V-Picks

[Hemi-Powered Drone]

Has anyone ever tried them? They seem interesting, especially since they claim to not slip even with sweaty fingers.

I'm thinking I might want to try a few, probably the freakishly large rounded, snake, shredder, and possibly the nexus.

I wish a store near me stocked them, I'm really curious about that insanity pick.

V-Picks Guitar Picks, Guitar Pick

[Larrikin666]

I've tried everything they make. They have a very nice playability, but I just couldn't deal with ice pick sounded they generated.

[rawrkunjrawr]

I've played them and I enjoied them to, and then I switched to Sharps.

btw you can get some free picks if you email the guy.

[Rommel]

I have a few V-picks. If you like a warmer tone, try the Rounded picks. If you like a brighter tone check out the Pointed picks.

My favorites are Dimension Unbuffed, Freakishly Large Rounded, Snake and Medium Rounded.

[Infiniti]

Originally Posted by Larrikin666

I've tried everything they make. They have a very nice playability, but I just couldn't deal with ice pick sounded they generated.

I'm in this same boat myself. Actually, I'm not sure if I'm the only one who's had this issue, but every V-Pick with me never stuck to my hand any more than any other pick did(as they claim the picks stick to your hand when you warm them up in your hands a bit), in fact I found it a bit harder to grip them than normal picks. Except for stone picks, but that's another story.

Icepicky and sort of hollow-charactered(if that's even an understandable term to anyone but me >_>) is what they always came across to me. Some people like that, some people might think otherwise too, but I just stay with Tortex Jazz IIIs right now.

[Cheesebuiscut]

I pretty much use stilleto's exclusively now as I love the tone vpicks produce.

It does exactly what they claim to do, it cuts bass and emphasizes mid range and high end. I wouldn't recommend them if your looking for a warmer tone but they're great for the sound I like.

They do stick to your hands though the side with the engraving tends to slide a lot less than the non engraved side. I asked if I could order some with both sides engraved and with a little extra face thingy to get more engraving on there and they had no problem doing it so I have no sliding issues. My hands get very sweaty and slide around on just anything but I don't have too much issue with these.

You do have to clean them off with soap every once in a while otherwise they get too oily and lose the stick to your hands-ness.

I recommend them though I could see how they arent for everyone.

[ShadyDavey]

I've got a huge amount sat here that I was sent to review and even before that point I bought some to replace my usual Jazz III style picks. As noted they do exactly what the advertisements claim in that they are very keen to adhere to even sweaty fingers, and at the same time produce a very distinct tone.

Distinct in this case sadly, did not sit well with me as it was far from the distinct, precise tone I enjoy from both my Red Bear and Dunlop Jazztone, it was rather a piercing and scratchy tone regardless of how often, or to what extent I shaped the point.

Not to say that other people don't admire their attack, or dislike their tone, but I simply didn't feel it was exactly I required most of the time. That said, I retain a couple of the "Tradition" I occasionally use when practicing alternate picking to lend a high level of definition to accents and synchronisation.

In either case, their longevity is very good indeed

[Fred the Shred]

I use them almost exclusively these days, and they're the one brand I take with me on the road. ShadyDavey had sent me a small pointed for me to see how it felt and I didn't find them piercing or icepicky, and I do have a very strong and snappy attack, yet this is really something that will or won't work with different players.

These are the custom Snake types I use. I only own one unbuffed at the moment, and will get a few more from Vinni in time:


Vinni is a star of a guy and most helpful in trying to guide you along the monster product line.

[Devon8822]

I have one I think the whole concept is a gimmicky joke, not only do they sound horrible they play horrible.

Try out some Maxgrip Jazz IIIs

[Fred the Shred]

Thing is that it is most definitely not gimmicky. You may dislike something, which makes perfect sense, but trying to say they "play and sound horrible" as a fact opposed to opinion is claiming me and everyone that uses them is an idiot. Unless you have factual evidence of me being intellectually subpar or a masochist, your position is wrong. Also, every producer and artist I worked for is either hearing impaired or also a masochist.

I dislike Jazz IIIs as they are a bit too small and the tone isn't really my thing, but to claim they "play and sound horrible" is a lie. I've seen a ton of people using them and sounding great, so it's a matter of the pick not suiting me, not pseudo-factual opinionated BS, sorry.

[Cheesebuiscut]

I lol'd.

Is people like that that you automatically disregard their posts because you know how much weight their opinion carries.


Btw playing with pick angle I can get damn near the same tone from my vpick as I get from my dava grips / max grip jazz 3's. I just can't get the attack / mid high range emphasis that I get from my vpicks from the other two no matter what angle I use.

Also my teachers initial reaction when I had him try a vpick (small pointed) was *this is going to sound shrill* and when he actually used it and used his ears he noticed how sweet it sounds and how it isn't icepicky at all. I think that connotation comes from it looking like a piece of glass and people automatically put it in their heads that its going to be shrill.

I mean if my teacher didn't find a pointy 1.5mm pick icepicky and hes the kinda guy that only ever uses thin rounded almost mandolin like picks or his fingers then uh... I don't think they're icepicky.

[Hemi-Powered Drone]

Originally Posted by Devon8822

I have one I think the whole concept is a gimmicky joke, not only do they sound horrible they play horrible.

Try out some Maxgrip Jazz IIIs

Not a fan of nylon pics, actually, and the grip was very itchy. Or in your words,

"I have played one I think the whole concept is a gimmicky joke, not only do they sound horrible they play horrible."

That hurt a little.

Jazz IIIs are too small in my opinion, I can barely get one finger on them, let alone two or three. The most comfortable pick I've played is a triangular one that came with an iPod repair kit I bought on eBay, just because I could grip it well.

Fred-Are those the regular Snakes, or pointed?

[Fred the Shred]

These are regular Snakes, mate. Pointeds are quite cool as well, but it boils down to what feel you prefer in the end.

[Larrikin666]

Pulled a few of my V-picks back out today. I really like the insanity pick for warming up. I just couldn't get completely comfortable playing our erratic mix of trem, chug, alternate, and sweet picking with of the picks. Each one felt amazing for a particular technique or two but really felt lacking for another. I certainly wouldn't call them a gimmick. They make some interesting stuff. I wouldn't be surprised if they eventually come up with something that fit my needs better.

[Cancer]

I was a huge Snake Pointed v-pick fan for about 3 months. It's an amazing pick, but to honest I hated the price. Now I just use them for studio stuff.

[Cheesebuiscut]

larrik do you have anything shaped more like what you typically use?

I mean my stilleto's are shaped just like jazz 3's just a little pointier and like .4mm thicker so they can do everything jazz 3's can do. I myself can't imagine using a 300mm pick like some of the things they have but thats just me.

[noob_pwn]

I've tried them and chose not to use them for a few reasons:

The Jazz III maxgrip carbon grips better for me
The Jazz III maxgrip carbon is much cheaper and picks always go missing, especially on tour
I prefer the Jazz III maxgrip carbon's tone to the V-picks I tried. I wouldn't say they're overly icepicky but they are very distinctive.
V-picks have a huge line to choose from and are a great product but I feel as if I've found "my pick" in the carbon III maxgrip.

Each to their own but don't bash a product if it doesn't work for you

[Fred the Shred]

Originally Posted by noob_pwn

I've tried them and chose not to use them for a few reasons:

The Jazz III maxgrip carbon grips better for me
The Jazz III maxgrip carbon is much cheaper and picks always go missing, especially on tour
I prefer the Jazz III maxgrip carbon's tone to the V-picks I tried. I wouldn't say they're overly icepicky but they are very distinctive.
V-picks have a huge line to choose from and are a great product but I feel as if I've found "my pick" in the carbon III maxgrip.

Each to their own but don't bash a product if it doesn't work for you

Bless you for a well constructed review!

[Larrikin666]

Originally Posted by Cheesebuiscut

larrik do you have anything shaped more like what you typically use?

I mean my stilleto's are shaped just like jazz 3's just a little pointier and like .4mm thicker so they can do everything jazz 3's can do. I myself can't imagine using a 300mm pick like some of the things they have but thats just me.

I pretty much only use Ultex sharp 1.4mm picks right now. A few of the picks came close to that feel, but the tone was significantly different or vice versa. I find myself grabbing the V-picks all the time when I'm playing by myself for an hour or so before practice. Halfway through our first song with the full band, I'm walking across the room to grab an Ultex sharp because the V-pick just feels a tiny bit off.

[noob_pwn]

Originally Posted by Fred the Shred

Bless you for a well constructed review!

thankyou sir.

I think people need to realise that a person's hands are one of the most unique parts of their body, we all hold our picks differently, we all play differently and in different environments. We also sweat differently with our own unique sweat composition.

Because of this there will never be a one size fits all pick, and the same goes for pick grip and material. The best you can do for yourself is to try everything out there and see what works for you in all your different playing situations like I did. The v-picks for me were ok at home but live when i play in poorly ventilated venues when its summer time and over 40 celcius outside I sweat like a ............ and the picks got really slippery because of their material and i couldnt hold on to them properly even when i tried to score them. If they made picks with a pattern like the maxgrip dunlops have I would definitely give them another shot.

[jnukes2]

I just ordered their starter pack about 10 minutes ago. $20 for 7 of their top selling/most liked picks. I've never tried them, so I ordered them. $20 is like going out to eat a couple of times, so why not?

[AxeHappy]

I tried the Psycho Shredder about 1.5-2 Years ago and never looked back.


I'm actually still using that exact same pick.

The stupid thickness (5.85mm) of it really allows me to relax my grip. Which lets me play faster.

Plus I love the tone, and as long as you wash the pick off every now and again the sticky thing works. For me anyways.

Basically they worked exactly as advertised for me.

[Sacha]

Love em, medium pointy here

[ShadyDavey]

Originally Posted by Fred the Shred

I use them almost exclusively these days, and they're the one brand I take with me on the road. ShadyDavey had sent me a small pointed for me to see how it felt and I didn't find them piercing or icepicky, and I do have a very strong and snappy attack, yet this is really something that will or won't work with different players.

Absolutely - even when examined side by side with the same guitar and the exact same amp settings you retained a different tone to me. Proof if any were needed that they do react to different picking angles/techniques.

I think objectively that my picking style just didn't sit well with the pick, rather than the pick generating a particular tone or attack which could be characterized as "Icepick". FWIW I had many of the same problems with pointed picks early in my playing life.

[Animus]

I had been using Dunlop Nylons for like 2 decades but recently I tested out these Steve Vai sig polyacetal picks. Very nice.

I have looked at the Vpicks but on principle I am not paying 10, 20 or 30 bucks for a small piece of molded plastic. lol