Can acoustic guitar do this?

[Phil]

if it helps you could invest in one of those thumb picks

Yeah, can consider getting yourself a 'thumb'-drive.

But seriously, fingerstyle or using a pick are just different means to a same end. That being creating music and enjoying yourself.

There's really no better way, I use both, as and when the situation calls for or depending on my mood that day.

With a pick you can be a lot more aggressive with your strums and have it's easier to get more projection and bite.

With fingers you can feel the strings, you can play and pluck notes simultaneously, such as having your thumb continuously droning on while the other fingers play the melody, and of course with fingers your tone you'd yielding is more mellow. And in some ways, I feel that fingerstyle affords you more control overall.

Start off with a pick if you are a beginner, and when you're ready just try out fingerstyle. You'd need both.

 

[nerve]

I do feel that a thumb-pick gives you the "best of both worlds" so to say. It helps to give you more attack and volume to your bass notes, allows you to make the occasional strum, yet frees up your fingers for plucking the rest of the strings, so in a way it gives you an additional dimension to your playing. If you look at experienced fingerstyle players such as Doyle Dykes they do use one.

 

[MadWerewolfBoy]

check out tommy emmanuel too, he's a good hybrid picker. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AhR04kmcSXU&fmt=18

and he uses a lot of thumb pick too, so that opens up quite a number of possibilities.

here's an explanation of thumb picks: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ZJF_V7Rmdo