Does a mando pick really make a difference?

[CSIMelissa]

Sorry for such a newbie question. Does having an actual mandolin pick really make a difference? I've been playing for about a month and just using a heavy gauge Fender guitar pick. Should I actually see about some mandolin picks and use those instead?

Again, sorry for such a newbie question but thanks for responding!

[Mike Bunting]

Sorry for such a newbie question. Does having an actual mandolin pick really make a difference? I've been playing for about a month and just using a heavy gauge Fender guitar pick. Should I actually see about some mandolin picks and use those instead?

Again, sorry for such a newbie question but thanks for responding!

An actual mandolin pick is way better than a virtual mandolin pick. The one you have is just fine.

[Gene Summers]

CSIMelisa, I would try a Golden Gate pick or a Dawg pick, they have rounded edges. I prefer them to a pointed pick.

[Terry Allan Hall]

Any pick that works for your guitar will work just as well for your mandolin...some folks use a different pick, but most of us use the same pick, not matter the instrument.

[fatt-dad]

Rounded, heavy, pointed, thin, it all affects sound and your technique. I do love my Blue Chip CT 55!

f-d

[Jon Hall]

I used Fender heavies for 13-14 years until I changed to a heavier D'Andrea Pro Plec 1.5 mm. For me, a thicker pick doesn't produce as much pick noise and works better for tremolo. A heavier pick requires a more relaxed grip.

[CSIMelissa]

Some points to ponder! Appreciated....

[Bob Clark]

Hi Melissa,

Why not go to a shop that has a good selection of picks and buy a bunch of different styles and thicknesses. You can purchase an assortment for very little money. Play with each of them and discover what you like. Then start altering them; different points, different bevels and so on. See how that changes your playing. I find that my preference changes depending on what style of music I am playing, also day-to-day and over time. I also find that as time goes on, I tend to want thicker picks. It's cheap and fun to play around with different picks and I have learned a lot from it. I hope you will have fun with it, too.

Best wishes, Bob

[mandobassman]

There are no "actual" mandolin picks. Whatever gives you the sound and feel you like is the one you should use. It's way too soon to worry about those details. Once you learn more about the instrument, you will be able to figure out what gives you the tone you like. Concentrate more on learning mandolin. I will say that the majority of mandolin players favor heavier picks in the range between 1mm - 1.5mm.

[f5loar]

Finding the right pick for you is like picking out the right color carpet for your house. There are 1000's to choose from so it's not an easy task to undertake. And it's likely you won't like the one you picked either. I don't pick like the "Dawg" so I don't need his picks. After 50 years of trying to find that right one I have settled on BlueChips for life. I can't see a better one being invented in my lifetime. The problem with the BlueChip is you still got that task of finding the right one for you as there are so many shapes, thickness, bevels to choose from it can get mind twisting at times.

[JeffD]

Yes it makes a difference, to many. Mandolin seems more sensitive to the type of pick than guitar.

That being said one month in I don't think the pick you use is the biggest thing to worry about. A Fender Heavy is a great pick for mandolin and will take you a long ways down the road. I still use a Fender Heavy for some things.

Later on I think it will be easier for you to judge what you like and don't like about various kinds of picks, and be better able to choose something that benefits your playing.

I guess the quick answer is: yes it matters, but not yet.

[mandroid]

music style played comes into It.

Classical a pointed one maybe better.. I have big rounded triangle picks
big makes them easier to hold onto..
and the Dawg ones thick and rounder .. in use most.

given picks are usually low cost, try out an assortment , you can also re shape them , with the same
tools for shaping your fingernails

try different hardness of material too.. they vary a lot , get a basket assortment.

[roysboy]

My experience is that the heavier the pick the warmer, woodier, fatter and louder the sound and the easier it is to get all of that tone and a strong even-sounding tremolo . I use 2.0 .

[Ivan Kelsall]

Melissa - The only way to find out which pick suits your mandolin 'the best',is to visit a decent music store & try a few different onesto 'hear' what they sound like,& yes,they do sound different. Even then,you might have only picked the 'best' within the types you've been able to try out at that store. Another music store might have different ones,which might sound 'better'. Ultimately,there is no 'best' pick,only those that i prefer to say have a 'more pleasing difference' when used on your mandolin - other folk will have their own preferences,
Ivan

[Matt DeBlass]

Because the mandolin has shorter strings and a relatively high tension compared to guitar, a thicker pick seems to get a better sound out of it for most.

There are certainly some high end (from $5 up to around $50) picks available for mandolin, but it's best to get a sense of what you prefer before you start investing in those.

I think the best idea is to go to a music store and get an assortment of different shapes and thicknesses and play around with them to see what you like. Some folks like small "jazz" style picks, some folks (like me) like large triangles, and some like the standard "teardrop" guitar style (but many play with the rounded edge rather than the point). Once you know what feels best, then you can start thinking about materials and brands.

Or, on the flip side, you can just pick with what you have and you will likely be happier than us crazy people who accumulate piles of different picks and obsess over tiny differences in sound

[Beanzy]

The more you listen the more it matters.
As long as you keep listening you'll eventually end up tormenting yourself in your own quest for the holy flail like the rest of us.

[UsuallyPickin]

Yeah .. a day trip to a music store with your mandolin in hand ....... size , shape , thickness and bevel , can be determined fairly cheaply..a good selection can be purchased and tried out... when you get into materials the price goes up. I do like Blue Chip CT-55's ...... but at 35.00$ each they are quite an investment..... take your time and try out a handful ....... R/

[Jim]

I prefer a Fender 351 heavy for mandolin though a medium will do. I have used them for my entire playing life and after 46 years of playing they feel like part of my hand. I have used the rounded edge to pick and it works but I usually just use the pointy end. Try lots till you find one you like.

[Brandon Sumner]

Agree with all the rest, You are best off trying lots of different picks, see waht suits you and your playing, that will evolve over time too, I go back and forth between a Bluechip TAD 60 and a Wegen Mandolin pick all the time

[Bertram Henze]

Pick choice determines the articulation of the instrument; like an old man's voice might be always the same, his speech may sound different with or without his teeth in.

[Cheryl Watson]

Over the years, I tend to prefer different picks for both guitar and mandolin. Different shapes, sizes, thicknesses, points, and materials. It can get very involved and confusing.

In general, what is often labeled and sold as a "mandolin" pick for bluegrassy music is often an elliptical or rounded triangle as opposed to the classic guitar pick (think the Fender you are currently using) with one pointed end and two shoulders. But, that shape works for some players and not for others. Some players prefer the triangle shape for guitar and the classic shape for mandolin.

Two good picks to start comparing with are the D'Andrea Proplec 1.5mm rounded triangle and the Proplec "standard" 1.5mm. They both have what is called a standard "rounded" bevel which allows for a smoother tone and it flows off the strings better than a cheap pick that has no bevel. I believe that the Fender picks you are currently using have a rounded edge. Any change in thickness and shape takes time to get used to so, a larger pick can seem really awkward at first.

There are quite a few relatively cheap picks out there that you can try to determine your preferred shape, thickness, points, and material such as Dawg, Proplec, Golden Gate (very rounded) and several others. The intermediate priced picks include Wegen, Ivoroid, and V-Picks. Then you have the Red Bear and Blue Chip and several other picks that are very expensive. And the funny thing is, after trying a bunch, you might find that you actually do prefer your Fender heavy--or, you might go to Fender extra-heavy or a similar standard shaped pick which is what Adam Steffey used to use: A Dunlop Delrin 1.2mm and they also have a 1.5mm thickness. Those are inexpensive to try.

[stevedenver]

Cheryl gives great advice and insight above.

Take twenty dollars and buy an assortment of thicknesses, shapes, colors. Colors are fun. I tend to like bright ones so if I drop them, its obvious. Some of those old brown ones blend in with stage floors and dark bars ......

It is unlikely you will waste money in so doing. Over time, you'll use them all, trade them, give them to someone, or grow out of and into them. Some of us own hundreds, over the decades.



I like pro plecs too-get both shapes to see what you like.

I will say, as a beginner in mando, when I got my first proplec , courtesy Ted at jazz mando, when I bought some strings, the rounded point really helped my tremolo and getting a rounder fuller tone, than my heavy fender guitar picks. What happened due to this 'NEW' pick, in part, it made me more aware of the pick and its impact. I can play anything with any pick, but some are better, to me, for some purposes, than others. Pesos are NOT good, contrary to some popular player's usage...LOL.

Here are my thoughts:
you will change over time, as your technique changes, as your choice of strings and music changes, and other factors.
Try a few thin, medium, and heavy-try ultex, celluloid, and other materials, high carbon, nylon, whatever. ONLY YOU will know what you like, and only you will discover this by trying them out.

Plus you'll have a collection, and the other picks wont get lonely and runaway.

Here's the irony, for a while, ill bet, any old pick will do. Over time, you'll develop a preference, as your playing, ear and technique mature.


Thin are forgiving for, imho, general control issues, too deep a strum, a stiff wrist or death grip, or not quite being able to allow the pick to glide instead of digging in on the strings, etc. nothing wrong with them at all btw, 'cept they tear, so get a lot if you tend to use them.

As a guitarist I used the teardrop 351 size pretty much exclusively , except for smaller jazz picks-after all these years, I only use heavy, but for fifteen years I used mediums.

For mando, I love the proplec large or 346 size picks, simply more to hold onto when chopping for an hour or more.

Personally, I wouldn't buy any expensive pick (over 5-7 dollars) until such time as you are well experienced in what you prefer. I bought one, a $35 blue chip, (I drank the cool aid reading all the tesimonials and I wanted to know first hand what the praise was about). It IS a great pick, the best I have, but imho, it doesn't merit its price , nor do I think it wise to have to 'worry' about where your $35 pick is. I get 95% there with a golden gate or proplec or Pick Boy Brand 346 (a favorite pick of mine) . There is a joy in not having to manage a .50-1.00 item, just my two cents. If I lose mine, I don't think I will replace it.

it is my experience that smaller shops as opposed to guitar center, may have wider pick selections.

[Elliot Luber]

CSIMelisa, I would try a Golden Gate pick or a Dawg pick, they have rounded edges. I prefer them to a pointed pick.

I never understood what people (and Gods like David Grisman) see in those Dawg and Golden Gate picks. I can't get much sound out of them. Give me a D'Andrea Pro Plec any day.

[Eric F.]

After I switched to a Blue Chip CT-55 my split ends disappeared, my teeth got brighter and my sons made the dean's list. Also, my mandolin sounded better. On the other hand, Roland White says in his instructional book that he uses a Fender heavy, so go figure.

[CES]

I never understood what people (and Gods like David Grisman) see in those Dawg and Golden Gate picks. I can't get much sound out of them. Give me a D'Andrea Pro Plec any day.

Amen, brother! I have a Golden Gate that I use on my acoustics when I need to practice quietly and don't have my mandobird. I can get tone from them, but I feel like I really have to work at it. Like my Pro-Plec, love my Wegens (TF 140 for main mandolins, 120 for guitar, OM, and my pancake), and have fallen in love with my Bluechip guitar pick, which was a Christmas gift. I'm actually considering getting a CT 55 or a TAD 60 to try. In a pinch, or at music stores (where I grab a pick from my car's ash tray or my pocket, Fender Heavy (which was my only pick for years) or Ultex 1mm work just fine. And I actually really like the Ultex 1.14 and 1.4 mm picks for mando as well. And they're cheap. Gator picks are OK. Never got into the Nylon picks, they're just too flexible IMO, though they can be good strummers on guitar.

But, to answer your question, yes!