Figure 1 - Agate Stone Plectrum

To many guitarists, the answer is a resounding yes! Not only are they longer-lasting, easy gripping, and better sounding; they are also very appealing items to own.

Those who have used stone picks often prefer the crisp tone  – more defined even than even metal picks. Common materials used are Agate, Jasper, Jade and Turquioise; all highly polished.

2.5mm Shrinkwood Stone Guitar Picks Texas petrified wood agate We Ship Fast!

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While the picks are indeed much more durable- they won’t harm guitar strings. Thanks to finely smoothed edges, stone picks should be just as safe as plastic picks to use- given you bought them from a store, and haven’t decided to use your rock collection as picks. Needless to say, you might not get any use out of using your wedding ring either- sorry, guys.

Essentially, stone picks give a unique tone because of a few characteristics such as density, flexibility, and durability. Imagine striking a large bell with a plastic hammer- it will be much different than striking the same bell with a rock. From this example, many different specialty stores have started to sell such picks as a new way to control precise tones. Interestingly, plastic will absorb part of the tone when struck against a string- while stone will not.

Figure 2 - Black Brasilian Stone Pick

Gemstone picks will last a very long time, and offer good grip control- even more so than Tortex picks. The only problem with a gemstone pick is losing it. If you are like most guitar enthusiasts, losing picks around the room or house- even in pockets- can be a common nuisance. With single picks costing upwards of around $30 each, there is obviously a need to reform old habits. In fact, some companies will try and tell you that a stone guitar pick is the last one you will ever need to buy. While this is indeed possible, it is much more likely it will be lost long before it breaks.

If you are indeed looking to acquire a stone pick, you will most likely have to go on-line, or visit a rather large music retail shop. They are much harder to find than the dozens of boxes of plastic, nylon, and metal picks littering musician shops. While $30 may seem a little high, the “cool” factor gained through bragging to friends and fellow musicians is sometimes well worth the money, and extra tonal clarity can be priceless. Different shapes, gems, translucencies, and sizes can all be crafted from many types of stones – as well as customizations and extra gripping features. If you are looking for extra tonal clarity, this could be a good upgrade to your collection.

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• Guitar Pick History and Information
• Tortex Picks
• Weird Guitar Picks 

A guitar pick, or plectrum is used to pluck, or strum guitar strings; to improve sound, allow faster strumming, and reduce injury on fingers. You can just use your fingers, especially for picking, but a pick gives far more bite to notes, and hurts a lot less. There are many types of guitar picks to choose from: different materials, shapes, as well as sizes and colors. Some guitar picks are even used for special purposes, such as a double-sided pick for “double plucking.” This article explores some of the diffent types.

Different types of Guitar Pick

Guitar picks are commonly made out of plastic, but also bone, amber, rubber, felt, tortoiseshell, wood, stone, metals, and even gemstones. Each of the materials has it’s own unique sound, but also properties such as ease of grip, and durability. For instance, metal has a very distinct bright sound when plucked against a guitar string- but offers little grip. Tortoiseshell is one of the best for gripping, and sounds great, although an international ban on tortoise shell led to the creation of Tortex picks.

Choosing your favourite material is a matter of trying them all out, and deciding on which sound and grip works for your playing style- whether it be metal, bues, or jazz. If all else fails, weird guitar picks aren’t unheard of- from bone, to an Allen wrench- just about anything can become a useable plectrum!

Figure 1 - Traditional picks, a thumb pick, and a triangle pick example

Different gauges of guitar pick

The thickness of a guitar pick is very important. For instance, a thicker pick will give a harder sound, with more attack, and more control in tone, while a thinner pick will give more of a random and uncontrollable sound, but allows faster picking. Hard rock or metal players usually prefer thin picks – especially if they like to play fast riffs. These guitarists usually favour thinner strings, but players who use thicker gauges will often need thicker picks. Likewise, bass guitarists usually use thick picks. Thinner picks give less power, and have less durability- especially with complex techniques such as tremolo picking.

There are a few shapes and sizes to picks, as well. A shark’s fin pick will allow the use of pick scraping to be much easier. A sharp edged pick will give an edgier sound to one’s playing style. The equilateral pick is perfect for beginners- as it has no special qualities to master, and each corner can be used to play the guitar with. Some picks even wrap around an entire finger- such as the thumb pick that is available.

D’Andrea picks were the first to actually offer things such as custom imprinting, and developed many of the shapes and materials of picks that are still in use today. D’Andrea picks are still available today, since 1922. From the customization D’Andrea picks started, other companies have followed suit. Today, there are hundreds of styles, shapes, colors, and sizes of picks. In fact, picks made of precious gems are available toda. Of course, these picks don’t flex or bend- but they offer a unique sound and are very durable.

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Guitar picks are plentiful, and usually only cost a few dollars for a dozen of them. Some of the most mainstream picks are offered by Fender, and some less mainstream picks such as the Joe Satriani line of picks are available- although they cost more money. Choosing the guitar pick is the first step in mastering the guitar, and the next step would be to master picking techniques. It should be noted that if a more extravagant pick is desired, such as the gemstone picks, that you should make sure you don’t lose them- consider it a piece of good advice, picks are usually lost before they are broken.

• Tortex Picks
• Gem Stone Picks
• Weird Guitar Picks

I’ve known young guitarists change out tuning keys, and even buy new guitars because their old guitar would never stay in tune. In many instances it was just a matter of a poor setup, with nothing wrong with the guitar or any of it’s components.

But don’t worry, adjusting intonation is really very easy. All you need is a guitar tuner and a screwdriver. This article tells you how.

Plug your guitar into an electric guitar tuner, and tune the first string. Once it is perfectly in tune, play the same string at the octave (12th fret). What does the tuner say? Sharp? Flat? If it is not in tune, your guitar needs an intonation adjustment.

This is done by moving the relevant saddle by a very small amount. If the note was sharp, it needs to travel away from the bridge; if flat, towards the bridge. This is usually accomplished by turning a bridge screw.

This process of tuning the open string, testing at the twelfth fret, and adjusting where necessary should be repeated until each string is perfectly in tune up and down the fretboard.

In some instances, no matter how hard you try to intonate a string, it will never keep tune adequately. Old or damaged strings can cause such problems, as can incorrect strings, and silk windings extending too far onto the string, and onto the saddle.

Many older electric guitars from the 1950s and early 1960s have no means of intonation adjustment. Some have a one-piece bridge that  is not attached to the guitar top, and must be moved in entirety to make adjustments.

In short: learn how to intonate your guitar, it’s incredibly easy. Spend 10 minutes, and make sure you sound at your very best!

Finger picking is a simple skill that can greatly improve your playing, and it isn’t just for folk and country players! If you are usually a pick player, you may just be surprised about the different textures that become open to you.

From pop and rock songs by the Beatles and Led Zeppelin, to the most obscure country blues guitarists, you may be surprised what songs were recorded fingerstyle.

Fingerstyle playing is very different tonally from pick playing; being softer, warmer and less aggressive, but also allowing a greater deal of harmonic complexity than straight chords and riffs. In a band situation it can really work wonders, creating extra space between rhythm and lead guitars.

This video is for the novice fingerpicker – but why not start at the beginning?

Go on, put the plectrum down and try something new. You might find a bit of fingerstyle is what your guitar playing needs.

Figure  1 – The Fender PT-100 chromatic guitar tuner

I think i’ve found one of the most useful pieces of equipment any guitarist can own! Such statements shouldn’t be made lightly, but in this case I stand by it. If you need a new tuner you really should consider this one. In the PT-100, Fender have a solid, durable and, most importantly, easy to use tuner that works for guitar and bass. It does the job, and it does it well.

So what’s so special? Surely a tuner is a tuner? Well, yes and no. The first thing you notice about the PT-100 is its weight; this is a rugged, heavy-duty stage tuner. Its die-cast metal casing isn’t going to break, and the hinged battery cover is screwed down – this will survive a good gigging for sure. But the weight has another advantage for simple home-tuning. When you plug in to tune it stays where it is. How annoying is it to have a lightweight tuner that can’t bear the weight of the cable that plugs into it, and ends up on the floor, usually in two pieces with the battery hanging out?

Of course the floor is where this tuner is designed to be. The LEDs that tell you whether you are flat, sharp, or just right, are very bright indeed. You’ll be able to tune from standing in any lighting conditions…. and seeing as this is a chromatic tuner there are no switches to flip. Just lights to tell you which way to go!

 The PT-100 has two outputs, the second for muted tuning. Silent adjustments can be made mid-set, purely by stepping on the pedal. And when the input jack is removed no more power is drawn from the battery. Never again will you unpack for rehearsal to find a flat battery from when you left it on last time! And when it is time, the battery can be accessed by loosening the screw on the underside. Here again Fender have thought of everything; this simple large slot-head isn’t going to fall out, yet can be opened with a small coin or stiff plectrum.

 This is a great piece of equipment, and although more expensive than some lighter tuners, it really is worth every cent.

• Buy the
• See also Fender AG-6 guitar tuner

Figure 1 – When it comes to time based effects, don’t be surprised to see Boss pedals take the lead in most categories. (Pictured on the left)

The first type effect we will be looking at is the looping pedals. These types of pedals actually record a section of sound, with the purpose of playing them repeatedly. This is great for guitarists who don’t have a friend present to do rhythm guitar, or wants to use these loops in order to create special effects. It also lets guitarists listen to a song as whole, and not just one specific aspect. The Boss RC-2 and Digitech JamMan are good examples of pedals that will do this.

Figure 2- The Boss RC-2 and Digitech JamMan. 

The Boss RC-2 retails at around $180 (Listen to video sample), while the Digitech JamMan retails at around $300 (Listen to video sample). 

Next, we have the chorus effect. This is just as much fun as the looping effects in a sense, because there are so many sounds. A guitarist can create thick rich walls of sound (so it actually sounds like several guitars are playing at once), crazy tremolo effects, or just a light chorus to fill out a lead line slightly. Look out for the Boss CE-5, Line 6 Space Chorus, and Ibanez CF-7.

Figure 3 – The Boss CE-5, Line 6 Space Chorus, and Ibanez CF-7. 

The Boss CE-5 retails at around $80, the Line 6 Space Chorus goes for around $120, and the Ibanez CF-7 retails at about $60.

One of the more popular time delay effects is the echo. These pedals simply take incoming signal, and delay it to make a echo of the actual signal. The echo effect is amazing when added to other effects, creating amazing soundscapes – try it with a slide if you’ve got one. You can also make some very interesting rhythm effects. The most popular pedals to look out for in this category are the Boss DD-6, and the Line 6 Echo Park.

Figure 4 - The Boss DD-6 and the Line 6 Echo Park.  

The Boss DD-6 retails at around $160 (Listen to demo), while the Line 6 Echo Park is around $150 (Listen to demo).

Lastly, we come to the interesting effect of the flanger. Several types of the flanger pedal can be doubled over as a reverb pedal as well, which is a nice benefit. The flanger essentially takes the incoming signal, slows it down, and then speeds it back up to its original position. The unique sound that results has been popular among older rock, but also sees applications in newer playing styles. Add it to distortion and you’ll sound more like a jet engine at take off. Flangers are pretty good for bass too. The leaders of the flanger industry include the Boss BF-3, and the Line 6 Liqua Flange.

Figure 5 - The Boss BF-3 and Line 6 Liqua-Flange. 

The Boss BF-3 retails at around $120 (Listen to sample), while the Line 6 Liqua-Flange comes in at around at the same price of $120 (Liten to sample). 

The majority of time based distortion pedals will be used in solos or specific rhythm applications, and to provide contrast to a basic sound. You can have real fun with some of these sounds, but take care not to overdo it! Its hard I know. Nevertheless, they provide fantastic sounds that many bands from Rock and Roll’s past have taken advantage of- and they are just as popular today.

•  Choosing Between Basic Distortion Pedals

Figure 1 - They may resemble tennis rackets, but pop filters can mean the difference between a professional sound, and just another home-made recording.

A pop filter serves as the sole purpose to clean up vocals. It will eliminate the “pop” sound that vocalists make while pronounced words that start with a ldquo;p” or “b”. Words that give this undesired popping sound are called aspirated plosives.  Words that make a hissing sound, such as the word “seashell”, are called fricatives. Essentially, pop filters attenuate these undesired sounds before getting to the microphone. Small vocal blemishes must be removed to get a professional recording- but not everyone can afford to buy a professional pop filter.

Basically, a pop filter is just a piece of nylon stretched over a frame that goes between the vocalist and the microphone. The problem with most cheap pop filters is the simplicity- the attachment that aligns the pop filter with the microphone almost always breaks or becomes unreliable. Professional pop filters also seek to mask frequencies in which the microphone is not designed to pickup- which would otherwise lead to clipping.

Figure 2 - Here is another cheap home-made pop filter. They may not look the best, but they’ll often get the job done.

There are two solutions for avoiding the hassle of a cheap pop filter. The first is to fashion one by spare parts. Putting nylon over a tennis racket, for instance, is one of the more popular makeshift pop filters. Coat hangers work well, since they are bendable. Coat hangers also work well for attaching the pop filter to the microphone stand- although a little work might be required to get it perfect. While this is a cheap solution, it isn’t professional- but it depends on what the individual needs the pop filter for.

For professional pop filters, the price can go from $40 to $60. This may not seem like a lot, but keep in mind that a piece of nylon and a frame is being bought here. With this kind f price, the options are much more convenient than the average $15 pop filter. The gooseneck and clamp are one of the main problem areas that are fixed with professional pop filters. Some professional pop filters also accustom to special needs, such as double filters or a wider radius of coverage. The more expensive pop filters will even have metal filters- not nylon.

Figure 3 - This is a metal pop filter- it costs more money, but the results are much more favorable than that of nylon materials.

Not every cheap pop filter will fail- but on average, they don’t last as long as the more expensive ones. The most faulty part is the gooseneck and clamp, so be sure to either test one out at the local music store or get a good review of a pop filter before buying one. If all else fails, and a sense of professionalism isn’t needed, grab some spare parts from the garage or closet and see what you can come up with.

• Recording Options for Guitarists 

Alternate picking is an easy concept to grasp- but much harder to put into proper use. The idea behind alternate picking is to alternate picking directions with ech sounded note. This means that after every downs stroke of the pick, there is an up stroke as well. Beginners will find this to be a little hard to do at first, but it will eventually lead to an easier method to learn tremolo picking. It also makes most rhythms much easier to play, and faster. The downside to alternate picking is the arpeggio. An arpeggio incorporates multiple strings, so staying with the alternate picking pattern will also decrease speed.

The main argument between alternative and direct picking is speed. Direct picking pattern supporters claim that the shortest distance between two points is a straight line. This is true, but so is the fact that the guitar pick almost always surpasses the guitar string on a down stroke- so it is usually much faster to pluck the string again while returning to the original position. This lets speed be taken to the next level, but as stated before, it doesn’t work so well for multiple string arpeggios.

The majority of self-taught guitar players will of course use directional picking- as it is the natural way to play. Alternate picking does have its benefits for those who require speed, so it is usually learned after directional picking is picked up. Of course, there are guitar legends that stick to both picking styles- so neither group is necessarily right or wrong. In fact, the best way to go is to achieve a hybrid sense of picking. In a hybrid picking between alternate and direct picking, both picking styles are used for what they do best. Direct picking can allow guitar players to play arpeggios, and also play crtain rhythms faster. Alternate picking can allow amazing speeds to be achieved through practice- as long as the rhythm is based around only a few strings at most.

With the fusion of alternate and direct picking, comes the term economy picking. Economy picking is usually the best way to get the best speed from both picking methods. If the next note to be played lies on another string, it obviously shouldn’t incorporate alternative picking. Each change of string brings another direct pick technique. If there are a few notes located on one particular string, then alternte picking should be used if necessary.

Those who are new to the guitar shouldn’t be afraid to learn the alternate picking technique- it is usually what fast types of music such as metal rely on. Learning it can be tough especially without a teacher to act as a guide, but guitar legends such as John Petrucci can attest to the fact that alternate picking is just as important as direct picking, although it will take some time to master.

To start off, every song is divided into measures. Measures are small segments separated by bar lines, or vertical slashes. Different types of bar lines mean different things. A single vertical slash simply means the measure is complete, while a double bar line indicaes the section of measures is at an end. Lastly, a terminal bar line indicates the end of a piece of music.

Measures are composed of beats, or counts per measure. Right next to the treble clef is a pair of numbers, which looks like a fraction. The most common is 4/4 time, which simply means there are 4 beats per measure, and each quarter note is a whole beat. This is also seen sparingly as the capital C, which means common time, or 4/4 time. Other timing signatures that are less common may be somewhat harder to play. Essentially, the top number determinesthe beats per measure, and the bottom number indicates the type of note receiving each beat. ¾ timing is defined by 3 beats per measure, with Quarter notes receiving each beat. Likewise, a 6/8 time signature means that each measure is 6 beats, and that the Eighth note receives each beat.

A guitar player will notice that each bottom number can indicate a different duration- but do not be discouraged there are only 5 basic durations to remember. A Whole note is 4 beats, a Half note is 2 beats, a Quarter note is 1 beat, an Eighth note is ½ a beat, and a Sixteenth note is ¼ of a beat. Notice that each step, the timing is halved. This makes learning the systm very easy. Practicing each note with a metronome will give a guitar player the skills necessary to play each note’s duration correctly. In 4/4 time, 4 quarter notes will each take a second to play- this is a nice exercise to practice to get perfect timing.

Of course, guitar players won’t always be pumping out notes and sounds- rests are needed too. The common 5 rests are just like the common note durations, only with different symbols. One thing that can complicate things is the dotted note. A dot placed immediately after the note head increases the duration of th note or rest by one half. Why complicate things? The answer lies in accurate timing. If every note was 1, 2, or 4 beats long, there would be nothing in between each note’s duration. A note with a duration of 3 beats may be needed- and to get this, you add a Half note with a dot (2 beats + one half of two beats = 3 beats).

Ever wonder why some groups of notes have big black beams across them? This is to make reading music much more legible. For instance, say that eight ¼ notes were in succession with each other. It would be tough reading each note, while playing, and keeping track of which note you were on, wouldn’t it? Thi is why notes that are alike or similar are grouped together. These same eight ½ notes can be combines into a group of 4 beamed notes. This can also be done with similar notes, such as one Quarter note and two Eighth notes.

At the end of this lesson, it’s time to bust out the metronome and get to work. Practice timing until it comes as second nature to tell the difference between a whole note and half note is. When timing is perfected, a piece of sheet music can be gazed at, and recreating the song’s exact timing should be no trouble at all. If timing isn’t a strong point in a guitar player’s qualities, then a good metronome will do a world of good.

• An Introduction to Music Theory 

There are several ways to g about recording. For guitar players with 1-2 band members, or soloists, the easiest and cheapest way is to go through a computer or laptop. A cheap connector can be bought at most tech stores, such as Radio Shack- that lets the guitar player plug in right into the audio-in line on a laptop or computer. This method usually requires software that allows the player to distort, mix, or alter the incoming signal. This is by far the cheapest method, but only suitable for extremely small bands and soloists.

A less economical yet more efficient wy of recording for small bands is via recording interfaces. These interfaces often will cost anywhere from $100-$400, depending on the quality and options. They are usually fairly small boxes that enable input of microphones, instrument lines, and offer volume/distortion controls. This usually eliminates the need for buying extra guitar recording software, as it is included with most interfaces. This method is far more stable than simply hooking into an audio-in line, as it allows for more control and will support smaller bands easier.

Multi-track ecorders are usually needed for larger bands. These recorders often come in packages that include microphones, monitors, and the necessary cables and accessories. Most multi-track recorders will have a feature to burn the music onto a CD or cassette, or otherwise will let a user port data onto a computer for further editing. Multi-track recorders are a step above recording interfaces, since they offer even more control over tones, volumes, and sound effects of instruments or vocals that are being recorded. Most multi-track recorders will cost $400-$2,000, and usually are the only choice for larger bands looking to record music. They also make very portable solutions, since they do not require a computer to function.

For capturing live sound, a separate device is usually needed. These are called field recorders, and are usually fairly advanced- as the price tag shows. These devices can easily reach a thousand or couple of thousand dollars. Field recorders usually incorporate condenser microphones into a very small package, of which is very sensitive to sound, but won’t capture background noise. There are of course field recorders that are somewhat cheap, but it isn’t recommended to invest in them. The cheaper versions will almost always offer poor quality sound, and will heavily lack features necessary to get CD quality sound.

Choosing the recording method for the correct situation is ideal. Of course, setting up a cheap microphone next to an amplifier will give the worst loss of sound quality- as most guitar players will find out. Investing in a cheap connector and a software package should be the absolute least that any serious guitar player should do. When things start to get more serious, there are a lot of areas to improve before moving onto the next piece of recording hardware- microphones, monitors, stands, mixers, compressors, and much more should all be considered before taking the next step to buying a more expensive recording interface.

• Are Pop Filters Necessary for Recording?