Not all guitar picks are created equal! It is amazing how you can use the thickness of a guitar pick to produce various tones and coloration when recording guitar. Check out some quick tips below for using thin, medium, and heavy picks.
Extra Thin - 0.46 mm
Thin - 0.71 mm
Used for delicate style playing and provide a lighter sound. Thinner picks are great for strumming especially acoustic guitars. Thin picks create a flapping type noise when strumming that is responsible for the popular strummed sound in rock, country, and pop music.
Thin picks are perfect for gripping lightly because they will glide across strings more gracefully than a thick pick. If tendonitis is a concern, lightly gripping a thin pick may be the best option for you.
Medium - 0.88 mm
Nice combination of flexibility and stiffness. Mediums are great for beginners and are the most popular pick thickness. Medium picks have enough "umph" to produce powerful tones without being too sharp or roaring like heavier picks. These picks work well for acoustic accompaniment, acoustic solos, rock rhythm, and some electric lead.
Heavy - 0.96 mm
Extra Heavy - 1.20 mm
Thicker picks are best for electric guitars and provide a more heavy and bright sound. Extra heavy picks are also great for basses. Heavy picks provide boom when playing power chords and will create crunchy sounds with added distortion. You will get less pick noise with heavy picks which can help your cleans become cleaner.
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1 comment
Thank you so much for this! I love how it explains the different uses of thin, medium and heavy guitar picks. As a bass player, I tend towards the heaviest picks. From what I understand, many lead guitar players like to use heavy bass picks as they allow them to play faster.