JIM DUNLOP Acoustic Guitar Tailpiece (24427150106)

I quite like these.. They are pointy and therefore accurate in fast passages. They last longer than tortex picks of the same outline. They are flat, unlike beveled Ultex jazz3s and so many players will prefer this aspect of these picks to what is really the standard. If you like the undersized, medium sharp jazz3 profile, these might accidentally be the best ones on the market right now. They are actually slightly larger than regular jazz 3 picks and i like them more than primetones which are noticeably smaller... The only pick of this profile i like more is the regular Ultex version, (Oh wait, and 205s, if those count. Those are truly great for fast passages too) and that mainoly comes down to the bevel of those picks- They are thick in the center and thin out toward the point. They wear superbly.These wear decent, as they are flatpicks, many player will like these more. They don't take a bit of a learning curve to use if you've played other jazz3s, like beeveled picks such as ultex3s or stubbies.. The textured surface keeps them in hand and I actually quite like the polished edges (This is a feature of some pricier Flow picks and now, having gotten used to it, i think all picks should have polished edges). I think they are universally good picks for fast, single-line playing and associated genres such as bluegrass, jazz and metal. You really don't even have to know who John Petrucci is to appreciate them. I've watched a number of my students switch to these as they play faster music. I, myself, have used these and ultex 3s exclusively when teaching electric guitar for the past two years. I will go out on a limb and call them the best artist series pick ever released. I think that's true..

A little bit of my pick history and reasoning:I've used the orange Dunlop Tortex (.60mm i think?) for the past 10 years. I've been happy with them and I thought I had settled with the best possible pick to suit my needs. I like a medium flex. I feel like I can play dynamically softer but still get some good chunk & chug with a medium thickness pick. I play everything from soft blues, to classic rock, to modern rock, to metal, to progressive rock/metal, so I've always felt my pick needed to have a versatile feel, therefore having a medium pick that felt good seemed to be the best option.Like most guitarists, I've tried hundreds of picks over the years and none of them felt as good as my Dunlop Tortex .60mm to me. I've also used other Jazz III picks and didn't like them enough to switch and pay the money for them. I felt like they were a bit insensitive for some of my needs.Well, that all changed IMMEDIATELY after I struck the string with the JP Jazz III pick. I finally gave in a tried one after hearing JP talk about his work & development with Dunlop for years, and I've gotta say these are great. They're my new favorite pick. They are a bit on the thick/firm side, but since it has such GREAT glide across the string I feel that it makes up for the stiffness. That little shiney black V section of the pick is all glide. It's slick. The coolest thing I've ever felt on a pick.John talks about how it's very important for the pick to glide off the string effortlessly and have low friction, light weight, certain shape, etc, etc. I thought it was just a bit over-the-top and just something that wouldn't make a difference to me......because I'm not a god like JP and nowhere near his skill level. Well, he's totally right and knows what he's talking about of course....and this pick definitely improves my playing. I noticed it as soon as I started playing. I've been using this pick heavily for about a week now. I've probably put about 20+ hours into playing with it.****PLEASE READ THIS SECTION****I know lots of people will already know this but for folks that were like me and wanted to try something new again or take a chance on seeing what else is out there, read this. It might remind you of the small/simple things that make a huge difference with guitar playing.-Think about it...when using thin/flimsly picks, it requires more drag, effort, and time for the pick to strike the string. I believe they're great when playing dynamically softer licks. I feel like it allows you to "get more out of the note" and manipulate it better.-Now let's talk about thick/firm picks. They do not budge nor give when you strike the string. That means these picks are ideal for hard chugging and fast picking. With thick picks...it doesn't matter if you're playing a fast passage and you barely hit the string or not, that pick will strike it for you. They're great for that. If your picking is a bit inconsistant or weak, then a thick pick will make up for your slack. The thicker picks let you strike the string with less effort because there is less friction and way less "give" when the pick strikes.So with those points being made, I've found that the glide the JP picks provide is phenomenal and it kind of substitutes of makes-up for the lack of flex in the pick. I feel that it allows me to play softer in a slightly different way while still making a %100 strike even though my hand might have a sloppy moment and not strike the string with %100 effectiveness as intended. The string glide mixed with the thickness/firmness of the pick really complement themselves and make thick pick very unique.The BIGGEST difference in this pick compared to the Tortex picks is the glide and when you strike the string it makes it "click" or "tick" noise. The JP pick is very lightweight too and I've found it makes a difference in my picking hand. I tend to hold the pick tighter the more intense my playing gets (frown face lol. I really need to work on not tensing up when playing full throttle) so my thumb muscles will get really tight and tired after a while of constant intense playing. The JP pick releaves a lot of that friction and drag combined with the lightweight feel, therefore taking less of a toll on my picking hand and getting less tired and allowing me to stay consistant longer :) The Tortex feels like it gets more of a grip on the string and makes more of a dull thud striking noise.I realize that my points of view or way of thinking for picking might be wrong, but that's how I feel it works and that is the logic I've made from my experience. I hope this review helps everyone and I strongly encourage you to try this pick, even if you're a softer player.

Excelente sonido y muy bien grip!

Why did you pick this product vs others?:These are slightly larger than the standard Eric Johnson just threes which I prefer over these