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What size string do you use


4Hayden

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Billy Gibbon used 8's on some guitars because they were easier to bend

 

4H

 

I have heard that Jimi also played 7's on the studio records, and 8's on stage, (still broke a bunch) but with his style and bending to 1.5 steps on most licks it almost didn't matter where his fingers landed, he would bend and whammy into key.

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I have heard that Jimi also played 7's on the studio records, and 8's on stage, (still broke a bunch) but with his style and bending to 1.5 steps on most licks it almost didn't matter where his fingers landed, he would bend and whammy into key.

Made him Millions

 

4H

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I use anything from 10s to 11s on all my guitars. I am not 100% sure what gauge was on my "new" SG Classic, but they felt a little too "easy" on my fingers, and the high E was slipping off the fretboard when I executed pulls. So I took them off and put 11s on it. Seemed to help.

 

I've been trying different brands recently.... having typically used Gibson or D'Addarios, I've been trying Ernie Ball (10s and 11s) and DR strings. These string manufacturers all seem to have their own concepts of what are "Lights", Super-lights, "Mediums"... gets a little confusing.

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I've tried 9s, 10s, and 11s. For my style of playing 11s work the best.

 

Pyramid 11-48 or 11-50, round wound or flat wound (whichever I can find) on my -355

 

Everly 11-48 on my LP

 

Various brand 11-48s or 50s on my -335

 

If I could find D'Angelico flat wounds that would be my string of choice hands down. But I understand they are not being made anymore. Beautiful tone, long lasting, and instead of a slick feel, a very slight textured feel.

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I just discovered D'Addario half gauges. I switched from 8-38 to 8.5-39 on my Tele. The 8.5 strings are the closest you can get on a 25 1/2" scale to the equivalent feel of 9s on a 24 3/4" scale. The small difference actually is very noticeable and they feel less floppy than 8s.

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D'Addario EXL-110 or EXL-110W (wound G string) 10-46 for 6 string guitars.. EXL-110-7 (10-46 with a .59 low B) for my 7string. For 4 string basses, D'Addario EXL-165 (45-65-85-105).

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10zzz - for LP Std, ES335

11zzz for Firebird.

 

Exclusively Gibson Bright Wires and/or Gibson Vintage.

The reason for my choice is simple.

Either of these two sets last (ringing, clarity wise) a heck of a lot longer than anyone else's - IN MY HANDS.

 

Everybody's body acid and makeup is different. My body acids have been string killers for over 45 years. I just wish Gibson strings would be priced more like D'Addarios which are long-life strings to me but, they lose their bright, ringing clarity very quickly.

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D'Addario 10-46 for my much ballyhooed Epi LP which I'm still in sickening puppy love with.

 

Seems to have pretty small pegs tho, the low E usually ends up a liiittle askew with 1.5-2 winds, downward direction. Could use one more mm's of space on the peg. Couldn't hurt the nut, could it? Stays in tune and and plays fine.

 

As for the brand, I dunno... Force of habit, really. Rotosound and GHS have worked fine in the past, too.

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What's you favorite size of strings ? 12 for flat tops or 9-48 for Les Paul, tell us what type guitar and strings you use on it.

 

Thanks

4H

I use Gibson Masterbuilt Premium Lights 12-53 on my Hummingbird & Dean Markley Blue Steel Med Ligtht 12-54 on my Martin D28.

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I played 10's forever then went to 9's and finally down to 8's which I played for about a year. I bought a new SG Standard that came with 009, 011, 016, 026, 036, 046 and I liked it so I put them on my LP too. 8's are just a little too light for me.

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Guest Farnsbarns

I've just tried Rotosound BS10. All steel. I have a nickel allergy so the less contact with nickel, the better. I was concerned about how they'd sound but I think I prefer the all steel sound.

 

I don't own any longer scale (fender type) guitars at the moment but when I do, I use 9s, 10s on everything else.

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Been playing for forty-eight years, currently own about 25 guitars- I'd have to count them, have owned a few more than that, have tried about everything in string gauges. For many years settled on Regular Slinky for solid body electrics, whether Gibson of Fender- I find that anything lighter is more difficult to play because the string is so floppy I never know where it is. The 10's give more control. For archtops I use a flatwound set that begins with .012 - different brands graduate differently but I find flatwounds much gentler that the equivalent steel-string set.

After I read that Pat Martino uses a set that begins with .016 I tried a set beginning with .013 on a PRS SE Soapbar I had as a junker. I couldn't play it, and let it sit idle for about a year. To its credit, the neck never seemed to suffer from the extra tension.

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Use 9s on most every of my guitars, i tried 10;s but since i got tendinitis they now feel very uncomfortable...on the weeked i put some of the David Gilmour GHS on a new MIJ strat i got, sounds awesome but they are too heavy for my fingers, i will still use them until they are no good

A while back i got a pair of billy gibbon strings (forgot the name/brand) i used the 7s on a strat but they seem too thin/rubber like, and over the weekend will put the 8s on that same strat and see how it goes

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  • 3 months later...

I have always used Ernie Ball Super Slinky's until very recently. I'm now running Gibson Bright Wires 9-42's on everything. I like them and in the 6 months I've been playing them, I've yet to break a string! I had tried some 10-56's (I think that low E string is correct) but I damn near sliced the tips of my fingers on them doing big bends after so many years of not playing! The 9-42's just seem to be very smooth, easy to bend and don't damage my (now calloused!) finger tips!

 

Mike

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