If I tune down would going up in string gauge help it.

adamm82

I only ask as I ordered the wrong strings. It's not a drastic difference as I ordered some 10-46 in stead of the 9-46 I like using.

But was thinking to keep my les paul studio as my eflat guitar and stick the 10s on it.

I used to have 9-42 on my Kramer 84 and the strings felt a bit like elastic when I was tuned down. 

guitarfishbay

As a general simple rule if you go down a semitone, going up a string gauge will keep the feel pretty similar, at least between E and D.

This site is pretty useful for calculating string gauges, it is based on D'Addario strings but it's pretty representative for similarly constructed strings also - http://www.stringtensionpro.com/

adamm82

Thanks for this!

underdog

I can't imagine a Gibson scale tuned down a semi tone with 9s would play nice at all. Yes I'd go with 10s if 9s are what you use for standard tuning, if your 9s are on a fender scale guitar in standard pitch I may even be tempted by 11s (or 10.5s) on the Gibson scale tuned down half a step 

guitarfishbay

With regards to 10-46 vs 9-46, the low wound strings are probably the same or very similar in both sets.  Tuning down to Eb will help the plain strings feel more similar to the 9s in E, but the wound strings will feel spongier and closer in feel to the wound strings in a 9-42 set in E.  As a rough guide anyway

guitars4you

depends how low you go as well - many who drop to D or C# will use a thicker set of low strings otherwise to 'floppy' and not  a tight sound

Not sure if you mean E flat SRV/Hendrix style in which case you can leave as is - or serious de-tune for modern rock styles

underdog

guitars4you said:

depends how low you go as well - many who drop to D or C# will use a thicker set of low strings otherwise to 'floppy' and not  a tight sound

Not sure if you mean E flat SRV/Hendrix style in which case you can leave as is - or serious de-tune for modern rock styles

He says E flat in his post

A Gibson in E flat with 9s would feel like playing rubber bands I would think.

guitars4you

underdog said:

guitars4you said:

depends how low you go as well - many who drop to D or C# will use a thicker set of low strings otherwise to 'floppy' and not  a tight sound

Not sure if you mean E flat SRV/Hendrix style in which case you can leave as is - or serious de-tune for modern rock styles

He says E flat in his post

A Gibson in E flat with 9s would feel like playing rubber bands I would think.

sorry I miss-read - I'd tend to go to 10-46 with E flat and I agree with you that 9's would be to slinky

ICBM

Yes - as already said there's a simple rule... one gauge up for every semi-tone down and you'll be in the right ballpark.

If you normally use 9-46 I'd go to 10-52 rather than 10-46, as otherwise the bottom strings will be a bit floppy - I tend to find it's more noticeable than with the top ones.

guitarfishbay

ICBM said:

Yes - as already said there's a simple rule... one gauge up for every semi-tone down and you'll be in the right ballpark.

If you normally use 9-46 I'd go to 10-52 rather than 10-46, as otherwise the bottom strings will be a bit floppy - I tend to find it's more noticeable than with the top ones.

This is compounded the lower you go.  If you use the string calculator site I posted there is a point, IIRC around a C#, where the lower strings start needing a much thicker gauge to keep the feel similar.  On my guitars, I use the D'Addario 11-56 set in C#/Drop B, but because I use the low B the majority of the time I switch out the .056 for a .064 otherwise it feels too floppy.

Same goes with basses, and similar notes too IIRC.  Actually, on paper, even a .130 is quite a bit more floppy as a B than a typical low E string from any given pack would be, but there starts to be a trade off with thicker strings where thicker sounds duller and (subjectively) worse.  This is part of why multi scale and longer scale instruments are more popular these days for people who tune lower.

ewal

I actually quite like the variations in string tension you get with different tunings. I've a Jazzmaster with a standard set of 11's on it which is tuned to CGDGCD. The loose C string is part of the sound.

Appreciate that was not the OP's question though.

ICBM

guitarfishbay said:

If you use the string calculator site I posted there is a point, IIRC around a C#, where the lower strings start needing a much thicker gauge to keep the feel similar.  On my guitars, I use the D'Addario 11-56 set in C#/Drop B, but because I use the low B the majority of the time I switch out the .056 for a .064 otherwise it feels too floppy.

Yes - I found the ideal gauge for the B when I made a Telecaster into a baritone was to use a .065" bass string - anything else felt too loose. The trick is to use a double-ball-end bass string and cut off the big end not the small one, then it fits in the standard ferrule .

I did another one that was tuned A-A with a .075" as well, that was surprisingly fine even on a 25.5" scale.

professorben

You put 9's on a Gibson?!!!

rico

professorben said:

You put 9's on a Gibson?!!!

Mentallist.

guitarfishbay

ICBM said:

Yes - I found the ideal gauge for the B when I made a Telecaster into a baritone was to use a .065" bass string - anything else felt too loose. The trick is to use a double-ball-end bass string and cut off the big end not the small one, then it fits in the standard ferrule .

I did another one that was tuned A-A with a .075" as well, that was surprisingly fine even on a 25.5" scale.

I've not compared prices between  double ball end bass strings and guitar strings, but it's pretty easy to get hold of very thick guitar strings online these days, you can get up to an .074 in Daddarios, possibly higher.

I found that from .066 onwards the tone starts getting a little bit too thick and dull for my tastes though.  I actually think this starts being noticeable above .056, but the .064 I use seems to be the thickest I can go before I don't like it anymore, while being nice and tight for playing.  I do prefer slinkier plain strings and thicker/stiffer wound strings though.  Someone with a lighter touch could get away with a thinner low B probably.   I'm always surprsised at how thin the low B is in typical 7 string packs on this note.

guitars4you

Hendrix used something like a 10-38 de-tuned with a 15 gauge G - very light on the low end, almost an 8 gauge from the wound strings - So de-tuned they must have been very slinky

ICBM

guitars4you said:

Hendrix used something like a 10-38 de-tuned with a 15 gauge G - very light on the low end, almost an 8 gauge from the wound strings - So de-tuned they must have been very slinky

Not quite what you would think though - he used Fender 'Rock'n'Roll' 150s, which were rolled-wound… so the 'gauges' were actually heavier than they appear, since a rolled-wound string starts out as a bigger string and is then compressed. At a guess, 10-38 rolled-wound is probably the same as 10-46 roundwound in tension terms.

Fender seem to have changed the gauges now so they're the standard 10-46, and possibly less rolled than they used to be - the old ones were very smooth, the new ones seem less so.

guitars4you

ICBM said:

guitars4you said:

Hendrix used something like a 10-38 de-tuned with a 15 gauge G - very light on the low end, almost an 8 gauge from the wound strings - So de-tuned they must have been very slinky

Not quite what you would think though - he used Fender 'Rock'n'Roll' 150s, which were rolled-wound… so the 'gauges' were actually heavier than they appear, since a rolled-wound string starts out as a bigger string and is then compressed. At a guess, 10-38 rolled-wound is probably the same as 10-46 roundwound in tension terms.

Fender seem to have changed the gauges now so they're the standard 10-46, and possibly less rolled than they used to be - the old ones were very smooth, the new ones seem less so.

learn something new - And isn't that the idea behind another string company that use to do that  - Infact there was a rumour they had strings made in the Fender factory - But I've forgotten the brand - might have been DR

Lestratcaster

I'd use 11's in Eb tuning but I'm a heavy handed hitter anyway. 10's would be ok. But not 9's, flapping around like mad!