Picks

Guitar picks are more than just an accessory afterthought. They’re a tool that can give your playing added precision. Picks come in a variety of shapes, colors and sizes, and each has a specific purpose. To make choosing the perfect pick simple, LAWK STAR Guitars offers a selection of guitar picks by makers such as Dunlop, Planet Waves, Cleartone and D’Addario.

Guitar Pick Guide

Gauge: A pick’s thickness, or gauge, directly affects the tone a guitar produces.

• Light (0.38 to 0.6 millimeters): Flexible and good for strumming
• Medium (0.65 to 0.88 millimeters): More rigid, making it good for producing a thicker sound or playing single notes
• Heavy (0.96 to 3 millimeters): Least flexible; good for bass and rock rhythm playing; not ideal for strumming

Popular Materials

• Nylon: Smooth surface; good for strumming
• Celluloid: Popular pick material; the smooth surface produces warm sounds
• Matt celluloid: Lightly textured to improve your grip
• Embossed: The material on the pick is slightly raised to improve your grip
• Stubby: Generally made from lexan; has at least a 1 millimeter gauge
• Tortex: Made from a synthetic material that mimics the performance of tortoise shell picks; the powdery texture enhances your grip

Pick Shapes

• Standard: The classic pick shape
• Jazz and teardrop: The picks aren’t as triangular as standard picks and tend to be more rigid; the pick produces brighter tones
• Equilateral triangle: Strum with any edge of the pick
• Sharkfin: The pick resembles a shark’s fin; one end has the shape of a standard pick, the other is serrated to produce a fuller chord or a scratching sound along a string

The best pick depends on your personal preference and playing style. Once you choose the ones you like, LAWK STAR encourages you to use a pick holder to keep them together and handy everywhere you play.  A holder on your mic stand is perfect when rehearsing or playing live.