Ive been using Martin Medium gauge strings for a long while now and they seem to suit me quite well, last quite a while etc, but if anyone else picks up my guitar and plays it for a while, they get very dead very easily. Im not sure if its to do with the moisture in their hands being more than in mine or something?
Not knowing much about string choice, i was wondering if it would be worth trying heavier strings? its getting to the stage where im changing the strings every 2weeks or so!
Make sure the guys wash their hands prior to picking up your instrument.
In all fairness, I don't think changing the gauge of your strings will make them last longer. I didn't make any dramatic change in the gauge over the years, so I might be wrong. There are some ways, however, to postpone the ageing process - I know of two:
You can buy a special gizmo for cleaning the strings (to my surprise it works quite well).
Or you can switch to Elixir strings. They tend to last way, way longer . Some people don't like their sound, though (I would say they are a bit more tame), and they are more expensive than standard ones, so you will have to check it for yourself. When they wear off, the picking section of the strings become fluffy (with shredded nylon coating), which is kind of amusing, but does not hamper the sound too much.
It all depends what you like .
It could well be that your friends have naturally greasy or acidic fingers, which is killing your strings; I never found Martin strings to be long-lasting when I was playing my guitar a lot, so trying a different brand might be a revelation for you. Also Fastfret might give you an extended life, I use it regularly on my 'zouk, which is now my major instrument.
Also, in the big scale of things, how much does it cost to change your strings once a fortnight, compared to the pleasure the instrument gives you ? It's a lot cheaper than drugs or beer !
You will also inevitably get a tonal change when using heavier strings, which might not be to your taste.
I swear by the cheap Martin phosphor bronzes, after trying every string out there. Don't like the sound of Elixers or any of the DRs, Earthwounds etc. D'Addarios and John Pearse are OK but they go dead on me a lot quicker, and i tend to break the high E on the D'Addarios easily when tuning back and forth between dropped D and DADGAD. Not so of the Martins.
By accident, easily a month or five weeks ago, I bought the Marquise Martin Light Phosphor bronze, they were a few dollars more, $2.75 more to be exact. I was just in a mad string rush and went into the overpriced store in town just one time. The box looks the same, I mumbled something about how they used to be cheaper, even in that store.... thinking I was getting the usual strings.
Those strings.... well a little too bright at first, but mellowed shortly thereafter.... they are still sounding great.... I have beat the hell out of them. I am a fingerpicker, but get real good volume with a heavy attack with a thumbpick, which deadens the low strings fast usually, and I pull the hell out of the other strings with the other fingers while backing. It's been to at least 5-6 sessions and played straight through, beat up badly, and they are still hanging in there. i would have changed the others about twice by now, maybe more.
So that's my 2 cents, if you like those Martin Medium phosphors, try the Marquise version. I usually buy strings in bulk from musiciansfriend.com and will see what the marquise cost. They are cheaper by far than Elixers, even in a retail store. I just cannot believe how long they last. Hopefully it's not a fluke, just that box.
They have some silly (gee.... maybe it contributes to string life???) wound silk at the ball end, which made it a little tough to set the bridge pins right, if you have that problem just shave it off a bit perhaps. My bridge pin holes are a little snug, most guitars won't have that problem.
Depending on your guitar you may have to be very careful with heavy strings. My guitar would be ripped apart by heavy strings. Martin strings last me exactly 20 minutes and I am not a "sweaty" player. I use nothing but Elixirs now and on my guitar, they are brighter and clearer than any other string Ive tried. They also last for 6 months even when Im playing alot. My guitar has a small body and about 6 years ago I realized that I got more tone and volume by going with a LIGHTER string... remember its the chamber of the guitar producing the noise. The key is to find the right string gauge to get the WHOLE guitar humming.
Arch top jazz guitars are fine with big fat strings, but most flat top guitars are designed to use medium or light gauge strings. Unless you tune down, anything heavier than medium is liable to cause damage and will probably void any warranty.
Martin’s SP and D’Addario’s EXP strings are micro-coated, sound better than web-coated strings and last a long time, but sweaty fingers will shorten the life of any string. So will excessive string bending and playing too hard.
The concept of strings going dead isn’t as straight forward as it seems. A lot of players only like the brightness of a brand new string and consider the string “dead” as soon as that initial bright edge wears off – usually after a few days of playing. Personally, that’s the point where I consider the string settled in and ready to play for a few months.
Sometimes, the problem is not the string, but the instrument. A really good guitar sounds good with old strings. If you really like the bright, brassy sound, then get a good, bright sounding guitar. If you’re changing every week, the money you’ll save on strings will pay for it in a few years.
I admit it, I'm a string snob. I use Newtone Masterclass strings on all my steel stringed acoustics--and on the banjo. The wound strings have lower tension because they have a round core (if you're thinking heavier strings this is a plus), they sound GREAT, they're hand made and they last almost as long as Elixirs. I use phosphor bronzes most of the time, but for recording I switch to 80/20s. YMMV. but Newtones are the sh*te!
Bob, I would have thought that a bright sounding guitar needs bright strings to resonate with the body in the way intended. Dead (or relatively dead) strings won't sound bright on any guitar.
BTW I use Elixirs (medium-nanoweb) on my guitar which is 'bright' and get more than 5 times as long out of these than I do from a set of D'addarios.
GW.... speaking of strings and recording.... are there any particular strings that don't "squeek" so much?
I used Martin Phosphors as usual for recording, but kept a bar of paraffin on the table and rubbed my fingertips, left hand, across it every so often which seemed to help. Heaven knows what it did to the strings, but everything sounded fine.... I cut down most of the squeeks at least. I never heard of anyone doing this but it worked, I have paraffin lying around for jellymaking which is an annual event out here in the sticks.
Just wonder if there is some string with a coating designed to reduce this?
I find my guitars sound good with anything but extra light, which i don't play anyway. I'd never use heavy ones either for fear .... my guitars are very light bodied, on purpose, they resonate more, a heavier one though, a heavier top, should be able to take heavies,
So I am told by a luthier, to use heavier strings than recommended, it would help to have the bridge plate further reinforced to be able to take the tension. This is not hard for a repair person to do. I would have imagined it would deaden the sound a bit, but played a before and after job and didn't really notice anything different..... except it sounded a bit better with heavier strings. I don't know exactly what he did, he may have added more wood to it or actually replaced it. So if you want to go to heavies, it would be good to get a repair person checkup before you start ruining the top or collapsing the bridge. Just a though to add to the confusion, LOL!
Donough, that may be true for some instruments, but I’ve met several guitars – especially in the past few years – that maintain a bright edge regardless of the strings.
My lowden has a crisp, bright edge to its sound, no matter what strings I put on it. I’ve used Elixirs on other guitars and they always sounded bright, but not too bright. I tried them on the Lowden and they were so bright I couldn’t stand it. I took them off after a few days and put on some Martin SP’s, which were mellower, but still had a normal new-string brightness. After the SP’s settled in, they sounded great for four months, with just enough bright edge to suit me.
I have another guitar that swallows very high frequencies and can sound a bit too bland with mellow strings. Bright strings sound better on it.
I think some instruments can only carry a bright edge if it’s already there in the pure string sound, while others can take a plain vanilla string sound and accentuate the bright frequencies. And I guess there’s everything in between.
I play Lowdens and Avalons. I used to use Martins but I put the new medium gauge Elixir phosphor bronze strings with “ultra-thin nanoweb coating” (what ever that means) on my guitar lately. They sound great and are showing very little sign of dulling after about 10 hard pub gigs. I used change the Martins after about 5 hours pub gigging. They seem expensive at the register but since you get about 3 times the use out of them and they sound great, they’re well worth.
Another vote for Newtone Masterclass phosphor bronze strings. I use them on my Lowdens (O25 and S10) and my Fylde Oberon. I like their tone better than anything else I've tried and they feel lovely due to their lower tension for any given gauge compared to other strings, For plugged in playing they last me as long as (the dreaded) Elixirs, but for full-on acoustic playing in sessions then I need a new set per session to keep the guitar sounding at its best. I mostly use 12's, but occasionally 13's if i really want a bit of extra acoustic welly - the lower tension of these makes them almost playable for me on the lowdens, and quite easy on the shorter scale Fylde.
I switched to Martins from D'Adario on my guitar because I found the latter broke a lot. I stil break the odd Martin but not near so often and I haven't notived the tome dying too badly. I've tried Ernie Ball and they were OK in an average sort of way.
Get your friends to lick the jam off their fingers before they play your guitar - that works for me .
I use a standard set of Martin thirteens (metric). I'm thnking of pushing up to 14 or something but that's just a volume issue (another story)
Guitar String Choice
Guitar String Choice
Ive been using Martin Medium gauge strings for a long while now and they seem to suit me quite well, last quite a while etc, but if anyone else picks up my guitar and plays it for a while, they get very dead very easily. Im not sure if its to do with the moisture in their hands being more than in mine or something?
Not knowing much about string choice, i was wondering if it would be worth trying heavier strings? its getting to the stage where im changing the strings every 2weeks or so!
any advice is much appreciated!
# Posted on October 24th 2006 by Gersfanno1
Re: Guitar String Choice
Make sure the guys wash their hands prior to picking up your instrument.
In all fairness, I don't think changing the gauge of your strings will make them last longer. I didn't make any dramatic change in the gauge over the years, so I might be wrong. There are some ways, however, to postpone the ageing process - I know of two:
You can buy a special gizmo for cleaning the strings (to my surprise it works quite well).
Or you can switch to Elixir strings. They tend to last way, way longer . Some people don't like their sound, though (I would say they are a bit more tame), and they are more expensive than standard ones, so you will have to check it for yourself. When they wear off, the picking section of the strings become fluffy (with shredded nylon coating), which is kind of amusing, but does not hamper the sound too much.
Have fun experimenting.
# Posted on October 24th 2006 by EastPole
Re: Guitar String Choice
thanks for your reply! what like is the gizmo for cleaning the strings?
like you say, its just a case of trying different things!
# Posted on October 24th 2006 by Gersfanno1
Re: Guitar String Choice
It all depends what you like .
It could well be that your friends have naturally greasy or acidic fingers, which is killing your strings; I never found Martin strings to be long-lasting when I was playing my guitar a lot, so trying a different brand might be a revelation for you. Also Fastfret might give you an extended life, I use it regularly on my 'zouk, which is now my major instrument.
Also, in the big scale of things, how much does it cost to change your strings once a fortnight, compared to the pleasure the instrument gives you ? It's a lot cheaper than drugs or beer !
You will also inevitably get a tonal change when using heavier strings, which might not be to your taste.
# Posted on October 24th 2006 by Guernsey Pete
Re: Guitar String Choice
I swear by the cheap Martin phosphor bronzes, after trying every string out there. Don't like the sound of Elixers or any of the DRs, Earthwounds etc. D'Addarios and John Pearse are OK but they go dead on me a lot quicker, and i tend to break the high E on the D'Addarios easily when tuning back and forth between dropped D and DADGAD. Not so of the Martins.
By accident, easily a month or five weeks ago, I bought the Marquise Martin Light Phosphor bronze, they were a few dollars more, $2.75 more to be exact. I was just in a mad string rush and went into the overpriced store in town just one time. The box looks the same, I mumbled something about how they used to be cheaper, even in that store.... thinking I was getting the usual strings.
Those strings.... well a little too bright at first, but mellowed shortly thereafter.... they are still sounding great.... I have beat the hell out of them. I am a fingerpicker, but get real good volume with a heavy attack with a thumbpick, which deadens the low strings fast usually, and I pull the hell out of the other strings with the other fingers while backing. It's been to at least 5-6 sessions and played straight through, beat up badly, and they are still hanging in there. i would have changed the others about twice by now, maybe more.
So that's my 2 cents, if you like those Martin Medium phosphors, try the Marquise version. I usually buy strings in bulk from musiciansfriend.com and will see what the marquise cost. They are cheaper by far than Elixers, even in a retail store. I just cannot believe how long they last. Hopefully it's not a fluke, just that box.
They have some silly (gee.... maybe it contributes to string life???) wound silk at the ball end, which made it a little tough to set the bridge pins right, if you have that problem just shave it off a bit perhaps. My bridge pin holes are a little snug, most guitars won't have that problem.
# Posted on October 24th 2006 by irisnevins
Re: Guitar String Choice
Depending on your guitar you may have to be very careful with heavy strings. My guitar would be ripped apart by heavy strings. Martin strings last me exactly 20 minutes and I am not a "sweaty" player. I use nothing but Elixirs now and on my guitar, they are brighter and clearer than any other string Ive tried. They also last for 6 months even when Im playing alot. My guitar has a small body and about 6 years ago I realized that I got more tone and volume by going with a LIGHTER string... remember its the chamber of the guitar producing the noise. The key is to find the right string gauge to get the WHOLE guitar humming.
# Posted on October 24th 2006 by The Merry Highlander
Re: Guitar String Choice
Arch top jazz guitars are fine with big fat strings, but most flat top guitars are designed to use medium or light gauge strings. Unless you tune down, anything heavier than medium is liable to cause damage and will probably void any warranty.
Martin’s SP and D’Addario’s EXP strings are micro-coated, sound better than web-coated strings and last a long time, but sweaty fingers will shorten the life of any string. So will excessive string bending and playing too hard.
The concept of strings going dead isn’t as straight forward as it seems. A lot of players only like the brightness of a brand new string and consider the string “dead” as soon as that initial bright edge wears off – usually after a few days of playing. Personally, that’s the point where I consider the string settled in and ready to play for a few months.
Sometimes, the problem is not the string, but the instrument. A really good guitar sounds good with old strings. If you really like the bright, brassy sound, then get a good, bright sounding guitar. If you’re changing every week, the money you’ll save on strings will pay for it in a few years.
# Posted on October 24th 2006 by Bob himself
Re: Guitar String Choice
I admit it, I'm a string snob. I use Newtone Masterclass strings on all my steel stringed acoustics--and on the banjo. The wound strings have lower tension because they have a round core (if you're thinking heavier strings this is a plus), they sound GREAT, they're hand made and they last almost as long as Elixirs. I use phosphor bronzes most of the time, but for recording I switch to 80/20s. YMMV. but Newtones are the sh*te!
Peace...
--gw
# Posted on October 25th 2006 by gw
Re: Guitar String Choice
Bob, I would have thought that a bright sounding guitar needs bright strings to resonate with the body in the way intended. Dead (or relatively dead) strings won't sound bright on any guitar.
BTW I use Elixirs (medium-nanoweb) on my guitar which is 'bright' and get more than 5 times as long out of these than I do from a set of D'addarios.
# Posted on October 25th 2006 by Donough
Re: Guitar String Choice
GW.... speaking of strings and recording.... are there any particular strings that don't "squeek" so much?
I used Martin Phosphors as usual for recording, but kept a bar of paraffin on the table and rubbed my fingertips, left hand, across it every so often which seemed to help. Heaven knows what it did to the strings, but everything sounded fine.... I cut down most of the squeeks at least. I never heard of anyone doing this but it worked, I have paraffin lying around for jellymaking which is an annual event out here in the sticks.
Just wonder if there is some string with a coating designed to reduce this?
I find my guitars sound good with anything but extra light, which i don't play anyway. I'd never use heavy ones either for fear .... my guitars are very light bodied, on purpose, they resonate more, a heavier one though, a heavier top, should be able to take heavies,
So I am told by a luthier, to use heavier strings than recommended, it would help to have the bridge plate further reinforced to be able to take the tension. This is not hard for a repair person to do. I would have imagined it would deaden the sound a bit, but played a before and after job and didn't really notice anything different..... except it sounded a bit better with heavier strings. I don't know exactly what he did, he may have added more wood to it or actually replaced it. So if you want to go to heavies, it would be good to get a repair person checkup before you start ruining the top or collapsing the bridge. Just a though to add to the confusion, LOL!
# Posted on October 25th 2006 by irisnevins
Re: Guitar String Choice
Donough, that may be true for some instruments, but I’ve met several guitars – especially in the past few years – that maintain a bright edge regardless of the strings.
My lowden has a crisp, bright edge to its sound, no matter what strings I put on it. I’ve used Elixirs on other guitars and they always sounded bright, but not too bright. I tried them on the Lowden and they were so bright I couldn’t stand it. I took them off after a few days and put on some Martin SP’s, which were mellower, but still had a normal new-string brightness. After the SP’s settled in, they sounded great for four months, with just enough bright edge to suit me.
I have another guitar that swallows very high frequencies and can sound a bit too bland with mellow strings. Bright strings sound better on it.
I think some instruments can only carry a bright edge if it’s already there in the pure string sound, while others can take a plain vanilla string sound and accentuate the bright frequencies. And I guess there’s everything in between.
# Posted on October 25th 2006 by Bob himself
Re: Guitar String Choice
I play Lowdens and Avalons. I used to use Martins but I put the new medium gauge Elixir phosphor bronze strings with “ultra-thin nanoweb coating” (what ever that means) on my guitar lately. They sound great and are showing very little sign of dulling after about 10 hard pub gigs. I used change the Martins after about 5 hours pub gigging. They seem expensive at the register but since you get about 3 times the use out of them and they sound great, they’re well worth.
# Posted on October 27th 2006 by John McCartin
Re: Guitar String Choice
Another vote for Newtone Masterclass phosphor bronze strings. I use them on my Lowdens (O25 and S10) and my Fylde Oberon. I like their tone better than anything else I've tried and they feel lovely due to their lower tension for any given gauge compared to other strings, For plugged in playing they last me as long as (the dreaded) Elixirs, but for full-on acoustic playing in sessions then I need a new set per session to keep the guitar sounding at its best. I mostly use 12's, but occasionally 13's if i really want a bit of extra acoustic welly - the lower tension of these makes them almost playable for me on the lowdens, and quite easy on the shorter scale Fylde.
# Posted on October 29th 2006 by ocarolan
Re: Guitar String Choice
I switched to Martins from D'Adario on my guitar because I found the latter broke a lot. I stil break the odd Martin but not near so often and I haven't notived the tome dying too badly. I've tried Ernie Ball and they were OK in an average sort of way.
Get your friends to lick the jam off their fingers before they play your guitar - that works for me
.
I use a standard set of Martin thirteens (metric). I'm thnking of pushing up to 14 or something but that's just a volume issue (another story)
# Posted on November 1st 2006 by JonB