About Dunlop
Dunlop Manufacturing was founded in 1965 by Jim Dunlop Sr. in Benicia, California, where he started the company part-time while working as a chemical engineer. It has grown into one of the largest independent makers of guitar accessories in the world, still headquartered and manufacturing at its original Benicia site, now led by Jim Dunlop Sr.'s son, Jimi Dunlop, following the founder's passing in 2019.
The brand spans two very different product categories we cover: hand-shaped guitar picks, most recognizably the color-coded Tortex line and the compact Jazz III shred shape, and the Cry Baby wah pedal, whose original tooling Dunlop acquired from Thomas Organ and Jen Elettronica in 1982 and has manufactured ever since. Dunlop expanded further into electronics by acquiring the MXR brand in 1987, reviving classics like the Phase 90 and Dyna Comp, and today also owns Way Huge and the Heil Talk Box — a portfolio that runs from plastic pick molding to boutique pedal electronics under one roof.
Brand website: jimdunlop.com
What Dunlop makes
Dunlop's catalog runs wider than the gear we review. The lines we know best from our own testing are marked with a star:
Tortex, Ultex & Jazz III Guitar Picks
Dunlop's signature pick materials and shapes, including the color-coded Tortex line and the compact Jazz III shred shape — featured on House of Octave
Cry Baby Wah Pedals
The original wah pedal, built on tooling Dunlop has manufactured since acquiring it in 1982 — featured on House of Octave
MXR Effects Pedals
Compressor, phaser, distortion and octave pedals under the MXR brand Dunlop acquired and revived in 1987
Capos & Slides
Guitar capos and glass and metal slides
Strings & Fret Wire
Guitar strings and luthier supplies including fret wire and strap retainers
Way Huge Effects
Boutique effects pedal brand also owned by Dunlop
Why we recognized Dunlop
The House of Octave Top Brand recognition isn't paid for and can't be applied for. We award it to the brands whose gear consistently stands out in our player-tested category guides. Dunlop earned it on the strength of the products below, judged the same way every product on this site is: assessed on build, tone, and playability, weighed against what players actually report over years of use, and ranked on merit.
Dunlop gear we rated highly
Jim Dunlop Max-Grip Nylon Standard Pick .73MM - 12 Pack
One of our top picks: a molded cross-hatch grip texture that owners repeatedly credit with eliminating dropped picks during sweaty, high-energy sessions, in a balanced .73mm gauge that handles both rhythm and lead. An Amazon Best Seller with over eleven thousand ratings.
Read the 9 Best Guitar Picks of 2026 (Beginner, Acoustic, Metal, Jazz & Bass) guide →
Jim Dunlop Guitar Pick LT/MD Variety Pack - 12 Pack
Six pick materials in one wallet-sized pack — nylon, Max-Grip, celluloid, Gator Grip, Tortex, and Ultex — in light and medium gauges, so a new player can feel the difference grip and material make instead of reading about it. Amazon's Choice with nearly ten thousand ratings.
Read the 9 Best Guitar Picks of 2026 (Beginner, Acoustic, Metal, Jazz & Bass) guide →
Jim Dunlop Acoustic Pick Variety Pack - 12 Pack
Materials chosen specifically to complement acoustic tone, from warm nylon and Herco Flex to brighter Ultex and Tortex, across a 0.6mm-to-1.0mm gauge spread that covers everything from light strumming to firmer flatpicking. Rated 4.8 stars across nearly eight thousand ratings.
Read the 9 Best Guitar Picks of 2026 (Beginner, Acoustic, Metal, Jazz & Bass) guide →
Jim Dunlop Electric Pick Variety Pack - 12 Pack
Purpose-built for electric playing, with sharper Ultex and Tortex tips for articulate single-note runs plus Jazz III XL and Max-Grip Jazz III shapes folded in, across a heavier .88mm-to-2.0mm range for high-gain rhythm and lead work. Rated 4.7 stars over nearly eight thousand ratings.
Read the 9 Best Guitar Picks of 2026 (Beginner, Acoustic, Metal, Jazz & Bass) guide →
Jim Dunlop Jazz III Pick Variety Pack - 6 Pack
The small, stiff Jazz III shape that owners credit with improving speed and accuracy on solos, offered here in six material variations — Nylon Red, Max-Grip Carbon Fiber, Tortex, Ultex, and both XL sizes — all in the roughly 1.0-1.4mm heavy range shredders and jazz players favor. Rated 4.8 stars over nearly three thousand ratings.
Read the 9 Best Guitar Picks of 2026 (Beginner, Acoustic, Metal, Jazz & Bass) guide →
Dunlop Original Cry Baby Standard Wah (GCB95)
The wah every other wah is measured against — the voice of Hendrix, Slash, and Kirk Hammett — with a smooth, musical heel-to-toe sweep from the classic Fasel inductor circuit and a near-indestructible cast-metal housing. Nearly 2,000 reviews back up the reliability that's made it an institution for more than fifty years.
Read the 11 Best Guitar Pedals of 2026 (One Pick for Every Effect) guide →What earned Dunlop the recognition
- Founded in 1965 by Jim Dunlop Sr. in Benicia, California, and still headquartered and manufacturing at that same site today
- Five separate Jim Dunlop products earned places among our top guitar pick recommendations, more than any other single brand we tested
- The Dunlop Original Cry Baby (GCB95) carries forward the wah pedal tooling Dunlop acquired in 1982, and our reviews still name it the standard for classic funk, rock, and metal wah tone
- Dunlop's Tortex and Jazz III pick shapes and materials come up repeatedly across our picks reviews as the reference points for grip, gauge, and shred-ready feel
- Beyond picks and wah pedals, Dunlop owns MXR, the effects brand behind the Phase 90 and Dyna Comp, reflecting a manufacturing scale that spans plastic accessories to boutique pedal electronics