Guitar Strings, what kind and why?

Guitar gear question for everyone who plays....

I use the hybrid slinkys for electric, and have for years. But I have had trouble finding my preferred acoustic strings, Adamas. They last a really long time, and keep a bright sound, but I need suggestions for when I cant find em.

Since I havent hunted acoustic strings for a loooong time, just using Adamas, I wondered what everyone else was using. I usually go fender strings if I cant find my first choice. Whats your axe strung up with?

 

Elixir makes good acoustic and good electric strings...you can choose either polyweb or nanoweb and i've tried both and i'm still not sure which is better but i know they have a really bright sound and they stay that wa longer than the others i have tried...i like the lights which would be 0.10 gauge

 

"Black Diamond" brand, SILVERS. Becuase they come for a 12 string, have actual diamond dust embedded in silver and sound Friggin Awsome!

 

I don't like Elixer, although I do like their strings (but they're the same as D'Addario anyway). For one, they're the same strings as coated D'Addarios, as they buy the strings from D'Addario then coat them in a different factory. You'd be saving money to just use coated D'Addarios as you're only paying for more brandnames - Gore Tex and Elixer... I'm not paying $10.00 a pack for the same damn strings you can get from D'Addario just because there's more middlemen and shipping around involved, which just creates more environmental problems anyway.

As for my acoustics, I play Pyramid .13s (about $20.00 a pack, hard to find becuase they're made in Germany, but they're the best strings in the world), For my les paul, I play .13 guage Pyramids or D'Addario Chromes (the chromes are as close to Pyramids as it gets), for my Fenders, GHS Nickel Rocker .13s... or Ernie Ball Power Slinky .11s when my fingers are in bad shape and need a bit of a break or my broke-ass doesn't feel like dishing out the cash for the Pyramids. For my Guild 12 string, I Pyramid .11 guage strings, a bit lighter for a more jangley tone and better harmonics... or if I'm broke, I play Guild .11s. For my Martins, I play Pyramid .12s or .12-.54 Martin Acoustic SP Bronze 80/20s... I'm picky when it comes to strings.

As for Dean Markley, I can't stand their strings, they're way too warm, especially on a Martin, for my tastes. John Pearse is okay, I like Martin strings, but they're Mexican made nowadays and I think they're a little lower quality than most string companies, although I love Martin guitars. Black Diamond makes great strings and I'd rank them up there with Pyramid, it's just that my local shop tends to usually be out of them, so I just get Pyramid strings. I'm actually the only person who ever buys Pyramid strings from the shop, so they usually order them just for me, now, so that's the only shop I buy from now. I'm just kind of returning them the favor. There's only shop in my county anyway... Fender strings are too commercial and they break more easily. They feel about the same as Ernie Ball strings, but I've had bad experiences with the ball end snapping and cutting my hand more than other strings. My strings always break at the ball end, as I have a hard picking attack. That's the main reason I like Pyramids... their strings are handwound and not mass produced shit like most companies, but you pay for it.

 

I'm not really too fussy.

I think it's 12's I usually use now on acoustic and electrics. Brand is usually Daddario, but whatever is available does me.

 

i love my slinkys

 

thanks guys.
some diverse strings there, I will try some of them out, especially the longer lasting ones. The humidity here added to playing them alot really wears them out quick for me.

 

I buy them at a local music store for 14.99 for a set of three. Then I go jup to Dahlonega and buy bundles of extra g strings. The way I play sometimes and the amount of time playing generally leads to a lot of strings losing it. Ive mastered the restringing it by the time the song is over. It sucks when you are singing one.
I used to use the Martin Marquis, heck I play those on my old box for ten years atleast. They usually lasted 4 or 5 days, sounded great the first 2 or 3. I decided one day to do some experementing, felt there had to be a better string. Than I bought a pack of sps, thought they were a little better. I bought and tried normal dadarios. Liked them a lot, tried black diamonds, liked them a lot the first three hours, after that they were dead. The elixers, are an overpriced set of dead strings, I hate them, they make me sick. The best deal to me, and most practical is the three pack set of dadarios. Everyone has there preference anyway, so this is just my opinion, If you like another style of string than thats ok. lol by the way I was sponsered by black diamond and used a pair once. Once.

 

On a similar topic, how often do you replace strings? I still have the original ones the guitar came from (~2 years ago).

 

Ever three weeks to a month or so... They're usually dead by two to three weeks no matter what kind of string they are. I don't mind dead strings on my electrics, though.

 

I have a Martin and I usualy use the Martin Phosphor bronze strings, Medium. I haven't tried a lot of others,I didn't notice much difference when I used Guild strings

 

Martin are what I use on the acoustic - if not available, Fender are good too.

 

I rarely change strings because they've gone dull, I just break a couple every week so I end up changing them all the time. If I have a gig I'll put a new set on to reduce the chance of them breaking.

 

Are you serious? Wouldn't this mean I am like 2 years late? I am not noticing they are "dead". What do you mean by that?

 

i think he means that the sound kind of dies down a bit, once they wear in. like, the sound isn't as crisp and sharp, anymore. personally, i like when my strings are more worn in.

i tend to go with d'addario XL's, more often than not. they've always worked the best for me, and i've used them for years.

 

as long as you havn't let em rust over and cut ya up, they're still good by me

 

I favour d'Addario 11s for my acoustic guitar.

I still looking for the best strings to grace my 12-string. I lately put some ernie ball earthwood son there, but they aren't so good

 

D'Addario, Black Diamond, Guild, and Pyramid for 12 strings work well. Right now I'm just using guild strings on my JF30-12.

 

You probably won't as these are all commercial strings... Fender/Guild/Martin etc. aren't going to have a whole lot of difference in their strings. If you switch to Pyramids, John Pearse, etc. you'll see differences, as they don't manufacture guitars so they're putting all of their effort into strings. Some companies like Martin and Fender, I believe, have their strings made in Mexico, so, you know... I like Martin strings but I play a 30+ year old Martin D-35 and they're the bassiest and mellow of all the Guitars that Martin produces. It's a folk-bluegrass cannon and it can be difficult to record with if I don't capo up a fret to balance the trebles, mids, and bass. I use 80/20s to give it a brighter sound.

 

I use ghs for both my guitars... I still have the stock strings on my Samick, but those'll be changed soon, with .13s.. I use .10s on my Strat.
I change them atleast every couple of weeks or so, perspiration and stuff tends to build up and what not.