[Robert1950]

Bought a used A&L Cedar Folk for $200 with hard shell case. Solid cedar top with laminate cherry sides and back. It's going to be my string testing axe. It came with a fresh set of D'Addario phosphor bronze 12s. I know these are your standard acoustic strings, but I find them a little stiff and I can't play the guitar as long as I can with lighter gauge strings. They were a bit bright too, but that could also be the guitar. Like I said, these aging fingertips are becoming a little bit more whinny. The heaviest gauge I can comfortably work with are 11-52s - I have these on my S&P Woodland Folk Pro - Martin SP 80/20 Bronze

I purchased some Martin Flexible Core Silk and Phosphors 11-47s. So far my fingertips are enjoying these. The sound is mellower and a little lighter than the standards. Easier to finger. Less buzzing and damping - don't have press barre chords so hard. I also have a set of Ernie Ball 80/20 Bronze Silk and Steel 10-50s to try in a month.

I also know that radius it part of the playability for me - not a fan of the standard 16". Less flat, the better. I prefer a 12" radius on an acoustic. Don't like small frets either, but I that is something else. Whinny old aging fingertips.

 

[Robert1950]

Ernie Ball Earthwood Silk & Steel Extra-Soft 80/20 Bronze 10-50s. Just put them on and I really like the feel of these. Brightness depends on the type of pick you use: Tortex .60 is brighter and a little clearer than a Jazz III XL. Lighter gauge strings seem to need a slightly thinner pick, as least my with hand. I can control the dynamics of strumming a little easier.

They may quite not have fullness of set of 12-54s but the increase in playability for me is worth it.

 

[sambonee]

I got a glove online that you can use to play guitar. It's from Canada. Actually works well. I have the fingertip version. Got it due to eccema on my LH index finger.

It's was a huge difference. And doesn't bother your playing hardly at all.

 

[Robert1950]

I just plugged this in and these strings sound great. Full sound with a nice ring. I'm not using an acoustic amp, but a Fender Clean Tube, volume not too high (I am in an apartment). A bit of slow flanger and I just love it.

 

[Guest]

I always use Ernie Ball Super Slinky 9-42 electric strings on my acoustic guitars. Same as my electrics.

 

[fretzel]

I always use Ernie Ball Super Slinky 9-42 electric strings on my acoustic guitars. Same as my electrics.

I tried this years ago on my acoustic and really found it lacking punch. How do you like it?

 

[Guest]

I tried this years ago on my acoustic and really found it lacking punch. How do you like it?

It lets me play my acoustic like an electric for acoustic blues gigs. I have an acoustic with a built in piezo pickup. If you wanted big folk acoustic guitar probably not as good.

I don't play with heavy strings, and I find most acoustic strings feel heavy and stiff.

 

[fretzel]

Never really thought about trying them through a pickup.

I think I have 13's on my resonator. That plus the higher action makes it quite challenging to play finger style.

 

[Steadfastly]

I got a glove online that you can use to play guitar. It's from Canada. Actually works well. I have the fingertip version. Got it due to eccema on my LH index finger.

It's was a huge difference. And doesn't bother your playing hardly at all.

Would you have a link you can share with us?

 

[guitarman2]

I hope I never age to the point where I have to move to light strings on an acoustic. I like the stiffness and full tone sound of medium gauge. Can't stand the way lights feel or sound. Although after 2 hours at a jam my fingertips start to feel the wear and tear.

 

[Robert1950]

I always use Ernie Ball Super Slinky 9-42 electric strings on my acoustic guitars. Same as my electrics.

I play my acoustic un-amplified most of the time so 9-42 electrics just wouldn't cut it for me tone-wise.

 

[Robert1950]

I hope I never age to the point where I have to move to light strings on an acoustic. I like the stiffness and full tone sound of medium gauge. Can't stand the way lights feel or sound. Although after 2 hours at a jam my fingertips start to feel the wear and tear.

You must have a Stevie Ray Vaughan fret hand. That guy played 12 to 13s on his electrics. I can't play 13s on an acoustic without getting angry. The stiffness is really irritating to me.

 

[guitarman2]

You must have a Stevie Ray Vaughan fret hand. That guy played 12 to 13s on his electrics. I can't play 13s on an acoustic without getting angry. The stiffness is really irritating to me.

Thats unfortunate. I think just about every guitar can benefit from at minimum, medium gauge guitars. But then I'm in to Telecasters and dreadnoughts which I think its more true of then other styles.
I used to use 10's on my Telecasters and just before I got out of electric playing I went to 11's and loved how big it sounded. Now that I've been playing acoustics exclusively for the past year and a half or so my hands have gotten much stronger. I can bend full tones quite easily on the B string up around the 12th fret.
The only thing that doesn't seem to get better is that my left hand fingertips are just about done after 2 hours of playing in a jam. Although I have gone 3 hours with siginificant pain. I know I could mitigate that somewhat with lights but for me the tone would suffer too much.

 

[Guest]

You must have a Stevie Ray Vaughan fret hand. That guy played 12 to 13s on his electrics. I can't play 13s on an acoustic without getting angry. The stiffness is really irritating to me.

SRV used heavy strings but he tuned down 1/2 step. That makes a huge difference in string stiffness.

 

[Robert1950]

Thats unfortunate. I think just about every guitar can benefit from at minimum, medium gauge guitars. But then I'm in to Telecasters and dreadnoughts which I think its more true of then other styles.
I used to use 10's on my Telecasters and just before I got out of electric playing I went to 11's and loved how big it sounded. Now that I've been playing acoustics exclusively for the past year and a half or so my hands have gotten much stronger. I can bend full tones quite easily on the B string up around the 12th fret.
The only thing that doesn't seem to get better is that my left hand fingertips are just about done after 2 hours of playing in a jam. Although I have gone 3 hours with significant pain. I know I could mitigate that somewhat with lights but for me the tone would suffer too much.

I have said many times that I have <Austrian Accent On> weak puny little girly man hands <Austrian Accent Off>. I find 11-52s the maximum gauge I can work comfortably on an acoustic. On electrics I use 10-46s and replace the 10 with a 9 because I can get the perfect bendy vibrato. I adjust the pole pieces to get the right volume out of each string. Part of this may be my age - 67. I used to use 11s on electrics when I was 55, but part of that may have been attitude. After a while it was "why make my fingers work so hard". Lighter strings, more fun, play longer. Increase in playability noticeably outweighed any decrease in tone for me. Each to his own.

 

[Robert1950]

SRV used heavy strings but he tuned down 1/2 step. That makes a huge difference in string stiffness.

I play along with a lot YouTube lessons (I am a visual learner). Almost all of them are E standard. I did have one of my guitars strung with 11s last year and tuned down to Eb, but it took a bit too much time to find lessons in that tuning, so the 10s went back on.

 

[Robert1950]

I also prefer a 24.75" scale over a 25.5",... except for my strat. The neck and fretboard are perfect on that

 

[guitarman2]

I have said many times that I have <Austrian Accent On> weak puny little girly man hands <Austrian Accent Off>.

lol. I remember when I went down to West Virginia to pick up my Custom Crook from Bill, we got talking about the size of guitar necks (I got the oversized baseball bat neck) and string gauges and we got talking about Brad Paisley and his set up and Bill commented something very similar about Brad's girly hands. So if anything, you're in good company.

 

[Guest]

I also prefer a 24.75" scale over a 25.5",... except for my strat. The neck and fretboard are perfect on that

I found my fingers and knuckles getting sore a number of years ago. When my strat was in the shop for a few weeks back then, I grabbed my SG which I never used. Miraculously my fingers and knuckles stopped aching. Then when I got my strat back, the sore knuckles returned. Ever since I have been using the shorter scale Gibson necks. I even bought a short scale strat Conversion Neck from Warmoth. It works nicely.

 

[Robert1950]

The playability of my acoustic with the Ernie Ball Earthwood Silk and Steel 10-50s outweigh any loss in tone for me.