Every guitarist has their own unique approach to playing. From the way we strum to how we set up our instrument, the guitar is an inherently subjective experience, driven by feel and personality.

That means, sometimes, you can stumble across a surprising tip that can drastically alter the way you play – and, for me, that happened more than 10 years ago, when a British blues guitar hero completely changed my relationship with the humble guitar pick.

Conventional wisdom dictates that the pointy end of a pick is what you use to pluck the strings. The broader top is where you hold it. And this makes sense. The wider part offers greater surface area for the thumb and forefinger to hold securely. The tapered end has a smaller point for reduced contact and thus a more pronounced and precise ‘pluck’.

Up until the age of 16, this is how I held a guitar pick. I didn’t know any different, and every teacher I’d had at that point had encouraged me to do just that.

However, that changed when I attended a guitar masterclass in Bristol, England, hosted by Matt Schofield. After a few hours, I’d learned plenty of licks, and took onboard some sage advice for hitting chord tones in your solos (younger me was obsessed with the blues), but the biggest thing I took away from the event had nothing to do with my left hand. It was all about my right.

During that workshop, Schofield shared how – and why – he held a guitar pick on its side. Contrary to popular practice, Schofield rotated the pick 90 degrees anti-clockwise, so the pointy end was directed towards his palm. This meant he was striking the string with the flatter shoulder of the pick.

The thinking, at least as I understand it, goes something like this: the increased contact between the string and pick offers a softer picking tone, as opposed to the sharp point delivering a more pronounced and ‘stabby’ attack.

It was a bit of a lightbulb moment for me, and after trying it for the first time I’ve never looked back. In fact, using the sharp end of a pick now feels weirdly alien to me. I am 10 times the player when I hold a guitar pick the ‘wrong’ way.

I’ve not scientifically tested it, but from my own anecdotal evidence, the pick transients are so much softer when using the shoulder of a plectrum. As a player who likes to try and be as dynamic as possible, this softer attack felt far more natural and usable. There was a larger range of expression to play with.

"I struggled to play with the pointy end," Schofield once said in an online lesson video. "This just felt right to me from the beginning and I preferred the sound of it. It instinctively sounded better – fuller and richer."

I’ve since come to learn this isn’t a completely new philosophy. Pat Metheny is a famous champion of the shoulder picking, as was Stevie Ray Vaughan. Robben Ford uses this trick, too. Modern-day session greats Tom Bukovac and Guthrie Trapp both swear by it. That’s no coincidence.

There’s something that links all these players together: they are all immensely dynamic, known for their feel and phrasing. They can go from softer-than-softer solos to pummeling lead lines and chord strumming in the blink of an eye. I think a large part of that comes from the way they all hold the pick.

For me, the shoulder of the pick serves as something of an additional de facto gain stage, or at the very least a tool for tempering my tone. If I angle the pick against the string, I can almost brush against it for a more textural, tangible feel with nice overtones, whereas when I square it off to the string, I get greater presence and precision.

That, right there, already opens up a world of playing possibilities even before you start throwing amps, effects, and other tone-shaping tools in the signal chain. It made me realize that guitar picking isn’t literally just ‘picking the string’. It’s another concept that can be leveraged for feel and sound.

This method also allows me to ‘step away’ from the string faster, thus letting me play a bit quicker and move around at pace. Bukovac concurs – “I definitely think you can play faster with the shoulder,” he once told Rick Beato.

Again, I’m not a ‘speed’ kinda player, but it’s a nice happy bonus. The true value of the shoulder method, for me, lies in the fact I feel closer to my strings – physically and mentally – and helps me get closer to that intangible sense of touch and feel that so many players (myself included) so often strive for.

After all, that blissful simplicity of the human touch is something that’s conveyed through the guitar rather uniquely, and an aspect that the greats of the instrument have all mastered. In the end, to become more dynamic, I didn’t need a new guitar or pedal, nor did I have to relearn certain techniques. I just had to flip my guitar pick 90 degrees.

For some players, guitar picks are extensions of their bodies; they can’t be too far from one at any given time. Percussive acoustic guitar virtuoso Marcin, however, is the opposite. He’s a pick rebel.

It's always a good idea to have a few spare picks to hand at all times. You never know when you'll need one. But speaking to D’Addario, the former Total Guitar cover star has explained why he’ll never be seen using one.

Obviously, his fingerstyle approach doesn't require one. But it goes deeper than that. Marcin actually thinks a pick represents self-imposed limitations, and can hinder your playing.

“Man, it’s so funny that my nails have become this point of conversation whenever I do an interview,” he says, regarding his picking hand claws. “The left hand is obviously normal; it needs to be able to tap and to play like any guitar player. But I am a true enemy of the pick. I don't use a pick, ever.

“Even if I play electric, I'm not gonna use a pick. Why do I need a pick? If I have five picks right here on this hand.”

Indeed, he says this methodology stems from his flamenco and classical guitar backgrounds. He wants to keep one foot in tradition while he explores ways to push the boundaries of the acoustic guitar. A pick is surplus to requirements.

“No self-respecting classical player is going to play with a pick,” he believes. “Same with flamenco, how are you doing a rasgueado [a picking technique involving fanning the strings with multiple fingers] with a pick?

“It's the most limiting thing in the world. The pick is the nails, dude. I get heated [about the topic].”

Marcin has recently been accused of faking his virtuosity, but he hit back by writing a song that pleads his case for him in a highly inventive way.

The guitarist has said he wants to reinvent the acoustic guitar for a whole new generation, and his boundary-pushing approach to the instrument, while remaining sensitive to its tradition, is more than doing its part.

Elsewhere, Marcin isn't the only modern fingerstyle virtuoso to shun the pick. Last year, fusion ace Matteo Mancuso revealed he never learned how to play with a plectrum – but gave it a go during an interview with Rick Beato.

Recognizing that we guitarists are terrible at keeping our guitar picks organized, D'Addario has unveiled a clever solution with the Pick Holder 360.

As its name attests, the cylindrical design rotates 360°, offering simple storage and easy access to those handy tools. There’s space for 12 picks to sit atop the unit, and ample space for more beneath.

It's been designed to accommodate picks of all shapes and sizes, and prizing a pick from its new home isn't a difficult task. The holder can be operated with one hand, so all a player needs to do is spin, grab, and play.

At $19.99, the firm views it as an ideal stocking filler for musicians this Christmas. It comes after D'Addario collaborated with Joe Satriani to design a guitar strap that aims to fix the dreaded twisted strap problem, and after it launched a mic stand that attaches directly to pedalboards to better aid the performances of singer-guitarists.

“The Pick Holder 360 is a sleek, fun new way to keep your favorite picks organized, visible, easy to reach, and ready to play,” says D'Addario. “It’s a quick, perfect buy for musicians, custom pick collectors, or anyone simply looking for the perfect stocking stuffer for the musician in their life.”

The Pick Holder 360 is priced at $19.99 and is available to order now.

Head to D’Addario for more.

Back in February, Guitar World sat down with the firm's founder, Jim D'addario, to celebrate 50 years of business and discuss the shape of its future. After half a century of experiments and innovation, he revealed that the firm is shifting its focus.

“I think we’re at a point where we’ve explored almost all the materials that are viable,” he says of its guitar string experiments. “Those ‘aha’ moments are few and far between now because we’ve all turned over almost every rock in the garden, looking for worms. So now our opportunities are about process.”

He also lifted the lid of its string testing processes, and hailed one jazz veteran for being better at putting them through their paces than anyone else.

Bluegrass stalwart Molly Tuttle knows a thing or two about the genre: she has, after all, firmly established herself as bluegrass’ premier young talent, with her sizable repertoire winning accolades (and Grammys), and her flatpicking, clawhammer, and crosspicking prowess earning her fans that extend beyond the genre’s circle.

For those who are still dipping their toes into bluegrass techniques, Tuttle’s plectrum recommendations may prove useful, especially as the style requires flatpicks that enhance articulation and volume while facilitating faster playing.

“This is kind of an uncommon one to use, but I have a Dunlop Jazztone 208 – it's really thick, and so a lot of people don't like them, but that's just kind of what I've been using since I was 10 years old,” Tuttle tells Guitarist.

“A lot of people who play flatpick guitar love the BlueChips. And those are a little more expensive, and they make all different shapes and sizes. I think they're handmade, so you get really nice bevel on the pick. It’s more of a handcrafted type of pick. These [referring to her Dunlop pick] are more mass-produced.”

However, Tuttle asserts that she doesn’t “have a specific recommendation” – but recommends that players flirting with the genre keep an eye out for their plectrum’s thickness.

“I think if your pick is too thin, it’s going to sound really floppy, and you really need to be able to get a lot of volume. So that's why I use the thicker picks. That’s not going to like bend when I’m hitting the strings really hard.”

Elsewhere in the interview, when asked how one can master improvising, Tuttle looks back on her own journey and reveals that she started by learning “a bunch of fiddle tunes”.

“I just found tiny ways to vary them,” she explains. “So if I remember, one of the first tunes that I learned to play was called Salt Creek [a standard bluegrass fiddle tune].

“[I was] adding in little things like sliding up to the first note, and then maybe adding a pull-off, stuff like that, [that] can make the song sound a lot more kind of exciting. And you're still basically playing the melody, but you're just adding in a little tiny variation here and there.”

Ahead of last year’s EP release, Tuttle shared her thoughts on the differences between metal and bluegrass shredding – and why improvisation remains at the center of her live set, and even in the studio.

A Jim Dunlop guitar pick used by Kurt Cobain during Nirvana’s iconic MTV Unplugged show is being raffled off for charity.

The orange .60mm pick shows clear wear from where Cobain’s thumb started to rub off a little of the ink. At £5 (approx. $6.74) a pop for a raffle entry, this is perhaps the cheapest way fans can potentially come to own a fragment of the grunge icon’s history.

“Ever dreamed of owning a piece of Nirvana’s legacy?” a post on the Royal College of Music (RCM) Instagram asks. “Now’s your chance.” All proceeds from the prize draw directly support students and the Future Music Fund at the RCM.

Some readers may look at the pick nestling in its black-rimmed frame as a fairly unremarkable museum piece. But perspective can change things.

After all, a guitar pick that Cobain is believed to have used to track Nevermind demos sold for a staggering $14,678 in 2023. It too an orange Dunlop pick, that plectrum features his joke 'Kurdt Kobain' signature on one side – which he also scrawled on a Boss DS-1 pedal that ultimately sold for $75,000 – and his attempt at drawing the Dunlop tortoise on the other.

The truth of the matter is that Cobain-owned gear carries a staggering mystique at auction. Indeed, the two most expensive guitars to ever sold at auction were his. There are notable other entries in the top 10, with David Gilmour's Black Strat and Eddie Van Halen's Hot For Teacher Kramer among them.

But even the $4 million the Gilmour Strat fetched at auction is dwarfed by the eye-watering $6 million that Cobain's Martin D-18E acoustic guitar – another star of the MTV Unplugged set – eventually sold for.

Interestingly, the RCM’s raffle prize pick was found inside the guitar case that housed the D-18E. It is currently on display at the Royal College of Music Museum, London, but won’t be much longer.

For the curious, Cobain's Smells Like Teen Spirit Fender Mustang claims second spot in the list. It sold for $4,550,000 in 2022.

Suddenly, £5 feels like a drop of the ocean. We crunched the numbers, and it amounts to just 0.035% of that whopping $14,000 outlay.

There is one Cobain-played guitar, however, that is not for sale. The 1953 Martin D-18 acoustic he affectionately named "Grandpa” was gifted to him by singer/songwriter Mary Lou Lord. That six-string now calls the Martin Museum in Nazareth, Pennsylvania, its home.

Opeth's Mikael Åkerfeldt and Fredrik Åkesson recently played the guitar as their tour bus rolled through the state, and Åkerfeldt revealed another interesting tidbit about the acoustic.

“Someone told us that guitar was haunted, like people who had that guitar had accidents,” he said. No wonder it has no recognizable owner these days.

Guitar World believes the MTV Unplugged pick is not haunted, but some sage could always be bought with some of the leftover $13,995. Just to be sure.

The Royal College of Music Kurt Cobain Plectrum Prize Draw prize competition draw will be conducted on 18 November 2025.

Tickets can be bought from RCM.

When it comes to shred, few guitarists can match the speed and ferocity with which Yngwie Malmsteen plays – and now the Swedish virtuoso has lifted the lid on one of his biggest secrets to nimble shredding: thick guitar picks.

In a new interview, MusicRadar draws parallels between Bach’s piece, Badinerie – which translates to “quick, light movements” – and the way Malmsteen approaches technique. But he is quick to quash such thoughts.

“That’s funny you should say that,” he says. “All of those things, economic picking, economic fretting, neoclassical this or whatever, all these phrases – all these titles of technique! – people said that after they saw me play. I never thought about those things.

“All I cared about from day one since I started, was what I heard. I didn’t think so much how to do it.”

But there is one caveat – he quickly learned how the right guitar pick could aid his super-fast shredding, while the wrong pick got in the way of his need for speed. That, he says, was a game-changer.

“I realized that if you had a pick that was bending, you couldn’t really play accurately,” he continues. “Your brain orders your hand to make a movement and coordinate it with the left hand but if there’s a bend [in the pick] there’s a slight latency in there. You can’t be super accurate with your left and right hand if you don’t have a totally hard pick. It doesn’t work.”

Thick picks aren't always going to guarantee fast playing, though, and Malmsteen's comments will no doubt clash with the beliefs of Paul Gilbert, who surprised guitarists back in 2021 when he revealed his newfound affinity for ultra-thin 0.50mm picks.

The importance the humble guitar pick plays in a guitarist’s overall sound and ability to nail certain techniques is often overlooked. There have been several attempts to revolutionize our relationship with the unsuspecting string hitters in recent years, including the 3D PickTwist, which has been designed to bolster a player's abilities and never fall out of their hand in the process.

Meanwhile, Fender has launched Offset Guitar Picks, which Guitar World's Michael Astley-Brown found served a host of benefits.

“I felt more emboldened to throw in swept and alternate-picked runs. It genuinely felt like I was playing better than ever,” he declared after some thorough testing.

Meanwhile, some players prefer to go pick-free. Jeff Beck famously never played with one, and Matteo Mancuso has labeled playing with a pick his “weak point”, while Jared James Nichols found finger-picking to be a far more expressive way of playing.

NAMM 2025: Since Jim Dunlop developed and introduced the Tortex pick in 1981 as a high-quality replacement for actual tortoiseshell, it’s safe to say the plectrum world has never been quite the same.

This dependable, blank-slate kind of pick is now getting a revamp with the Tortex Flex X Pick, which promises to take the “tactile and tonal experience” of the Tortex Flex line "to a whole new level of performance."

Perhaps the most significant addition is the grip carved into the surface – a first for Tortex picks – which offers more control while still maintaining the “natural and comfortable” feel this iconic pick is known for.

This, combined with the original’s “memory and durability,” delivers “smooth, warm tones” reminiscent of high-quality nylon. As Dunlop sums it up, these new picks guarantee “the ultimate playability.”

The Tortex Flex X Pick is now available at all Dunlop partner retailers, with a Player’s Pack priced at $5.49.

Just in time for NAMM 2025, Dunlop is also launching several exciting products: the Peter Frampton Vintage Jazz Teardrop Pick, which replicates the unique design he used on his records; a special edition of the Matt Heafy Custom Max-Grip Jazz III, celebrating the 20th anniversary of Trivium’s Ascendancy; and the Flow Nylon Pick, crafted from a custom nylon blend to enhance the high-performance design of the Flow Pick.

For more information, visit Dunlop.

What is it?

Bog Street might not have the marquee name brand recognition of other popular pick manufacturers, but once you grab hold of one of their many functionally innovative three-sided guitar picks with a hole in the middle, you might never let go.

That said, Bog Street’s ergonomically contoured picks are a palpable advancement in securing grip control that keeps their picks firmly between your fingers and not on the floor.

Furthermore, as an advantageous byproduct, Bog Street’s specialized picks improve articulation and relaxation for your picking hand, ultimately contributing to a far more beneficial playing experience.

Built quality and performance

Because Bog Street offers over 20 different three-sided pick designs each made from unique materials and composites, it’s best if I cover the ones that focus on the most “aggressive” grips first and then the rest. The Leap series is the company’s original concept pick in “Rhythm” and “Lead” models with each of its tips fashioned in three distinct thicknesses to achieve its stated purpose.

It offers the most surface area and maximum grip texture and is made from high-grade nylon. Similarly, in grip, the Scales series is made of a NEOS (nylon and ABS) composite, and addresses pick slippage with a rubberized grip in a pliant Flex (0.5mm) and thicker Jazz (1.5mm) models, and all three tips share the same gauge.

Finally, the Mini Beast has the smallest surface area (think Jazz III pick) but with an ergonomically raised grip design that’s dual-sided for stability and comfort. It’s made of glass-filled nylon and geared for shredders that demand precision and stiffness for clear articulation.

Next up is the Axe Series of picks, which, in my view, are the most popular and versatile in Bog Street’s family of picks. These series of picks (Axe Blade, Axe Cut and Battle Axe) are constructed in either the NEOS composite or in “Ultem-Tak” (a brighter-sounding Ultem material available only in black).

Both the Axe Blade and Axe Cut offer a flat flex tip in one gauge and two identical bevel tips in a heavier gauge on three sides, allowing for swift rotations between playing styles. On the other hand, the Battle Axe maintains the same gauge thickness on all three of its sharply beveled tips.

The Axe Cut is also slightly larger than the Axe Blade and Battle Axe, and all three feature a raised grip texture for secureness. The Axe series comes in Light, Medium, Heavy and Textured models.

Regardless of which Bog Street pick you choose, I found that the centered hole and surrounding textured surface relax your grip by connecting the tips of your thumb and index finger where you won’t feel the need to squeeze as tightly.

When you strike the strings, you feel the pressure you’re exerting as the pick gently undulates against your fingertips, effectively reducing tension to your picking hand and allowing you to focus on your technique rather than trying to hold onto the pick.

Many will say the feel is certainly different, but the more you play these picks the more they start to make sense. Because of their broader surface area and enhanced grip, both the Leap and Scales models are not the kind of picks I’d gravitate toward, but I can admire that these multifaceted picks allow certain players an easier path to connecting with their instrument.

I’ve been using Jazz III picks, so the Mini Beast felt like familiar territory for faster playing, but its raised dual sides added more mass between my fingers which took getting used to. The Axe series felt more like a proper-sized pick, with the Battle Axe and Axe Blade standing out as favorites.

I loved Battle Axe for its tripled consistency on each of its chiseled tips that worked smoothly for speedy runs. I also warmed up to the Axe Blade for its dual-thickness design and a rounded flat tip that capably handled vigorous strumming and then shifting toward the harder-edged beveled tips for solos.

More importantly, how do they sound? Overall, because of their synthetic makeup and composite materials, they all seem to have a brighter response with an immediate attack but there are hints of muted warmth if you use their lighter-gauged picks and ease up on your attack.

Verdict

No doubt, I’ll be the first to admit that it’s difficult to switch gears and convert to an alternatively different pick – especially if you’ve developed as a player with the more common and conventional plectrums you’ve grown accustomed to – however, it’s not hard to say that Bog Street is onto something pivotal for discriminating players who want an enhanced pick that addresses grip control, comfort and increased accuracy.

Guitar World verdict: Bog Street’s ergonomic contours for their picks yield relaxed comfort and the utmost grip control. Their three-sided picks with precisely rounded and beveled edges lead to cleaner articulation for your picking hand over conventional plectrums. Their novel pick material blends offer myriad tones from bright to mellow.

Specs

Price: From $25 and up; sampler pack (contains 17 picks), $40
Contact: Bog Street

Hands-on videos

Riffs, Beards & Gear

R.J. Ronquillo

Bog Street

• “It was the pick my playing had been waiting for”: I’ve been on a quest to find the perfect pick – and it didn’t just improve my tone, it made me a better player

A Kickstarter campaign is set to launch for a brand new guitar pick, which has been boldly badged by its maker as “the pick that makes guitar easier”.

PickTwist is an innovative new approach to a guitarist’s best friend. Its 3D and ergonomically focused design may look like it’s been mangled by crunching metallic jaws, but there’s method in the madness here: it might just be a left-field solution to common guitar pick pitfalls.

According to the brains behind PickTwist, pick slippages, unwanted hand tension, troubles nailing pinch harmonics, dead tone, and losing focus on your fretting hand are all the result of poor pick quality. This new “self-centering guitar pick” promises to remedy all of that.

Not only that, it will apparently help you excel as a player, with one early PickTwist punter declaring, “Playing technical stuff is easier.”

The PickTwist arrives after over two years of development, during which “hundreds of different ideas” were tested by experienced and new players alike. The development team promises that its invention will be “a game-changer for musicians of all levels” thanks to its weirdly warped visage.

Further still, the curious contours of the pick make it “impossible for the pick to slip off your fingers” while relieving picking hand tension over long playing sessions. In addition, pinch harmonics are said to become “super easy” with one of these in your grip, while the guitar tone it helps foster has been described as “modern [and] full of clarity and definition”.

There is no mention of the cost of the Kickstarter campaign's respective tiers, but it looks like the PickTwist will come in a variety of colors, including red, green, and pink. It’s likely the different colors will equate to different thicknesses, as per other manufacturers.

“It's been a lot of trial and error, but we've settled on a design that helps reduce fatigue from long sessions as PickTwist's shape keeps to the musician's ideal hand position,” says PickTwist.

The campaign is due to launch on January 15.

Head to Kickstarter for more.

Guitar players are currently losing their minds over an easy and affordable new gear hack that looks like it could completely eliminate unwanted pickup switching, and keep fourth position players securely locked in.

Owing to the design of Stratocasters and Stratocaster-style guitars, their five-way blade pickup switches are often situated awkwardly underneath the strings. This puts them in prime position for unwanted pickup switches when your strumming hand starts to stray.

It’s a particular problem for funk players and those who like to remain rooted in the fourth position. One off-course strum and that pickup selector could be sent straight into first position territory, losing those chewy rhythm sounds.

Cory Wong’s signature Strat had a built-in button to bypass the pickup selector, but otherwise the main remedy available to you was… well, just being a bit more careful.

Now, though, a Reddit user with the handle ‘meta_damage’ has shared a new, low budget hack that could make such problems a thing of the past – and all it really requires is a spare guitar pick.

Switch Hack for Funky 4th Position Players from r/Guitar

It’s very simple: as per meta_damage’s post, players can simply take a thin guitar pick, drill a hole into its point, and fit it underneath one of the screws that secures the pickup selector to the scratchplate.

This works, as demonstrated by the images above, by wedging the bulk end of the pick into toggle switch and securing the fourth position – and, in turn, serves as a barrier to prevent it from slipping into treble-y tonal waters.

As an added bonus, if the pick has been secured with just the right amount of slack, it can easily be swung out of the way for when those bridge tones are required.

“When I really get immersed in playing, especially funky stuff with fast and wild strumming, I often knock my selector switch away from the beloved 4th position,” meta_damage explains in their post.

“I drilled a hole through an [sic] spare pick… such that when attached to the guitar with the lower screw of the selector it prevents the switch from being (easily) changed while playing.”

Understandably, meta_damage’s hack has got people talking. “I thought I'd seen every 'hack' possible over the past 30 years of playing guitar. This one genuinely delights me!” one commenter wrote. “My god this is genius,” gushed another.

Now, switch locks are already a thing, but purchasing a pro-made accessory will set you back some pennies – an unnecessary expense, it seems, if the same outcome can be achieved by using an old pick. It doesn't look hard to do, either.

Social media is often the hotbed for guitar innovation, as regular players look for inventive ways to solve problems and achieve certain sounds. Earlier this year, for example, TikTok went crazy for a $12 tennis accessory that helped channel rubber bridge guitar tones.

The connection between player and instrument is of paramount importance, both emotionally and physically. That point at which the two things meet plays a huge part in the sound that you hear, which is why having one of the best acoustic guitar picks really could make all the difference.

You might think it’s just a piece of plastic that you hit the strings with, and essentially it is. However, the material, thickness, shape – even how the edges are angled – can all make a difference to your tone and how you physically attack the strings.

The sound of an acoustic guitar relies so much on the movement of the strings and the wood; it’s not helped out by amplifiers or effects, so making sure you’ve got the best acoustic guitar picks for you can mean you sound and play better.

Our top picks

Best overall

A long time ago, actual tortoise shell was used to make picks. For obvious reasons, this has been phased out, with celluloid largely replacing them. In more recent years, however, manufacturers have started to produce a new pick made from a protein-based plastic called casein which is more like the original tortoiseshell picks, both in terms of feel and sound.

These picks are lovely and warm sounding, and can tame particularly bright-sounding instruments or fresh acoustic guitar strings. They also feature a right-handed beveled edge that can help the pick glide naturally over the strings, resulting in super smooth strumming. The embossed logo also gives it a slight grip to help you keep a hold of the pick.

Best for beginners

These are superb acoustic guitar picks that offer excellent note definition and a comfortable playing experience. They’re made from ultex, so expect clear and bright tones with plenty of articulation.

The material makes them great for playing lead lines as you get a fast attack and great clarity, however the hand-beveled edges mean that they’ll glide over the strings nicely when you're using them for chord and strumming work too.

They’re great all-rounders, plus the grip really helps the contact between the pick and your fingers when playing on sweaty stages.

Best budget

Possibly the most popular pick amongst any type of guitarist. The Dunlop Tortex picks are instantly recognizable from their bright colors and offer players a durable and affordable pick that works well on electric, bass and acoustic guitars alike. They’re made from delrin and provide a bright but even response with a strong attack. They’ve also got a slightly powdery feel which helps with grip.

Acoustic guitars will often be fitted with higher gauge strings than electric guitars, so having a thick enough pick will ensure that you don’t get any sort of unwanted, plasticky percussive sound when you’re strumming. That said, we're huge advocates of being as comfortable as possible when playing, so if you play better with thin picks, then go for it!

Best durability

These are favored by many pro acoustic players as they can help reduce that plastic pick noise that you might hear with other picks. They tend to be darker, warmer and mellower sounding than something like celluloid or ultex, so might not be for everyone.

There is a range of shapes and thicknesses available, but it’s worth noting that these picks are quite stiff – that’s part of the reason why people love them. This TP48 is a nice wide triangle so works well for strumming and lead work. You can also choose your bevel (done by hand) depending on whether you are right or left handed.

These are also expensive, so it’s worth knowing what sort of pick you like before committing!

Best for strumming

Ultex picks are hard-wearing and reliable. They’ll also wield a bright and clear tone, allowing you to cut through a mix when you need to.

These Dunlop 426 picks are some of the best acoustic guitar picks for a variety of players. They’re bigger than a traditional guitar pick so they offer a larger surface area for your fingers and thumb, and for striking the strings.

If you’re one for big, bold strumming, then these are definitely worth experimenting with – they’re also some of the cheapest on this list, so it’s not a huge financial sacrifice to try them out.

Best thumb pick

Invented by guitar teacher Cole McBride, the Black Mountain Thumb Pick offers a new take on the classic acoustic guitar thumb pick. The adjustability has made it a hit, and it's available in lots of different varieties to suit any player or playing style.

Because it's spring-loaded, it'll fit a large variety of thumbs, and you can even specify what spring tension you want on the Black Mountain website. The varying tension means it can flex like a regular pick, giving you a great balance between comfort and stability.

I've been using one of these picks for a while now and although it took some getting used to, it's definitely a game changer if you feel a regular thumb pick isn't quite cutting it. The fact that it feels like a regular pick also makes it easier to get used to using one.

Also consider

Here’s a cool pick from Ernie Ball that might be perfect for players that prioritize precision in their picking. It’s a classic pick shape with a sharper point to it, allowing you pick out individual strings easily. Of course, as with any pick, you can play a variety of styles with it.

The edges have quite a sharp bevel to them which helps you get a nice, crisp attack with lots of clarity and articulation. Combine this with the delrin material and you’ve got a pick that’s tonally balanced, but can help brighten up your sound. They also do a mini version which might appeal to Jazz III lovers.

These nylon picks are a real classic and can work wonders on acoustic guitars. If you like a softer, warmer and more vintage sound, then these could be for you. Of course, different thicknesses are available, but nylon tends to have a little more give in it than some other materials, so many rhythm players like how they work for strumming.

Of course, it’s all personal preference, so if you’re playing more melody and lead lines, nylon picks can still be a good choice; just remember you won’t quite get as much attack when you’re striking the individual strings. The design of them also gives the picks somewhat of a grip, which can really help too. They’re also very durable so they’ll give you some decent mileage over the years.

FAQs

How we choose

When choosing the best acoustic guitar picks, we're relying on decades of experience playing the acoustic guitar. Over the years our writing team here at Guitar World have tested a plethora of acoustic guitars, as well as playing them at shows all over the world.

We've got a lot of experience with the acoustic guitar and have tried more picks than we'd care to remember. So when we recommend a pick for you, we're doing so from actual lived experience. We'd only select a pick we'd use ourselves, so you can rest assured that our choices will do a great job for you.

The picks in this guide will cover a multitude of different players and playing styles, as our team has a huge variety of players. So whether you're looking for a thin pick, a thick pick, or even a thumb pick, our selection has got your back.

Read more:

• Get started with the best acoustic guitars for beginners
• Save money with the best acoustic guitars under $500
• The best classical guitars are great for fingerstyle

As my bio attests, I love offset guitars. So I was very much Fender’s target market when the guitar giant dropped a new line of Offset Picks, launched in the kind of vivid finishes that are catnip for hipsters.

Part of our job at Guitar World is to translate over-exuberant PR speak into real-world terms, but the product description was so overwhelmingly hyperbolic, I found myself being sucked in out of morbid curiosity (despite having loyally stuck to Dunlop’s industry-standard Tortex guitar pick variants for two decades).

“Elevate your playing experience.” “The game-changing pick you never knew you needed.” “The most versatile pick EVER!” Fender was one step away from claiming these plectrums could broker international peace deals.

So I did what any self-respecting editor would do and requested a set, determined to fact-check these world-beating claims. And not to insert a clickbait headline mid-copy, but what I discovered surprised me.

Easy pickings?

For starters, these picks are comfortable to hold. The indentation on one side melds with your thumb, which means less pressure required to keep it on hand.

Fender’s “durable polycarbonate material” generates a satisfyingly bright attack with every note, lending extra clarity to arpeggiated chords and alternate-picked runs.

The aesthetics may be geared towards Jazzmaster acolytes, but in terms of how they actually perform, the 0.83mm Offset Picks are better suited to shredheads. The angled shape makes for more precise movements, easier sweep picking and string skipping. In fact, they reminded me a lot of Dunlop’s Flow picks – favorites of metal gods like James Hetfield, Misha Mansoor and Jeff Loomis. As I say, not what I expected.

The more I incorporated Offset Picks into rehearsals and gigs, the more I realized I had missed out by not experimenting more with plectrums over the years.

My tone had more clarity than using comparative Delrin-based picks, and my picking was more accurate than with my usual Tortex Sharp. I felt more emboldened to throw in swept and alternate-picked runs. It genuinely felt like I was playing and sounding better than before.

But there were signs that these weren’t quite the right fit, too. For one, my ADHD tendencies have apparently made me a perpetual pick fidgeter – I’m constantly rotating the plec in my hand, and I will switch between thumb-and-index and thumb-index-and-middle (à la Hetfield) holding patterns depending on the part – and the one-side-only thumb imprint enforces a particular way to hold the design.

Also, despite the snazzy embossed Fender logo, I just couldn’t keep hold of the things. A hint of sweat and they were slipping through my fingers like I’d dipped my digits in a vat of Big Bends nut sauce.

It made for an interesting first, when I threw a pick into the crowd by accident – and another first when an audience member picked up the discarded plec and brought it back to me (hero).

Flow state

The offset picks were not the answer then, but newly out of my Tortex torpor, I felt emboldened to look more widely. So like a wizard choosing a wand (or is it the wand choosing the wizard?), I set upon a pick quest.

Unlike Mark Tremonti, I didn’t quite manage to try “every pick ever made”, but I dug out all the picks that had been sent to me for review over the years – many of which I rated, but never saw any reason to switch to myself, reasoning, “I don’t need anything fancier than Tortex…”

Acrylux, Gravity, Herco, Dava, Hawk, Prodigy, Nylon, Prime Tone, TUSQ… Turns out I’d amassed a pretty exhaustive collection, and they each had their own merits. When it came to tone, my general rule of thumb was: the shinier the pick’s finish, the snappier the top-end response. That enhanced presence became the tone I craved – the missing ingredient in my signal chain – and there were plenty of picks that fit the tonal bill.

It wasn’t hard to pin down the type that improved my technical accuracy, either: sculpted picks reduced the chance of getting stuck on the string, making for a more fluid performance.

But in the end, from my amassed collection, only one pick combined the best of both worlds: the original Dunlop Flow.

It had been six years since I had last picked one up. Back then, it had seemed like an unnecessary extravagance. I didn’t deem myself worthy of the ‘virtuoso’ tag that these plecs seemed to demand.

But now I’m more comfortable in my abilities and what I want to achieve, regardless of technical ability. There was that clarity in every note, that ease of picking, and a tactile grip that wasn’t going to leave me fingerpicking the rest of my next show. It was the pick my playing had been waiting for, and I’ve been hooked on them ever since.

Fender’s Offset Picks may not have been the destination, but they did kickstart a journey that made me finally pay attention to the crucial role that guitar picks play in your tone and playing style, and set me on a path to a genre of pick that makes me sound and perform better. “The game-changing pick you never knew you needed”? I guess it was after all…

Next to guitar strings, the type of pick you use is your most fundamental choice as a guitarist. You can mull over the materials, shapes and sizes of the myriad guitar picks that are available, but in the end, it’s all about which one best matches your “feel.” 

Knowing this hasn’t stopped me from discovering a variety of recently developed picks that aim to improve tone, control and articulation. Case in point: Techpicks is an Italian company made up of musicians and music fans who also happen to be material engineers with backgrounds in thermoplastics. 

Lately, they’ve been burning up social media with their advanced picks, which seemingly fuse materials used in the aerospace, sports and textile industries. Techpicks stand out because they have a different material makeup that’s tangibly perceived in stiffness and how each pick details nuances of attack, tonal response, low pick noise and dynamics. 

The Techpicks collection is available in three geometrical shapes – the Standard (symmetrical geometry similar to the 346 pick shape, with an optimized bevel and a tapered central “flower” for grip), M (asymmetrical geometry with three different tips) and J (single sharp tip geometry with a reduced size similar to the “Jazz” pick) models.

Techpicks sent me the Standard model with five different picks (TP1 black, TP2 creamy white, TP3 cool white, TP4 brown and TP5 dark gray); it’s a fine assortment for diverse playing styles with an average thickness of 1.45mm and a width of 29.8mm.

Right off the bat, you can see and feel the difference in material between each pick with the TP2 and TP3’s almost nylon texture, the TP4 possessing a polished gloss and the TP1 and TP5 having a dry, matte feel.

For high stiffness, the TP1 and TP5 are super-rigid and primed for precision in jazz and metal. The TP2, TP3 and TP4 have varying degrees of medium stiffness and work well to reduce friction from your picking hand for a speedier attack. Metal players will dig the TP1 and TP5 for the increased volume and sharper attack.

Still, my favorites are the TP3 and the TP4 for their soft articulation and smoother tone that works whether I’m flatpicking an acoustic guitar or shredding on an electric. After putting in some wear and tear for a few months, I can report that these Techpicks are built to last for a while – and that, as my Italian brethren say, is “molto buono”.

• PRICE: $37 (as reviewed; set of five different picks)
• CONTACT: Techpicks

Patoma Music has developed a range of diamond-encrusted guitar picks that apparently will “elevate guitarists playing at any level” thanks to their unique performance.

While we’ve seen diamond-lavished guitars before, Patoma is taking things to a whole new level: there's almost one carat of diamonds in every Diamond Grip pick, which will be made in the USA from Delrin plastic. 

However, this isn’t just superfluous extravagance. According to its maker, the innovative little accessory comes with a raft of benefits to guitar players. 

As the name suggests, real diamonds are used for the pick's grip (hence its $17 per pick price tag), with Patoma saying the glitzy stone offers unmatched grip. 

After much experimentation with different non-slip grip materials, the company says none “performs as well as real, natural diamond”.  

Diamond is an extremely abrasive material and when used in this context, players can dig their picks into their guitar strings without the fear of it slipping out their grasp and onto stage floors, never to be seen again. Because, ya know... diamonds are forever. 

There's also a belief the pick may benefit those with nerve damage or arthritis, as less pressure is needed to secure the pick in your hand. 

The Diamond Grip Pick comes in a range of thicknesses, from .60mm to 2.0mm, and two shapes – Original and a pointer version, The Sharp. Each thickness sports a different color, with color options including purple, green, and vintage white.  

Sadly, there’s no mention of what players should do with the picks once they’re worn down past the point of playability. Perhaps they would make lovely necklaces or earrings? It’s good to be resourceful.

It's perhaps the wildest attempt to reinvent the pick since Fender delivered offset guitar picks last year. Fender says its wonky invention results in “the most versatile pick ever”, but now bedazzled picks are a thing, they pale in comparison. 

The Diamond Grip Picks cost $17 each, with $45 three-packs also available. 

Head to Patoma Music for more information.

Earlier this year, Fender director of product Allen Abbassi told us, “We’ve seen a pretty steady increase in popularity of the offsets, and it doesn’t seem to be waning”. Of course, he was referring to the company’s increasingly hip electric guitars – the Jazzmaster, Jaguar and Mustang – but it seems the guitar firm is keen to capture some of that success in its other product lines with the launch of Offset Picks.

Made from a “durable polycarbonate material”, the new guitar picks have been bigged up to the max in their production description, with Fender enthusiastically dubbing the design “the game-changing pick you never knew you needed” and “the most versatile pick EVER!”

Aesthetically, the wonky look certainly delivers, especially in those multi-colored finishes. But the shape promises to be more than a mere gimmick to ensnare Jazzmaster diehards.

Fender reckons the offset design results in a better grip, ensuring a “precise, bright attack”. More important than the shape, however, is the pick’s contoured thumb imprint and debossed Fender logo, which is more likely to prevent pick slippage, if you ask us.

The jury’s out over whether that shape will make any difference to the way you play, and indeed, if it can live up to the marketing hyperbole. But the offset addicts among us are finding ourselves strangely drawn towards the pick’s off-kilter look.

At launch, only 0.83mm gauges will be available, but presumably more will be added should the line catch fire like the rest of Fender’s offset offerings.

Offset Picks are available in multi-color and black finishes for $8.99 per pack of six. Check out Fender.com for more info.

Guitar picks are funny things – one minute you’ll be merrily strumming along, and then your plectrum will simply vanish from the face of the earth. It’s an equally tricky conundrum for stage professionals, whose enthusiastic onstage shredding can result in a runaway pick.

In such situations, it’s usually either a desperate scramble to save the slab of celluloid, or a humbling rummage hoping another will miraculously turn up – and that’s only if you remember to bring your pick tin with you to the gig in the first place.

Well, Acorn Amplifiers has launched a crowdfunding campaign for something that might put an end to such problems and make pick swaps that much easier.

Meet the Guitar Pick Dispenser pedal – an ingenious utility unit that does exactly what it says on the tin: it dispenses picks with the stomp of the switch.

A prototype has been fashioned ahead of a full production unit, which would be created depending on the financial backing the brand receives to help develop further prototypes and refine units.

At the time of writing, $6,596 of a $10,000 goal has already been raised, and we imagine it won’t be long before that target is smashed: Acorn Amplifiers' demo video has been viewed more than half a million times, and the company has been inundated with requests to release the Pick Dispenser.

The demo video showcases just how handy this pedal could be. There’s nothing flashy about it: just a sole footswitch that ejects guitar picks from the upper slot when pressed. Consider us sold.

With interest ramping up, Acorn Amplifier has laid out its plans for the future, which include putting the pedal through “a barrage of cycle testing so that we are sure we are providing a super robust product that can handle the abuse that comes with being on a pedal board, studio desktop… whatever.”

The company – which also built a Josh Homme-aping, Peavey Decade-inspired preamp pedal – says it also has ambitions to make the pedal available by the end-of-year holidays, meaning it could be here in time for Christmas.

There’s a way to go before Acorn gets there, though. “Testing, testing, testing” will ensure its robustness, while there’s still the small task of making it affordable for fans.

There are five levels of support available on the pedal’s Crowdfunder page. The first two – Video Shoutout ($10) and PCB Swag Pack ($25) – offer social media shouts and an array of collectibles (including a business card that can be used to make a one watt guitar amp).

The rest are concerned with the pedal itself, with the base rate for the pedal currently sitting at $60.

It’s probably worth noting there’s the argument to be made that the Pick Dispenser will take up valuable real estate on a pedalboard, and might force players to sacrifice a stompbox to fit it in. Having said that, the Guitar Pick Dispenser Pedal looks like a worthy addition to any ‘board, so excuse us while we start rearranging our rig.

Head over to the Guitar Pick Dispenser Pedal’s IndieGoGo page to find out more.

Every guitarist has their go-to type of guitar pick: some prefer thinner ones for softer sounds, while others opt for heavier plectrums to help facilitate, well, heavier playing. 

This isn’t a science, more of a general rule of thumb. Paul Gilbert, for example, can shred with ultra-thin picks, and has even taken to drilling holes in his picks to help him play even faster.

And then there’s Brian May – one of the greatest electric guitar players ever, who doesn’t even use a guitar pick at all.

Instead, the Queen legend favors a sixpence (a small copper-nickel coin that was in circulation in the UK until 1980) and has done so for most of his career, using the loose change to help craft his most iconic guitar solos and riffs.

That May uses a sixpence has been common knowledge for quite some time, but the reasoning behind his decision is decidedly less so – evidenced by the fact he still gets questioned about his affinity for the sixpence.

The Red Special mastermind recently sat down with The Guardian to answer fan questions and was, naturally, asked if he still uses the coin to play.

“Pretty much always – sixpence, or the fingers,” he responded, before elaborating on precisely why he does. “I used to play with those little plastic picks but I always found that they were too bendy. I couldn’t really feel what was happening as the thing touched the strings. 

“I went into harder and harder picks, until they were too stiff. Then one day I picked up a coin, which happened to be a sixpence, and I thought, 'That’s all I need.' Sixpences are very soft metal, which doesn’t hurt the guitar strings, but if I turn that serrated edge at an angle to the string, I can get that kind of articulating, percussive consonant sound – I call it graunch. 

“Before about 1950, they had a high content of nickel, which makes them really soft, so I especially like a 1947 sixpence – the year that I was born.”

In other Brian May news, it was announced earlier this year that the guitarist's Star Fleet Project – recorded with Eddie Van Halen – would finally be coming to streaming this year, along with unreleased EVH solos.

A guitar pick that previously belonged to Kurt Cobain sold at auction last month for a final price of $14,678.

The sale concluded on June 10 and the price fetched by the orange Dunlop Tortex pick represents – as far as we can verify –  the highest ever paid for a guitar pick. So what makes it worth the money? 

Well, the pick has a few unique features. Firstly, it’s signed by Cobain using his joke ‘Kurdt Kobain’ misspelling (similar to the 'Kurdt' signature found on the Cobain-used Boss DS-1 that sold at auction last year). It’s also been heavily worn and, in the place of the original Tortex tortoise logo, features a recreated tortoise doodle drawn by Cobain.

More important, though, is the context within which the Nirvana man used it. The pick was acquired on Friday April 6, 1990. This marked the end of the week that Nirvana spent demoing Nevermind material at Butch Vig’s Smart Studios – including the version of Polly that would make the final album – and it very likely saw use on those sessions.

The auction was won by Shaun Ertischek – a longtime Nirvana fan who describes himself as “an eclectic collector” and “product of the 1990’s alternative and grunge rock scene.”

“I knew this piece was special when I saw it come up at auction,” Eritschek tells Guitar World. “Guitars and other equipment used by Kurt Cobain have gone for exorbitant prices. 

“I often try to get my hands on guitar picks during live concerts, but there is usually no way to authenticate them because they are so generic. How can anyone prove that a particular pick was used by a musician?

“This pick, however, was signed by Kurt on one side and he drew on the other side. His personality comes through in this little doodle.”

It’s not the first Cobain pick to come to auction. Another orange Tortex pick, used during Nirvana’s 1991 John Peel session, sold last year for $5,760. At the time, we remarked it was a huge amount for a pick. At three times the value, this latest sale comfortably eclipses that. 

However, in this case, the context, the personality and the provenance – with multiple experts authenticating the signature – all persuaded Ertischek to stay the course in the auction. So how did it feel to win? 

“It feels surreal to own this piece of music history,” responds Ertischek. “I haven’t seen anything like it before and it is truly one-of-a-kind. Kurt was obviously an incredible singer, songwriter and guitarist. It is beyond rare and special to have something played by his hand and subsequently signed.”

Ertischek says he hasn’t yet decided “if or how” it will be displayed, but for now there will be “occasional excursions to show off to friends that share my love and passion of rock music [and] I look forward to sharing its story with others.”

As Ertischek rightly asserts, Kurt Cobain is by some margin the most valuable celebrity name when it comes to record-breaking guitar gear auctions. 

The Nirvana icon’s Fender Mustang (as used in the iconic Smells Like Teen Spirit video) sold last year for $4.5 million, making it the world’s most expensive electric guitar. 

A few years prior, in 2020, Cobain’s Martin D-18e sold for $6 million, making it the most expensive guitar (and, by the same token, the most expensive acoustic guitar) ever sold. 

The aforementioned Boss DS-1 pedal used by Cobain in a John Peel BBC radio session went for $75,000 – making it very likely the most valuable guitar pedal ever sold at auction. Meanwhile, a Cobain-owned, stage-smashed Stratocaster fetched almost $600,000 earlier this year – likely, the most expensive smashed guitar ever sold. 

Now, it seems, the world’s priciest pick can also be attributed to Cobain’s legend. Just go easy on the pick slides, eh, Shaun?

Unless you’re a devout fingerstyle player, chances are you have a favorite type of guitar pick, be it a particular gauge or specific shape. Having said that – and despite the subtle differences between each pick on the market – conventional plectrums are usually made out of the same material.

Yes, there are some anomalies on the market – some are made from steel, wood and bone – but the majority of guitar picks are made from some form of plastic.

However, researchers from Kyushu University in Japan have now meticulously engineered an entirely new type of guitar pick, one that is apparently capable of harnessing harmonics that are unobtainable for regular plastic picks – and it’s made from glass.

Silica glass, to be specific – the same type of material that was used to construct the jewel in Tutankhamun’s scarab brooch.

Whether Tutankhamun’s scarab brooch could be used to conjure up otherworldly sounds from the fretboard of a six-string is another question altogether, but Kyushu University’s own glass pick is apparently more than capable of doing so.

Developed by Professor Shigeru Fujino of the University’s Global Innovation Center, the glass pick was created to celebrate 2022, which was deemed by the United Nations to be the International Year of Glass.

But the technology for producing a silica glass pick dates back to 2018, when Fujino’s lab pioneered a way to process silica glass into various shapes and contours, which was reportedly “untenable by conventional methods”.

To demonstrate the capabilities of this technology, a one-of-a-kind guitar pick was made, which made its live debut at the United Nations International Year of Glass closing ceremony in the hands of jazz guitarists Joshua Breakstone and Satoshi Inoue.

Of the pick’s performance, Fujino commented, “The molecular structure of silica glass makes it more durable, has better light transmission, and is highly heat and chemical resistant.

“Silica glass has higher mechanical strength and density than celluloid, the common material used in guitar picks,” he continued. “Its unique properties produce gorgeous and glittering high-frequency sounds that cannot be obtained with conventional guitar picks.”

Unfortunately, footage from the closing ceremony can’t be found online, but there is a brief demo video plus a SoundCloud account that features music composed using the glass pick.

As a feat of engineering, it’s undeniably a pretty impressive creation, though as for whether it’s really redesigned the sonic possibilities of a guitar pick, we’re admittedly skeptical. The demos sound great, and the pick definitely has a certain – for want of a better – “glass-like” edge to it, though we can’t help but think similar tones could be achieved with a regular ol' Dunlop Tortex Standard.

Plus, we’d be petrified of getting a shard of glass stuck in our hand if we got a tad carried away while engaged in some hefty riffage, even if it is said to be robust enough to withstand such playing.

Having said that, it might not be a bad piece of kit to have in the arsenal and, according to multiple reports, that might be possible in the near future – Fujino is now in talks with Ikeda Picks and Kohoku Kogyo regarding making the glass guitar pick commercially available to all guitarists.

Chunky, weighty and extraordinarily articulate, Mark Tremonti’s electric guitar tone on the new Alter Bridge album, Pawns & Kings, is nothing short of sublime.

His tone can be largely attributed to his high-output humbucker-loaded PRS Tremonti signature guitar, and an accompanying array of guitar amps, including his signature PRS MT100, its baby brother, the MT 15, a Cornford RK100, an Omega Ampworks Granophyre and two high-class Dumbles.

But as he explains in an interview with Total Guitar, one of the most significant components of his sound came from a far cheaper part of his rig: his choice of guitar pick.

In fact, Tremonti reveals that he embarked on a quest to “try every pick ever made” – though we’re not sure if such a feat is even possible – in order to see if a change could help improve his tone and playing.

“[The pick is] the thing that you’re interacting most with on your guitar,” he muses, justifying his ambitious experiment. “It’s how you touch the guitar, so it’s important.”

Though he doesn’t dive into much detail on how many different guitar picks he went through in search of the perfect one, he reveals he has new favorites in Dunlop’s 1mm and 1.35mm Flow picks, which reside on the heavier side of the spectrum and feature beveled edges to minimize drag, along with a pointed tip for extra attack.

“It made a huge difference,” Tremonti says. “Now I can’t look back.”

Tremonti is widely touted as one of the finest guitarists of his generation, but as he explains, he placed more emphasis on being a songwriter than a lead guitar player during the making of Pawns & Kings. 

“After being known as a guitar player for so many years, I always feel pressure, like I have to live up to something,” he explains. “Being a writer excites me way more than being a lead guitar player.”

He continues: “If I just spent my time sitting down, one hundred percent trying to be an excellent guitar player, you might hear a very different, more technically proficient guitar player, but I’d much rather create songs.”

Elsewhere in the interview, Tremonti’s Alter Bridge co-guitarist and frontman Myles Kennedy reveals how he used his PRS Tele-style model – custom-built for him by “Paul and the Gang” at PRS to harness the sound of a selection of vintage Telecasters he played during the sessions for his latest solo album, The Ides of March – for nearly all of his playing on Pawns & Kings.

“I have a real fondness for those early Telecasters, so you always wonder if there’s a way you can combine elements with a more contemporary approach in something that would be very versatile,” Kennedy says. “It’s like a P-90 meets an old Blackguard-era Telecaster sound.”

On why he opted to use the guitar for the majority of his guitar parts on the album, Kennedy adds: “It cuts – it’s all there. It’s got its own place, especially with Mark who’s using humbuckers. It helped distinguish the sound.”

In recent years, we’ve seen multi-FX go from pedalboards to amps, guitars and phones – and now a Kickstarter campaign promises to produce a multi-FX pick. 

The X-Pick is described as less a pick and more of “a remote control for your pickups”, using powerful magnetic fields to interact with your guitar’s strings and pickups.

It’s constructed with a neodymium magnet that opens up a number of interesting playing and noise creation techniques, whether playing directly on the strings or simply manipulating the magnetic field at a distance (up to a maximum of 20cm).

In doing so, X-Pick says you can use the tech to create a whole array of different sounds, including infinite sustain, slide and wah-like tones, delay, tremolo and even EBow-esque noises.

There’s also an octaver-type sound, which can be created by playing on the strings over the pickups, allowing you to gain more than an octave on each string. 

Many of these operate very differently to their pedalboard equivalents and are not intended to replace traditional effects, but work in tandem with them to create interesting results.

For instance, the delay is not ‘set and forget’. Instead, it depends on the player alternating strums or picking on and off the strings, creating each ‘echo’ with an air strum.

Pledges start at €36 (approx. $38), so while it‘s pricey for a pick, we reckon it‘s low enough to warrant an experimental punt for many players.

At the time of writing, the project – led by Italian musician and scientist Marsio Salcuni – has 23 days remaining and has already reached over 50% of its target amount. 

Head to the X-Pick Kickstarter page for more information.  

Joe Bonamassa says that he can’t live without Dunlop Jazz III nylon guitar picks and now, thanks to Dunlop, you can pick up your own life-sustaining plectrums in new custom variations.

The Joe Bonamassa Custom Jazz IIIs are all embossed with the guitarist’s name on the back and come in gold nylon, or can be purchased in variety packs of different colors and materials, including nylon, Ultex and Stiffo. Guitar World has no further comment on those material names, so move on. There’s nothing to see here.

As a notorious gear head, Bonamassa loves to chop and change guitars and amps, meaning the Nylon Jazz III is perhaps the only true staple of his playing setup. The blues-rock kingpin reportedly first tried them around 1994-5 (around his days with early band Bloodline) and favors them for their speed and dexterity, alongside the clarity of tone he finds they bring to his playing. 

If you want some tonal tips from the man himself, check out our latest lesson from the blues rock ace, in which Joe Bonamassa shows us how to get 10 different sounds from a Gibson Les Paul, using just the knobs.

For more information on the Joe Bonamassa Custom Jazz III picks, head to the official Dunlop site. 

The guitar pick is an oft-overlooked component of a guitarist's rig. But choosing the right plectrum is essential in achieving the ideal tone.

And for guitarists playing in a band or composing music with lots of instruments, selecting the right pick is all the more crucial, as without the right level of attack a guitar risks losing clarity in a mix. Dunlop tailors its latest design – the Rock III Custom Nylon Jazz III Pick – precisely to these kinds of players.

Building on the shape of the company's Jazz III Pick, the Rock III Custom Nylon Jazz III Pick sports a beveled edge, which Dunlop says offers “smooth, effortless attacks and notes that sound full, distinct and consistent – even at high gain”. Additionally, the pick's nylon material provides “roundness and warmth to tame harsh highs”.

“The beveled edge ensures that everything you play cuts through even the most harmonically rich mixes and allows you to glide from string to string without resistance,” Dunlop says.

The Rock III Custom Nylon Jazz III Pick is available now for $6.57 for a pack of six. For more information, head to Dunlop.

For hundreds of years, mankind has had a musical love affair with stringed instruments and finding better ways to play them. In the early 1900s,  a golden era in the evolution for guitar in America, a company called National Guitar patented metal finger picks that amplified the playing of acoustic instruments, like banjo and guitar, and improved the articulation and playing experience on horizontal guitars like the resonator guitars that National built.

The intrepid resonator players found a unique soulful quality could be achieved when the instrument was played with a slide, typically a metal bar manipulated with the left hand. Steel string guitarists, too, found ways to adapt the slide sound to blues playing, some through homespun innovations like sliding a glass pill bottle deftly gently on the strings.

On the surface, such innovations can seem simple, but each has proven to be powerful enough to change the course of musical history. So when a company like   Black Mountain Picks comes along with a fresh take on the thumb pick and slide players should pay close attention.

The boutique brand is led by a single founder, Cole McBride, who is not only a player but also a full-time guitar teacher. After playing with hundreds of different picks, McBride started to create tools for himself and his students that would make playing more fun and also expand their playing options. 

Black Mountain’s two most notable inventions are the Black Mountain Thumb Pick and the Black Mountain Slide Ring. Each was designed to address and solve real-world playing problems. Where other mass-producing brands are more concerned with selling one pick style to a broad range of players, Black Mountain has taken a different, more personal approach that instead gives consideration to a player’s unique needs. 

Just check out the Black Mountain Thumb Pick, with an innovative design that enables players to switch seamlessly from fingerstyle to flatpicking. In the hand, it feels like a regular guitar pick but also a traditional thumb pick. Its unique spring-tension design makes it possible to go from one style to another without putting down or reaching for a new pick. 

At the other end of the guitar neck, the Black Mountain Slide Ring offers players more options. Unlike most slip-on slides that take a finger away from the player, the Black Mountain Slide Ring’s spring-loaded, universal-fit allows users to play with a full, four-finger approach, adding  the option to use the ring to add slide licks whenever and wherever needed. It’s inconspicuous and fast but still boasts enough weight in high-quality steel to render the tone of a full-sized slide.

McBride’s creations are designed to free up playing style and spark creativity by making playing more fun. No longer will you have to break out of a groove in order to switch picks or grab up and fit on a slide. Black Mountain Picks puts more options right at your fingertips, allowing you to play however and whatever you want, and with extreme comfort and ease. 

The Black Mountain Thumb Pick and Black Mountain Slide Ring are physically small inventions that can have a huge impact on your music and playing style. Their friendly design and attention to detail could only have come from a player and teacher like McBride who understands guitarists’ needs – because he’s a player like us. 

For more information, head to Black Mountain Picks.

We're always on the lookout for guitar picks to make building a tone and a style that little bit easier – or, indeed, because we've dropped the rest of them into the cavity of our acoustic guitar.

Sometimes it is best to consult the professionals in this search, and today we have a six picks from some of the guitar world's best players, each offering something a little different.

1. D’Addario Chris Thile Casein 1.4mm

Casein offers a similar texture and “warm, balanced tone” of that found in the old natural tortoiseshell picks. The American instrumentalist’s signature pick has a wide triangular shape and each point is bevelled for articulate feel, no matter which side you choose to use. We love them as an acoustic guitar pick.

CONTACT: D'Addario

2. Dunlop Eric Johnson Jazz III

The ever-popular Jazz 3 has long been favoured by Eric Johnson, and Dunlop actually laser-scanned a vintage Jazz III pick from his own collection to recreate it. The result is a smoother tip, enhanced flexibility and a matte finish with raised logos for some added grip.

CONTACT: Jim Dunlop

3. Dunlop Herco Flex 50

Another player loyal to a specific pick is The Cult’s Billy Duffy, who has favoured this design since Johnny Thunders gave him a Flex 50 as a 16 year old after a Heartbreakers gig in 1977. Duffy grips them sideways so he can dig in harder while simultaneously having more hold.

CONTACT: Jim Dunlop

4. Dunlop John Petrucci Primetone Jazz III

The Primetone range features premium hand-burnished picks. The Dream Theater maestro explains his spin: “The custom bevel is based on the edge of one of my own well-worn picks,” he says. “It’ll glide off your strings with a bold sound thanks to its super-durable Ultex material.”

CONTACT: Jim Dunlop

5. Herdim Blue Heavy Nylon

As used since the '70s by The Edge, the German 0.88mm-gauge picks have been a key part of his tone ever since – he will turn them around and use the textured grip part to strike the strings to add a bright (ahem) edge to his attack. These picks have contributed to The Edge’s most famous parts, such as the riff to Where The Streets Have No Name.

Find them on eBay

6. Timber Tones Tom Quayle Black Horn

Another pick material said to be close to tortoiseshell, buffalo horn is favoured by the UK fusion player and features a laser-engraved logo with an etched grid pattern for grip on the other side.

CONTACT: Timber Tones

As guitar players, we’re always looking for the best ways in which we can learn guitar. Not only that, we’re always on the hunt for the platform that will keep us motivated throughout our learning journey – one that will prevent us from hanging up our electric guitar or acoustic guitar after two minutes of ineffectual practice.

In the age of digital platforms and online tuition, who’d have thought that the answer would be a craft beer?

Enter SingleCut Beersmiths, a US-based craft brewery company that seeks to solve the guitar learning problem while providing some much-needed refreshment at the same time. Learning the guitar is, after all, thirsty work.

Dubbed the Notes IPA, SingleCut’s curiously clever innovation sees the arrival of beer cans adorned with the well-familiar, fundamental chord shapes of C, D, G and E-minor. The specifically designed offerings mean that, whenever you take a swig from one of these smart cans, you can practice your chord shapes at the same time.

In a bid to cover all the bases and be a truly comprehensive learning tool, the tactile finish on the labels are also designed to give your fingers a similar experience to pressing down guitar strings.

Not only that, the pint-sized cans themselves feature a nifty guitar pick-equipped ring-pull, letting players pop the IPA and simultaneously rock their six-string.

Arriving in equally guitar-inspired shipping canisters, the Notes IPA line also lines up alongside a new personalized Snapchat filter, which triggers real-time, play-along performances.

“Whether you’re crafting a great IPA or a piece of music, it all comes down to the notes,” said Founder and Head Brewer of SingleCut Beersmiths, Rich Buceta. “This beer innovation has been two years in the making and we love that Notes IPA can now inspire our fans to learn guitar or even become the next Jimi Hendrix.

“Even with these four chords, even if you knew no other chords, you’d be amazed at all the possibilities,” he continued.

For the roll-out process, the boutique brewery will be shipping custom-made cases to a handful of guitar heroes around the world, including Jack White and Robbie Robertson.

The Notes IPA line from SingleCut can be found at the brand's taprooms in Clifton Park, New York and Astoria, Queens, with a four-pack costing $18.

For more information, head over to SingleCut Beersmiths.

Jim Dunlop has teamed up with Periphery guitar-slinger Misha Mansoor for a brand-new signature guitar pick, the Custom Delrin Flow.

Available in two gauges – .65mm and .73mm – the Custom Delrin Flow utilizes Dunlop's Flow pick shape, which has a wide angle and sharp tip for “exceptional handling and precision when things get fast and heavy”.

Built using Delrin – a material similar in feel to Tortex but designed to hold its shape for longer and to wear more evenly – the Custom Delrin Flow features a sculpted edge, which allows players to use their picking hand like a volume control, achieving different dynamics by changing the orientation of attack.

Visually, the pick sports Periphery's three-circle logo on one side and “Bulb” – Mansoor's nickname and the name of his solo side project – on the other.

Says Mansoor: “I do think that the pick is such a massive part of your tone and your sound. 

“I see people obsess over which NOS tube they should put in the V1 section of their tube amp, and spend hundreds of dollars on that, and [simultaneously] not even care about what picks are out there or what they could be using. If you play different picks, it will sound different.”

He continues: “I’m demanding and – dare I say – picky when it comes to what I need from picks. I told Dunlop I was only interested in this if we could engineer the perfect one for me. After a few years of hard work, here it is!”

Both .65mm and .73mm versions of the Custom Delrin Flow are available now at $10 for a bag of six. For more information, head over to Jim Dunlop.

Among the plethora of guitar-playing powers that Paul Gilbert has in his arsenal of jaw-dropping techniques, large parts of his playing is defined by rapid-fire picking patterns that boast elite enunciation and sharp attack.

As such, you’d be forgiven for coming to the conclusion that such passages were achieved using a thick guitar pick. However, in a recent post on Instagram, Gilbert has shut down all our theories by revealing he uses a – wait for it – 0.50mm gauge.

Turns out, the fusion wizard doesn’t need a heavy pick for his playing, and instead prefers the tone and attack of thinner iterations.

“Tortex has crafted some “Pie Baby'' picks from some of my drawings from the Argument About Pie Video. .050mm has my favorite tone and thwap,” commented Gilbert on the post.

Safe to say, Gilbert’s snap surprised a number of social media axe slingers, with one commenting, “Can’t believe you use such a light pick with your picking attack!” Another observed, “A nice stiff pick definitely helps with the attack rather than a thin pick, but what the hell do I know… Paul Gilbert is the goat.”

Last year, the Argument About Pie mastermind recalled that he originally switched to thinner picks after running out of heavier ones.

“I had a box of heavy-gauge picks and I ran out of those, so I went a step lighter, and I ran out of those, so I started using the thin ones,” he recalled. “Pick scrapes are so ferocious on a thin pick – that in itself almost makes it worth it. That, and the more I got used to it, the more I found myself strumming acoustic-style through the solos.

“Kind of like when Hendrix would do Killing Floor. There are solos going on but he’s not picking individual strings, he’s just banging away. So thin picks are good for that stuff.” 

As if we weren’t already floored by Gilbert’s expert execution and precise picking patterns, the revelation that he uses such a lightweight gauge just makes it all the more impressive.

It remains to be seen whether the picks shown in the post will be released by Tortex, so keep your eyes peeled if you fancy picking some up later down the line to do your best Gilbert impression.

Paul Gilbert's upcoming album Argument About Pie, on which he played every instrument, will be released June 4.

Having previously operated as a close-knit community celebrating the works of pickmakers from all corners of the globe with reviews and interviews, Heavy Repping! has announced it has expanded its site, opening the virtual doors to its boutique store of artisan guitar picks to the public.

Conceived, created, and launched by lifelong guitarist John Tron Davidson, Heavy Repping! – HR! for short – aims to collate the best picks from around the world, giving guitarists access to a comprehensive catalog of the guitar world’s best plectrums. 

Featuring offerings from master craftspeople, the online store seeks to pair you with the perfect pick for your playing style to get the sound you want, with everything from injection-molded plastic to hand-crafted wooden plectrums now available for purchase.

Brands already onboard include Ace Performance Picks, Arcanum Plectra, Dragon Picks and Pigtrum, among others.

Of the boutique store, Davidson said, “I created HR! to help musicians of all kinds connect as deeply as possible with their instruments. One of the most fundamental ways to do that is with the pick, and I was shocked to discover that some of these unbelievable makers are currently hardly known by the music community."

Continued Davidson, “I want these artisans to be fully seen and appreciated, rather than being scattered across the internet as the industry’s best kept secret. Getting the right picks changed my interaction, and my confidence, on the guitar, and I want other people to have that experience.

“It doesn’t matter if the pick costs a penny or a million pounds, it’s what it does for the player that matters. I’ve seen firsthand that the right pick can profoundly change any musician’s playing.”

Artisanal pick makers have convened for the launch of HR!’s Plectroverse, with each company offering up a wide variety of designs, styles, materials and thicknesses, as well as interviews with those who made them.

To browse the catalog, head over to Heavy Repping!

In a bid to take the humble guitar pick to the next level, Amiminal has released a series of eye-catching, geometrically styled brass picks that are said to offer improved playability and a number of tonal benefits. 

Described as "functional art", the ornately designed picks seek to deliver a sophisticated aesthetic vibe alongside rugged practicality.

Arriving in an array of different designs – including Stratos, Nebula, StarFix, Orbital, Neushift and Cymatic – the guitar picks are composed of instrument-grade brass and patterned in line with complex geometric shapes.

The statement-piece picks also appear in traditional pick and triangular shapes, with the more pointed triangular pieces offering more attack in comparison to their conventional counterparts.

It’s not all for show, however, with the differing geometry of each design offering up unique playing experiences. While the Stratos provides extra flexibility and malleability for soft strums, the Orbital features an ergonomic hole, which provides added grip and security.

Alongside the functional appointments are a number of tonal and practical benefits. The flexible designs, for example, give less wear and tear on your guitar strings and reduce the possibility of damage.

The appointment of instrument-grade brass is said to also deliver a crisp, bright sound that a regular old plastic pick wouldn’t be able to provide.

Aminimal's new picks are available to purchase now in packs of five, each costing $23.

For more info, head over to Aminimal.

We’re always on the lookout for a cool new guitar plectrum, and now Fender has stepped into the game with the Sterling Silver Playable Guitar Pick, a collaboration with bullion brand PAMP.

The five-gram pick (extra-heavy, not surprisingly) boasts a double-sided pattern grip and 0.925 metal fineness. In addition to being ultra-durable, the metal construction also lends a uniquely bright attack.

The Sterling Silver Playable Guitar Pick is part of series of offerings from Fender and PAMP, including playable products and special edition coins, celebrating Fender’s 75th anniversary.

To that end, the company has also unveiled a one-ounce pure silver legal tender collectible coin. The coins are individually serialized and are available in a $2 denomination.

“We are thrilled to partner with Fender on such a unique collaboration,” said PAMP CEO Nadia Haroun. “In the past year, music has played a key role in bringing us together digitally and a morale boost. Just like the guitars and their artists, the pieces are eclectic and a true testament to our brands, heritage, and savoir-faire.”

“Fender fans around the world have long collected their favorite Fender guitars, gear and apparel; however, this will be the first time in the brand’s 75-year history that we release collectible precious metals products and coins for diehard music fans, guitarists and collectors everywhere,” added Fender Vice President of Licensing & Product Dan Heitkemper.

“PAMP was the perfect partner for this endeavor, bringing its world class design, creativity and craftsmanship to the collaboration. This is just the start of our 75th anniversary celebration with PAMP and more 2021 product announcements are coming soon.”

The Sterling Silver Playable Guitar Pick is available, with a custom plastic capsule for storage, for $59.99.

The plectrum-shaped coins, meanwhile, are offered in $45 and $95 versions.

You can “pick” one up at Fender.

This has been a good year for radical guitar pick designs, and now we have the newest entry on the market, Acoustik Attak’s Attak Piks.

The new plectrums, which are designed to achieve “the sonic result of multiple, rather than single strikes on guitar or bass strings,” utilize a customized injection molding process for a patented design featuring raised ridges, diamonds and other patterns on both sides of the lower tip attack zones.

The result, according to Acoustik, is “enhanced sound waves, regardless of an electric or acoustic player's choice of instrument or strings.”

The series is being launched with two models – the Ambush and the Attak.

The Ambush pick sports five staircase ridges on its top and underside, and promises enhanced upper-midrange harmonics, distortion, percussive effects and thickened upper-midrange frequencies, especially for rhythm guitarists or bassists.

The namesake Attak pick, meanwhile, features three rows of pyramid-shaped ridges on its top and bottom “for clarity and less string noise, especially within mids and high mids.” Acoustik is aiming the Attak design at lead guitarists.

The Ambush and Attak picks are offered in packs of three for $9.99 each or packs of four for $12.99 each. For more information or to purchase, head to Attak Pik.

There has been an awful lot of Kurt Cobain gear going up for sale lately. Last month alone, the Nirvana frontman's battered Boss DS-1 Distortion pedal sold for $9,000, while his MTV Unplugged Martin D-18E set a new record for a guitar sold at auction, reeling in a whopping $6m.

But now there’s a piece of Cobain gear you might just be able to afford… although it’s not quite as unique.

Up for sale at Gotta Have Rock and Roll is a Kurt Cobain stage-used Dunlop Tortex .60mm guitar pick, estimated to sell for $500-$700, with bids starting at $400.

And while you might claim to have an identical pick in your pocket right this very second, this particular plectrum comes from the collection of Cobain guitar tech Jim Vincent.

According to the listing, the pick is in “very good condition”, and comes with a letter of provenance and a Certificate of Authenticity.

To bid, head over to Gotta Have Rock and Roll.

The same memorabilia site is also playing host to auctions of Prince’s custom “Goldfinger” gold-leaf prototype Fender Stratocaster (est. $2m-$3m) and Elvis’s iconic “Sun Sessions” Martin D-18 (est. $2m-$3m).

We’re always up for a good new guitar pick design, and the latest to pique our fingers' interest is the Plextrum.

Designed by Trevor Lewis, the new plectrum features a patent-pending hinge that promises 20 degrees of movement, enabling, according to Lewis, “the tongue to glide over the strings at an optimal angle both on the down and upstrokes to make strumming a breeze.” 

Other features include a 5mm thick body and a textured finger grip that allows players to switch easily between strumming and picking.

The Plextrum is manufactured in the UK in two materials, polycarbonate and acetal, and with three thicknesses of tongue – 0.5, 0.75 and 1 mm.

The pick is available in packs of one, two or three, beginning at £6.99 (approx. $8.80). It's available over to Plextrum.com.

A year and a half or so ago, a brand new company called Bog Street burst onto the scene with the LEAP, a futuristic three-sided pick that the company described as “the most comfortable guitar pick you’ll ever hold.”

Then, in April 2020 - after finding quite a bit of success with the LEAP - the company announced its intention to once again “challenge the conventional guitar pick” with a new line it called the Axe Series.

We put both of the company's pick sets to the test ourselves a couple weeks ago, and found Bog Street's wares to be as comfortable, ergonomic and high-quality as advertised. 

Though this year's Summer NAMM show was cancelled, we were still able to chat with Bog Street's main designer and founder, Paul Holcomb, about what makes Bog Street picks unique, and why they fill a specific niche in the guitar-playing community that often goes overlooked. 

You can see our conversation with Holcomb in the video above. 

For more info on the picks, head on over to Bog Street.

Back in October 2018, a new company called Bog Street burst onto the scene with the LEAP, an innovative, three-sided pick that the company described as “the most comfortable guitar pick you’ll ever hold.”

Guitardom took note of the unusual-looking pick, and brought enough success to Bog Street that, a couple months back, the company announced its intention to once again “challenge the conventional guitar pick” with a new line it called the Axe Series.

All this talk about these distinctive picks was enough to convince Guitar World's Paul and Alan to devote the latest episode of their Cooking with Sound series to Bog Street and its wares.

So, are these really the most comfortable, convention-challenging picks on the market? Find out for yourself in the video above.

For more info on the picks, head on over to Bog Street.

FU-Tone is best known for its brass and titanium tremolo bridge upgrades, and now the company is getting into the acoustic guitar pick game with a new line of exotic wood plectrums.

The new range boasts designs using 20 different woods: ebony, mango, rosewood, Indian rosewood, purple heart, steembeech, dark steembeech, haldina, coconut, bamboo, curly maple, bakan, acacia, blackberry, teak, American maple, padok, jackwood, tamariad and oak.

“Having so many tonal options while playing your acoustic guitar is incredible,” said FU-Tone’s founder and president Adam Reiver. “You will never play acoustic guitar with a plastic pick again.”

The picks are available for $14.95 each.

For more information, head to FU-Tone.com.

Bog Street has introduced the new Axe Series of plectrums, which the company touts as a “challenge to the conventional guitar pick.”

Axe picks feature a unique, three-sided form-factor design, with models that combine both thick and thin edges in one pick.

Picks are “designed to optimize ergonomic grip while providing flexibility for individual technique and style.”

The Axe Blade and Axe Cut models feature a three-sided design that offers two 2mm jazz-style beveled edges and a .6 mm strumming edge with a standard tip shape.

Additional Axe variations are planned for later in 2020.

All Axe picks are injection molded using a high-grade crystalline polymer, laser-cut finished and polished in a silicon carbide grit.

The picks are available in packs of six for $17.90.

For more information or to purchase, head to Bog Street.

D’Addario has introduced a new guitar pick made of casein, a synthetic material mainly comprised of dairy proteins.

The new Casein 351 pick is similar in shape to D’Addario’s tortoiseshell plectrums, but with several unique features, including a playing edge with a right-handed bevel to help glide along the strings, a pointed tip and, of course, the fact that’s made of synthetic proteins.

The Casein picks are offered in an extra heavy 2.0mm gauge, and according to D’Addario are ideal for acoustic and electric guitar and bluegrass playing.

The picks are available now for $21.99 per pack. For more information, head to D’Addario.

Enter Germany-based Rombo Picks has unveiled a new series of guitar plectrums, the Eco-Black range, made from 100% recycled waste.

According to Rombo, the material is not only environmentally friendly, but also boasts “high mechanical strength and stiffness, excellent impact resistance and superior aesthetic properties.”

The Eco-Black range consists of four pick models – the Rombo Origami (0.75 mm), the Rombo Diamond (2 mm), the Rombo Waves (1.25 mm) and the Rombo Classic (0.45 mm) – all with a micronodule grip structure, a high mirror-polished tip and a 3D ergonomic design surface.

The picks come in Graphite Black, which Rombo states is one of the properties of the recycled material, with a suggested retail price of $11.15 for a set of four.

Head over to Rombo to, um, pick some up.

Want to play like James Hetfield? A few years, or decades, of practice might be a good start.

But it also couldn’t hurt to get your hands on one of Dunlop’s new James Hetfield White Fang Custom Flow picks.

The new plectrum, designed in conjunction with the Metallica singer and guitarist, uses Dunlop’s Flow Standard Pick 1.0mm as a starting point, but boosts the weight up to 1.14mm.

From there, the White Fang adds in the blended beveled edges from Hetfield’s previous signature pick, the Black Fang, for a “super snappy attack.”

Finally, there’s a custom grip pattern for extra hold when picking at Master of Puppets-level speeds.

“It’s fast and sleek and easy to grip,”  Hetfield says. “And it’s easy to see it when you throw it out in the crowd.”

For more information, head to Dunlop. And to see the pick in action, check out Hetfield’s demo below. 

Bog Street Music has introduced the LEAP, which they’re calling “the most comfortable guitar pick you’ll ever hold.”

According to the company, the three-sided ergonomic plectrum boasts a contour on one side that is designed to provide stability and comfort to the thumb. The opposite side offers freedom of motion and control for the index finger. A hole in the center of the grip allows the thumb and index finger make contact while playing, which Bog Street believes improves feel and comfort during playing.  

The LEAP is being offered in two models— Lead, designed for electric guitarists, and Rhythm, for acoustic players. Each model features three different pick gauges for each point. Rhythm features .45mm, .70mm and .80mm points, while Lead offers .73mm, .96mm and 1.5mm.

According to Bog Street founder Paul Holcomb, when he first began playing guitar, one of the things he struggled with was the pick. “It would slip, they were hard to control, I would drop them and I would lose them,” he says in the accompanying video. “Does anybody else have this problem?”

“It might be time,” Holcomb continues, “for the standard guitar pick to get an ergonomic upgrade.”

To find out more about the LEAP and to purchase picks, head over to Bog Street’s Kickstarter page.

Here's another interesting video from the gang over at Gear Gods. The premise is, you've shown up at a gig—but you've forgotten all your guitar picks. Apparently, no one else in the band—or in the audience (or sound crew)—has a pick, and there are no guitar shops nearby. So basically, just picture a Twilight Zone episode in which plectrums no longer exist. What would you use instead?

Gear Gods' Trey Xavier investigates!

In the interactive clip below, you're able to "choose your weapon" and go from there. Will you choose the spoon (food shovel)? The bottle cap? The U.S. quarter? The green plastic coffee stirrer? The broken credit card?

Regardless, the clip shows you how all of them sound and react to normal playing. Check it out and choose your favorite "found object" guitar pick.

Looking for a plectrum that dares to be different?

From Dunlop to Sik Pik to Planet Waves and beyond, Guitar World presents an assortment.

Take your pick!

1. Dava Grip Tips Delrin

Dava Grip Tips are the only picks with an over-molded rubber grip. The gripping area provides a comfortable nonslip surface that gives players more secure control. The pick’s tip is made of Delrin, which gives a smooth, fast release from the strings, not to mention excellent tone and superior durability.

LIST PRICE: Six-pack, $7.50, Davapick.com

2. Dunlop Tortex

It may not be new, but Tortex is the original innovative material for pick manufacturing, and Dunlop Tortex is the favorite pick of musicians worldwide. Tortex picks are carefully designed and manufactured to give the characteristic maximum memory and minimum wear that made tortoiseshell so popular in the first place.

LIST PRICE: 12 Picks/Players Pack, $5.70, jimdunlop.com

3. Awe-in-One Picks

Awe-In-One multi-edged picks combine thin, medium and thick gauges in each pick, allowing guitarists to change gauge quickly and easily. A unique indent prevents slippage, and by holding the picks at certain angles you can create harmonics, “pop” or “scratch” the string, and mimic the sound of a 12-string. The picks comes in four types: Folk Debut, Folk Power, Rock Vibes and Rock Licks.

LIST PRICE: $1.20, awe-in-one.com

4. The SnakePick

The SnakePick was created to shift guitarists’ focus from the pick to their playing. Although you hold it like a normal pick, it holds your finger as well, opening up new possibilities for playing technique, including picking with multiple fingers, and allowing you to play with more precise articulation. The Snakepick is available in different sizes and thickness.

LIST PRICE: Three-pack, $5.99, snakepick.com

5. Planet Waves Black Ice

Black Ice picks have a custom oversized shape that’s designed for speed picking with precise articulation. The picks are made of Planet Waves’ ultra-durable Duralin, which resists abrasion and provides balanced tone with a bright attack. Black Ice picks are triple-tumbled to create a soft-touch texture that’s very smooth, yet easy to grip.

LIST PRICE: 10-pack, $3.84; 100-pack, $29.74, planetwaves.com

06. Dunlop Max-Grip Nylon

The Max-Grip Nylon pick's molded gripping surface has a coarse grid that provides an unparalleled nonslip surface. The combination of Max-Grip and molded nylon material makes it perfect for speed pickers and hard strummers who want extreme precision and durability without losing control of their pick.

LIST PRICE: 12 Picks/Players Pack, $5.70, jimdunlop.com

07. Swiss Pick

It may look like a small wedge of fine Emmentaler, but there’s nothing cheesy about the Swiss Pick. Combining utility and innovative design, the pale-yellow pick’s off-center holes with raised edges provide a superior grip. The Swiss Pick is made of Delrin for exceptional tone and, despite its name, is produced right here in the United States.

LIST PRICE: Six-pack, $5.99, swisspicks.com

08. Sik Pik The Sik Pik puts a new twist, literally, on traditional pick design. Its twisted tip won’t click, drag or snap on the strings like a standard pick will. As a result, it glides across the strings, producing a smooth, round tone. The Sik Pik opens new possibilities for dynamic playing, allowing you to “play on the edge.”

LIST PRICE: $3; four-pick set, $10, sikpik.com

09. Planet Waves Cellu-Glo Cellu-Glo picks provide celluloid’s natural feel and warm tone in a glow-in-the-dark pick. The picks can be charged in natural sunlight or under a light bulb, and their glow adds a new visual element to your performance (it also makes the picks easy to find on dark stages). They’re available in light, medium, heavy and extra-heavy gauges.

LIST PRICE: 10-pack, $3.14; 25-pack, $6.99; 100-pack, $24.49, planetwaves.com

10. Blue Magic Pick

Though it’s many times larger than the typical plectrum, the Blue Magic pick is ergonomically designed to improve and enhance guitarists’ skills. Its three parts—head, body and scraper—let you hold the pick in a way that feels natural and use your strength to its full capacity, thereby allowing you to play more easily and precisely. The Blue Magic pick is available in light, medium and heavy gauges.

LIST PRICE: $5, three-pack, $15, bluemagicpick.com

11. Tonetek Heavy Metal pick

ToneTek’s Heavy Metal stainless-steel pick is one big chunk of metal, but its mass and density can increase string volume and sustain and fatten tone. Its edge is designed to glide across the top of the strings, allowing you to perform pick-hand slides and create new techniques that combine tapping, slides, sweeps and glissando, and it can be used to tap above the end of the fretboard.

LIST PRICE: $29.95, Tonetek.biz

Guitarists, meet the Pick Slinger.

It's a new type of guitar pick that you wear like a ring, allowing you to swing—and/or sling—it in and out of your grip as needed.

This could allow players to go from flat picking to fingerstyle in an instant. When you need your pick to strum, it's there. When you're suddenly in to the mood to tap or slap, your pick mysteriously disappears with a quick flick of the wrist.

The Pick Slinger is made by hand (for now, anyway) in Massachusetts and is being sold in a Boston-area test market.

The company claims the item is especially popular with local guitar instructors because they can put it on when they begin a teaching shift, and they don't have to remove it until they clock out. They no longer have to put down their pick to position students' hands, use keyboards, etc.

Certainly, gigging guitarists would never have to put down their picks when changing guitars, adjusting pedals, having a drink, etc.

The company also claims the Pick Slinger can help students develop their personal styles more quickly.

For more information, check out the two videos below and visit the Pick Slinger's website and Facebook page.

In this debut episode of CBC Music’s series Show Me Your Pick, Metallica guitarist Kirk Hammett debuts his brand-new His custom Dunlop Jazz III pick.

“Usually my guitar picks are lime green but today I have a black pick with metallic flake in it. I got these because I like metallic flake, but if I drop these onstage, I’m fucked—’cause I won’t be able to see ‘em!”

As Hammett notes, the pick has a V shape cut out of the top. Check out the video to learn its purpose.

“This pick completely changed my guitar style, completely changed how I play, completely changed how I pick,” Hammett says. “This little pick here was the best thing to happen to my playing.”

Find out why below.

Eric Johnson is one of the most fastidious tone tweakers around, obsessing over every component of his gear, from strings to batteries.

In a new interview with Total Guitar, Johnson hits on a subject we’ve discussed quite a bit around these parts: the effect your guitar pick has on your tone. While your choice of pick can affect both clean and dirty tones, Johnson focused on the latter.

“A lot of your tones come from the type of pick you use,” he says.

“It’s really interesting; you can get 10 picks from a music store, and if you’re using enough distortion, each one will sound totally different. It can make you think you’re playing a totally different amp!

“When you think about it, the pick hitting the string is what initiates your sound. When you are using overdrive or fuzz, you have to find out where the threshold is, otherwise no matter how flawless your technique is, it can sound kinda trashy.

“The idea is to determine the threshold on your pedal or amp overdrive to where you can go as far as you can before the sound starts pixelating—which can make your technique sound bad.”
You can read the entire interview at Total Guitar.

Johnson has just released his latest album, EJ, which is his first-ever acoustic effort. You can hear the album tracks “Wrapped in a Cloud” and “Once Upon a Time in Texas” below.

You’re recording a guitar solo in your room, and you’re absolutely tearing it up. The neighbors aren’t even calling the cops on you this time because what you’re playing sounds so good. Yep, it’s one of those days where your chops are utterly on point. You slay a blistering pentatonic blues lick, smile to yourself confidently, and set your pick down to stop the recording.

You listen back to your take, and smirk to yourself, “I bet John Petrucci couldn’t even play that.” You’re feeling great. Now it’s time to double the solo to add a bit more girth to the sound. You go to grab your pick off your desk, but it’s not there. You must have dropped it or something. No big deal.

You play your next take with a fresh pick, and it’s spot on. You set the pick down again to stop the recording, because it’s hard to click a mouse and hold a pick at the same time.

“Okay, time to add a harmony, baby,” you pronounce, as if someone in the room can hear you. But wait–your pick is gone again. You start to become a little alarmed, with traces of confused rage starting to swirl around inside you.

You grab a package of picks and take out another one. “Where does my pick keep going? Whatever, I have to get this harmony down!” You’re taking an ‘out of sight, out of mind’ approach to the situation. You press the record button, and lay down the harmony.

After stopping the recording, you decide another harmony is in order. But your pick is not where you left it. You cry out, “What’s happening!?” The hairs on your neck are starting to stand up, and that prickly feeling is making its way up your back. You don’t feel safe. “That’s ridiculous! Enough is enough!”

You dump your package of picks on the desk. “There’s no way I can lose all of these!” You go to record the harmony, and your head raises to the sky as you skewer the final note of the take. To your shock, you look back down at your desk, only to see an empty bag with no picks in sight.

You’re in a full-blown panic now. You hold your final remaining pick out in front of you. There’s no way you can lose it if you don’t take your eyes off it, right? You feel an eerie presence around you, but your eyes are glued to the pick. Oh no… your eyes are burning. You have to blink!

“No, no, NO…!” You blink. When your eyes open, your pick is gone, and you’re only holding air. You surrender to complete mental breakdown.

Tyler Larson is the founder of the guitar-centric brand Music is Win. His insightful, uncomplicated guitar lessons and gear demonstrations along with entertaining, satirical content about life as a musician receive tens of millions of video views per month across social media. Tyler is also the creator of the extremely popular online guitar learning platform, Guitar Super System. A graduate of Berklee College of Music, Tyler has been teaching guitar for over a decade and operates a production studio in Nashville, TN.

Guitar World Recommends shines the spotlight on new and noteworthy gear for guitarists. This week, Guitar World recommends PykMax High Performance guitar picks.

The pick, the result of a multi-year design and engineering effort, features a patented ergonomic design that fits the hand comfortably and eliminates traditional muscle pressure associated with gripping traditional picks.

“The guitar pick has always been somewhat of an obstacle for many beginning and intermediate players," says Jeremy Milikow, CEO of Pro Music Marketing, maker of Pykmax. "Pykmax enables those players to concentrate more on playing great music and less on gripping the guitar pick.”

While we're on the subject, be sure to check out "13 Guitar Techniques with Pykmax High Performance Guitar Picks — Demo Video."

For more information, visit pykmax.com.

Guitar World Recommends shines the spotlight on new and noteworthy gear for guitarists. This week, Guitar World recommends Dunlop's Herco Nylon Flat guitar picks.

Herco Nylon Flat Picks, which are made from high-quality nylon, feature uniform thickness and are extremely durable and long lasting.

The unique pattern on the picks insures a slip-proof grip. Used by professionals worldwide.

Check out our exclusive intro-and-demo video below, which features Guitar World's tech editor, Paul Riario, and a very nice Fender Custom Shop Tele with TV Jones pickups!

For more about these picks, visit jimdunlop.com.