String Theory...

[rct]

A year and a half ago I had 11 regular giggers.  Over time I traded and sold, changed up stuff.  Found myself at the end of 21 with 4 regular giggers.  A manageable number of really nice guitars that I want to take out every time, all of them.  January of 22 I came across a stupid deal on a 70th Esquire and I was up to 5 regular giggers.

I thought I'd try some 'spensive fancy strings, these Elixirs you kids flap on about. 'spensive guitars get 'spensive strings, right?  I guess I'll try it.

Went over to guitar center.  Shoot, there's three kinds of them.  I gave a solid Chad "OK" and bought one of each kind.  Nano, Poly, Opti. 10 -  46, because that's what I use.

So, what do I put them on?  Being the comprehensive analysis type, I consulted with my luthier and several big names in the guitar industry.  After poring over the data I determined that the OptiWeb came in a Green box, so on the Green Tele they went. The PolyWeb in a Blue box, so on the Blue Strat they went.  The NanoWeb in an Orange box, so on the TwO TOne Tele with EbOny BOard they went.  So yeah, science.  That left #1 and Esquire, two one piece maple necks, as control units, with ordinary junky Fender 250XLs on them.

Then came D'Addario XS, their new coated strings.  I got a couple sets of them and put them on #1 and Esquire.  So there, I've got 5 working guitars with fancy schmancy coated web-y string thingies on them.

Time for us to get moving, summer is coming, we start out mid May and we are already pretty darn busy this summer.  We've discovered that drummer boy can actually sing, so we've been twice a week hard at it, 4 hours or so on Sundays, three hours or so on Wednesday nights.  I've been taking two guitars on Sundays because it's gig time rehearsing, and I use both guitars.  The point only being that they've been working, getting some good time on them with their new fangled strings.

So using the four reasons I see people rave about these things the most, I've studied them as hard as a guy like me can study them, usually the first two songs and then I forget about them because I'm too busy singing and flailing at it to care anymore.  Some pretty rigid criteria there.

FEEL: They all feel good.  The Elixir NanoWeb are too good feeling, too slick.  They are on a 9.5" Ebony board, which is already pretty slick to begin with, but I can separate that and be fairly objective about it.  I have to look more, because moving my hand on the neck is deceptive because there is no friction at all, I can miss where I know to go.  The Elixir OptiWeb are similarly too much of a good thing for me.  They are on a 9.5" one piece rosewood neck which is pretty slick in and of itself.  These are ok, just a tad too much for me.  The PolyWeb are close enough to regular old strings.  They are on a bound rosewood 12" neck which is a thing of it's own.  Of the Elixirs, the PolyWeb are the best for me.

The D'Addario XS are on a 9.5" and a 7.25" one piece maple, the two toughest necks to play.  #1 is only a couple years at best from needing a refret that it will never get, so it is a tough one to play.  A 7.25" is tough even brand new, medium frets.  These feel really good, very thin coating I guess, close enough to regular old junky rusttones.

NOISE: Supposed to have less string squeaks with these coated things.  I don't care about string squeak, never have, recording and all, so I can't rate them on that.

TONE: Eh.  It will take a whole lot more than strings, coated strings, colored strings, whatever, to change me from sounding like me.  I sound like me, so I can't rate them on that.

LONGEVITY: They've all been on for a while now, all getting good workouts.  All 5 necks are pretty much the same as when they went on, between November and January.  No shedding or flaking on any of them, 4 - 6 months into it.

For me, there is a 5th quality.

COST: They are all about 15 bucks a set, three times an ordinary set of strings.  I can see getting three gigs out of a set of these, likely more.  I don't mind 5 bucks a gig per guitar for strings, which is what I do normally, sometimes two gigs out of a set of regular old strings, so these should be fiscally effective.  I don't make a fortune doing this, but I like to keep as much of the money for more good guitars and champagne and dinner with Mrs as I can.

So, after this comprehensive, thoughtful, deep dive into the world of coated strings I come down to the main science based objective qualities that are the determinant factors in string engineering for my purposes.

I like the D'Addario XS more than the Elixirs, and they are worth the money.

You are welcome.

rct

 

 

Edited April 16, 2022 by rct

[Sgt. Pepper]

1 hour ago, rct said:

A year and a half ago I had 11 regular giggers.  Over time I traded and sold, changed up stuff.  Found myself at the end of 21 with 4 regular giggers.  A manageable number of really nice guitars that I want to take out every time, all of them.  January of 22 I came across a stupid deal on a 70th Esquire and I was up to 5 regular giggers.

I thought I'd try some 'spensive fancy strings, these Elixirs you kids flap on about. 'spensive guitars get 'spensive strings, right?  I guess I'll try it.

Went over to guitar center.  Shoot, there's three kinds of them.  I gave a solid Chad "OK" and bought one of each kind.  Nano, Poly, Opti. 10 -  46, because that's what I use.

So, what do I put them on?  Being the comprehensive analysis type, I consulted with my luthier and several big names in the guitar industry.  After poring over the data I determined that the OptiWeb came in a Green box, so on the Green Tele they went. The PolyWeb in a Blue box, so on the Blue Strat they went.  The NanoWeb in an Orange box, so on the TwO TOne Tele with EbOny BOard they went.  So yeah, science.  That left #1 and Esquire, two one piece maple necks, as control units, with ordinary junky Fender 250XLs on them.

Then came D'Addario XS, their new coated strings.  I got a couple sets of them and put them on #1 and Esquire.  So there, I've got 5 working guitars with fancy schmancy coated web-y string thingies on them.

Time for us to get moving, summer is coming, we start out mid May and we are already pretty darn busy this summer.  We've discovered that drummer boy can actually sing, so we've been twice a week hard at it, 4 hours or so on Sundays, three hours or so on Wednesday nights.  I've been taking two guitars on Sundays because it's gig time rehearsing, and I use both guitars.  The point only being that they've been working, getting some good time on them with their new fangled strings.

So using the four reasons I see people rave about these things the most, I've studied them as hard as a guy like me can study them, usually the first two songs and then I forget about them because I'm too busy singing and flailing at it to care anymore.  Some pretty rigid criteria there.

FEEL: They all feel good.  The Elixir NanoWeb are too good feeling, too slick.  They are on a 9.5" Ebony board, which is already pretty slick to begin with, but I can separate that and be fairly objective about it.  I have to look more, because moving my hand on the neck is deceptive because there is no friction at all, I can miss where I know to go.  The Elixir OptiWeb are similarly too much of a good thing for me.  They are on a 9.5" one piece rosewood neck which is pretty slick in and of itself.  These are ok, just a tad too much for me.  The PolyWeb are close enough to regular old strings.  They are on a bound rosewood 12" neck which is a thing of it's own.  Of the Elixirs, the PolyWeb are the best for me.

The D'Addario XS are on a 9.5" and a 7.25" one piece maple, the two toughest necks to play.  #1 is only a couple years at best from needing a refret that it will never get, so it is a tough one to play.  A 7.25" is tough even brand new, medium frets.  These feel really good, very thin coating I guess, close enough to regular old junky rusttones.

NOISE: Supposed to have less string squeaks with these coated things.  I don't are about string squeak, never have, recording and all, so I can't rate them on that.

TONE: Eh.  It will take a whole lot more than strings, coated strings, colored strings, whatever, to change me from sounding like me.  I sound like me, so I can't rate them on that.

LONGEVITY: They've all been on for a while now, all getting good workouts.  All 5 necks are pretty much the same as when they went on, between November and January.  No shedding or flaking on any of them, 4 - 6 months into it.

For me, there is a 5th quality.

COST: They are all about 15 bucks a set, three times an ordinary set of strings.  I can see getting three gigs out of a set of these, likely more.  I don't mind 5 bucks a gig per guitar for strings, which is what I do normally, sometimes two gigs out of a set of regular old strings, so these should be fiscally effective.  I don't make a fortune doing this, but I like to keep as much of the money for more good guitars and champagne and dinner with Mrs as I can.

So, after this comprehensive, thoughtful, deep dive into the world of coated strings I come down to the main science based objective qualities that are the determinant factors in string engineering for my purposes.

I like the D'Addario XS more than the Elixirs, and they are worth the money.

You are welcome.

rct

 

 

You gonna do one for us acoustic guys?

[Larsongs]

I tried Elixirs on a few of my Guitars & prefer D Addarios, Pyramid & Martin Retro Monels.. Elixirs are expensive & overrated IMO…

[RBSinTo]

7 hours ago, rct said:

A year and a half ago I had 11 regular giggers.  Over time I traded and sold, changed up stuff.  Found myself at the end of 21 with 4 regular giggers.  A manageable number of really nice guitars that I want to take out every time, all of them.  January of 22 I came across a stupid deal on a 70th Esquire and I was up to 5 regular giggers.

I thought I'd try some 'spensive fancy strings, these Elixirs you kids flap on about. 'spensive guitars get 'spensive strings, right?  I guess I'll try it.

Went over to guitar center.  Shoot, there's three kinds of them.  I gave a solid Chad "OK" and bought one of each kind.  Nano, Poly, Opti. 10 -  46, because that's what I use.

So, what do I put them on?  Being the comprehensive analysis type, I consulted with my luthier and several big names in the guitar industry.  After poring over the data I determined that the OptiWeb came in a Green box, so on the Green Tele they went. The PolyWeb in a Blue box, so on the Blue Strat they went.  The NanoWeb in an Orange box, so on the TwO TOne Tele with EbOny BOard they went.  So yeah, science.  That left #1 and Esquire, two one piece maple necks, as control units, with ordinary junky Fender 250XLs on them.

Then came D'Addario XS, their new coated strings.  I got a couple sets of them and put them on #1 and Esquire.  So there, I've got 5 working guitars with fancy schmancy coated web-y string thingies on them.

Time for us to get moving, summer is coming, we start out mid May and we are already pretty darn busy this summer.  We've discovered that drummer boy can actually sing, so we've been twice a week hard at it, 4 hours or so on Sundays, three hours or so on Wednesday nights.  I've been taking two guitars on Sundays because it's gig time rehearsing, and I use both guitars.  The point only being that they've been working, getting some good time on them with their new fangled strings.

So using the four reasons I see people rave about these things the most, I've studied them as hard as a guy like me can study them, usually the first two songs and then I forget about them because I'm too busy singing and flailing at it to care anymore.  Some pretty rigid criteria there.

FEEL: They all feel good.  The Elixir NanoWeb are too good feeling, too slick.  They are on a 9.5" Ebony board, which is already pretty slick to begin with, but I can separate that and be fairly objective about it.  I have to look more, because moving my hand on the neck is deceptive because there is no friction at all, I can miss where I know to go.  The Elixir OptiWeb are similarly too much of a good thing for me.  They are on a 9.5" one piece rosewood neck which is pretty slick in and of itself.  These are ok, just a tad too much for me.  The PolyWeb are close enough to regular old strings.  They are on a bound rosewood 12" neck which is a thing of it's own.  Of the Elixirs, the PolyWeb are the best for me.

The D'Addario XS are on a 9.5" and a 7.25" one piece maple, the two toughest necks to play.  #1 is only a couple years at best from needing a refret that it will never get, so it is a tough one to play.  A 7.25" is tough even brand new, medium frets.  These feel really good, very thin coating I guess, close enough to regular old junky rusttones.

NOISE: Supposed to have less string squeaks with these coated things.  I don't are about string squeak, never have, recording and all, so I can't rate them on that.

TONE: Eh.  It will take a whole lot more than strings, coated strings, colored strings, whatever, to change me from sounding like me.  I sound like me, so I can't rate them on that.

LONGEVITY: They've all been on for a while now, all getting good workouts.  All 5 necks are pretty much the same as when they went on, between November and January.  No shedding or flaking on any of them, 4 - 6 months into it.

For me, there is a 5th quality.

COST: They are all about 15 bucks a set, three times an ordinary set of strings.  I can see getting three gigs out of a set of these, likely more.  I don't mind 5 bucks a gig per guitar for strings, which is what I do normally, sometimes two gigs out of a set of regular old strings, so these should be fiscally effective.  I don't make a fortune doing this, but I like to keep as much of the money for more good guitars and champagne and dinner with Mrs as I can.

So, after this comprehensive, thoughtful, deep dive into the world of coated strings I come down to the main science based objective qualities that are the determinant factors in string engineering for my purposes.

I like the D'Addario XS more than the Elixirs, and they are worth the money.

You are welcome.

rct

 

 

"Everybody does what they do.

You do what you do. I do what I do. And he does what he does."

RBSinTo's Law

 

[sparquelito]

A good and comprehensive review, rct. 

I thank you for that, sir. 

🙂

[kidblast]

pretty good review Ron and sort of what I'd expect to read actually.

a 7.* radius is a hard one for me to love.  I don't care what strings are on there.  especially one with vintage frets and a lacquered maple fret board.  Nope. Not for me, tried and failed

Out of the sets you're trying,  IME the XS are closest to "normal" strings.  They do last quite a while too.

for Elixirs, the Nano's are the ones I've used the most.  Poly coating is too thick, so no on those,  never tried the opti's.

after swirling around this, I've gone back to just using XL110s on my electrics.  They're cheap enough, a 10 pack costs close to the same as 2 of the coated sets.

On the guitars I use the most, I don't mind changing them more frequently.  The ones I don't use the most, the strings last a long time.

Acoustics different story, The XS seem to check all the boxes for me.  again, tried a bunch too.

 

Edited April 16, 2022 by kidblast

[sparquelito]

7 hours ago, Sgt. Pepper said:

You gonna do one for us acoustic guys?

This is totally what I read when I first saw that. 
🤫

 

[saturn]

Great review. I'll stick with my D'Addario's but always love reading your detailed, descriptive analysis.    

[Karloff]

Great post.  I've tried Elixirs. I  know a lot of people like 'em. They were too "boingy" for me.  Lol. I like Ernie Ball. Regular Slinkys for Fenders, Power Slinkys for Gibsons. 

[ksdaddy]

I appreciate the time , effort, and money that went into this, RCT.

I've had a set of 13-56 nanoweb on my HD28 since 2018. They're turning black with a tiny bit of fuzz. I'm going to change them soon, only because "they HAVE to be going dead by now!" I have no basis for comparison on that guitar because it had nano 13's on it when I bought it used in 2017. I only changed them in 2018 because I broke one.

RCT really struck a chord with me when he mentioned the slippery feel of them. I had a set of 11-49 nanos on my Strat and there was just something about it I didn't like. Couldn't put my finger on it.  (I have 13-56 Ernie Balls on that sucker now and LOVE it...) A year or two ago I put a set of Elixir 10-46 on my '71 gold top. I don't like it. It feels like the frets are too low and I can't get ahold of the strings. Reading RCT's comment about them being too slippery, I bet that's the issue!

Edit: If the acoustic Elixirs are "too slick" I don't notice it.

[Whitefang]

I have Elixirs on my acoustic six string.  No complaints.  But D'Addario's on my 12-string.  But cost was a factor there.  Where I buy strings the 12-string set of D'Addario's cost the same as the six string set of Elixir's.   Close enough really.  

But as I'm not a working professional musician and don't play as hard as those who are might,  I can't speak towards that.

Whitefang

[rct]

11 hours ago, Sgt. Pepper said:

You gonna do one for us acoustic guys?

I guess I could, but you would laugh.  I still have quite a few sets of CFMs to get through, and I don't change them often.  I don't use them out enough to have any kind of confidence in what I think about them.  And strings are a big part of "tone" for acoustic peoples, and I just don't have enough experience with different strings and guitars, so my opinions would be slightly more worthless than my opinions about electric strings.

You could though.  You have a good variety of body woods and sizes, enough experience with a whole bunch more acoustics than I do, it would be worth it.

rct

[rct]

3 hours ago, kidblast said:

pretty good review Ron and sort of what I'd expect to read actually.

a 7.* radius is a hard one for me to love.  I don't care what strings are on there.  especially one with vintage frets and a lacquered maple fret board.  Nope. Not for me, tried and failed

Out of the sets you're trying,  IME the XS are closest to "normal" strings.  They do last quite a while too.

for Elixirs, the Nano's are the ones I've used the most.  Poly coating is too thick, so no on those,  never tried the opti's.

after swirling around this, I've gone back to just using XL110s on my electrics.  They're cheap enough, a 10 pack costs close to the same as 2 of the coated sets.

On the guitars I use the most, I don't mind changing them more frequently.  The ones I don't use the most, the strings last a long time.

Acoustics different story, The XS seem to check all the boxes for me.  again, tried a bunch too.

 

I think what will happen is I'll use these coated strings for half the summer, forget whatever enthusiasm I may have had for them, and go back to just plain old strings for next change.  Or not, maybe.  It'll take a few Friday/Saturday nights to decide that.

rct

[kidblast]

20 minutes ago, rct said:

I think what will happen is I'll use these coated strings for half the summer, forget whatever enthusiasm I may have had for them, and go back to just plain old strings for next change.  Or not, maybe.  It'll take a few Friday/Saturday nights to decide that.

rct

yea  sounds like the path I'd take too

I was using Cobalts for a while, and fell into the same routine after a while with those too.   Back to XL110s I went.

so many choices... so little time..

 

[Twang Gang]

Good review RCT.  I first heard of Elixirs when I got my first Taylor acoustic almost 20 years ago and I liked the way the guitar sounded when I bought it, so I kept using the same strings and they did last a lot longer than other non-coated strings.  Since that experience was pretty good when Elixir started making strings for electric guitars, I tried them and again they lasted longer than the Ernie Balls I used to use so stuck with them.  I use the Nano .10 - .46.  Never really noticed them being too slick, but you get used to what you use and tend to stick with it.  Tone wise I agree, I don't think strings make too much difference on an electric as far as tone - I sound like me no matter what.

Fast forward to now and I hardly play electric at all anymore - last electric gig probably three years ago or more.  I have had a couple more Taylors that have come and gone in the past 3 years or so and continued to use Elixirs on those.  But I don't own a Taylor currently and on my Collings and Gibson Birds I use D'Addario EJs, mostly 80/20 bronze and occasionally phosphor bronze.  I tend to stick with what the guitar came from the factory with.  If I didn't like the sound - then I wouldn't have bought the guitar in the first place.  Since I do like the sound I stay with the same strings.  I hate spending the money for something different, changing them out, and then finding I don't like the way the different ones sound.  With an acoustic I am not using any effects so the strings have more influence over the tone but I tend to just stick with what the manufacturer thought would make their guitar sound the way they wanted it.

[merciful-evans]

I stopped using Elixir polys a couple of years ago. Though I still have a couple of packs I think. 

I just use EB Paradigm regular on most all electrics now. They are expensive, but I like 'em enough to keep buying. 

[jdgm]

I don't know about this coated string stuff.

New-fangled....how does coating steel strings with anything improve their sound?

Or maybe that's not the point?

I'm getting old.  I remember really liking stainless steel strings once years ago but when I last tried a set.....no, not at all like I half-remembered.

I tried cobalts too.  Unimpressed.

However (Optima) gold-plated strings are f**king amazing.   No-one believes me but it's true.

 

[ksdaddy]

1 hour ago, jdgm said:

I don't know about this coated string stuff.

New-fangled....how does coating steel strings with anything improve their sound?

Or maybe that's not the point?

 

It’s not an improvement, it’s more to keep them from oxidizing and degrading as quickly. 
 

I’m not one for “newfangled “ either, but these have proven their worth with me. If they disappeared from the planet tomorrow, I’d be fine using regular strings though. 

[MissouriPicker]

I just buy Martin SPs.  Whatever ones are on sale.  Sometimes I buy the retros.  

[kidblast]

4 hours ago, jdgm said:

I don't know about this coated string stuff.

New-fangled....how does coating steel strings with anything improve their sound?

Or maybe that's not the point?

I'm getting old.  I remember really liking stainless steel strings once years ago but when I last tried a set.....no, not at all like I half-remembered.

I tried cobalts too.  Unimpressed.

However (Optima) gold-plated strings are f**king amazing.   No-one believes me but it's true.

 

Not really all that new, Elixir's have been around for the better part of 20 years,  they were one of the first.

I've been using them since 2000 or there abouts.

Now, there's a whole range of brands to choose from.

The trick is to find the string that has the least about of material and has the most effective formulas for not having the coating be all that noticeable to the ear and hands,  but give the long life.

D'Addario XS get it about right in my book.

[merciful-evans]

13 hours ago, jdgm said:

 

However (Optima) gold-plated strings are f**king amazing.   No-one believes me but it's true.

 

I'll give em a try

[badbluesplayer]

O.K.  I'm in for three packs of Polywebs.   🤞

[Whitefang]

18 hours ago, jdgm said:

I don't know about this coated string stuff.

New-fangled....how does coating steel strings with anything improve their sound?

Or maybe that's not the point?

Actually, I got my first set of Elixirs free from some promotional(I guess) coupon I received in the mail back in the late '90's.  Their "selling point" was that the coating was meant to eliminate that "squeak"  you get from moving your fingers up and own the neck during some chord changes.  And that the coating according to them, didn't affect the tone any.

But hey, the price was right, and it was about time for a string change, so......

As I said I liked them well enough to keep using them from then on.  But my wife said she didn't like them.  No, she never played, but she told me she liked that "squeak" when I played certain tunes.   Said it made me sound like a "real" guitarist!  

Whitefang

[jdgm]

10 hours ago, merciful-evans said:

I'll give em a try

My tip for these  is to buy a gauge lighter than you would normally use on electric, as your normal gauge may feel stiff.

Instead of 0.11s I got 0.10s.   They are good on a semi; incredibly loud and clangy at first and (of course) very long-lasting.   But also more expensive too.

I have yet to try an acoustic set but it's on the list.

If you remember @capmaster - he always used Optima chromes which are harder to find.   I used Strings Direct for the Optima golds.

https://www.stringsdirect.co.uk/strings-c1/optima-m30

 

And yup, coated strings are no longer "new-fangled".   it's just that the last 25 years went by me very fast!

Edited April 17, 2022 by jdgm

[Tman]

Very nicely and thoughtfully done RCT. I'll jump straight to D'addario. Reasoning sounds sound.