sensitive strumming tricks

hello

i write to ask you guys opinion on strumming for acoustic playing.

I find that my acoustic guitar is very loud when i strum it and find it a little bit

scary and alive. like a monster.

This is perhaps because i really am still a beginner acoustic guitar player, but perhaps with some intermediate skills that come from being a bass player for years.

was wondering if there was any thing that i could do in terms of strumming apart from

playing more softly, and perhaps buying a smaller body guitar...

any recommendations with regards to pick type.

As i have experimented with different types of picks to various degrees of success

i have to admit the pick thing is very idiosyncratic

my favourite picks at the mo for acoustic playing are jim dumplops USA nylon picks that have a bit of a grip on them. mostly fairly medium types. such as .73, .80, .88 guages

i tried lighter ones but found them a bit flappy, they make a very flappy sound when strumming like someone running with flip flops on or something - not great

i also think that soft playing can be really nice and in some cases better than

hard and loud knock them out strumming which can lack in dynamics and accuracy

anyway just a question in hope to draw on you guys infinite wisdom and experience

Thanks

I also don't like the sound of strumming with a pick when playing solo. I just ditch the pick.

I don't often play acoustic, but when I do - it's either with the thumb or a Dunlop 46mm.

That Dunlop is pretty flimsy, but it's about as much as I want from an acoustic.

There is no right way. The ears are yours and are the ones to please.

Good luck.

Just my two cents.

Some good points already made here. I have a variety of picks that I use depending on what sound I `m looking for. Some songs sound better with a louder, harder edged sound; others benefit from a softer mellower sound and some I just finger strum, especially if there`s fingerpicking involved.

Cheers,

Jeff

Don't know what type of guitar you have but sounds like a J200 Jumbo ( Gibson ) or copy from that and they sound loud and IMHO dull, okay for strumming , not so for fingerpicking. What you can do about it is buy an anti feedback insert for the soundhole and put that in place, this will dampen the sound a lot.

Herman

I've always found it has a lot to do with how tight I am holding my pick. If you have a looser grip a lot of the energy will be dispersed in the strum and the strings won't generally be as loud. If your pick grip is extremely tight every bit of energy from the strum will slam into the strings and transfer into volume. :)

-Carl.