Does string gauge effect guitar tone? Or is it a myth? Part 2
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- Опубликовано: 13 сен 2024
- A while back Scott from Stringjoy strings hosted a guest video for us ( • Does string gauge affe... ). Many comments wished for sound/playing examples, so here ya go!
In this video I'll demo guitar strings from .008's to .011's (sorry, no 12's or 13's!)
Please subscribe, like and comment below with which gauge you preferred.
Also, if you'd like to support this channel, please consider checking out official Wampler merch (shirts, cups, jackets, and much more) at modyourownpeda...
NO it doesn’t ‘effect’ tone! It AFFECTS tone...
*sigh...* if only more people cared about affect vs effect... it's a much more important issue in the medical field. 😏✌🏼
@@k1sfd1974 While we're talking about word usage, "to effect" is a verb that means "to bring about or to cause" so annoyingly the title is correct, even if probably accidentally.
Actually, it's a little more difficult to nail down 😏
Affect (Verb)
1) to have an effect on; make a difference to...
or
2) touch the feelings of (someone); move emotionally
In the medical field we use it to describe a persons emotional tone.
Ex - A Flat or Blunted Affect.
Effect (noun)
1) a change which is a result or consequence of an action or other cause.
Or
Effect (verb)
1) cause (something) to happen; bring about.
As you can see it's a fairly thin line separating the two. I always have to laugh at Affect using Effect in its definition though 😉✌🏼
8 - 38 : 4:17
9 - 42 : 6:52
10 - 46 : 8:43
11 - 48 : 10:59
For a very long time it was 10-46 but in recent years I’ve been using 10.5-48. Almost as beefy as 11s but only a little bit harder work. Who’d thought .5 would make a difference but it does and you can even do slide.
William Hawkins who makes this gauge?? I’m intrigued!
@@PeterPug D'Addario EXL110 and Ernie Ball Mega Slinky are both 10.5-48 sets.
@@williamhawkins69 .5 is just an arbitrary number. Just like string height, a 1/64th can make a huge difference! Never mind the numbers! All about the feel! We may be seeing .25 sets some day!
You Sir, are a hero
My guitar sounds best when I don’t put stings on it. Haven’t found many people that would disagree once they heard the difference. 😂 😜 LoL
Keep the strings on but as a suggestion for an amp plug in try headphones 😂 😜 LoL (i copied n pasted your emoticons, did you whatsapp youtube, i cant do them?). Seriously, people not liking your music is a better reaction than them not hearing it......maybe! 😜 (c n p again)
Kudos for taking the time to restring your guitar so many times
To me personally, string gauge mainly effects the feel and attack of your playing, thus the heavier strings you play, the more you’re able to dig in and really get a bitey attack, similar to slapping bass with heavier vs lighter strings..
At the end of the day, play what you like! I prefer 10s with a heavy bottom (52s or bigger) in standard tunings, just feels right for my hands
Exactly! Best to play what you like. I use 11-52 and 11-54 in E and Eb, but I grew up playing acoustics and nylon strings before moving onto an electric. If the hands like lighter gauges then the hands like lighter gauges!
You can dig in and get the same bitey attack with thinner strings, you just don't have to push as hard. They do take a little time to get used to, but they give you more sonic range and more natural harmonics.
One of the ways in which string gauge can affect tone is via the greater output that heavier strings have. Bear in mind that the bigger a disturbance in the pickup's magnetic field a string produces, the higher the output level. And thicker strings = more ferromagnetic mass = more output. If you're playing pristine clean into a clean amp with gobs of headroom, that won't matter so much. But if your rig is set to within spitting distance of breakup, thicker strings will bring you closer to the precipice more easily...all other things being equal (e.g., pickup height, picking strength, etc.).
I noticed that it wasn't until he put on the tens that his mic started clipping... would love to see if it changes an spl meter at all. Even by one dbl.
agreed and like and/or hashtag to that answer. being a guitar repair head for some years, I got to hear some differencee with that allot. pickup height could cange all in its sound. I was always so sure about having the action reallly high and and strings fat as they could be...............Biy was I wrong .... the "best" sounds I got from slim strings and strreching them alll over. But true,, fatt strings do give that twangy, sustain. but give it the right compressor with thin strings and your golden
e
you can actually hear the volume difference in the video when he goes from 9s to 10s
Cool but does volume equate to tone?
@@duckzstallard429 Volume equates to signal amplitude. Think of it as a sort of built-in booster. As well, the thicker the string, the less wiggly it can be, which changes the harmonic content. Not necessarily in a stark dramatic way, but it does change it.
Tony Iommi uses super thin strings , but undeniably has heavy tone . I think it's whatever you feel accents your playing the most . Another fantastic video Brian 👍
I heard he switched after lopping his fingers off, so maybe was due to feeling the pain initially and wanting (or thinking) it would reduce it, I dont know, but i dont think he played 8's before the accident?
Don't forget Billy Gibbons and his 7's. It's all in the finger.
After I discovered the perfection of the 9-46 set, I never looked back.
I have two Les Paul copies (epiphones). They are nearly identical. I just put ultra light strings on one & mediums on the other. I have to say that the bass is much more present on the larger ( thicker ) strings. Both sets are elixir polyweb strings. I have to adjust my amp settings for the different guitars/strings. Love them both, but, there is a significant difference. BTW, I got a used Behringer V- amp 2 for half what a "3" costs & it has the "Leslie" rotary effect that I love & the "3" does not have. Still, I thank you for inspiring me to "clean up my act." Any effects that I purchase going forward will be Wampler. Your really great! Thanks again!!
With 8 gauge you will probably be able to play your whole life. They are much easier on your hands and fingers, especially for bending and vibrato. I am 67 years and my hands hurt after 1-2 hours of playing, due to the use of heavy gauge strings in my younger days.
For sound and play ability: 8 gauge is WAY more expressive! Well suited for clean and dynamic blues. And WAY more easy to bend (3-4 half steps) and WAY easier to make the vibrato sing.
If you feel you miss something, then learn to turn knobs.
Play 17 gauge tuned to b they are super easy to bend
I've used 8's for years and love them, now I'm using 9's on some guitars. I love the expressive quality of 8's as well.
A guitar teacher I know recommends doing forearm exercises with weights to help with that issue. The idea is to find weights that put more resistance on your arms / hands than the guitar will and then playing is easier and without strain. Weights will increase strength without strain but over playing can introduce a lot of strain. You can increase strength through weights into your 90s even. I saw a vid of a guy who took up barbells in his 80s and is going strong in his 90's ..
INjuries can make a big difference though as you mention.
Thank you very much for demo.
I really liked 9 gauge strings.
Wow! This is just what I needed without actually buying each pack. I now have a really good idea of what sound I want thanks to this video. 9 or 10s seem to be spot on with what Im looking for. Thanks for your hard work in putting this video together. 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
The 8's are brighter with less volume and sustain. I compared back and forth with the 11's in the video and the difference is night and day. I play Ernie ball hybrid (9,11,16,26,36,49 - I use a 49 low E) for my Strat, and Ernie Ball Orange (10,13,17,30,42,52) for my shorter scale guitars. The E and A strings are too floppy for me on the common packs of strings.
Ernie Balls are such garbage ass strings lol. They feel and sound like shit, and have to be replaced ridiculously often. Using Ernie Balls is like using stale bread
Thanks for your time and effort. I personally like 9s I’ve tried many different brands and gauges and have settled on 9s and locking tuners to change them easier.
The string gauge makes a huge difference of course!Heavier strings=Thicker sound.Lighter strings=Thinner sound.Its just common sense.
Excellent video and great performance Brian!!!I think you sounded really great using the 11-48…killer beefy tones man!!!🔥🤘🏻🎸
I'm glad to see/hear you do this through a Tele. There is another very popular video like this where the guys tap about Stevie Ray's fat tone on his Strat while holding a Strat for effect and then they proceed to test out different gauge strings on a Les Paul. Mega fail on their part. With this video here you can definitely tell that the 8 and 9 gauge strings sound great for that more twangy country or surf style guitar but for more Jazzy or Fat Blues or Rock style, the thicker gauge strings do sounds better. So IMO you should mix and match to get the feel and tone that sounds and feels best to you.
To me it’s really more about the feel of different gauges more than the tone. There are many ways to tweak tone, beef it up or make it brighter, other than just string gauge.
I play a 7-string in A standard. I have a thick low string and it is definatley noticable. Its the difference between really good balanced tone and the low end dominating everything. Depending on your play style and the music you like, you might like that. Its a bit of preference.
I just got an Epiphone Les Paul Standard and i put some Ernie Ball 9's and it was too thin so i switched to D'ADDARIO XL 10-46 which is what my son uses on his G&L Asat and they beefed up my guitar and gave it a nice warmth 👍
EQ is THE most overlooked, underrated factor. By far my #1 pedal that affects my tone. Heavy strings can be made to sound thin and vice versa. I play 9’s bc I have a lighter touch. Thanks Brian for all your hard work. Your pedals always make me sound better than I am. 👍🏽
Clean’s when it really shows. For me it’s 10’s on Fenders and 11’s on Gibson to even out the difference in string length.
Dean Savage I’m the same. 10-52 on Fender, 11-54 on Gibson.
This is mainly a "feel issue" so I wouldn't worry too much about thicker strings sounding beefier. I'd rather continue using 8 - 46 in drop-D and just compensate on the amp.
Hate to be "that guy" but effect is what happens. Affect is what causes it.
Hello That Guy :) To effect is also a verb and an affect is also a noun. What a time to be alive!
@@ryanthenormal True, however when used as a verb effect has a different definition. When used as a verb effect means to initiate, or put to action (i.e. effect a change).
It is possible to use effect in the title of the video here by changing it to something like "Does String Gauge effect a different tone in your guitar". However, this usage is not a common one outside of specific professions/groups (or when one wishes to sound pompous). Even the grammar check in my browser is warning me that it is improper usage because it is uncommon enough that whomever created the grammar rules for the browser did not consider it.
The affect/effect confusion is actually one of the more common mistakes made, and I suspect that some day in the future, the distinction between the two will likely fade away into obscurity, but for now, it still exists, and as pedant, I am inclined to point it out, lol.
Elixer's - 1:34
8's - 4:18
9's - 6:52
10's 8:45
11's: 11:01
You are might fine guitar player. I'm a 10's guy too - used to run 9s but as you said - I like the guitar to fight back just a bit. I don't think the tonal differences are what should be the deciding factor as both Billy Gibbons and BB King, among others, were proponents of lighter gauges and their tones are pretty good.
I think I can hear a marked difference in playing between the gauges.
09:
The 9’s are lighter more jazz style with softer noodling and finger picking string snapping expressions.
Also there is more sliding and gliding between frets.
The tone is warmer, softer and more mellow with more ringing out.
With overdrive it’s a bit like Status Quo whatever you want.
10:
The 10s play as a harder more aggressive style and tone.There is less of the soft noodling and sliding around. It’s more of a working man’s stomp.There is still plenty of playing out and string snapping but the runs are more defined and deliberate and a bit more narrowly focussed, the 9’s had more flare and playing around the edges of the solo / melody line. I would definitely give the 9’s a try before moving on to the 10’s.
The 10s also edge towards more acoustic guitar / country style playing whereas the 9’s were solidly in the electric lead guitar camp.
11s
You could say that with the lower ‘drag’ the 8 & 9’s would be better suited for practicing, working on finger-drills and runs and so on and experimenting with new lines and improvisations and the 10’s are for playing a well rehearsed set live with attitude and still have plenty of elbow room to improvise and rock out.
The 11’s are for heavy rock out sets where you smash the guitar at the end :)
EVH, BB King, Billy Gibbon, YJM all use/ used lighter string and they sound awesome. Thin is fine.
Inca Roads Not according to Billy Gibbons
11 strings, sounds really good but I don't want to work so hard so I'll keep to 10-46 :-)
Doug J that's why I use 10-52!
@@ChadWorthman 10-52 sounds interesting I'll give them a try
When I was young, I use to boil my strings and reuse them.
Frederick Calabrese I remember those days. We had to walk uphill to school in snow both ways! ;)
Yes it does,and you can heard it when playing live,I was using 10-46 on my les paul,then I decided to try 11-49 and got more boomier tone was ok,but when I lastly decided to jump on 52 wow everyone on my band told me what I noticed not cutting thru the mix didn’t like them now the best gauge I play are 10-48 new Ernie Ball
I only use the Elixir Optiweb 9-46 on my electric guitars and love em
For me, I play differently depending on what string gauge I use, which would affect my tone. I'm a lot more aggressive with heavier gauge strings, and a lot lighter (to avoid going out of tune) on lighter gauge strings. I currently play 10-46 for the most part, but I really like the new 10-48 set that Ernie Ball has out now.
I like Ernie Ball 9's super slinky, with the yellow dunlop tortex picks. My usual guitar is some kind of Ibanez RG with a floyd rose, so I think that's a pretty normal string choice for those guitars. For metallish stuff. For me the yellow dunlop tortex picks were a surprising favorite (started out with the green tortex as a favorite). Yellow is 0.73 mm, thick enough to be stiff, but with some give, and does good pick slides. I think the main thing is to *deliberately* and *systematically* experiment with strings and picks and *find out* what *you* like rather than *decide* what you like. Ignore what other people tell you *they* like. What *they* like is irrelevant to what *you* like, and you're allowed to like things other people don't like.
Eddie had 9's tuned to Eb, the most monstrous tone anyone has ever heard on Van Halen 1 + 2 + Fair Warning, if it's good enough for him it's enough for me, it's like 95% the amp, 4% pickups, the rest of the guitar/strings imo
I always found lighter strings allow for more movement/fluctuation which usually adds more weight to the sound... Main issue with this is just sounding outta tune with multi-tracking. Probably better for layering subtleties.
I'm sorry but I have to disagree, it's 100% fingers, sorry but that's a fact jack I don't care what size strings you use, it's what works best for you and please, take it easy on your ligaments.
9 for 25.5 scale, 10 for 24.75 scale. Gets you close to similar string tension on both guitars, so that there's a certain consistency in your playing. I guess 9.5 for PRS?
I don't know if the tone matters to me half as much as the feel for bends. It's a matter of 20 years of habit.
I do the same trick, 10s on strat and teli, 11s on les paul.
Great demo... The results are very clear. Lighter gauge = Thinner Tone, Heavier Guage = Fatter Tone. If you're in a band with keyboards and another guitar - thinner may be best to cut through the mix. I would say to anyone not sure about which way to choose... go with 10's - they are the best in all feel and tone. If you're a beginner go with 8s or 9s, for a year or two, then bump up to 10's. Cheers
For most Fender guitars I put 10's or 11's on them. It just depends on the guitar, pickups...etc... I like a variety.
For the shorter scale guitars I tend to go 11's or 12's to maintain a continuity of feel and tension, depending on the guitar.
It affects tone a little bit but when you listen to a guitar being played, it's all about the hands.
Billy Gibbons uses 7-8 gauge strings and many many guitars- yet he always sounds the same.
Absolutely, some people's hands have a much lighter touch, which is why they can get such great tones with super light strings, whereas people like me naturally hammer the crap out of them, so I work best with heavier strings.
I saw an interview with BFG's tech . He said Billy uses 7's for standard tuning and 8's for alternate tunings .
Definitely a personal preference on feel. I doubt if anyone blind folded could tell any difference in the tone. 9’s for me.
Playing EB 8s here on a 95 Gibson Nighthawk. Into original 71 SolaSound ToneBender then MK1 ProJunior with Jenson Alnico driver. NO LACK OF TONE! Easy bends, lightens touch when chording, reduces fatigue - What's not to like?
Diminishing returns. Tony Iommi and Billy Gibsons played 8's and their tone was pretty good. To go from 95% to 98% great tone then you could go from 8/9's to 11/12's but probably not worth it for most people. Once you kick in the overdrive then it probably doesn't matter anymore.
Plus looser strings can have a good tone. Hendrix tuned to Eb on his strat which reduced the tension - similar to what a thinner gauge string would do.
I grew up in an age where everything began at 11; when buying strings I'd just ask for a "B" string, or perhaps a "high e" (yes, we actually bought and replaced strings just as we broke them, 1 at a time.) I prefer 10-52's (EB's Skinny Top-Fat Bottom) myself. 8's are way too sloppy under my fingers, 9's are better but still sound thin, 11's are ok if I'm playing slide and fretting. 10's have just always felt right to me. At B.B. Kings urging Billy Gibbons made the switch to 8's and now has custom strings even thinner, many would say his sound improved, others not so much. I believe that gauge can have an overall effect upon your tone, but I also believe as did the Blues legend that other factors play a much larger role in your final sound.
I use 10-52. That way I can play hard and dig in on the lower strings, and bend on the higher strings. Other than that I do believe that different gauges sounds different, but also that if you try much lighter og heavier strings than you are used to you attack the strings differently with your fingers/pick. That does much more for the difference in tone than the strings them self. Imho.
Vidar Frostad ditto! A guitar doesn't feel like mine until I put the NYXL 10-52s on it.
52-10’s across the board on all of mine. Gibson and Fender neck scales.
Liked the chunk of the 11's but will stick with my 8's.
I've found 8s don't work with most locking tuners - the E tends to slip. Even 9s can be hit or miss. For Fender scale length guitars, I go 9.5-44 for E, 10-46 for Eb, 10.5-49 for D, 11-56 for drop B. On a Les Paul, I'm going a little heavier - 10-52 for E, 11-56 for D, 12-60 for C. Brand and construction matters a bit too - I've found conventional nickel strings react badly with my sweat so don't last very long, so I've used D'Addario NYXLs since soon after they came out. Twice the price, three times the life for me.
Far more important than the affect on tone (minimal) is the affect on how you play. When I have heavier strings on, I'm going to play different lines than I will with light strings. It changes your head more than anything.
Its like the warms up as you get thicker for sure
Yep he’s right it is “affect” lol. So tell us the truth, did you really do the 11s last and leave them on or did you do the 11s before the 10s and leave 10s on?
Good question! Really did 11s last
My Son uses 12s on his electric guitars, specifically his re-issue Jazzmaster. Decades ago he had asked me how SRV got his "Tone". I explained that most of it was from his hands and then listed his equipment and of course noted the string gauge he used (to the best of my knowledge .013 - .015 - .019p - .028 - .038 - .058). Since that discussion almost 10 years ago he has stuck with this combination.
Point being, be very careful what you tell a young and impressionable youth as his preference to thicker strings is almost "Imprinted" in him now all these years later.
I think I like the heavier strings' sound better, but I would probably also have some finger aches playing them. BTW the neck pickup on your guitar through the overdrive sounds awesome.
I prefer 9s. Add an EQ pedal and no problem with the 'wiry' sound. Apparently Gary Moore played 9s!
Colin Morgan No he used Dean Markleys 10-52 light top heavy bottom.
I strongly advocate the position that most string gauge discussions are mainly machismo and posing, as it seems to be considered "manly" to play thicker strings. There are some differences in these clips, but the feel is where it happens. The strings itself, max 5%. I'll stand by that.
some of the difference we hear is due to the difference between coated strings , the Elixers , and the brighter , uncoated strings , the Slinkys .
To me , most coated strings sound slightly muted in the upper mids and higher frequencies .
9-46 hybrid slinkies ftw
I basically have to play either 11-50 or 12-52. Gauges 10 and lighter break on my first step and half or double whole bends. Forty-five years on 11-50 and I'm not breaking strings. I bend allot with heavy vibrato.
Wampler builds "effects" which actually have an "affect" on your tone, so in effect this video had a very effective affect. ;)
Wampler effects effect a change in the guitar signal and affect the listeners' experience.
I personally like 10's - 11's, especially on my Tele's. On my humbuckers, more 9's. Love the sound of those Elixer's!
I have stuck with tens on my Les Paul for over a year now. The tone is definitely nice, but there are downsides. First is having to put the guitar down sooner due to my finger tips getting munted. Second is some of the licks I used to play are too hard on 10s. I can't quite do every lick I try for. I am thinking of going back to nines. Playability is more important to me than tone. Angus had a pretty good tone using 9s too, so why make things hard for myself just because the internet says light strings are meh etc. Maybe they worry the internet will think they have small hands.
For rhythm the thick is better. It clears out the mush and evens out the attack when/if played hard. For soloing I always go as thick as I can, but bending requires somewhat thin strings compared to lower end. I would like to use wound-G, but that's quite impossible if you want to bend it more than half step. However chords and rhythm really like the wounded G.
Back in the day when I played metal and didn't have to bend while soloing, I made a "balanced" custom set for myself. 11-70 with G wounded (Eb tuned guitar). It had REALLY good string separation and thunderous but clead low end, but you couldn't really bend anything without crowbar and soft playing was off as well.
To me thicker gauge sounds better. I feel like they take away some of the high end a bit, and under the fingers they feel better.
They do tapper out on the high end faster. I prefer light for this reason.
Preference is always the deciding factor
Sounded like the tone got a little beefier and rounder the heavier you went up in string gauge. I use Ernie ball paradigm 9 to 42 (pink)on my longer scale guitars and 10 to 46 (green) on my shorter scale. Great comparison video .
the 11 is it for me but i am rhythm all the way i guess shredders solo guitarist may need 8 or 9 but it definitely affects the tone... i used 10's for years and years then i tried 11 and it was much thicker noise two me...cool comparison mr wampler aka scott..
Wow, the intro was super loud compared to the voice after intro!
I love how the 8s sounded on the guitar. Very chimey. I play 9s as I am a newish player and it's easy to bend, etc., but I might drop to 8's for easier expression, and to see if I like the sound more in person.
I speak for all of us with rusty ole strings: it's not that we can't afford new strings, we're just too lazy to change 'em cause it's hard work.
Also James Jamerson never changed strings on his bass unless they snapped. Don't dare argue with James Jamerson. BTW people think James Jamerson played flatwounds - that is not true, they just turned to flatwounds due to his persistent no-stringchange policy.
i am a very heavy handed player. i find that 11s 0r 12s is the only thing that feels good on my guitars. i would probably break 9s or 8s. 10 i guess are what most people like. but i was never trained to play i do it mostly by feel and ear
I found that cranking the gain up way too high trained my ham-fists better than anything. I couldn't even get 12s into the nut of my current guitar, just as well, I heard they quit making Black Diamonds and I would have to create my own string sets anyway.
OT question (for Brian or whoever has the exact information): can I have the specs of that Telly neck? it looks adorably "batty", and I'm starting to have wet dreams about it.
(yeah, yeah, I kmow, I hear that)
My choices = Electric is 10/52 drop - Acoustic is a work in progress. Great 3 yr old video plays the difference of tones! My experience it really just takes time in using different strings/gauges/tones/guitars to ultimately craft your gift! Play what gauge/guitar/sound makes you jump for Jesus when you play it out loud in a room all by yourself! Then keeping reaching!
Not enough of a difference to justify the stress of playing heavy strings. In fact, some of the playing sounded better on lower gauges. Less clipping. I’ll stick with 9s.
EthnHayabusa I'm havin trouble I need the tracks side by side in headphones
Smartest post i've heard yet. Not enough difference in tone to subject your fingers to the damage it can cause, but hey, they're your fingers. Don't say I didn't warn you, and no I'm not a doctor but I can show you what stressed out fingers look like and it's definitely not worth it.
I'm all about the 9s. I have a light touch and rarely dig in.
There is just so much beef with 11's so they do sound better then the rest, no doubt about it. However, if playability is an issue there are those 10-52's which is a great solution.
I went with 12-54 for a long time, not for tone but just to keep the chords in pitch despite my crude technique. My action was set up by Ralph Novak so I didn't ever notice it being hard to play. I remember Chris Izaak having similar gauge but seriously high action and it was all about his tone. I couldn't play those things.
I put GHS Boomer 10s on and it definitely changed the tone. Went immediately back to D'Darrio XL 9s. They sound brighter. But that could be the brand rather than gauge.
Depends on your style, tuning and sound you want. Some things are just physics like if you want to go way down in tune you needs some heavier strings or the thinner ones will just flop around. But to say you get better tone with heavier strings is not correct. EVH used pretty light strings and if you use a Floyd Rose lighter strings work better to give the tremlo less tension, etc. On my Floyd I use 38 bottom and 9 top.
To me string gauge, pickup height, and pickup output/voicing all work together as a system. If you increase the gauge of strings, you’re output increases and the different part of the eq curve of the pickup. I bet increasing pickup height with lighter gauge strings will get similar tones to thicker gauge strings
To me it's the tesion that really sets them apart, here the lighter strings sound warm and twangy, heavy ones are bright and loud
Every guitar has a preference for action, relief, string gauge and - depending on the neck - heavier or lighter tuning keys. Finding the sweet spot for every instrument is half the fun. Of course subsequent owners think that such instruments have some kind of 'hoodoo' and are 'special' by accident and therefore the brand is legendary in their eyes etc. Sometimes they are accidentally good from the factory even. Sometimes. I find generally that I get the most clarity and harmonics from lighter strings (9-46) on most guitars, Gibson and Fender. For rock and blues my strats always prefer 10's and loads of relief and a medium high action. For ease of playing 2+ hr sets, I prefer less relief and a lower action... and SOD THE TONE. :)
PS: You absolutely should not stretch out modern strings. That's 'old school'. Modern wound strings with fancy cores and metallurgy are more prone to being ruined by stretching than not.
With your gear and your playing, I like 10s more than the others
Speaking of strings, my teacher told me his trick when changing strings. Tune up a half step on all strings, play for a few minutes to make sure everything is seated and stretched, then tune normally. That extra tension really helps get things normalized. Also, I found a tool called a String Stretcha (actual name) It is a plastic stick about 8 inches long with a hook and heel on one end. You hook the string and rock it back and forth and run it up and down the length of the string from bridge to nut. Tune up to pitch, use the Stretcha, and then check it. You will see all the strings are damn near a whole step lower in pitch. And after that, you will have NO tuning issues. Rock solid. Here's the link
www.amazon.com/Stretcha-Str-7953/dp/B0085545YO
Agree about the Stretcha ... I gambled $12 thinking it might be a joke but it definitely helps new strings get quickly to the point where they are not going out of tune constantly.
Fascinating! Thanks for that... 9s are generally my go to apart from a Tele which has 10s... Not sure if it was unfamiliarity but you appeared to play with a little more concentration on the 8s. The 9s sounded a little dull. The 10s definitely sounded more present. The 11s sounded more substantial especially with the gain... :)
Hmmm.... Two take aways from this video. 1. Maybe i should try a few different gauges of strings on my tele. 2. I need to play my tele more. Cool video, thanks!
Ok you convinced me to get at Pantheon.
You won't regret it. It's a great versatile pedal.
Your tone when clean or with drive is spectacular. If it matters, .10s for me for electric.
Thank you!
Sounds like it gets fuller the heavier the strings get and then the Pantheon compresses it the more sound there is.
easier to hear if they are back to back a/b rather than with breaks between
I do not have any Wampler stuff. I'm not even a guitar player. So why am I watching all your videos?
By accident
Maybe you are a frustrated guitar player. Do yourself a favour and start playing.
@@slowpoke7888Nice try, but I'm a bass player, you dummy:)
@@volodyanikolaev Aren't all bass players frustrated guitar players? Lol.
@@slowpoke7888 Only bass players know how guitarists should play
Nice video. Question tho.... I'm playing a Jazzmaster into a Fender Hot Rod Deluxe and I've been using thinker strings with lower tunings. I've noticed that when I'm using most types of dirt pedals the tone gets very muddy. I'm wondering whether that has more to do with the pickups on the guitar or if it is has more to do with the tuning and string gauge? The pedals I've tried out are the OCD and RAT.
I believe that you're always better off playing the heaviest gauge that you're comfortable with. As a general recommendation, I prefer "balanced tension" strings. My ears heard that the 009's sounded better for your playing on your set up... 008's were too thin and the 010's were too dull (or was it dark?). I've always said YOU HAVE THE BEST EAR out of all the pedal manufacturers so I was wondering which gauge sounded best to you?
Billy Gibbons plays on 7s and has amazing tone... there ya go.
Monster RAM and Yngwie uses 8-46 or something. And he is one half-step down
gHS make a 10.5 set under the Dave Gilmour series, D’Addario do a 10.5 I believe a brand that That Pedal Show promote does a set but I can’t find them here in Australia or on eBay and I think NYXL but I’m not sure. Hope that helps.
I generally prefer heavier guage strings, as more of a feel thing as opposed to a tone thing. I've got a friend who has a sort of inverted hybrid set where it's heavier on the top and slinkier on the bottom.
I have always been with you on the 10-46's I've been using them for probably more than 20 years for sure once in a while making exceptions and doing 10-49 but mostly using 10s on my high end I got a tele I like to play slide with that I keep set up with 11s either than that I'm all about the 10s
Listening with good headphones, there is a slight increase in volume and decrease in high end as the gauge increases. I have experienced the same with 9, 10 and 11*s on my guitars. It is not a huge difference and nothing that would make my choice, as this can be mostly compensated by EQ while the playability cannot.
It could be a different matter on an acoustic guitar.
Agreed. Can also hear that difference on lo-fi. I had the same experience on acoustic - thought I needed the thicker strings for volume... lighter strings easier to bend, cut through the mix well, even around the campfire. I switched from Martin Marquis Mediums to DiAddario MLs - enjoyed the guitar more..
I use 9s even though I used to use 11s. Something about them through my super reverb just sounds great.
Of course it affects the tone, and as importantly, it affects the string dynamics. There can't even be a debate about the physics of it. However, it all comes down to the sound you are trying to produce, and whether you can use the tool that you have to make it. Most people are not strong enough to produce quick dynamic bends on heavier strings. Most people don't have enough consistency in their pick pressure, bending tension, or fretting tension to play cleanly and consistently on ultra light strings. As a result, most people prefer the medium gauge string sets. The key is know the sound you are after and experiment with string gauges to see which set best helps you achieve that tone, rather than letting your physical reaction to the strings dictate the string set and therefore what tones you can achieve.
I liked the boat better than the train.
To me tone isn’t affected as much as volume, more metal vibrating for the PU to work with. Personally I like 10s on my LP and I can go either way on my T60, 9s or 10s. Thanks for the vid.
I liked the sound of the 10s but also thought your playing was best displayed with the 10s, so I will stick to what I'm most comfortable with (.0095s) so as not to impede my limited playing skills. Surprisingly, I did think the Ernie Balls sounded noticeably better than the Elixirs (to my ear).
I liked the 9s best, which is what I mostly use - on the others I was conscious of "hearing" the physics of the string rather than the music. Btw, for me the question is not can things be made to sound the same, eg with tone adjustments, but what options do we gain from the differences? I'm always sceptical about those blind tests that show us how everything sounds the same playing some anodyne test piece. It's what lies outside the overlapping part of the Venn diagram that matters - where can this thing (wood, pickup, string) take me?
I noticed some change in tone but more change in volume
Great video, I personally find 9 - 46 suits Strats for me.