Just tried a Blue Chip pick on my mandolin

[Rdeane]

Once I found D'Andrea Plec 1.5mm picks, my pick hunt ended. I tried a buddy's Blue Chip, and it didn't really do it for me. And usually, I like the expensive stuff.

I really like the D'andrea 1.5 mm picks, Dawg picks and Dunlop Primetone smooths. But I just got a TAD60 Blue Chip and it sounds pretty darn good on the Collings MT2.

[JeffD]

A great player can sound great on most any instrument with almost any pick.

And a great player can sound even greater on a greater instrument with a greater pick.

I have recently learned why I should be a fan of Arthur Ashe. Alas I came to the party late. But I love his quote. It applies here:

Start where you are. Use what you have. Do what you can.

[Dan in NH]

A great player can sound great on most any instrument with almost any pick.

And a great player can sound even greater on a greater instrument with a greater pick.

That’s one of the reasons why I’m in no great rush to upgrade my mandolin. I am in no way a great player. I have a long way to go before outgrow my current instrument.

[Big Joe]

I got my first BC pick in 2015 and it is the one I still use on mandolin and guitar. About 10 years ago I got a second. Now I have one in with my mandolin and one in with my guitar. Best non TS pick I have found and when you amortize it over all those years, it’s cheaper than the cheap picks that break, wear out, or get lost. I still have a few TS picks, and I love them, but the BC is close enough and I can take it anywhere. I worried about having a pick that expensive, but if you pay that much for a pick, you will likely keep a close watch on it and not lose it. My picks have many, many hours of use, but they do not show wear on the picks. It has turned out to be a good investment for me.

[Tjspahr1]

This thread made me think "Hey, why not try a BC pick?" I have one of their thumb pics for dobro. So I ordered a CT-55 a few days ago.

I got the pick today, and have been playing it back and forth with a D'Addario Primetone trianagle 1.4. I have to say with the instrument I was playing, the BC sounded better.

I'll keep trying other picks, but right now, the BC is on top to my ears, instrument, and playing.

[JeffD]

That’s one of the reasons why I’m in no great rush to upgrade my mandolin. I am in no way a great player. I have a long way to go before outgrow my current instrument.

I am going to have to respectfully disagree. I think after the first mandolin, where love is confirmed, folks should get the very very best mandolin they can responsibly afford. I hope to never be close to outgrowing my mandolin, and always always be growing into it. By the time I have decent chops, the mandolin will be an old friend, whose idiosyncrasies I know well. And even then, I hope the mandolin has a bit more for me to appreciate.

[Dan in NH]

I am going to have to respectfully disagree. I think after the first mandolin, where love is confirmed, folks should get the very very best mandolin they can responsibly afford. I hope to never be close to outgrowing my mandolin, and always always be growing into it. By the time I have decent chops, the mandolin will be an old friend, whose idiosyncrasies I know well. And even then, I hope the mandolin has a bit more for me to appreciate.

I didn't cheap out when I bought my first mandolin. The Kentucky KM-250 is a nice instrument.

Although even after the first week I was already regretting not getting the Kentucky KM-272, exact same mandolin but with an oval sound hole rather than F holes. I'm learning that I prefer the more mellow "modern" mandolin sound over the sharp "traditional" tone.

Probably next month I plan to bring my KM-250 to a luthier that specializes in mandolins, hopefully tweek the playability a little. And I'm experimenting with different strings.

I suppose I could save my nickels & dimes & bottle caps & breakfast cereal box tops and get myself a nice Eastman 504. I played an Eastman 304 in a shop the other day, and it was just butter. But that's all a long way off yet.

[tjmangum]

This thread made me think "Hey, why not try a BC pick?"

This thread is like a late night infomercial!
My BC arrived yesterday. I'd tried one before, but hadn't gotten around to ordering one. TAD 50 might just be the ticket. Hard to describe, but incrementally better than the Primetones etc. Thanks to everyone here for enabling!

[Mandolinian]

I just got the CT-55 and I wasn't super impressed. I mean, it seems like my Wegen gets a louder chop and the Red Bear Tri-tip I just got has an almost as good chop, and has a nice round sound for jazz or other calmer music. It also moved about as fast. In summary, the Red Bear is the best pick I've ever played.

Interested in others' thoughts though...

[joh]

The red pear pick is extremely scratch for me. Worse than the Wegens.

[Jim Garber]

Here’s the final tally unscientifically calculated: for Blue Chips, Tone Guard, Tone Right, TAB notation, standard notation, Thomastik strings, bowlbacks, tremolo-playing, bluegrass chops, armrests, pick guards, etc, etc, etc there are some people like them, some hate them, and some just meh. Everyone has their opinion and rightfully so. What works for me may or may not work for you and vice versa. Oh, I forgot that some folks say instruments break in tonally over time and some people say players break in over time. So it goes…

[GMorgan]

I adopted my first mandolin a bit more than five years ago. I'm an old violinist who wanted to sit and play music and followed my approach to buying bows when selecting my first pick. I think really good bows are important, and I'd heard that the CT-55 were really good picks. So, that is where I started. However, I have accumulated a small box full of nearly every pick I have seen mentioned here on the Cafe and I do give each a chance to impress me. Several are quite good, and many more just do not do it for me. However, I do know it is all personal preference and, as a rule, I almost exclusively pick with my CT-55 picks.

Now, comparing picks to wine was fun. I have friends who have shared really good wine with me, and it is often quite noticeable that more expensive wines are worth it, if you have that kind of disposable income. I don't. But, I think every good mandolin practice session can be enhanced by a small glass of wine. I think I play better with a bit of Cab and a CT-55.

Cheers!

[Al Trujillo]

Anyone who pays $35 for a pick is certifiably nuts! I own four of them.

And of course, I've never spent more than $15 on a bottle of wine...go figure.

[keith.rogers]

Anyone who pays $35 for a pick is certifiably nuts! I own four of them.

And of course, I've never spent more than $15 on a bottle of wine...go figure.

If you keep throwing all your money away on picks, you never will

I definitely have spent more money on picks than I ever imagined since actually starting to play and spending "some" time here. But, I think I probably still spend a bit more on wine

[Bill McCall]

I save money on wine to buy more picks.

[Rob Roy]

I just got the CT-55 and I wasn't super impressed. I mean, it seems like my Wegen gets a louder chop and the Red Bear Tri-tip I just got has an almost as good chop, and has a nice round sound for jazz or other calmer music. It also moved about as fast. In summary, the Red Bear is the best pick I've ever played.

Interested in others' thoughts though...

For chop, the pick won't be as critical as long as it's stiff. To me, the advantage of the Blue Chip pick is (along with sticking to my fingers) in trying to play lead or melody faster with a good tone. There is where the BC shines. I've played a CT55 for about 10 years and it has held up amazingly well. I recently got a second CT55 for back up. When comparing the two, I could see the the speed bevels on the old one had become wider (I tend to always use the same point).

As an experiment, I very slightly rounded one tip on the old pick and softened the sharp edges before polishing it all the way out. It made a huge difference in the tone on a bright mandolin. It still has a speed bevel so the tone is not quite the same as a casein pick, but closer.

[A-board]

Blue chip for controlled indoor environments, Primetone for outdoors where it might get dropped. I’m liking Wegan on monels.

[musicofanatic]

I got one when they first came out because they were advertised as being wear resistant...within a month I put a rough edge on it, just like I did with cheap plastic picks. Then one night I was playing outdoors where the ground was brown and I inadvertently dropped it...last I saw of it. I'm working on acclimating to a Tone Slab now, but my last old turtle shell pick still sounds the best