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Finding the Right Plectrum to Use for Your Guitar

By Chris Moresby

Republish: EasyPublish™ Published: 30Mar2010 Word count: 527 Viewed: 187 time(s) Get Free Content For Your Site

If you have chosen to learn the guitar by playing with a plectrum--also known as a pick--there are a number of factors to consider. Certain plectrums are better suited for particular styles, and one should be aware of what works best for him or her before buying a handful of one particular kind.

Light plectrums are thinner and best suited for acoustic guitar playing, especially when one is doing mostly strumming. Acoustic guitar strings are heavier than electric guitar strings, and sound produced from the strike of a light plectrum provides a brighter ring than the potentially harsher sound produced by heavier ones. Those who play twelve-string guitars will probably prefer a light plectrum since most of the harmonies played on these guitars are strummed. If one is playing lots of solos and picking individual notes, however, a light plectrum may seem flimsy as it bends a lot upon striking each string, making it a less effective tool in these applications.

Medium plectrums, on the other hand, are viable in several different applications from acoustic guitar strumming to electric guitar soloing. Some players prefer to use medium plectrums as a sort of "do everything" tool for their guitar playing. The sound produced by strumming an acoustic guitar with a medium plectrum may not sound as bright and full as when one uses a lighter one, but this size allows one to interchange between strumming and picking individual notes more easily and with greater effectiveness than with the light plectrum alone. This is the case for both acoustic guitar players and electric guitarists who play with a combination of strumming and picking individual notes string-by-string.

Those who use heavy plectrums, however, are usually electric guitarists who play a lot of guitar solos or otherwise pick individual notes. The heavy plectrum, when used on just a single string for a single note, produces a strong, powerful sound with lots of sustain, and it is the preferred plectrum size of many rock guitar players. It is particularly useful for strumming chords when one's amp is set to its distortion or overdrive channel, providing a sound backed by more power than what one would otherwise achieve with a lighter plectrum. Not only that, but these plectrums often last longer than others simply because they're thicker. If you're using an acoustic guitar, however, the sound of your strumming will sound stale and dull compared to the bright tones produced by light plectrum. These are also not very useful after they become dull. Be sure to use a plectrum with edges that converge at a point.

Finally, there is the thumb plectrum, which is usually used for strumming songs with an acoustic guitar. Thumb plectrums slide on and off the thumb like a ring, and are most useful when one is strumming an entire song or needs a plectrum to pick individual low notes while picking other notes with his or her fingers. Since this type of plectrum is often used to hit individual bass notes for the purpose of maintaining rhythm or keeping the beat, they tend to be more on the heavy side when it comes to size.

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