Acoustic strings - a journey...

erky32

I normally use Elixir nano-Ph-Br 11-52 and find them lively, slippy and long life. But I've just gone back to trying Ernie Ball Acoustic Slinkys with a bendy unwound 3rd, 17 guage. So it obviously compromises its acoustic presence & volume, but on my Sigma 000 electroacoustic it performs well. The music I cover with acoustic for cafe gigs etc is soft-rock, blues, folky stuff and as a non purist acoustic performer - I find these EBs give me electric feel for doodling & OK for strum- provided the guitar is amped up. I'm a great follower of John Butler Trio, and cover some of his tunes, as such I include some drive & slide in my tunes and the EB-slinkys give good versatility without blitzing your fingers. Anybody else been this route? - I'm keen to hear experiences.

Lestratcaster

I've recently switched to Elixir acoustic strings after using D'addario for so long but as I play quite a bit on the acoustic I found myself changing strings every 3 weeks. I notice Elixir's last so much longer, this current set has been on the guitar for 3 months and still sounding bright! They might cost more upfront but as I don't need to change as often 3-4 packs per year works out around the same as a 10 pack of D'addario only I will go through 2 boxes of 10 per year I reckon..

stickyfiddle

Lestratcaster said:

I've recently switched to Elixir acoustic strings after using D'addario for so long but as I play quite a bit on the acoustic I found myself changing strings every 3 weeks. I notice Elixir's last so much longer, this current set has been on the guitar for 3 months and still sounding bright! They might cost more upfront but as I don't need to change as often 3-4 packs per year works out around the same as a 10 pack of D'addario only I will go through 2 boxes of 10 per year I reckon..

That's my logic on electric. I haven't used anything but Elixir for well over a decade, and used them on acoustic for a long time. But I've found since getting into higher-end acoustics they just don't sound good enough, which defeats the point of having a nice acoustic, for me

Lestratcaster

stickyfiddle said:

Lestratcaster said:

I've recently switched to Elixir acoustic strings after using D'addario for so long but as I play quite a bit on the acoustic I found myself changing strings every 3 weeks. I notice Elixir's last so much longer, this current set has been on the guitar for 3 months and still sounding bright! They might cost more upfront but as I don't need to change as often 3-4 packs per year works out around the same as a 10 pack of D'addario only I will go through 2 boxes of 10 per year I reckon..

That's my logic on electric. I haven't used anything but Elixir for well over a decade, and used them on acoustic for a long time. But I've found since getting into higher-end acoustics they just don't sound good enough, which defeats the point of having a nice acoustic, for me

See I'm a bit hesitant to use Elixir's on electric, purely cos I have 5 of them! Have been an Ernie Ball user for over a decade now and I just like them. Also as I use 3 different gauges its tricky to buy in bulk so I usually get 5 at a time which lasts a few months across 4 guitars (I don't use one as much as I should).

p90fool

erky32 said:

I normally use Elixir nano-Ph-Br 11-52 and find them lively, slippy and long life. But I've just gone back to trying Ernie Ball Acoustic Slinkys with a bendy unwound 3rd, 17 guage. So it obviously compromises its acoustic presence & volume, but on my Sigma 000 electroacoustic it performs well. The music I cover with acoustic for cafe gigs etc is soft-rock, blues, folky stuff and as a non purist acoustic performer - I find these EBs give me electric feel for doodling & OK for strum- provided the guitar is amped up. I'm a great follower of John Butler Trio, and cover some of his tunes, as such I include some drive & slide in my tunes and the EB-slinkys give good versatility without blitzing your fingers. Anybody else been this route? - I'm keen to hear experiences.

Yes me. Partly due to a hand injury I sustained a couple of years ago, I now gig with electric strings on my electro acoustic. There's simply no way I could play a three-hour gig with just a singer using acoustic strings any more. 

The plugged in tone is barely affected, but unplugged it sounds like arse. That doesn't bother me tbh, I have a much nicer acoustic with conventional strings for home playing and recording. 

drofluf

p90fool said:

Yes me. Partly due to a hand injury I sustained a couple of years ago, I now gig with electric strings on my electro acoustic. There's simply no way I could play a three-hour gig with just a singer using acoustic strings any more. 

@p90fool I'm new to this so please indulge me In terms of playing a long gig what's the difference between electric and acoustic strings in this context?

Thanks

erky32

 In terms of playing a long gig what's the difference between electric and acoustic strings in this context?

Usually acoustic guitar strings are tighter, difficult to bend & often slightly higher action making tramlines in your fingertips. Electrics are usually set up with low action & slinky strings so easier on the hands.

thomasross20

I'm going to buy some new ones imminently. I'm thinking something coated...... I remember thinking Elixirs felt funny but last ages. D'addario EXPs I can't remember... didn't think they lasted as long as D'addarop but might be mistaken. Haven't tried Martin Lifespan (but I have normal Martin strings on right now and they sound great). ALso there's ones that have been cryogenically frozen I read about lol...

thomasross20

stickyfiddle said:

I'm back on the Lifespan 12's here and they're as good as I remember from last time. Not quite as toppy as the EJ11s were when new but an extra richness that the D'adds don't have. 

BTW this is a GREAT thread. 

The Martin's (not Lifespans) I've got on make my guitar sound great. 
How do Lifespans compare to their non-coated ones?

thomasross20

I note Martin do normal strings, SP and then coated. 
I think I might have bronze SP but need to check.

I remember ditching Elixir years ago so don't think I can bring myself to going back. Must have been a reason.

drofluf

@erky32 ; Thanks!

stickyfiddle

thomasross20 said:

stickyfiddle said:

I'm back on the Lifespan 12's here and they're as good as I remember from last time. Not quite as toppy as the EJ11s were when new but an extra richness that the D'adds don't have. 

BTW this is a GREAT thread. 

The Martin's (not Lifespans) I've got on make my guitar sound great. 
How do Lifespans compare to their non-coated ones?

Honestly, I haven't tried the regular Martin ones as I have a talent for making regular strings go black in a couple of hours. But I'm still happy with the Lifespan SPs

TimmyO

stickyfiddle said:

thomasross20 said:

stickyfiddle said:

I'm back on the Lifespan 12's here and they're as good as I remember from last time. Not quite as toppy as the EJ11s were when new but an extra richness that the D'adds don't have. 

BTW this is a GREAT thread. 

The Martin's (not Lifespans) I've got on make my guitar sound great. 
How do Lifespans compare to their non-coated ones?

Honestly, I haven't tried the regular Martin ones as I have a talent for making regular strings go black in a couple of hours. But I'm still happy with the Lifespan SPs

Have you tried the D’Add Nickel Bronze? I have a set here to try out next on @lewy’s suggestion as another option that might have a bit more life but not.a coated string 

stickyfiddle

TimmyO said:

stickyfiddle said:

thomasross20 said:

stickyfiddle said:

I'm back on the Lifespan 12's here and they're as good as I remember from last time. Not quite as toppy as the EJ11s were when new but an extra richness that the D'adds don't have. 

BTW this is a GREAT thread. 

The Martin's (not Lifespans) I've got on make my guitar sound great. 
How do Lifespans compare to their non-coated ones?

Honestly, I haven't tried the regular Martin ones as I have a talent for making regular strings go black in a couple of hours. But I'm still happy with the Lifespan SPs

Have you tried the D’Add Nickel Bronze? I have a set here to try out next on @lewy’s suggestion as another option that might have a bit more life but not.a coated string 

No, they're still on my list to try if I can find somewhere local stocking them. They sound good on youtube! 

TimmyO

stickyfiddle said:

TimmyO said:

stickyfiddle said:

thomasross20 said:

stickyfiddle said:

I'm back on the Lifespan 12's here and they're as good as I remember from last time. Not quite as toppy as the EJ11s were when new but an extra richness that the D'adds don't have. 

BTW this is a GREAT thread. 

The Martin's (not Lifespans) I've got on make my guitar sound great. 
How do Lifespans compare to their non-coated ones?

Honestly, I haven't tried the regular Martin ones as I have a talent for making regular strings go black in a couple of hours. But I'm still happy with the Lifespan SPs

Have you tried the D’Add Nickel Bronze? I have a set here to try out next on @lewy’s suggestion as another option that might have a bit more life but not.a coated string 

No, they're still on my list to try if I can find somewhere local stocking them. They sound good on youtube! 

I couldn't honestly tell form youtube videos what they'll be like but happy to give them a go on the Dreadnought 

thomasross20

It's another thing playing with the thing in your hands and listening to somebody else playing. Honestly, I tend to like "zingy" when playing myself but when I hear that from somebody else playing, I think I'd like that dulled a bit. 

RandallFlagg

I have always used Elixir Nanoweb Phosphor Bronze 13-56 on my Martin HD28 but have recently fitted a set of D'addario EJ17 phosphor bronze uncoated as I got a few sets free and have read that they are the bluegrass payers strings of choice for that authentic Martin bluegrass tone.

I really don't like the EJ17s, they have a lot less volume, the bass has gone and within 3 days my fingers smell of metal after playing and they sound dull and are draggy. Horrible.

I may try the Martin coated strings on my way back to the Elixir nanowebs. The nanowebs sound loud, full and last months. The only downside is that on my Martin with the forward shifted scalloped bracing the elixirs get a bit thin and plinky on the treble.

TimmyO

Try the newish Martin Authentic strings - came on my D28 

thomasross20

Btw just to say the Martin strings I put on are bronze 80/20, not even the SP range. 

VimFuego

camf said:

I've been really, really happy with all the Newtones I've bought and now fit them on all my guitars, acoustic and electric.

The lower tension Heritage are really nice on my Collings, while the Masterclass work better on the shorter scale J45. When a local and very experienced luthier was fitting them to my OM, he said he'd never tried them before but was very impressed. He has now started recommending them to other customers.

If you've not looked into them, I think they are well worth checking out - and very competitively priced too. I can't see me switching bands for a while, at least.

good to know, I bought a pack a while ago but not got round to fitting them, I have a weird hand thing where it kinda goes a bit fuzzy when I play for more than a few mins, so the Heritage strings were my last gasp to see if they helped. Will make the time to fit them today.