• Home
  • Best Guitar Picks
    • Best Wooden Guitar Picks
    • Best Metal Guitar Picks
    • Best Ergonomic Guitar Picks
    • Best Stone Guitar Picks
  • Pick Reviews
  • Guitar Gear
  • Blog
  • Guitar Lessons
  • Contact

Subscribe to Updates

Get the latest creative news from FooBar about art, design and business.

What's Hot

List Of All Guitar Parts: Electric And Acoustic – Explanations And Diagrams

May 14, 2022
7.0

Dunlop Rock III – A New Custom Jazz III – Full Review

May 7, 2022
8.1

Black Mountain Guitar Picks, Thumb Picks & Slides – UPDATED 2022

May 3, 2022
Facebook Twitter Instagram
Guitar Pick Reviews Guitar Pick Reviews
  • Home
  • Best Guitar Picks
    • Best Wooden Guitar Picks
    • Best Metal Guitar Picks
    • Best Ergonomic Guitar Picks
    • Best Stone Guitar Picks
  • Pick Reviews
  • Guitar Gear
  • Blog
  • Guitar Lessons
  • Contact
Guitar Pick Reviews Guitar Pick Reviews
Home»Reviews»Dugain Picks Review: The World’s First Ergonomic Pick
Reviews

Dugain Picks Review: The World’s First Ergonomic Pick

Guitar Pick ReviewsBy Guitar Pick ReviewsNovember 13, 2021Updated:November 15, 2021No Comments5 Mins Read
Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr WhatsApp Email
Share
Facebook Twitter LinkedIn WhatsApp Pinterest Email

Jean – Charles Dugain started making guitar picks in 1977, and in 1982 invented the ergonomic pick. That’s one hell of an intro line, isn’t it? I approached Dugain Picks and they were kind enough to send me 4 of their ergonomic picks for this review:

  1. Minidug Brass – A Jazz III shape ergonomic brass pick
  2. Minidug Bone – A Jazz III shape ergonomic bone pick
  3. Standug Horn – A standard shape ergonomic Buffalo horn pick
  4. Superdug Acetate – An XL shape ergonomic acetate pick

The guys from Dugain Picks told me that I may need some time to get used to their picks, especially if I’ve never tried ergonomic picks before (which I haven’t). But as soon as I held one of their picks in my hand I understood the hype around them. Every pick they sent me felt like a natural extension of my palm, and the carvings (for the thumb and index finger) were extremely accurate. When you play with these picks, you can feel the level of craftsmanship and the amount of experience Jean – Charles has. After all, he’s been making picks for almost 45 years!

  • the thumb recess of a dugain standug horn pick
    Stundug Horn
  • Superdug Acetate
  • Minidug Brass
  • Minidug Bone

Table of Contents

  • What are Dugain Picks made of?
  • How do they feel?
  • A few words about the Dugain Picks I have
    • Dugain Minidug Brass Pick
    • Dugain Minidug Bone Pick
    • Dugain Superdug Acetate Pick
    • Dugain Standug Horn Pick
  • Pricing
  • Where to buy them from
  • Things to know before ordering
  • Disclaimer

What are Dugain Picks made of?

Dugain Picks’ catalog contains a huge variety of materials. Dozens of wood species, Acrylic, Delrin, Acetate, Bio-plastic, Metals (even a solid gold pick), Bone, Horn, Leather, Stones, Glass, and more. This variety of materials ensure that no matter what are your preferences, you’ll find a pick that suits the sound you’re after.

How do they feel?

As I said before, their ergonomic picks feel natural in my hand. Now, it may be because this is the way I’m used to holding a pick. That being said, I did feel that I could play with them a lot longer than with other picks of the same thickness. In terms of grip, the pick is carved in a way that your thumb and index finger sit in a designated recess. So whether the material is grippy or not, this pick is not moving anywhere. Additionally, the tip of the pick is shaped asymmetrically, so down and upstrokes are pretty consistent.

  • Standug Horn
  • Superdug Acetate
  • Minidug Brass
  • Minidug Bone

A few words about the Dugain Picks I have

Even though they’re all made by the same plectier, there are still huge differences between them. I am doing my best to not focus too much on tone in this review because the biggest value in these picks is how comfortable they are. Although, the superb quality of the materials used does have additional tone-related benefits that are not to be dismissed so easily.

Dugain Minidug Brass Pick

The heaviest of them all, bright sounding and super precise. It’s super fun to play with and it sounds great both in clean and heavier amp settings. My personal favorite of the four.

Dugain Minidug Bone Pick

Small, accurate, and lightweight. Slightly faster than the brass pick and my very close 2nd favorite. I like its sound a bit better than the brass, but it lacks some weight.

Dugain Superdug Acetate Pick

This is the first time I’m trying an Acetate pick. It’s a plant-based hypoallergenic plastic. It feels both plastic-like and organic and weighs a lot less than you’d expect it to. The reason I like it more than the horn pick (even though it’s larger) is that the Acetate has some sound qualities that I really like, and it compensates for the lack of accuracy.

Dugain Standug Horn Pick

A standard-shaped pick made out of a buffalo horn. If you like the size of a standard pick you are going to love this one. The fact that it’s the least favorite of the bunch doesn’t mean that I didn’t like it, because I love it, just not as much as I liked the other ones.

Pricing

Dugain Picks offers a huge range and their ergonomic picks cost anywhere between 8.5 Euros all the way to 1775 Euros (for a solid gold pick), with the majority of them costing around 14-15 Euros. They offer some non-ergonomic picks and picks without index finger imprints as well, and they do cost a bit less. But if you decide to try a Dugain pick, I’d advise you to go and get an ergonomic one. Another very cool section on their site is offering some packs and b-stock picks at a discount.

Where to buy them from

Dugain Picks are available in a lot of different online stores and music shops (especially in Europe). But I really think the best way to buy boutique picks is directly from the makers. This is our way to support creativity and to show our appreciation for the creators of the Plectroverse.

Visit Dugain Picks Store

Things to know before ordering

Before ordering there are really two things to bear in mind:

  1. The way the recesses are carved dictates the place for the thumb and index finger. As a result, the distance between your index finger to the tip of the pick can’t be altered at all. If you like to hold your pick really close to the tip, I’d advise you to try the Minidug first. If you like it a little farther away, go for the Standug. And If you like it very far – the Superdug is the best choice for you.
  2. If you’re playing guitar as a right handed, make sure to buy a right handed pick. If you’re left handed – get a left handed pick. Holding an ergonomic pick in the wrong hand beats the purpose of it being ergonomic, and is very uncomfortable.

Pick Makers, if you want your picks reviewed, or have anything cool you made and want to share – send me a message, I’d love to hear from you!

Send a message

Disclaimer

This is not a paid review. Even though I got the picks for free, my review represents my true opinion and the maker has no control over it.

8.6 Highly Recommended

A solid score for a great line of picks. Naturally, you can expect every material and shape to produce a sound based on its characteristics. They feel very natural to the hand like they're sitting right where they belong. Like the tone, the durability is very much tied to the material, but everything is very high quality. They are not grippy at all, but thanks to the shaping of the picks, they don't need to be grippy in order to not move when playing. They are a bit pricy, but you are definitely getting great value for your money.

  • Sound 8
  • Feel 10
  • Durabiliry 8
  • Grip 9
  • Price 8
  • User Ratings (1 Votes) 8.5
dugain picks ergonomic picks pick review picks review
Share. Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr WhatsApp Email
Guitar Pick Reviews
  • Website

Related Posts

7.0

Dunlop Rock III – A New Custom Jazz III – Full Review

May 7, 2022
8.1

Black Mountain Guitar Picks, Thumb Picks & Slides – UPDATED 2022

May 3, 2022
8.4

Hippie Picks – Full Review

April 20, 2022
8.4

Howling Monkey Picks – Full Review

April 12, 2022
8.2

Rombo Picks – Full Review

April 6, 2022
8.9

Dragon Picks – Full Review

March 29, 2022
Add A Comment

Leave A Reply Cancel Reply

Don't Miss
8.6

Plumstone Guitar Picks Review

March 20, 2022

Easy Fingerpicking Styles and Exercises for Beginners

September 30, 2021
7.0

Dunlop Rock III – A New Custom Jazz III – Full Review

May 7, 2022

The Most Beautiful Guitar Picks You Can Buy

November 21, 2021
Facebook Twitter Instagram Pinterest
  • Contact
  • Terms and Conditions
  • Privacy Policy & Cookie Policy
  • About
  • Disclaimer
  • Sitemap
© 2022 Guitarpickreviews.com. Designed by KODERapps.

Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.