Elmer Posted July 4, 2012 Share Posted July 4, 2012 Since I read the last few day's a lot of string topics, I found out that I don't really know a lot about strings, I just do what I used to do but now I want to know the following: Are 12's and 13's so much different then 11's and 10's that your guitar needs an adjustment after replacement to thicker strings? I was in the store and a guy said to me that I need to be carefull with putting 12's on my ES175. The ES175 is made for 11's he said and if you want to put on 12's that guitar, she needs to be adjusted. I gave him the eyebrow, but is his statement correct? I even considered 13's on my ES175 tbh. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pippy Posted July 4, 2012 Share Posted July 4, 2012 The truss rod could need a slight adjustment as the neck might bow slightly because of the extra tension being applied by the heavier gauge of strings. You should also check the intonation (assuming your example has a Tune-O-Matic bridge) if heavier strings are fitted. P. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elmer Posted July 4, 2012 Author Share Posted July 4, 2012 I have the bridge without the tension retainer wire. Not the vintage style one. What do you mean with "check intonation". I play 30 years guitar but I am very newbie in this kind of things. I will bring it to a luthier mid August anyway and tell him I want 12's and/or 13's and ask what needs to be done. (and for some other minor thingies) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jdgm Posted July 4, 2012 Share Posted July 4, 2012 I have the bridge without the tension retainer wire. Not the vintage style one. What do you mean with "check intonation". I play 30 years guitar but I am very newbie in this kind of things. I will bring it to a luthier mid August anyway and tell him I want 12's and/or 13's and ask what needs to be done. (and for some other minor thingies) I would not personally go any higher than 0.13 for the high E - in fact I'd stick with the 0.12 set. Note that there would be a wound 3rd (G) in a set like that. Intonation is just making sure that the string length is exactly what it should be so the guitar is in tune all the way up the neck. You can easily do this yourself with a tuner - it will mean moving the bridge saddles forward or back a tiny amount. Here is the link to the 1st thing that came up when I googled 'guitar intonation'....worth having a go! http://www.wikihow.com/Set-Your-Guitar's-Intonation Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
btoth76 Posted July 4, 2012 Share Posted July 4, 2012 Yes-yes! My luthier always asks me when I bring one of my instruments for setup: "Which gauge of strings You're using on this instrument, and which tuning for the most of the time?". This is the mark of a good luthier - makes me confident about His work. With different string gauges, different pressure is applied to neck. When interchanging between them, the truss rod needs to be adjusted as well to conpensate for pressure difference. Cheers... Bence Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elmer Posted July 4, 2012 Author Share Posted July 4, 2012 totally clear, thanx for that link. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kidblast Posted July 5, 2012 Share Posted July 5, 2012 Are 12's and 13's so much different then 11's and 10's that your guitar needs an adjustment after replacement to thicker strings? Unless you have a trem bar or a bigsby, moving up one gauge is usually not significant enough of a change to cause any serious issues with action and playability, as said intonation is probably one area, and it's also possible the nut slots could need some attention and of course, the neck relief will probably need review. Any good setup guy can handle this pretty easily. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elmer Posted July 5, 2012 Author Share Posted July 5, 2012 thanx for all the answers ... I tried the tonation test and I adjusted that (only the little saddle of the G cannot be put far enough to the back)...but I need to go to luthier and give my baby a good check up. So I can play 5 years without sorrow Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RaysEpiphone Posted July 6, 2012 Share Posted July 6, 2012 I'd say yes they are. Going from 9's to 10's or 11's isn't a big deal but once you get to heavy-land have it done right. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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