3P

It's pick-hopping day featuring the trio seen above (L-R):

• DAW Man - Shred Line glitter edition (limited run) 2.5mm
• Gravity - 003 Custom 2mm
• V-Picks - Mummy special edition 3mm 

When I play guitar, it's my ritual to have more than one pick out. I'd switch between picks during play out of necessity; some playing styles are better done with a certain pick & that's a fact, yes? You can't do grinding black metal with a 0.5mm nylon pick. It's madness. Anyway, these 3 have been giving me the best results based on the intentions. The DW is my most efficient shredder. It's not acrylic & gives off the least clicking sound making individual notes sound true. However it's the least effective when it comes to grip & won't be ideal for fast & intense riffing. The Gravity 003 is the in between-er. I usually have it done in 3mm but this time it's a 2mm. Gravity uses acrylic & the picking tones are sharp & to my ears, riffs could sound super crunchy at times instead of being deep & doom-laden. Despite this quirky response, I love it for single coil tones. Finally, the V-Picks Mummy is a special edition 3mm version (factory default - 2.75mm) & has 2 grip lines as opposed to the usual 3. This is my preferred pick form, outline & feature. I'm too used to this one after quitting the Dunlop Stubby. Despite being equally acrylic, the Mummy has a less sharp response & it gives off a balanced tone for both solos & riffs. It's my go-to pick. 

Folks, if you think guitar picks do not contribute to tone then you need to re-think this belief. A simple but extreme reference is to hear your guitar tones using a rubber & acrylic pick; it's a day & night difference. It's about the material more than the thickness but the latter does play a part as I have discovered after customizing different pick thickness of the same model (thank you, Gavity custom shop). My take on this is to try as many different picks as possible & note the ones you like.

Give away: Hard, thick picks

Have these to spare if you are interested:

1. DAW: Shred Line 3mm (TAKEN)
2. Gravity: Edge (Big mini, unpolished) 2mm (TAKEN)
3. Gravity: Edge (Big mini, unpolished) 3mm (TAKEN)
4. Gravity: Classic Pointed (Standard, unpolished) 4mm (TAKEN)

E-mail me, tell me your preference & I will get back to you. NOTE: Gravity picks have a custom  'theGUITARaddict' engraving if you don't mind 😎

Three amigos

My current go-to trio:

1. V-Pick: Mummy Had been my favourite since I tried them. They are currently offered in a 2.75mm thickness which is below my standards. However, the efficiency I get from this one is impressive
2. Gravity: Custom Shop Edge This is a recent resurgence; I had abandoned them for personal reasons but that's all buried away for goodness sake. Similar material to V-Pick but the custom options here mean you get to choose the thickness, colour as well as grip type. This one's a 3mm, might be going up to 4mm in time to come.
3. DAW: Custom engraved Shredline Ordered a set last Black Friday, 3mm & partial acrylic. The smoothest, fastest but lacked a good grip. Still, it's the one I ended up using for the rest of my playing time after starting with the other two.

Note that I have pretty much settled with unpolished edges. This prevents the picks from giving off that chirping sound when you hit the plain strings; no chirping annoyance with wound strings. 

Return of the yellow fellow

This was extremely bad. I was terribly upset upon seeing this. The corrosion/ rust was extensive & the parts affected were beyond salvation. Everything you see here was disposed.

The guitar in question is my Jackson DKMGT. To think that this guitar was kept in a hard case, well away from moisture exposure, for all that corrosion to happen still baffles me. It's the ultimate betrayal- to rely on a hard case for protection but it was secretly condoning an unbecoming activity. Anyway, all those parts were replaced. Replacement here refers to a complete makeover: Pickups, pots, 3-way selector, capacitor & screws. There was a default gain booster here which I had foregone. Instead, I opted for a 2x volume & 1x tone control configuration. The Tesla pickups were also replaced with a pair of DiMarzio D'Activator humbuckers which I like (a rare feat considering I'm not a DiMarzio fan). Well, all this- it's nothing Beez could not handle & the makeover was done in about 15min time.

D'Addario 9s in there.

My trusted, oversized DAW Shredline pick for days when only angry music is all I play. Happy weekend, everyone. 😁

King vs King

These picks are pretty much in the same league. The manufacturers interpreted them differently; same thickness, same unpolished edges & even the same colour family. The Jazz King has, well, the jazzers in mind. The tip is rounded to let the player glide across strings effortlessly while maintaining command at the picking end. The Ed King, by virtue of its more pointed tip, invites the player to showcase some precision picking while propagating effortless movements as well. I don't particularly favour one over the other. On some days one of them serves me better than the other. 

The pick

Finally, something that I can identify with. Have been playing DAW picks for some time now. This engraving deal was part of the Black Friday offer, something that I wouldn't do on a regular basis because it would entail extra costs. 😁

Sunday blues

Ending the Sunday playing my Ibanez RG521 & using the DAW Jazz King pick throughout. This guitar is equipped with one of my current favourite pickups, Seymour Duncan's Alpha/ Omega pair. They are both very good for distortion & smooth overdrive settings. The Jazz King has that thick, rounded edge which makes fast riffing a breeze. Since the edge is tapered as well, it's equally adept to solos. 

Return of the King

I thought I was through with this one. After a re-visit of sorts, I realized why I bought it in the first place. If you wish for a smooth string-to-string transition, this one's recommended. Or rather, anything with a more rounded tip, is recommended. Thick, hard picks are not for everyone. They have a niche appeal, especially for some of us with playing quirks. I find this one superb for ultra fast riffs. Since I'm in riffing mode in the mean time, it's my current fav. 

Seen above: DAW Jazz King, 3mm

Picking

This was a necessary withdrawal. I had not been playing my so called preferred pick for a good reason- it made me play badly. Sloppy, to say the least. I returned to others which played a marked role in terms of inspiration & focus. These are the picks you see at the background: Howling Monkey/ Dunlop/ V-Pick/ Dragon's Heart. There are others but I do not intend to make this entry excessive. Bottom line- when you observe a hiatus with good intentions, you'd return refreshed & appreciate what made you effective to begin with. 

There is bound to be something in our lives that clicked with us but more often than not, we tend to take them for granted. It's after these things had gone missing then we start to realize the potent ingredient that makes us who we are. At this point in time, I'd say that my picks are the ones that matter the most to my playing. On a peculiar note, my preferred pick don't always work all the time. There were days when I played worse than a noob. Then the necessary withdrawal begins & the ultimate realization manifests itself- have I taken things for granted? 

Have a good August ahead, everyone. 👍

Worth picking

That's right, I'm a little picky about picks. I'm down to 2 preferred brand names when it comes to getting a preferred selection. The first is V-Picks. The Shredder & Pachelli were purchased just prior to Easter since they had a store-wide 20% discount going. As such, I took the opportunity to try something out of my comfort zone. The Shredder is a little extreme in terms of outline & it serves players picking a certain way, very much like how Al Pitrelli picks his notes. Any other way, that  rather extended pointed tip would snag strings & it's mistakes galore. Not my type, bought it to try. The Pachelli is a trimmed down Dunlop Stubby without the middle indentation. It's a 4mm monster that serves aggressive riffing as well as fast solos, especially those who pivot their wrists more than their elbows. My type of pick- like 👍

The other brand name is DAW. I recently retired my Karma pick & refrained from using my remaining 2 as they are discontinued. These picks you see here are my likeable alternatives, the Shredlines. The bigger, more triangular version of the Shredline is called the Trix. Despite disliking bulky triangular shapes, I find the Trix to be very efficient for aggressive riffs. The standard Shredline there in red is great for- you guessed it- fast picking. I've tried all the picks DAW has to offer including some discontinued models like the N4. 

Cycle of picks

A Good Friday morning to all. Lovely long weekend, yes?

I'm sure may of us here would have purchased & kept a few picks in our collection. Even if you're not a collector, you would have wisely kept a few for referential purposes, no? The primary reason here, for keeping stuff which you less preferred, is to bring them out on days when you think all else failed. On playing days, my ritual is to have a few picks out & at the ready. Even if I already have a favourite, go-to pick in hand, at a certain point in time, I'd switch picks just for variety's sake. You'd be surprised to discover that the ones you cast aside as spares or back-ups would be more adept than you would have believed them to be in the first place. I'm saying this because for those of us with more than one guitar especially, would have different string gauges, neck radii & string action, among other factors, which would react differently with a different pick profile. If we don't own a few picks to begin with, we wouldn't have discovered this special adaptation so to speak.

In the example above, I had the (L-R) Karma (DAW manufacturing), Mummy (V-pick) & Stubby (Dunlop) picks at the ready. As you've noticed, it's actually a line up of (L-R), flat, grooved & dented pick surfaces. I react differently to the feel, I play differently using these picks with various guitars, my picking efficiency gets affected with these picks, my brutal riffs work better with non-flat pick surfaces & the list goes on with slight variable differences. So which of these picks work best for any playing situation? None. I need different picks for different playing circumstances; different tools for different jobs as they say. So the next time you are on the verge of disposing seemingly dud & useless picks, do re-consider 😃

These ship for free

I'm giving these two manufacturers a firm support for their belief in not adding on charges for shipping. If you are the type who buys picks online, do check them out. I simply wish others could accord likewise considerations when it comes to shipping.

Like thick? (Done)

Greetings, everyone. I have 2 DAW picks of 4mm thickness to spare if you are interested. Do e-mail me 👌🏽

Thank you for the quick responses- both picks have been snapped up.

Supreme

Yes, I'm still buying DAW picks because they are the ones that work for me.  Limited edition Supreme picks with complementary sticker :-)

Still DAW-ing

I'm still trying to grind my DAW picks to bits. After the UFO experience yesterday, I must say that the Karma still brought out the menace in me as far as good playing goes, compared to other picks. I know I can achieve good playing with V-Pick's Mummy as well but there's something about the Karma's dimensions that make my picking very effective. However, I wish, the Karma would be as light as the Mummy without compromising the thickness.

UFOs have landed

Was in the mail yesterday. DAW UFO picks with complementary Karma picks.

Had been a terrible week. Fighting flu & sore throat. Looking for some respite this weekend.  Sore throat was especially bad, prevented me from being loud enough to be heard.

Rounded, pointed

I'd been using the DAW Karma picks for the whole of last week. These are currently my go-to picks, no outstanding or alien material involved, just thermo plastic. Both are 3mm in thickness. 

The rounded (red) tip version is excellent for fast riffs. It glides off the wound strings very easily. It doesn't flex & the unbuffered edges means it 'catches' the strings fairly well. Awesome for angry players. The pointed (blue) tip version is a precision implement. If you are the pick-every-note type, it's one of the best. The pointed tip also ensures more clarity with every picked note. Just wanna say that the pick tip profile does affect your playing & this influences efficiency. There's no right pick for you, there is a need for you try which one works best for your playing style. Also, if you think you've found what you've been looking for, there might be other picks out there waiting to be discovered. Please do not go into denial if you're experiencing a new love- you're not alone :-)

DAW: Last 2 shreds

Good Tuesday morning! The final 2 Shred Line DAW picks go to:

1. AL
2. Ken Tan

Thank you to all participants once again, look out for the next giveaway instalment happening soon (hopefully).

DAW giveaway: Winners

Congrats to the following winners, your picks are already on the way:

• Brandon Tsui (Pro Line)
• Fahmi (Pro Line)
• TK Hoo (Pro Line)
• Andrea (Pro Line)
• Dylan (Shred Line)

My apologies to the rest who were turned down as the Pro Line version proved to be too popular. I still have 2 more Shred Line picks if anyone is interested, do drop me an e-mail :-) Big thanks to all who took part & the rest who are fans of this blog- you rock!

Vela & friends

Yesterday's line-up: PRS Vela, Seymour Duncan Killing Floor & that blue pick- DAW's Karma model.

Vela's action was lowered a tad & it makes a huge difference in terms of legato playing; my fingers weren't as lethargic in trying to press the strings down. Pickups height was left undisturbed as sustain wasn't affected. The Killing Floor pedal is now rather mandatory in boosting the amp (Blackstar HT Metal) for saturation, not for drive (despite the fact that more drive was added in the mix). Finally, the pick. A preferred pick goes a long way in terms of focus. You simply need a supplementary tool to manifest your picking style. If you are a light picker, it's unwise to carry on with thin picks; it lacks impact. Ditto bass note peddling; those wound strings will wear your pick down very quickly & a deformed pick will definitely affect your picking & this leads to mistakes. I certainly think my pick made a big difference in terms of effectiveness & focus. My friends, you should put some attention to this as well.