Thicker Strings Are Hard To Get Used To

[Canadian Charlie]

Well I just replaced the strings on my Lado from 9's to 10s a few weeks ago and now I feel really uncomfortable playing it. After playing it for a day the high E string broke and the only thing I had at the time was a 8.

Should I change back to 9's or try and stick it out? I even have another set which I plan on putting on my Strat:smilie_flagge17:

[bagpipe]

Do you find any tone improvement with the 10s, over the 9s? If you dont notice any difference, then you'd probably be better just sticking with the 9s.

[Canadian Charlie]

I think I'm still getting the same tone

[Paul]

I used to keep 10's on a Strat, and 11's on an LP. I got a similar feel between the two instruments when I did that. I'm too lazy to keep different sets for different guitars now.

[Canadian Charlie]

My Lado has the 10's and my Strat and Les Paul have 9's

Seems I'm playing the Lado less

[guitarman2]

I played many years with 9s. I played along the styles of Albert Lee and I liked the faster play and easier bends that the 9s allowed. A couple of times I tried to go up to the 10s because the tone was an improvement, tuning stayed better and strings lasted a little longer. I ended going back the previous 2 times I tried. About a year and a half ago I decided to go back to 10s and give it my best effort to make it work. I put mediums on my acoustic (I had previously been using lights) and I put in about 2 hours a day at running scales and finger exercises to build up strength. After a couple of months of that on my acoustic the 10s felt like the 9. I am now fully used to the 10s and would never go back.

[Stratin2traynor]

I use 11's on my Strat and 10's on LP types. I could never play 9's, they always felt angel hair pasta! I prefer the tone of heavier guage strings.

[suttree]

don't forget when you go to a different gauge of strings, you'll be in for some guitar adjustments... your truss rod will be bearing a heavier load, so there will be more curvature on the neck, this might have lifted your action up a little, making the jump feel a lot bigger than it is. another thing to consider is that GHS makes a 9.5 string, that might be a good compromise..

[guitarman2]

another thing to consider is that GHS makes a 9.5 string, that might be a good compromise..

Although I do notice a difference between 9s and 10s, some say the difference is neglible. I can't see how 9.5 would make a noticeable difference.

[suttree]

Although I do notice a difference between 9s and 10s, some say the difference is neglible. I can't see how 9.5 would make a noticeable difference.

yah, i said the same thing. strangely enough i did feel the difference when i demo'd a set. i use 10s on fender scale stuff and 11's on shorter scale stuff.. made the switch from 9's about 10 years ago now, and lately i've been considering moving up another gauge... love the tone... but it's tough on the fingers...

[fraser]

i would stick it out for a while, you will get used to it.
ive used 11s for as long as i can recall, they stay in tune better, dont break as much, and to me they sound fuller and snappier. as well as i find them easier to control- if that makes any sense.
some 8 years ago i was working real hard at my playing, and i switched to 12s for 3 months in an effort to improve my strength. took a long while to get used to, but after the 3 months it was like id always used them. dropped back to 11s, and the improvement in my fingers was huge- everything became effortless.
i feel the same effect now, as im more an acoustic player these days- i grab a strat and its so smooth and easy.

[guitarman2]

yah, i said the same thing. strangely enough i did feel the difference when i demo'd a set. i use 10s on fender scale stuff and 11's on shorter scale stuff.. made the switch from 9's about 10 years ago now, and lately i've been considering moving up another gauge... love the tone... but it's tough on the fingers...


I too,was considering moving up to 11s. But the Kinmans in my Tele were spec'd for an unwound g string and I think 11s come with a wound g string.

[zontar]

I use 9's, mostly by default. If I could find 9.5's--I'd try a set--Yeah I know I can order them online--but I'd rather just pick up one set & try it first. I like 10's, but most 10 sets either go to a 6th string that's too big or too small. a 10-42 or 44 would be ideal for me. I am considering just buying individual strings and making my own set up for my Les Paul next time I restring it. I recently changed the action--so I need a new set up anyway--although it's actually amazingly close.

So for now--I'm sticking with 9's.

[Paul]

I too,was considering moving up to 11s. But the Kinmans in my Tele were spec'd for an unwound g string and I think 11s come with a wound g string.

I don't know what flavour string you use, but D'Addario has the EXL 115 set, 11-49 with a plain 3rd, and the EXL115W set, 11-49, with a wound third.

Try the wound third some time. It'll give you a 50's vibe, when everybody played a wound third.

[suttree]

I too,was considering moving up to 11s. But the Kinmans in my Tele were spec'd for an unwound g string and I think 11s come with a wound g string.

depends on the brand.. the dean markleys come with 2 g strings, one wound, one plain, for instance..

[guitarman2]

I don't know what flavour string you use, but D'Addario has the EXL 115 set, 11-49 with a plain 3rd, and the EXL115W set, 11-49, with a wound third.

Try the wound third some time. It'll give you a 50's vibe, when everybody played a wound third.

I wasn't really sure if the 11s had a wound g or not. From what I hear the wound g will be too overpowering on my Kinmans. I'd try a set without a wound g though.
I use and love the round wound D'addario.

[Paul]

I wasn't really sure if the 11s had a wound g or not. From what I hear the wound g will be too overpowering on my Kinmans. I'd try a set without a wound g though.
I use and love the round wound D'addario.

So buy a single wound string, somewhere around 0.020", and try it.....no harm no foul. Vintage style staggered pole p'ups sound better, to my ear, with a wound third. As I understand it, the pole pieces are staggered to take into account the energy output of each string.

YMMV

[guitarman2]

So buy a single wound string, somewhere around 0.020", and try it.....no harm no foul. Vintage style staggered pole p'ups sound better, to my ear, with a wound third. As I understand it, the pole pieces are staggered to take into account the energy output of each string.

YMMV

Strings are cheap enough that I think I'll just buy a set of 11s with a wound g and one without. It sure would be nice if I could get used to 11s. The fatter the tone the better for my ears.

[Paul]

Strings are cheap enough that I think I'll just buy a set of 11s with a wound g and one without. It sure would be nice if I could get used to 11s. The fatter the tone the better for my ears.

Thank you, come again.:smile: <and so leaves another satisfied customer>

[hollowbody]

Strings are cheap enough that I think I'll just buy a set of 11s with a wound g and one without. It sure would be nice if I could get used to 11s. The fatter the tone the better for my ears.

I use the Ernie Ball Power Slinky which has a plain G. I'm loving it on my Strat. The neck pickup especially has a nice smooth sustain to it and growls nicely when overdriven.

Also, the Ernie Balls are a "skinny" set of 11s since they go from .011 to .048, so switching might not be as hard as you think.

[Mooh]

I started guaging up on electrics because I hated the feel of 9s for rhythm. 11s felt and sounded better to me, but were a bit too stiff for bends, so I compromised at 10s. I like a wound third on Telecasters for a bit more growl, but a plain third on the others.

It boggles the mind that we're able to feel the difference in thousands of an inch and that we are able to choose on that basis. We're pretty spoiled.

Peace, Mooh.

[Paul]

It boggles the mind that we're able to feel the difference in thousands of an inch and that we are able to choose on that basis. We're pretty spoiled.

Peace, Mooh.

No mind boggle...do the math. The cross section of 0.010" wire is about 23% greater than the cross section of 0.009". The tensile strength of those two wires is significantly different too.

I make coil springs for a living......all other things being equal, a spring made out of 0.008" wire will be twice as strong as a spring made out of 0.007" wire.

It may only be 0.001" different, but it's huge percentage change.

[Canadian Charlie]

Well I gave it another chance today after work, those Ernie Ball 10's are tough as nails. After half an hour I put the Lado away and grabbed my Strat with the 9's


I'll keep on trying

[guitarman2]

Well I gave it another chance today after work, those Ernie Ball 10's are tough as nails. After half an hour I put the Lado away and grabbed my Strat with the 9's


I'll keep on trying

The secret is to force your self to play heavier gauges until it feels normal.

[Mooh]

Paul...Not sure how the difference between .009 and .010 is 23% but I'll take your word for it...I keep coming up with 10%. As for the tensile difference, I think that's what I feel rather than the size, and even then it varies with scale length and tuning.

Peace, Mooh.

[devnulljp]

What suttree said - your guitar may be in need of a bit of a set up after changing string gauge. I went cold turkey years ago from 9s to 11s on a Strat and it was awful til I got it set up properly. Of course, it was also awful for a month or two until I got used to those heavy strings, but it sure sounded good and my fingers adapted. I don't get to play as much these days so I use 10s -- reckon I'd find 11s or 12s impossible to play now...

[SinCron]

Using a 70 on my 7 string tore up my finger some good.

[Paul]

Paul...Not sure how the difference between .009 and .010 is 23% but I'll take your word for it...I keep coming up with 10%. As for the tensile difference, I think that's what I feel rather than the size, and even then it varies with scale length and tuning.

Peace, Mooh.

There is a 10% or 11% difference in diameter, (depending if you compare up or down), but I was talking cross section. Use pi*r*r to find the cross section area. That'll give you a really small number in square inches.

Tensile strength is measure in pounds per square inch. There is a much more noticable jump from 0.009 0.010 than there is from 0.046" to 0.047"

[Mooh]

Paul...Right, cross-section area. Got it now.

Since I play bass, baritone acoustic, 12 string, classical, bouzouki, mandolin, ukulele, electric, etc, I notice string difference but it has virtually no affect on me or my playing. Not sure if that's a good thing or not.

Peace, Mooh.

[suttree]

another thing that bears mentioning is the difference in feel between wound and unwound strings. i can pretty easily play 12s on an electric without really getting hammered too badly, as i play a lot of acoustic, but the wound G really is a lot harder to bend to pitch, in my experience...

[Robert1950]

An unwound G string is louder than a wound - that is my experience. That is were the original staggered pole piece design came from. This is especially true for flat wounds. I have flatwound jazz 11s on my MIJ Epi Riviera. I had to adjust the pole pieces just like the staggered ones on a strat to even out the volume. (I really like these strings for cleaner R&B, Funk and some Rock sonds).

As to string gauge. I have noticed a difference in tone. I find 10s fuller than 9s and 11s a bit more fuller than 10s. I played 11s for a while and moved down to 10s. I find 10s very easy to work with now. The tone difference is more noticeable between 9 and 10s compared to 10 and 11s for me.

[Mooh]

The wound third is harder for me to bend too, but I prefer the wound tone on the Tele. It's all about the bridge pickup I think.

Different strokes...

Peace, Mooh.

[Canadian Charlie]

Good news, good news after a couple of days practice its gotten a little better on my fingers . A few more days and I will have gotten used to it


Thanks everyone, eh:smilie_flagge17:

[Paul]

An unwound G string is louder than a wound - that is my experience. That is were the original staggered pole piece design came from.

Apparently that's part of the charm of Hendrix's sound. He's got a right handed guitar, with pole pieces staggered to expect a wound 3rd, strung lefty. You'll get an interesting balance, or lack thereof, across the strings.

[Budda]

Using a 70 on my 7 string tore up my finger some good.

I have a .70 low B on my 25.5 scale 7... it feels nice but still a touch loose (im suprised too!)

on my les paul i use 10-52's. i get the thick low E and A that i Need for my picking/playing style, and i get my trusty 10's gauge for the high E-G for attempting to refine my bends etc.

right now i have 11-52's on the LP (the only 52 gauge the store had in) and i really want my 10-52's back lol.

if buddy still doesnt like his 10's, stick to 9's.

[ed2000]

In my youth I used 8's and 9's on all my electrics. Now I use 10 to 52 on the Fenders and 11 to 56 on the Gibsons. I find my playing is more in tune and the tone is stronger. One huge advantage is when I installed the 10 -52 on my MIJ Tele the intonation is close to perfect without the need for a compensated 3 section brass bridge.

[RavenT]

Strings are more a thing of preference then anything else. You have to experiment with all the different companies out there, to feel their sound. Then you will find that one set that makes that one guitar sounding better then any other sets you have tried. I use 11s on all my guitars, for some odd reason I fend 11s bend nicely the tone is so much more noticeable then 9s 0r 10s ON the Ibanez Artcore AF105 I use D’Addario Chromes flat wound, the Ibanez acoustic I use John Pearse set #550SL 11s slightly light gauge. I also use the same set on The Traveler Pro. And on the Yamaha RGX312 I use D’Addario XL 11s. I don’t find to have a problem bending the strings. They last longer stay in tune. And most of the companies you can get a wound or unwound 3rd. The longer you well play with them the more use you’ll get to them. And remember that you should only change from one gauge to the other at a time. Never go from 9 to 11s to much adjustment. You should also do a set up with every gauge change since it does affect the neck tension and readjustments on the string action to really appreciate the new gauge of strings. Happy playing

[Furified]

Well I was originally was on 11's or 12's.. possibly.. with a pretty high bridge (hard) and then I got a new guitar which had 9's, and realized that it was harder to play than the 11's, then I upgraded the guitar to 10's, but then I realized that the reason I liked the older strings more was because the bridge was more comfortable for my hand, but 10's and 11's :O

The moral is : I have no clue.