Do thich picks (1.5mm+) suck?

[Musiscience]

Yes

 

[Fred the Shred]

If there's something incredibly subjective, pick thickness, materials and shape is exactly that. I love 2mm picks, sometimes thicker depending on how the edge tapers and other factors, and I absolutely, 100% detest any kind of flex in the pick, which drives me absolutely nuts, but that is just the way I prefer it, not some objective truth.

Also, I am definitely not what you'd call a slow player, and while I'm sure the more adequate the pick the cleaner and more precise I'll be with less effort, starting out as a broke teen like so many others taught me that when I was not able to reach a certain speed when playing it wasn't the pick's fault, but rather a lot of wasted movement and things I needed to work on, seeing as the pick was whatever I could get my hands on for cheap, varying wildly in thickness and material.

 

[odibrom]

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.

View attachment 137498

2 questions:
1 - A long do those last in your hands?
2 - How thick can those be?

I'm like @Fred the Shred here, I don't like flexing picks, I like picks that don't ask the strings permission to pass through them...

 

[Stiman]

1 - A long do those last in your hands?
2 - How thick can those be?

1- hard to say, some people chew through picks like nothing and others (like me) can usually use a pick for 6+ months no problem. These are made of acrylic, so you can search for durability of acrylic picks. So far, I don't see any wear on this pick at all after maybe a couple hours of play, looks brand new.

2- they are 1.5mm thick.

 

[odibrom]

1- hard to say, some people chew through picks like nothing and others (like me) can usually use a pick for 6+ months no problem. These are made of acrylic, so you can search for durability of acrylic picks. So far, I don't see any wear on this pick at all after maybe a couple hours of play, looks brand new.

2- they are 1.5mm thick.

Thanks for the reply. 1.5mm are a bit too thin for my habits, it now would feel like a sheet of paper thin... I'm exaggerating, obviously, but you get my point.

 

[Rev2010]

I use Dunlop Max Grip 1.5mm (the blue one's). I vastly prefer a thicker pick because... well you *need* a stable pick to strum fast metal shit. Thinner picks are nice for strumming chords on an acoustic as they better ensure all strings are swept/picked but I still use the same picks on an acoustic anyway. And since I switched to Max Grip all those years ago I never drop picks/have them slip out of my hand while playing anymore.

 

[Vegetta]

2mm Flow picks here. I used to use 1.1 mm jazz III for ever and ever. A few years back decided to reevaluate picks and try a bunch of different stuff and the 2mm Flow picks won out.

 

[MikeH]

Dunlop John Petrucci 1.5mm Jazz IIIs have been my go-to, but I did dabble in some heavier picks for a while, in the 2.5mm+ range. They just became a little unwieldy for me, despite liking the way they sound.

 

[odibrom]

well, it looks like I shot my toes, after all I'm using 2mm Jazz III picks and not 3mm ones... go figure... still, non bendable / flexy picks for me please...

 

[JSKrev]

I've used .88 Dunlop Max Grips for guitar and bass for longer than I can remember now. I did use the 1.14 Tortex Sharps for quite a while, though.

 

[Fenriswolf]

Some years ago I met a fellow who was trying to start a guitar related parts company doing custom pickguards and picks and he asked for reviews at a local forum in which I was, much like this one but in Portuguese. I volunteered and got a pack of picks to test in which there were some 2 or 3mm thick ones. On the second trial, he sent me some really thick ones with 4 or 5mm. The company didn't move forward for some reason, but I got the thick pick bug and decided to make a forever lasting pick made out of steel, so I got a 4mm steel rod and grind a bunch of picks that I used for some years.

Because we, guitarists are crazy minded and inconsistent, I'm always testing whatever and gave the Jazz III 3mm picks a go and liked it, so that's my boat for now.

Back in the 90's I also glued picks to get thicker ones, and added sk8board griptape leftovers on them for better grip. It works wonders...

... and as already said, I like picks that don't ask permission to strings to hit them...

I tried metal picks before because I heard Roope Latvala and I think Warren Demartini used them. I've never really analyzed my picking technique, but apparently I pick weird enough that I can sharpen a metal pick to where it will regularly break strings, even on a bass.

But I don't know what you mean by guitarists are crazy minded and inconsistent. You make it seem like I rotate my pick while I'm playing because one of the round corners sounds good for rhythm and the actual point of the pick sounds good for leads.

 

[odibrom]

I tried metal picks before because I heard Roope Latvala and I think Warren Demartini used them. I've never really analyzed my picking technique, but apparently I pick weird enough that I can sharpen a metal pick to where it will regularly break strings, even on a bass.

But I don't know what you mean by guitarists are crazy minded and inconsistent. You make it seem like I rotate my pick while I'm playing because one of the round corners sounds good for rhythm and the actual point of the pick sounds good for leads.

... remember that Brian May plays with a coin...

 

[Fenriswolf]

... remember that Brian May plays with a coin...

So does Billy Gibbons. I've played with quarters before. It sounds rad, but feels weird.

 

[MrBouleDeBowling]

Everyone's different. I mostly can't stand thick picks, they're just not for me. My go-to is still the Tortex Jazz III .88.

I like the Gravity mini Sunrise but I don't go thicker than 1.5

 

[Christopher Har V]

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

My rule of thumb is the more strummy the guitar part, the thinner the pick (within reason). I do thin picks for acoustic (.73 for strummy, .88 for single-notes and arpeggios) and if I'm picking a BASS, I do a THICC Jazz Stubby. 3.0 So I see that as the spectrum - light strummy chords on one end, and fat deep bass notes on the other - and that goes from thin to THICC picks, respectively. Thicker strings, thicker picks.

But for the vast majority of my playing, I do the Dunlop Max Grip Carbon Fiber Jazz III (1.38, I believe) -- for soloing on the high E string to djenting away on a drop E 8-string.

 

[Neon_Knight_]

My rule of thumb is the more strummy the guitar part, the thinner the pick (within reason). I do thin picks for acoustic (.73 for strummy, .88 for single-notes and arpeggios) and if I'm picking a BASS, I do a THICC Jazz Stubby. 3.0 So I see that as the spectrum - light strummy chords on one end, and fat deep bass notes on the other - and that goes from thin to THICC picks, respectively. Thicker strings, thicker picks.

But for the vast majority of my playing, I do the Dunlop Max Grip Carbon Fiber Jazz III (1.38, I believe) -- for soloing on the high E string to djenting away on a drop E 8-string.

I use almost the same picks as you for the same situations, except for electric I currently interchange between red / stiffo / carbon fiber Max Grip Jazz IIIs. Sometimes I just use whichever is to hand, but there is a subtle difference in tone / attack between the three materials - carbon fiber being brightest and having the most aggressive attack.
I used to use the yellow Ultex Jazz IIIs a lot, but I find they wear down really quickly and the initial grip of the matt finish doesn't last too well either. I find Ultex to have the most distinct "chirp" on attack, of all the Jazz III variants I've tried, which can be either good or bad.

 

[Screamingdaisy]

Pick choice for me is less about flex and more about tone. Thin tends to have more edge and scrape, while thick tends to dig in less and sound smoother.

 

[Zalbu]

Different strokes for different folks, I started out using the classic thin yellow Dunlop picks and have been gradually moving towards heavier and heavier picks, and I'm currently going back and forward between the 1.5mm and 2mm Dunlop Flows.

Anything smaller than 2mm feels like it disappears in my hands, but I prefer the pick attack from the 1.5mm. I usually end up using the 2mm 80% of the time.

 

[jaxadam]