It has been a while since I've discussed guitar picks on my favorite guitar forum. Two new picks from Charmed Life Picks arrived today... necessitating more playing time and comparisons.
For a lot of guitar players, a pick is a disposable bit of some kind of plastic used to pluck the strings. For almost 50 years of playing, I felt that same way; mostly I spent those years going through a gross of Wabash Blue picks. Then, about 5 years ago, I discovered that there really is a difference in the sound generated by various picks, both in the material it is made from and the thickness.
Yeah, it doesn't take me long to catch on to some things. ;-)
For most of those 5 years, I have gravitated towards Gravity Picks (see what I did there?), in acrylic and their Gold Series, made of, technically speaking: some cream colored stuff that sounds real good.
In the last year or so, I have been using Charmed Life Picks, a "boutique" offering from one of the participants (Scott) on the Acoustic Guitar Forum. Scott offers picks in several different materials and thicknesses. My favorite is the N Series, made of some space age material (unobtanium?) that is supposed to sound like a tortoise shell pick. Tortoise shell is illegal to harvest because the world is running out of tortoises... many years ago, I was given an actual tortoise shell pick and I put it aside because of all those Wabash Blue picks I had - kinda the equivalence of: I parked that vintage Ferrari I was given so I could run around with those skate boards I already had. Yeah, I'm digressing again, but when I did pull out that tortoise shell pick about 15 years ago to use while playing acoustic guitar, I was mesmerized with how good it sounded and played. It eventually wore out, I and looked for another... and found out you can't get 'em anymore. Well, this Charmed Life N (for: natural) pick is pretty darn close. Besides getting one in the natural color, I got a red one today (1.15mm thickness vs the .95mm of the natural). These are outstanding picks - they do make a difference in tone and reduced "pick sound." (that "clicky" sound that some picks make)
Now, if you aren't a guitar player, you probably haven't read this far. So, here's a photo, because it is worth 1,000 words...
a - The Charmed Life Red (1.15mm)
b - The Gravity Gold (1.1mm)
c - The Charmed Life Black Series (1.0mm)
d - The Charmed Life N (natural) Series (.95mm)
e - The Gravity Acrylic (1.5mm)
f - The Charmed Life Brown Series (.75mm)
Each of these picks has a slightly different sound, and it varies with the guitar. Since my carbon fiber Emeralds are what I spend the most time with, I logged some time with each of those picks with my X20 and X7. My favorites on each of those guitars have been: The Charmed Life Brown on the X20 and the Gravity Gold on the X7. The new favorites: The Charmed Life Red on the X20 and the Charmed Life Natural on the X7.
Realistically, any of these 6 picks sound great. There are differences in the brightness and the warmth. Also, the feel... I've noticed that the Charmed Life picks Brown and Black need to "warm up" a bit so they feel less slippery between your fingers and thumb.
For those who have never paid more than $1 for a pick, these go for a bit more. Some, quite a bit more... from $5 to $40. Yes, for a pick. They wear forever. All of them sound better and make less (or no) pick noise, compared to the more typical picks.
Just don't lose 'em.
;-)
2 comments:
Here are my picks, I am obviously less fussy...Dunlop .73 nylon with Max Grip non-slip technology molded in...$3.89 a dozen...they DO sound better than the picks I used to make out of credit cards with my Pick Puncher!
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003B01QSG/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o07_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Hi Pat. Yep, I have one of those Pick Punch(es), too. Fun to mess with. But, I prefer a thicker pick (.95mm to 1.5mm) and that punch can't handle that without chipping the edges. Like any obsession, I started with the $5 Gravity acrylics and worked my way up to $40 boutique picks like Charmed Life and Blue Chip. Do they sound better? Absolutely, to my ear. Are they worth a bunch more $$? In the grand scheme of all things music, these picks are less $$ than a guitar pedal. I have way fewer vices these days, so I figure I'll treat myself once in a while.
Nylon picks? Um... no. Try a pick made of Ultem or acrylic and you will appreciate what those materials do for your tone. Then, you start asking yourself, "Are the more expensive picks even better?" You'll only know by trying some. ;-)
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