Originally Posted by: jamesplaysgitarok... so i cant really pick that fast. i want to pick faster. i was just wondering, are you supposed to hold your pick parrallell to the strings? cuz ive seen some people tilt it abit so theres less friction, whats are the pros/cons for picking both ways?

when u hold your pick paralell to the strings the sound is different than when you tilt it. In my case I use both depends from what type of sound I wanna achieve
also I gave up alternate picking for directional picking(alternative picking as Michael Angelo would call it)if I want to play really fast.
If I wanna get big stacatto sound(Paul Gilbert) I use alternate picking.
Also since I started using thumb muting technique I drastically increased my speed whereas alternate picking makes my hand really tired(even though is always relaxed)