Strings 101
Acoustic/Acoustic-Electric Guitar
See also the Electric-Acoustic section.
Phosphor Bronze
PB strings produce a bright, but slightly warmer and darker sound than bronze/brass strings. The small amount of phosphorous in the alloy helps them retain their new sound longer than bronze/brass. Most American made acoustic guitars are factory strung with PB strings. Unless you change strings a lot, PBs are definitely for you.
Bronze, also known as Brass, or 80/20
Bronze/brass is actually a mixture of copper and tin. An 80/20 bronze/brass string is made of an alloy comprised of 80% copper and 20% tin (or zinc). Bronze/brass strings produce a very brilliant, crisp sound when new but begin to lose their new sound after only a few hours of playing. Performers who change strings a lot typically love them. 85/15s are similar to 80/20s, but are a little less bright.
Electric Guitar
NB. Unless the packet says Pure Nickel, nickel means Nickel Plated Steel (NPS)!
Note: Tuning Problems with Tremolo bridges:
If you are having tuning problems or are constantly breaking strings and you have a guitar equipped with a tremolo bridge, then there are several possible points of friction. Once youve made sure that your point of friction is not the string trees, nut, or saddles, its time to look at your strings. For starters, higher gauge means more tension, which means increased stability. Fender recommends 10-46s for their tremolo equipped guitars, even though many are equipped as standard with 9-42s. The reason they do this is that many players demand the increased bendability of the lighter 9-42s. Fender also makes their Bullets (bullet end instead of ball end) range of strings specifically for adding stability to tuning with tremolo bridges.
Nickel Plated Steel (NPS)
Nickel-plated steel is the alloy most widely used in electric guitar string making today. Commonly known as NPS, it is a steel winding with a nickel plating applied. The nickel plating enhances the feel and reduces finger noise and fret wear. They are hotter and provide greater sustain and a brighter sound than pure nickel. NPS is also used widely in electric bass guitar string manufacturing.
Pure Nickel
Most strings of the 50's were wound with an alloy called Pure Nickel. It wasn't really "pure" but that's what its called. Pure Nickel strings have a soft feel and produce that warm, vintage tone. Pure Nickel sets will be labelled as "Pure Nickel"! These are the easiest on the frets, but it should be noted that all plain strings are in fact steel.
Stainless Steel
Stainless steel strings are hotter, brighter, and provide more sustain than either NPS or pure nickel. They are more resistant to oils, acids, and sweat, and are hands down the longest lasting strings. Stainless is a harder material so it feels a little different and can cause more fret wear. Most flat wound sets and pedal steel guitar sets are made of stainless.
Chrome
Chrome is much flatter sounding than nickel, NPS, or stainless, and is used for flat wound strings.
Electric-Acoustic Guitar
If youre an electric player, who also plays acoustic, or who practices on an acoustic, then you not only have to contend with the totally different feel to the body, neck and overall balance of the acoustic guitar, but the totally different feel to the strings. Acoustic strings are heavier (they need to be for unplugged volume), they have a wound 3rd (G) string (which only jazz electric strings have), and the wound strings are less smooth due to the differences in winding materials that are conducive to acoustic tone. NB. Plain strings of the same gauge are the same on both electric and acoustic sets.
If you would like to use the same gauge strings on both your electric and acoustic-electric guitars then you will have to buy your strings individually to make up your own sets. However, there are two manufacturers who offer strings especially for acoustic-electric guitars, and that can be had in sets where the gauges match electric sets (DR Zebra strings (alternating wraps of nickel plated steel (NPS) and phosphor bronze round wound on round core and compressed): www.drstrings.com/zebra.htm ) or pretty damn close (.010 .012 .017p .027w .036w .047w) (Gibson Chet Atkins signature strings (monel round wound on hex core): www.gibson.com/products/s...tkins.html ). Unplugged these strings would be too dull sounding for most acoustic players tastes, but plugged in these strings come alive.
Other Processes
Here are some other processes used in string manufacturing. Some are widely spread, some aren't. At any rate, each one of these processes claims to be beneficial to the guitar string in some way.
Cryogenic Freezing
Cryogenic freezing is a process whereby the guitar string is treated to temperatures below -300 degrees Fahrenheit. The subzero temperatures produce changes in the molecular alignment of the metals of the strings. This is thought to extend string life and enhance the tonal brilliance. It has been found to increase the life of steel tools by two to five times. In 1985, the cryogenic process was applied to a set of piano strings. Almost 3 years later, the piano remained accurately in tune.
Although many manufacturers produce a cryogenically frozen set, the most well known is the Dean Markley Blue Steels (stainless steel round wound on hex core). For cryogenically frozen NPS, rather than stainless steel, consider ghs Sub-Zero Boomers (NPS round wound on hex core).
NB. Plain strings are also cryogenic processed.
PolyWeb Coating
PolyWeb is the name Elixir strings use for their special coating. This high-tech procedure involves coating the strings with a light, durable polymer web. The intent is to reduce string contamination from sweat, acids, oils, and other grime. Of course, the result of cleaner strings is a longer life. The PolyWeb coating gives the strings a slick, almost wet feel. This process drives up the cost of a set a great deal.
Contact Cores
ghs uses this process in which the winding stops short of the ball end of the string, before it passes over the bridge saddle. The core wire is thus allowed to contact the bridge saddle directly. This produces an extremely bright wound string while the plain strings are unaffected.
NB. Plain strings of the same gauge are the same on both electric and acoustic sets. And, round wound on hex core is the standard.
Changing string gauges (or changing brands) may require truss rod adjustment
- Different string gauges exert different tensions on the guitar neck (see www.ghsstrings.com/guitar_tension.html )
- Different brands of the same gauge may exert different tensions on the guitar neck, some very slightly, some significantly, and its practically impossible to tell which, so please keep this in mind.
NB. If you dont know how to adjust the truss rod, or youre not experienced, leave well alone, and seek the services of an experienced professional guitar technician.
How often to change your strings
This depends on many factors, including how often you play, your body chemistry, what the strings are made of, the weather, how the guitar is stored, etc. If your strings sound dull and lifeless change them. If theyre rusting change them. If theyre dirty/gunky change them. If theyre indented where they touch the frets change them. And, if you dont know how to change your strings there are several Websites that show you how.
Tip: Wipe your strings with a cotton cloth after playing. This will extend the life of your strings. Using the likes of ghs Fast Fret or Tone Finger-Ease will extend the life of your strings, along with other benefits.
