Pickholders
What are pickholders and why do you need one? For a guitar player who is playing on stage, a pickholder can be key to saving the day and the gig. If you are spending all of your time racing off of the stage to get a new pick, you are really not giving your best performance. Now imagine that you have a one shot deal, a chance to show a record producer your chops and instead of getting out there to play your guitar, you are too busy looking for a replacement pick. Guess who is not getting a record contract!
The most basic types of pickholders are small and take up very little space. If you want, you can mount them to your guitar but they may change the tone and sound quality of the instrument. There are other places to stick your pick holder so that it is always handy. Most of them are spring loaded so that you can easily retrieve a pick as needed. The number of picks that you can fit into them will depend on its size.
Most people like to stick to holders that will hold between ten and twenty picks which should be enough for an average length set unless you drop, break or throw away picks more than average. If you are going to be playing a longer set, you might opt to have a second loaded pick holder ready to go.
For many guitarists, their music is the first thing they are concerned with and then their appearance. Most will consider a pick holder to be a useful tool rather than as something that is an enhancing or detracting item, looks wise. For instance, a heavy metal band will come out with guitar straps that are thick and black, with studs or other dangerous looking accessories. They like them big and bad like their sound. A country singer might use a guitar strap that is glitterier and flashier. They are never going to come out rocking the diamond studded guitar pick holder though –they are just little things that they need and nothing more.
There are some holders that are a little more than spring loaded plastic, including options like holders with lights built right into them, great for darker venues for instance. There is also an option for a necklace version, putting your extra picks right there around your neck. But, for most people, the cheaper plastic pickholders are all that they really need.
