D'Andrea Pro Plec 346 thickness variations

[McIrish]

A while back I was visiting Dale Ludewig at his shop and he gave me D'Andrea 346 to use. I thought it was great so last week I ordered a bunch from Elderly. The thickness of the new picks isn't even close to the old one I had. They are stated as being 1.5mm but I measure the new ones to be over 1.7mm. They sound terrible to my ears. No definition or clarity especially when doing faster runs. Fortunately, I also got some Wegen TF140 picks. They work pretty well. Just a tad thin but usable.

Anyone else run into consistency problems with the D'Andrea Pro Plec 346?
If anyone is looking for some, I have 12 that I'll never use. I'll drop them in the mail.

[bratsche]

I've found that a lot of pick brands and models have a bit of variance from their stated thicknesses, FWIW. And I sent you a PM, as I generally prefer them thicker and like experimenting with their edges.

bratsche

[Franc Homier Lieu]

I have been meaning to start a thread about the variation in Proplec picks from different batches. The most recent bunch of Jazzmando Proplec I got were visibly thicker than the others I have, and they are now my favorites on my Flatiron Festival.

[FrDNicholas]

I just started using one of these picks and I love it! The volume and sound are the best I've heard yet out of my MT. I've only tried 1 of them, so I can't address the consistency. I have been thinking about ordering some more, so I'm curious to see the experience of others with them.

[Jon Hall]

The thickness may vary but the 346 has become my favorite for mando and guitar except when I'm playing amplified or in the studio. Nothing removes the pick noise like a Blue Chip.

[acousticphd]

It is only the thickness of the picking points that matters; even if the pick overall is a little too thick, with a little hand-beveling you may be able to get the points the way you want them.

Some folks are looking to find something right out of the box with the shape and bevel that suit them. I'm the other kind; I have gone over and hand-shaped and beveled every pick I use (mainly Golden Gate rounded tri for mando), an extra step I just find to be almost essential. The pre-beveled picks I've tried tend not to have a steep enough bevel, usually closer to 45deg, which feels very clunky to me.

I wouldn't mind trying a few of your reject D'Andreas. I don't need 12; 2-3 is plenty!

[FrDNicholas]

Has anyone else run into this situation? I ask because I have 2 of these picks and they are my favorite pick. I am considering buying more of them, but wondered if others have run into this inconsistency?

[roger-frost]

If you have any of those Proplecs left and would consider mailing a couple to New Zealand I would be most grateful. I have recently enrolled in Mike Marshall's video exchange lessons and he is recommending I try one - except they do not seem to be available in New Zealand! Address is Box 148 Murchison 7049 NZ.
Cheers

[bbaker2050]

Yeah, I recently bought 12 of those too. I didn't measure the thickness, but they seem thicker than other 1.5mm picks I have. They sound terrible on mandolin as well.

[Ron McMillan]

They sound terrible on mandolin as well.

If Mike Marshall is recommending them to students, the problems you are having with their sound might not be the fault of the pick.

I have some, and I like them a lot.

ron

[bbaker2050]

If Mike Marshall is recommending them to students, the problems you are having with their sound might not be the fault of the pick.
ron

I agree.

[Clement Barrera-Ng]

Interesting.. I have not measured the ones I have. I like the idea of doing some beveling on them to get different feel and sound out of it. I love the sound of the ProPlecs, but coming from a Blue Chip, the way it feels when playing takes a little getting used to. But it can be improved with some beveling I suppose.

[sblock]

If Mike Marshall is recommending them to students, the problems you are having with their sound might not be the fault of the pick. ron

With all respect, the logic of this comment escapes me completely! Just because some famous (and fabulously talented!) mandolin player endorses a pick for students, that hardly speaks to the issue of picks having different thicknesses from what's advertised. Celebrity endorsements mean relatively little, and they change with time. Mike Marshall can be found endorsing the Blue Chip picks on their website, incidentally. And he could not possibly be aware of, or responsible for, any day-to-day pick issues with D'Andrea!

It sounds to me that D'Andrea may be having some serious quality control issues with certain lots of the ProPlec 346 line. A pick that's supposed to be 1.5 mm thick ( 0.059", or 59 thou) should never be mic'ed at 1.6 mm, and CERTAINLY not anything in excess of 1.7 mm (0.067", 67 thou), as the OP mentioned! That's a pretty large difference, and it's well out of the range of "normal variation." The pick will certainly feel different to most players in this extra thickness. Some folks may like it more; some less. And yes, the extra thickness can be expected to change the sound. And so can the edge/bevel. It's not only about right hand technique, as folks like Mike Marshall would be among the first to explain -- which is exactly what he does on the Blue Chip site, referring to their pick as giving a "nice darkness" to the tone.

So the issue may not lie with the player, as you imply. Regardless, the ProPlec 346 pick should not be distributed as a "1.5 mm" pick if it's truly that much out of spec. Maybe someone at the factory got the stock there mixed up?