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Use a plectrum??


TheGreek
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when I first started using a pick I tried a few different ones, including these weird little gold coloured ones with a twist that only coast 15p. i settled on a black, 1mm Dunlop that I attached a rubber foot, from the bottom of a TV, to, which made it 3 or 4mm thick and easy to hold, while still playing like a 1mm pick. I used to get the piss taken out of me for it! I wore it down to nothing before discovering Big Stubbys and never looking back.

I think, if you're having trouble finding a pick to suit you, try altering them. Some people score them or drill holes in them to make them more grippy, and my rubber foot worked really well.

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I received one of those pick maker contraptions as a gift a year ago and now use nothing but pleccy shaped old bank cards.
Works a treat but be sure to avoid a section with raised numbers because when they catch the strings it feels like fingernails down a blackboard.

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[quote name='lojo' timestamp='1390388212' post='2344718']
What does everyone do when they switch between pick and finger style during a set, adjust your output or use a limiter ?
[/quote]

Having not touched it for the first 10 years of playing I tend to use that funny looking thing called a volume knob that is actually located on my bass. I just dial it back slightly and it works wonders. I felt a bit of a prat for not discovering it sooner.

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+1 on Dava Control picks. Been using them for the past 10 years or so - I get the green nylon ones. They last forever, feel good and are very easy to control. Way nicer then the common-or-garden Dunlops or Fenders.
http://www.davapick.com/picks/dava_control

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[quote name='oggiesnr' timestamp='1390431830' post='2345519']
Am I the only person who seems to have a pick gremlin whose sole purpose in life is to make sure that I never have a pick when I want one?

Steve
[/quote]
I used to have one, and, actually, his name was Steve... He was my brother, thieving little sh*t that he was. Probably wouldn't have been so bad if he'd only nicked picks.

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[quote name='TheGreek' timestamp='1390424880' post='2345414']
So based what BigRedX says, and the point made by Xilddx should I purchase the BC logo plectrums, even if their only value is for novelty purposes??

Also looking at BC Baseball caps BTW..
[/quote]

Bandmate got some made up with our band name on, none of us used em, for me they were too slippy and thin, guitarists found them too brittle. As you say novelty value only IMO.

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[quote name='oakforest5961' timestamp='1390425162' post='2345418']
This thread is making it fairly clear - there's no one-size-fits-all when it comes to plectrums.
[/quote]

Very true. I'd also say that how much time and expense you put into finding a plectrum should depend on how much you use it. I only use them occasionally, so I haven't gone on a big quest for one as the ones I use for guitar work perfectly well for me on bass. If you're using a pick for most or all of the time, it makes sense to try a broad spectrum of them out.

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IME the standard promotional picks seem to be more in the "guitar-friendly" gauges and materials.

I have a number of free promotional picks that I use from time to time on the guitar when I'm after a different sound or attack to the notes, but most would disintegrate within minutes when used for the bass.

Edited by BigRedX
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[quote name='Billy Apple' timestamp='1390342887' post='2344411']
Being a life long pick player I swear by Jim Dunlop Tortex .73



Just the right balance of firm for digging in, flexi for speed and rubbery grip-ness. Love them and always a couple in my back pocket
[/quote]

Another convert of the Dunlop yellows here.
Never really got on with using a pick in the past, mostly a fingers player but always wanted to be better with one as a couple of my favourite players use a pick.
Seem to be getting on with these yellows just fine. Guess I've used picks that were too thick for me in the past.
Because of this thread, I popped into a music shop in Cardiff to check out what picks they had and met a neighbour who has started working there. Gave me a few for nowt. Result!

Edited by miles'tone
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[quote name='TheGreek' timestamp='1390340482' post='2344336']
Help me out...I don't use a plectrum so I'm a bit dumbfounded..

I'm looking to order some plectrums but the manufacturers can't offer me anything heavier than 0.9mm gauge - is this too light for bass players??

Advice please...
[/quote]

I would regard .9mm as pretty heavy. It depends what you want to play. I opt for something quite light with a good spring to it, so I use Dunlop Tortex 0.5mm pics. You can really saw through to strings with it. I find heavier pics are harder to use (for me), because you need quite a keen sense of control over the pic to play with it, whereas the more flexible ones, you can just drive them through the strings without much regard for control.

The kind of plectrum you use is important too. The Dunlop Tortex picks are a lot more springy than the Dunlop Riffs, for example.

It's all a matter of preference. Some people come into the shop and ask what gauge of plectrums they should get for their son/daughter/husband/wife etc etc, and there's never really an answer. The only person that knows what plectrum is right for them is the person using it. I said I liked the Tortex .5mm, but I bet some people abhor it. Different strokes.

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[quote name='TheGreek' timestamp='1390340482' post='2344336']
Help me out...I don't use a plectrum so I'm a bit dumbfounded..

I'm looking to order some plectrums but the manufacturers can't offer me anything heavier than 0.9mm gauge - is this too light for bass players??

Advice please...
[/quote]

I don't normally use picks, but I bought some Dunlop "stubbies". They come in up to 3mm! I used those, and sometimes 2mm ones, for bass.

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I'm not a pick player, but when it's needed I use Planet Waves thumb picks, the ones that wrap around your thumb. Saves me getting cramps trying to hold onto a normal pick, and I can flip from pick to fingers and back in a flash. I always keep 2 hanging off the strings by my machine heads. They work for me.

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OP - i've got SO many plectrums lying around i'll happily send you a pile of options - big small thick thin round sharp etc. PM me if you would like them.

btw not that it matters but for sake of accuracy i discovered it is .88 sharp point i like, not .73 as previously stated! :)

the sharp point is very important for me, i find it really helps accuracy!

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[quote name='TheGreek' timestamp='1390844447' post='2350252']
I've ordered 50 with the BC logo for the next Herts Bash - free for those attending. Some may never get used and will hopefully become collectors items in the future - expecting them some time this week - photos to follow..
[/quote]

cool, what gauge, sorry if I missed that info

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