Gonna try some new strings

[backwardlefty]

I've been playing Fender Pure Nickel .009-.042 for a while now, but they're starting to feel and sound a little thin to me. I'm going to try DR Pure Blues .010-.046 and see how it goes. I got a good feeling about it

[backwardlefty]

Okay, just put them on and played for like three hours straight! This is my gauge, and maybe even my brand. What a TREMENDOUS jump in tone!! Sooooooo much clearer, thicker, balanced. The lows are much tighter and ballsier. I even reset the stagger on my Tex-Mex's because I didn't have to compensate for thin highs and flabby lows. Now I'm able to really drive this DRRI without losing any articulation. I had no idea how much going from 9's to 10's would make such a difference. In case you can't tell, I'm kinda blown away. And I haven't even checked the relief and intonation yet!

[ijustwannastrat]

I've always believed that if you are playing anything that doesn't use much distortion, heavier the string the better.

My biggest problem is that having 11's is the perfect high string, but I need a thicker bottom than the 49's that they put on the Elixir Mediums. I tried heavy's, but that 12 in standard is a killer. Oh, and a wound G? Forget about it!

[backwardlefty]

Yeah, string gauge is crucial. I tried 11's before and liked the sound but didn't like having to work so hard with them. I played a set of 9's and liked that much better, so I went with those. They felt okay at first, but then started to feel kinda thin, and the sound was just not there. 10's feel perfect for me, and give me the sound I need. I'll never go to anything smaller again. I could see a shred-type player with lots of distortion, like you said, going with lighter strings, but for driving a tube amp they just don't cut it

[4real]

Aug 25, 2013 17:02:27 GMT -5 backwardlefty said:

Yeah, string gauge is crucial. I tried 11's before and liked the sound but didn't like having to work so hard with them. I played a set of 9's and liked that much better, so I went with those. They felt okay at first, but then started to feel kinda thin, and the sound was just not there. 10's feel perfect for me, and give me the sound I need. I'll never go to anything smaller again. I could see a shred-type player with lots of distortion, like you said, going with lighter strings, but for driving a tube amp they just don't cut it

On electric, I always played/play 10-46, though plying a gibson for years, the shorter scale length makes them a bit easier. I like having to work a little...but one of teh worst things abut hearing people play with really light strings is the tuning is all over the place, like yowling cats!!! As you dig into the note with a pick, it bends the string and it takes a bit to settle down when the note will attack 'sharp'...and I tend to hate 'sharp', better a note rise into pitch than is go 'yowl' down to it. The 'attack ' of the note really sticks in the mind as notes fly past and the faster one playes, the worse it is because there is no time to propperly settle, so everything sounds a bit 'sharp' and irritating.

Different guages for different guitars too, the jazz-strat thing is a set of light top/heavy botton...10-56 or similar to do the lowered tunings. I've gone up a guage with the acoustic to 12-46 or something.

You could go thicker and tune down to eb and so get the metal there but less of the tension. There is a significantly more metal to work with the pickups in going up a guage and it does make a big difference in all kinds of aspects of the sound of the guitar...and why should it be 'too easy'...

[ux4484]

I've never warmed to Fender Strings (Guitar or Bass). I haven't bought 'em myself for decades (though I have been handed a few sets as freebies with purchases). They have always been the quickest-to-oxidize string I've ever seen. I put a set on a Squier Strat a few years back for someone who wanted a new pickup (it's what they provided). The guitar sat in it's case for a month before they picked it up, and already the G and B strings had faded grey. I talked them into a D'Addario set that I put on when he saw the Fender's. He called me a month later saying he'd never gone that long without a string change.
I've tried a few, but D'Addario is my fav across the board. As 4Real says, it's about the guitar as well. 10-46's (wound G) on my Strat & '51, Standars 10-46's on the Dot, 12's on the Acoustics, .011 Jazz lights on the BT Tele... Though I do have .009's on the Marauder, they just sound so good with the JazzMaster Pup (Trem is blocked).
I tried flat wounds on the Cortez Tele a while back, not really for me.

[backwardlefty]

ijustwannastrat, I hear you man. I can't do a wound G either. I tried using flatwound 11's not to long ago, and it just wasn't for me

4real, I hear you too lol. The tune on this axe is MUCH more stable with the 10's. The difference between these two gauges must be some sort of threshold or something. The increase in quality just too profound

ux4484, I think I'm starting to really understand that strings are probably specific to each guitar. I do like these DR's a lot better than the Fenders. I used to use D'Addario all the time. Great strings. I think the tension and feel of the DR's are more to my liking though

I think for these MIM Strats I'm gonna stick with the 10-46. Probably stick with DR Pure Blues too

[knot]

hello all... am new here and figured this would be as good a place to post as any.  anyways... i have been a Blue Steel fanatic ever since they came out.  some say the cryogenic freeze is just a gimmick but i would have to disagree.  i used to play long and hard on my strings and have to say that the Blue Steels do last a bit more.  i was intrigued by the realigning of the molecules that they claimed and gave them a shot and have been using them since they came out.  BUT... the main reason i figured i would post is that i am waiting on some Helix also by Dean Markley.  with the extra windings... that adds mass to the string while staying in the same gauge.  so i figured WTH...

[gckelloch]

I used to like the Blue Steel tone a lot, but the strings were a bit brittle and felt really rough. They also increase fret wear. I've tried many strings over the decades including several different materials. I've settled on 10-46 Sfarzo Alloy5019's for my Strat type and semi-hollow guitar. They're like pure Nickel, but a little brighter and livelier without being thin or harsh sounding like steel. They're also very magnetic like Alloy 52, so the electro-magnetic output and dynamic sensitivity is very good. They have a micro-Teflon coating that feels smooth and doesn't flake off, and they stay in tune really well (may be due to the elastic property of the alloy). I get ~100 or so hours of play b4 they start to sound too dull. I'm always surprised how clear they sound after I wipe them off with Fast Fret -- even if they sit for weeks. Sfarzo uses a rounded hex core, which may create purer vibrational patterns because the wind can not kink on a sharp hex edge. I've gotten a few "half dead" wound strings out of ~10 packs, but they are still usable -- just not as bright. I guess that can happen with any brand. Never tried the DR Blues, but my guess is the Alloy5019's are a little brighter and slinkier. Main thing is: they last long and are surprisingly cheap at Juststrings.com