miguel_angelo's Metal Music Gear Setup

I love the Jazztone 208 shape (now called Flow) and been loving the regular blue 351 tortex so I decided to try these out, seemed perfect on paper but somehow at first I didn't really like them, they just sounded thin to me. I noticed however the Tortex Flow was getting better after two days of playing and "breaking in", so I grabbed a new one, sanded the pointy tip juuuuust a little bit (0.3mm) and then polished it. It made a HUGE difference! The Flow's rounder hips are it's main novelty and what gives them the ability to literally and effortlessly "flow" so well from string to string, especially when sweep picking. On the other hand it's a less forgiving pick than Standard 351 or even the Jazz III since it has a faster release and doesn't grab onto the string as much, so it requires more precision. Somehow it also seems to produce slightly less string noise on the wound strings compared to the Standard 351, but that might be just the way I naturally hold a pick. Tortex is no doubt my favourite pick material, it has that warm and defined delrin tonality (even more if you polish it), great grip and long life. For less technical playing the Standard 351 Tortex is still King however, and sound great right of the bat without the need to sand or polish.

Can't go wrong with these no matter the style you play. I like their mellower attack and reduced string noise compared to Ultex (especially on the wound strings) and I also prefer their texture which to me resembles more that of the fingernail. I like to polish them on the edges and tip to have more of that clear and natural delrin tone with fast and smooth release. I tried the greens 0.88 and purples 1.14, to me the blues 1.0 hit the sweet spot of articulation and snap. The size is also perfect for my fingers, the top of the pick just fits super nice on my index phalange giving it a very ergonomic grip. Available everywhere dirt cheap and consistent quality. Perfect all-rounder pick.

My new favourite for jazz, super smooth sounding. Large and hard with the right texture to ensure proper grip. I just polish the tip a bit more to get an even smoother release. Very durable and precise.

EDIT: actually this is my favourite pick for everything now, I just order the 36 piece pack and embrace it as my new nails.