy. Every few years I think I need to change it up but then come back.

I use 3mm for a bit and enjoyed them too. Just made me play different.

Do you mean the 1.38mm 'Max Grip' Jazz III? If so, that's what I use too.

 

[p0ke]

Oh yeah, I also currently play the Jazz III's with the grip thing (1mm though). The grip doesn't make much difference to me, but it doesn't make a negative difference either, so I'm gonna use them until they wear out or I loose them...

 

[jco5055]

my favorite is a Blue Chip Jazz which is 2.5mm, but for me my prefrence ranges from like 2-3.5 or so I'd say.

 

[NoodleFace]

Do you mean the 1.38mm 'Max Grip' Jazz III? If so, that's what I use too.

Yeah I think so. I'm not sure they're labeled so I guessed

 

[Heretick]

I tried and have a few of those (different materials deliver different feel), but always felt that the shape/area and that concave design to be bit too far from the pick's tip for my fingers' sizes... hence my preference for the Jazz III, which have added grip with the raised inscriptions. I have no problem with the Big Stubby's thickness but in the matter of nitpicking preferences, it annoys me a bit that concave design and overall shape proportions.

Yeah, I felt the same way about the Big Stubby, though I prefer smaller picks in general, anyway. I also really disliked the tiny 3mm Stubbys when I first tried them for some reason, too, but they have since become a reliable, cheaper, and more available backup to my Gravitys.

 

[lattjeful]

My favorite picks are the Blue Chip IBJ55, which is a 1.4mm Jazz III shape that's kinda in between the Jazz III and the Jazz III XL in size; think the John Petrucci picks. They're super smooth and comfy, but if you dig in a little bit you can get some bite back. Not the most aggressive sounding picks out there but they have more bite than the Petruccis; The IBJ55 has a beveled edge but it isn't as rounded off as the Petrucci Jazz III so you get some bite back despite Blue Chip's material being a bit warmer sounding. Durable as all hell, too.

I'm pretty agnostic when it comes to size though. As long as it's a shape and material I'm comfy with, I can go from .73mm to 1.5mm

 

[TedEH]

There's 1001 threads on pick size, but I'm here to report I'm still using the same 0.6mm mini-Jazz III that I was using the last two or three times this question came up.

 

[wheresthefbomb]

There's 1001 threads on pick size, but I'm here to report I'm still using the same 0.6mm mini-Jazz III that I was using the last two or three times this question came up.

It could be worse. There could be 1001 threads on dick size. Hell, there could be one. Count your blessings (and your abandoned plectrum styles) folks!

 

[odibrom]

It could be worse. There could be 1001 threads on dick size. Hell, there could be one. Count your blessings (and your abandoned plectrum styles) folks!

... it's such a small difference in writing... rotate the "p" letter 180º and there you go...

 

[gh0styboi]

It's all about what does what you want in a way that you like - there's not really a 'wrong' pick size. My favorite picks of all-time are the 3.0mm Big Stubby. But if I want a brighter sound and more snappy feel, I go with Dunlop Ultex 2.0mm.

 

[Choop]

Lately my favorites are the .88 and 1.0 mm Tortex Jazz III XL. I have a pack of the Jazz III Ultex 1.38mm and like those as well, though I can't see ever needing to go any heavier than that for myself.

I bought a pack of the Big Stubby picks and they just feel so awkward to me, and despite the concave divot in them I still have a harder time holding onto them than any of my other picks.

 

[Audiowonderland]

I feel like they are really slowing me down and I'm hearing some pros say that they do even for metal and its better to just have .88s. Whats the consensus

That's utter nonsense. Thicker picks give you complete control. They force you stop dropping your pick way under the string because if you do, you will know it immediately. It teaches you to pick with the light touch you need for speed

 

[Stiman]

I tried and have a few of those (different materials deliver different feel), but always felt that the shape/area and that concave design to be bit too far from the pick's tip for my fingers' sizes... hence my preference for the Jazz III, which have added grip with the raised inscriptions. I have no problem with the Big Stubby's thickness but in the matter of nitpicking preferences, it annoys me a bit that concave design and overall shape proportions.

Give the D'Addario Acrylux picks a try. It's a jazz III shape, bevelled edges and has a slight concave shape at exactly the right spot. Plus, it's subtle enough that you don't see it but when you're holding it, you feel it.