What guitar strings do you hate?

Col Mustard said:
I hate old dead strings... So I buy D'Addario strings in packs of ten sets when I see them go onsale
for less than $39.00. I've done that a few times, so I've got a box with lots of string sets inside,
and I don't have to buy strings for a long time.

My group, Mustard's Retreat was sponsored by Elixir strings for a while. They gave us some sets free
and allowed us to buy more at lower prices than everybody else got. We gave them our endorsement and
put their logo on one of our recordings. What ever that was worth... So I'm very familiar with the coated
strings and I have this to say: They really do last longer. Maybe three times as long. So if they cost three
times as much for the average Joe, then they justify it.

Do I buy them now? Not often. If I see them onsale, I'll pounce. Because if they're only twice as expensive
but last three times as long, then the guitarist is ahead. They cancelled our sponsorship after about three years,
probably because they noticed that we ain't big stars, and weren't traveling enough to do them much good.
I don't resent that. I was grateful for the opportunity to use their strings.

I've never understood why some players think they sound dead. They never sound like that to me.
I've heard others play them (especially on Taylor guitars) and from the front they sound great to
my ear. What I did notice was that they didn't seem to sound any better than D'Addarios on an Electric
guitar. On Acoustics, the coated strings seem more than worth it.

But I'm a string changer. I'll change strings if I think a gig is important, or if I'm going into the studio...
or at the end of a long sweaty summer trip, or at the beginning of one. In the old days, I bought the cheapest
strings, because we played a lot of bars and taverns, and I played hard on my poorly set up instruments, and
broke a lot of strings. I broke them whether they were cheap or expensive, so I bought the cheap ones.
Whatever was onsale.

Now all my instruments are setup much better, and I lube my nut slots and bridge saddles and under the string
trees on my Tele, and I break zero strings. Or very few. I use 11-49 D'Addario Nickel wound EXL-115 Blues-Jazz
strings on my Gibsons. These give me everything I ask from a set of guitar strings. Great tone, lots of
sustain, reasonably long life, excellent price, tuning stability and zero breakage. Hard to beat.
My Telecaster seems to be happier with D'Addario Nickel Wound EXL-110s, .010-.046, and my Epiphones
like those too. They never break either, on my guitars. I put 'em on and take 'em off
in sets.

On my dreadnought acoustic I use D'Addario "Bluegrass" strings with light top and medium bottom 12-55...
On my Martin XC1T I use Martin SP light gauge .012-.054.

All these strings go onsale sometimes, and I pounce when somebody marks them down. I've tried GHS, and Gibson Brite Wires, and Fender Bullet strings, and those all work fine but don't seem to sound any better than the D'Addarios I find on
sale. I know nothing about Ernie Balls, or DR, and haven't used Black Diamond strings since I was in High School
(there were still dinosaurs slithering around then, I'm sure...).

So now what kind of strings do I hate, besides the old dead ones? I guess I hate expensive strings...
So I get 'em on sale, and change 'em often, and get great tone. There it is.
Click to expand...


LMAO Col, Expensive strings probably cost as much as Adrian pays for whole guitars!!!!
 
I put 7s on the guitars with locking tuners. If I do not have locking tuners the number 7 strings turn into a ball. I have a bag of 8s that I use to complete the set. The coated strings sounded cool but the coating makes them dead and when it comes off the strings are gummy dead what ever that is. I think it like the caned dead people China sends to Africa labeled Spam. That Spam is really chewy and its low on salt because of the Chinese Diet. You think you got a bomb on that Squier?
 
I have to say I dislike flat wound bass strings, or tape wounds. I've tried them, and they sounded like I was
playing a Gibson bass... thud thud thud. I can't say I hate them. I don't hate much of anything.
But I don't care for that thud.

Rotosound round wound bass strings on a Fender J bass are excellent to my ear. Lots of tones... no thud.
Lots of sustain. So are Elixir round wounds. I've used EB round wounds too, and those seemed fine as well.
I've never been able to understand what people don't like about coated strings, except the price.
They never sound dead to me. I've gotten great service from them.

But for bass, I usually stick to D'Addario round wounds. Those sell for like $24.00 for a box of two sets.
Can't beat that. They last quite long, and at that price I never wince about changing them.

The only exception to my round wound preference is for my fretless J bass. I dislike the sound of flat wound
strings on a J bass, so I compromise and play D'Addario's "ground wound" bass strings, or half round, or
"ground round" strings. Those have almost as much complexity to their tones as the regular round wound
strings do, and almost as much sustain, but they don't chew up my lovely rosewood fretboard,
the one with the maple inlays instead of frets.
The fretless gets a great growl and m-wah sound with those ground rounds, and no thud.
Luretta@100.jpg
Seems like I'm a D'Addario guy. I'll buy Martin strings for my acoustics when I see them go onsale, but
I buy D'Addario phosphor bronze mostly.
 
I have said this here a few weeks ago, I paid $42.00 for Martin Titanium strings. Why I did such a retarded thing I will never know. I have not put these strings of tomorrow on my guitar yet but I read reviews that they break easy. No one knows how they sound because they break when they are put on. I'm hanging on till I read a review on the tone of these $42 dollar turds. Then I can write back that my Martin strings didn't break and are holding up just fine in the pack.
 
I like Ernie Ball. They are not for everyone. I can use just about any but, I don't like the Gibson strings these days. Back in the 70s they were better I feel. I actually used some OEM old school Black Diamonds that were excellent back when I was in my teens. I tried a reissue or so called version of Black Diamonds back over ten years ago but, they were not as cool as the old ones back in the 70s. I don't even know if they made BDs back in the 70s. The ones I had might have been NOS. Back then I had no idea what NOS was.
 
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