Lars68 Posted July 26, 2017 Share Posted July 26, 2017 Just tried my first ever set of Daddario nickel bronze strings. I put them on my old 1942 J-45. Wow what a dry and punchy tone. The notes are so incredibly clear and dry. Like walking on twigs and leaves in a forrest that has not seen rain for a hundred years. Maybe not a tone you would hear on the radio these days, but I love it! Here is how these strings sound on a song I wrote some time ago, after reading JT's book about the Banner guitars and the Kalamazoo gals. Excuse the background noice from my two young boys, not realizing their father is in the middle of a masterpiece... https://soundcloud.com/lars1968/of-wood-steel-new Lars Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buc McMaster Posted July 26, 2017 Share Posted July 26, 2017 Wow what a dry and punchy tone. The notes are so incredibly clear and dry. Uh huh. What'd I tell ya? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theflyingturtle Posted July 26, 2017 Share Posted July 26, 2017 We're already on D'Addarios! I just got use to the Mondels! BTW, Lars, I too have been on holiday. I'll listen to your songs once I get rested up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lars68 Posted July 26, 2017 Author Share Posted July 26, 2017 Forgot to mention that I'm tuned down half a step on the song posted above. I really dig the tone of these strings? They make the guitar sound even more ancient than it is, like something fom the time of Moses It very much suits the mood of most of my songs. Lars Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buc McMaster Posted July 26, 2017 Share Posted July 26, 2017 Very good, Lars! Monels down a half step on a J-45..........that's my formula for tone! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theflyingturtle Posted July 26, 2017 Share Posted July 26, 2017 Once again Buc gives me a reason to head to the guitar room. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AnneS Posted July 26, 2017 Share Posted July 26, 2017 Very good, Lars! Monels down a half step on a J-45..........that's my formula for tone! Maybe you've explained elsewhere, but why down a half step? Does it actually "improve" tone; if so, how so? Lars, I assume you do it to lessen tension for the 80+ year-old neck, and maybe, for you guys, your vocal ranges prefer the conveniently lower pitch while your fingers can use regular chording shapes. So I can see that it allows for a different tone, but why, Buc, do you suggest it is a better one? At standard pitch, I often capo at 5 and 6 (which my long-scale J100 seems made for), but I loose a little something when I capo my J45 beyond 4. I, then, am not inclined to tune down a half step, as you can understand. Signed, Curious Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buc McMaster Posted July 26, 2017 Share Posted July 26, 2017 .....but why, Buc........ Feel. That's most of it......I like the way the guitar feels tuned down and cranking on a capo does not change that feel. Certainly when played open the guitar is at a lower pitch but I rarely do the three tunes on my list that are done open(which would be in E flat). Being that I capo nearly everything it's not really about pitch........it's how the thing feels, both at the pick and on the fingerboard. I do move the capo around a lot and test different chord shapes when searching for a key that works for a particular tune. That's what a capo is for, to me at least. Like Tiny Dancer...... I started messing with that one capo-ed at the first (which would be at concert pitch) in the key of C. Well that didn't work out at all. Moved the capo up the neck to a few different spots and discovered that using a C shape as the opening chord could not be made to work well. Did the same thing with an E shape, capo at the 1st. Moving that around didn't do any good either. Ended up with the capo at the 4th using a D shape as the opening chord (making the key F, being down a half step). Well, you say, if F turned out to be the right key, why not just capo at the second and use an E shape as the opening chord.......because the rest of the chords in the song did not flow as well nor were they as easy to get to as choking it off at the 4th and using the D shape. Using different chord shapes in different places via the capo gives me a lot of flexibility to find what works vocally and makes for the best flow of the chords. Sometimes a C shape is best, sometimes an E.......lots of possibilities using a capo. The half step down thing is mostly for feel, not for vocal range. I hope I explained that well enough....... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Proclaimer888 Posted July 26, 2017 Share Posted July 26, 2017 "Like walking on twigs and leaves in a forrest that has not seen rain for a hundred years." Nice description and tune Sir. I too enjoy that dry, woody tone that my J45 produces.....will give the Daddario NBs a spin on next change of strings.....Cheers! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lars68 Posted July 26, 2017 Author Share Posted July 26, 2017 When I first did this song a while back, I did it in normal tuning. As you all know very well by now, my singing is no good. So when I decided to give this song another shot to demo the strings on this old guitar, I thought it might help my voice to go a step lower (only semi-succesful, I guess...). So to avoid having to transpose the chord shapes I already had in muscle memory for the song, I tuned down. The guitar can take tension. The neck has never been reset and the angle is still as good as on a new guitar. So that is not something I worry about, although I take tension of when not using the guitar, just to be safe. Lars Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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