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Thread: Blue chip picks

  1. #26
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    Default Re: Blue chip picks

    On picks ….. there are several things to address …. 1. Shape …. from tiny teardrops to large triangles 2. Thickness from flimsy to no flex in the pick whatsoever
    3. Material which runs the gamut from plastic to casein to exotic to natural materials from endangered species and 4. Cost from less than a dollar to more than 30. Do some research on thickness and shape with less expensive materials. Tortex or Delrin picks are fairly inexpensive and available at most stores. You can pick up several shapes and thicknesses for about ten dollars. Then when you know about what you like give the more expensive materials a shot. I do like BC picks but that was after a long search when I decided to give up natural materials. So, look around and experiment some. Enjoy the hunt. You will likely go through varieties of strings as well. Play On!
    I love hanging out with mandolin nerds . . . . . Thanks peeps ...

  2. #27
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    Default Re: Blue chip picks

    Quote Originally Posted by MikeEdgerton View Post
    Just a heads up, a whole bunch of BC picks just hit the classifieds. NFI.
    Yep and I just got email from bluechip offering free shipping and engraving (my phone# on mine in case a honest bloke finds it).

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  4. #28

    Default Re: Blue chip picks

    I have purchased via the cafe three Blue Chips and subsequently sold or traded them all. I gave them a serious try and decided that I like D'Andrea ProPlecs and Dawg better. I know some people love them and they are their go-to picks. However, they didn't thrill me. Just goes to show everybody has his/her own perspective.

  5. #29

    Default Re: Blue chip picks

    Yes. They are worth it. They don't slide around in my fingers and the tone is great for what I do. The speed bevel makes a big difference if you're trying to play fast. They do not wear out or break. I've lost track, but I'm sure my CT-55 is more than 5 years old and shows no sign of wear.

  6. #30
    Registered User T.D.Nydn's Avatar
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    Default Re: Blue chip picks

    B.C.'s do wear out though,I've managed to do it,now I use thin ones,bc 35s ,and it took me 3 years but I wore the point right off and put a razor speed bevel on it,,,I'm on my 3rd one..but nothing else will do it for me..

  7. #31
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    Default Re: Blue chip picks

    I think only you can decide if they are worth it. Buy one and give it a try. If you don't like it there is a good market for resale.
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  8. #32
    Registered User Mandobart's Avatar
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    Default Re: Blue chip picks

    I'm in the minority regarding Bluechip. I have bunches of picks made of all kinds of materials, ranging in thickness from about 1.00 mm up to 3.00 mm.

    I frequently run through them to see if my tastes/perceptions have changed at all. I play quite a few stringed instruments ranging from mandolin to mandola, octave, resonator mandolin, banjolin, a few guitars and mandocello. Strings go from phosphor bronze, flatwound chromes, monel, 80/20.

    So routinely over the past 10 years or so I've found the Wegen M200 is the best sounding overall for all my mando family instruments. They cost around $10 or $12 as I recall. Just in the past year I've got a few Gravity Gold picks. They appear to be made of PEEK. They provide a little more depth and sustain than Wegens, and cost about $20 from Sweetwater. When I want a brighter tone I use Gravity acrylic picks.

    Bluechips, to my ears, are on the opposite end of the brightness spectrum - they sound dark and muted, muddy. This is most pronounced on my HD-28, and not quite as bad on mandolin.

    IMO Wegen gives the best tone and feel for my money. I still own some Bluechips but I won't buy any more.

  9. #33

    Default Re: Blue chip picks

    I also hear a darker tone in Blue Chip compared to many other materials, but to my ear or at least with my style it's not muddy. The thickness, shape, and bevel need to be matched to the style. Also, many people who aren't used to thicker picks tend to let too much of the pick extend from the their fingers, which will sometimes cause a clickly sound that they might consider bright.

  10. #34
    Registered User T.D.Nydn's Avatar
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    Default Re: Blue chip picks

    If you hear a dark,muddy tone from a blue chip,my bet is your using one to thick,try a 35 and youll probaby change your opinion..

  11. #35
    Innocent Bystander JeffD's Avatar
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    Default Re: Blue chip picks

    Quote Originally Posted by Njbow View Post
    I am getting back to playing after a few years of not playing. I ...would like to try one of the picks but they are priced at close to 2 hours of pay..
    It is a one time purchase. One and done, never again a cost. To those who are going to comment about having to replace a lost pick, there is a simple solution - don't lose it.

    There are things in the mandolin life far more expensive, because they are recurring costs. Strings, because you change them (or should) regularly, Gasoline to drive you to gigs, or jams, or concerts, stopping at a diner or fast food on the way home, etc. A lot of my thinking on this is here.
    And if you make the purchase you and find it doesn't make much difference, you will likely be able to sell it for most of what you paid.
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  13. #36

    Default Re: Blue chip picks

    I tried an experiment with a few friends of mine, some of which are professional musicians, none of which particularly listen to bluegrass or are knowledgeable in mandolins. I played my mandolin using different picks: a BC CT55, a primetone 1.4 mm smooth, and a primetone 1.4 mm grip. All my friends had similar impressions. The BC and smooth primetone (which is meant to replicate the BC) gave a clearer, crisper, and a bit louder sound, whereas the grip primetone gave a sweeter sound that is richer in overtones. I guess BC/BC-like picks are a natural and non-electronic way of compressing your sound, which is why I guess they are popular when playing bluegrass and you need to be heard against fiddles and banjos. However, I think non BC/BC-like picks give you a more natural sound that is more intrinsic to your mandolin and might work better with other music genres.
    When I listen to great players I know use BC picks, I can hear similarities in their tones despite the fact that they use different mandolins and all have their personal sounds, and I think that’s because of the way BC picks shape your sound. I even find myself to sound more like these players when I use a BC/BC-like pick. However, all other musicians I know who don’t use BC picks sound nothing alike (think of Dawg, Sam Bush, Matt Flinner, Tim O’Brien, Tim Connell, Don Julin, etc...). I think BC picks kind of standardize the sound you get out of a mandolin.
    Don’t get me wrong, I still think BC/BC-like picks are great and I have used them in the past. However, I currently find myself preferring other types of picks (such as the primetone grip 1.4 or 1.5 mm, would love to try Wegen picks). Ask me again a few years from now, I might give you a different answer.

  14. #37
    Mando-Accumulator Jim Garber's Avatar
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    Default Re: Blue chip picks

    I have gone through various picks in both my over 45 years of mandolin playing. At this point i settled on BC picks for both mandolin and guitar. I own a pile of most of the desirable picks also mentioned here and the BC works well for me. As you will note, however, what works for me may not work for others. I would take the advice of trying what you can afford or, if you do want to try a BC keep your eyes on the classifieds. However, you have to act quickly—those often sell rapidly.

    My experience with BC on mandolin is that there is a big difference with the rounded tips and the pointed ones. For awhile I was playing with round tips with the speed bevel. Now I play pointed tips with speed bevel.
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  16. #38
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    Default Re: Blue chip picks

    I just received my Tad-1R-50. Is there a side I need to use, as the bevels are different on both sides.
    It’s a right hand. What’s the difference between the right hand and left hand?
    I’ve researched this, but found no answers.

  17. #39
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    Default Re: Blue chip picks

    Not in my opinion, I have one a friend gave me and I see it to be no better in sound or playability than the Fender Xtra heavy I’ve used for years,

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  19. #40
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    Default Re: Blue chip picks

    Quote Originally Posted by Mandoplumb View Post
    Not in my opinion, I have one a friend gave me and I see it to be no better in sound or playability than the Fender Xtra heavy I’ve used for years,
    Yup, I use a Fender 346 Extra Heavy in Classic Celluloid (emulated) Tortoise Shell. In my hands, they compare very favorably with a BC CT55.

    The only disadvantage with this Fender pick is that you generally have trouble finding it in packaging smaller than 1/2gross (78 pics), although their price for that package is significantly less than a single BC CT55.

    That said, the BC CT55 can be bought with a name embossed on it, and it can be bought with a pre-ground bevel, all directly from BC. The Fender pick is only available in its stock configuration.

    My wife uses a BC CT55 (name embossed, RH bevel) with her guitar and she keeps a couple of my Fender 346 Extra Heavy Celluloids as backups. She has problems with both picks slipping in her fingers. When she plays with the Fender right after playing the BC I tend to be able to hear the difference, there's some sort of increased resonance that I believe I can hear with the Fender (although, hearing is extremely subjective). But if she's playing and I don't know in advance which pick she's using, I cannot identify the pick by sound. They are that close in tone and volume.

    Instrument tone and volume are dependent on a huge number of variables other than just the pick.

    I really like the shape of both the BC CT55 and the Fender 346 Extra Heavy Celluloids. The Fender stays in my fingers better, but for both picks I really like the extra real estate for holding and angling the pick and for extra power in the stroke.
    Last edited by dhergert; Dec-17-2022 at 8:18pm.
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  21. #41
    Registered User Bob Buckingham's Avatar
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    Default Re: Blue chip picks

    There is a pick market for every budget. They all do the same thing.

  22. #42
    coprolite mandroid's Avatar
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    Question Re: Blue chip picks

    They tested the market for how much people were willing to pay,
    then a lot of other picks were made by other enterprises,
    once established that the market was willing to go that high.

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  23. #43
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    Default Re: Blue chip picks

    I like the Primetones, the purchase of which saves me about $40 over a BC, with which I can buy a decent bottle of Scotch, which always makes my playing sound better.
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  25. #44
    harvester of clams Bill McCall's Avatar
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    Default Re: Blue chip picks

    Quote Originally Posted by jaycat View Post
    I like the Primetones, the purchase of which saves me about $40 over a BC, with which I can buy a decent bottle of Scotch, which always makes my playing sound better.
    That saddens me, as I look over my BCs and other boutique picks and lament the Scotch I could have had.
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  27. #45
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    Default Re: Blue chip picks

    I’ve been playing my new Blue Chip TAD-1R 50 pick for a few days now.
    I had been using a Dunlop Tortex 73mm. When playing them back to back, I find the Blue Chip to give a
    warmer sound, a bit lower volume also. I really had high hopes for the Blue Chip.
    It’s a nice pick, and I like the larger size of it.
    I’m sure there are times where it would be better using it.
    Like I’ve said, it’s only been a few days. Maybe I’ll warm up to it.
    Just my opinion, and you know what they say about opinions.
    I’m going to give it a chance.
    Merry Christmas to all. I hope this next year is better than this last one.

  28. #46
    Registered User Eric Platt's Avatar
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    Default Re: Blue chip picks

    Quote Originally Posted by mandroid View Post
    They tested the market for how much people were willing to pay,
    then a lot of other picks were made by other enterprises,
    once established that the market was willing to go that high.

    That's true about anything musical instrument related. Including instruments themselves.
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  30. #47
    Innocent Bystander JeffD's Avatar
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    Default Re: Blue chip picks

    duplicate post
    A talent for trivializin' the momentous and complicatin' the obvious.

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  31. #48
    Innocent Bystander JeffD's Avatar
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    Default Re: Blue chip picks

    An interesting aside, what would a pick have to do for you that would make it worth the price of a Blue Chip?

    There was this pick that gave me the rich creamy F5 Gibson tone. It was bing, not ding or ting. Bing. Also because of its size and weight and shape, I could play faster. I was all of a sudden amazing! And the darn thing was grippy. It stayed on your finger. The crazy thing is that the pick taught me three new fiddle tunes, and also I could play further up the neck. It was freaking amazing. And it had a tiny tracking tag embedded into the center. I can ping it from my cell phone and see on a map where it is, with a graphic indicating how close I was.

    It was a little pricey, over $30.00, and the cell phone tracking app cost another $5.00. So so I bought a 12 pack of just OK maybe good enough picks for under four bucks. I am not really satisfied with them, but think of the money I saved.
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  33. #49

    Default Re: Blue chip picks

    I use a lot of different picks but Blue Chips are my favorite. One thing that is worth noting is that they cost less than they used to. When I bought my first one over ten years ago it was $35. I just checked their website and the same picks are now $35. I guess no one told the folks at Blue Chip that inflation exists!

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  35. #50
    Registered User Eric Platt's Avatar
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    Default Re: Blue chip picks

    Quote Originally Posted by JeffD View Post
    An interesting aside, what would a pick have to do for you that would make it worth the price of a Blue Chip?

    There was this pick that gave me the rich creamy F5 Gibson tone. It was bing, not ding or ting. Bing. Also because of its size and weight and shape, I could play faster. I was all of a sudden amazing! And the darn thing was grippy. It stayed on your finger. The crazy thing is that the pick taught me three new fiddle tunes, and also I could play further up the neck. It was freaking amazing. And it had a tiny tracking tag embedded into the center. I can ping it from my cell phone and see on a map where it is, with a graphic indicating how close I was.

    It was a little pricey, over $30.00, and the cell phone tracking app cost another $5.00. So so I bought a 12 pack of just OK maybe good enough picks for under four bucks. I am not really satisfied with them, but think of the money I saved.
    When I first got one, was just playing guitar. Suddenly in old time jams I went from "could you play louder or get a guitar that's louder?" to "hey! we can finally hear you."

    Just kept using one when taking up mandolin. Yes, I know it's all hype and I'm a fool for owning one.
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