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Ernie Ball are my choice of strings, mainly because of the price and they can last up to 6 months. But I try to get the 8’s or 9’s. I don’t care for 10’s anymore.
The melody of the notes is what expresses the art of music . 🙂 6stringerPete
It really is all about ”melody”. The melody comes from a language from our heart. Our heart is the muscle in music harmony. The melody is the sweetness that it pumps into our musical thoughts on the fretboard. 🙂 6 stringer Pete
Pete
Active Melody
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Well, in essence, lighter gauge strings are easier to play (easier to bend, and don’t hurt your fingers as much to push down).. however, they lack tone. Lighter gauge strings end up sounding tinny. Heavy gauge strings on the other hand can sound amazing, but tend to be a little harder to play (this is true for both acoustic and electric) – where it’s most notable is when you’re bending. I use a 10 gauge string which is somewhat middle of the road. By the way, when you refer to a set of strings as 10 gauge or 11 gauge, etc… you’re referring to the high E string (or 1st string).
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thanks…what u said about lightervguage easier to bend is true…i put some on my accoustic ( not sure what gauge) and they were very playable bendy. but now tinny after a lot pf play…time to change. I `m coming up to my first string change on my es 335 ,(just like yours) What gauge r u using? U said u like Eliksar brand..vs the Gibson brand that came on mine…why?
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One of the secrets of SRVs tone was the heavy gauged strings that he used. I once read that he used .014’s on his Strat, but he had really large hands with the strength to bend them. Like Hendrix & others, Stevie tuned down a half step which allowed his strings to have a little less tension.
I once owned a Washburn J6-S Montgomery, which is a good clone of the Gibson L5 like Wes Montgomery played. I started out with D’Addario Chrome Flat 10s but then bumped it up to 011’s. Sounded good and the Chrome Flats are an exceptionally smooth flat wound string. Just before I let it go, I installed a set of 012’s on it and OMG! what a difference. The heavier stings made the arched top of that guitar resonate much more and what a great sound came from it.
I have 3 semi-hollow guitars now and I am running 011s on them for the same reason. Yes, they are harder to bend but the difference in tone is noticeable.
String brand is objective – what sounds good to me might not appeal to others. I’ve been using GHS Nickel Rockers for a long time. They are roller wound instead of round wound; the roller wound process gives them a bit of a flattened surface, which in turn, cuts down on string noise during slides and bends. I’ve also used Ernie Ball Power Slinky’s, which is a stainless steel string. The have a nice bright tone to them and being stainless, they last a long time. I’m not a big fan of the other Ernie Ball strings but that’s just me
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Thanks for the tips guys… BTW I put a set of Elixar brand .12s on my Ovation Balladeer Acoustic (1969 vintage). There are very smooth and there was a noticable improvement in the tone vs. the 10 gauge DiAddario i had on it. The Elixar brand is supposed to last 3 times longer, for about 1/3 more price (About $16.CDN in my area) As you said bending is tougher, but the tone is better. I am a bit concerned about the string tension on a 45 yr old guitar..the top, neck, bridge are all straight, Do you guys think I should tune it down to E flat now it has heavier strings? Would it really make that much difference?
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I’ve noticed some ads in my Australian Guitar Magazine with Tommy Emmanuel endorsing a brand called Cleartone. I might try a set at my next change. I’ve been experimenting with my acoustic guitars & trying a variety of types. On some older flattops I’ve started using Silk & Steels because I can keep using 11’s but the tension is less thus not pulling up so much on the bridge & saddle. I have one guitar made by Cort that’s about 8 years old & I can’t get the action I want because the top has pulled up. The silk & steels didn’t help & I’m thinking whether to put in a JLD Bridge Doctor or just use the guitar in first position or for slide. Here’s the web site for Cleartone Strings. They’re a bit pricey here in Oz.
http://www.cleartonestrings.com/ -
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ive awlways keep the same strings on my clasical……but as ive only had the electic for about a month now…ive not had to change yet i dont even know the type that is on it…lol….but i was thinking of the next time i have to change i will find out what is on the electric and change them to see if my ear will notice the change??
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I switched to 10s on my Strat and then noticed the back of the bridge was a LOT higher than it was before. Great tone, but the bridge being higher also seemed to raised the action. I went back to 9s and the problem went away. I do run 10s on my Epi Swingster hollow body for the tone…doesn’t seem to affect the bridge at all, but it’s totally different with the Bigsby. That thing’s a beast. I think there are a lot of parameters to consider; string height, easy bending, stress on the guitar and most of all tone. Tough to make a call that fits everything…boils down to, “it depends”. 🙂
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So, guys, what type of strings do you use on an acoustic/electric? Acoustic strings, or electric strings? Is there a type made just for acoustic/electric? I want to play it acoustically and amped…I just picked up a really nice Godin 5th Av. Kingpin with P90 pup., which sounds great, but I think I’d like to change the strings to a little lighter gauge and more slippery.. As this is a blues/jazz style guitar, I’ve heard about “flat wounds” are good for this but I dont know anything about them… any thoughts?
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I think jazz players like the flatwounds because they don’t ‘squeak’ when playing moving lines. Acousticaly I don’t think they are as bright or have the overtones of roundwound. They don’t seem to come in the copper/brass/bronze choices that acoustic stings do. If you have an archtop and want a traditional sound they are the way to go. Some ‘Surf Guitar’ players swear by them as well.
Gordo
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Thanks for the advice Gord.. My man at the music store thought I should try them out too.. I have a brand new Godin 5th Ave. Kingpin to put them on..:-) Have you ever done any set up yourself, ie’adjust the neck and string height? The action is a bit high for me and the neck has a slight convex bow to it around the 4th fret.. A truss rod tool came with the guitar, (just an allen key) and bridge is adjustable for height.. Do I adjust the neck first? Should I slack off the strings before adjusting? What do you think?
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I would try the bridge first. You need a little relief in the neck to prevent buzzing. Try holding down the E string at the first fret with one hand and the 12 fret with the other. There should be a small gap between the string and fretboard at the seventh fret. About the thickness of a high E string, aroung .008″ should be lots. A little more for hard attack and strumming, less for finger pickers. There’s lots of info on the web about truss rod adjustment but I take mine in for a complete setup if the neck shows signs of movement. Finding a good guitar tech. is hard. Had some very bad experiences and would spend some time finding who has a good rep. and backs thier work up.
Gordo
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While you’re discussing flat wound strings, I love the feel of them so I like playing with them. So far as the sound goes, I’m not sure. I’m usually playing at home unamplified (or through a small solid state amp). My Fender silverface and I have been separated, and it may be more than I can do to retrieve it.
My question is, does anyone know of a set of flatwound strings that come with an unwound G?
Thanks for your time and effort.
Don D.
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