2
Apr
2010
Refresh Things with New Guitar Strings
The other day, I finally got around to replacing the strings on my acoustic guitar, something that had been overdue for a while.
As I finished fitting the last new string, and then tuned them up properly, my guitar seemed to have a refreshed sound, from these zingy new strings. It struck me that I should probably change the strings a bit more often, just to get that feeling of refreshing the sound once in a while.
More than just the sound though, it seemed to refresh my playing a bit also, as I tried out playing lots of different tunes on the new strings. So fitting new strings every so often could be good from that point of view, almost helping to renew your enthusiasm for playing the guitar.
The other thing with changing strings is that it’s good sometimes to experiment with different thicknesses. For example, the previous set of strings on my acoustic was a ‘light’ gauge, with the top E string being 0.012in (0.3mm). These had seemed fine, but this time I went for some ‘custom light’ strings, with a slightly lighter gauge, the top E is now 0.011in (0.28mm).
This small change in string thickness has quite a big effect on how the guitar feels when you play it, and the overall sound. I find that the lighter strings make it a bit easier to fret certain chords, and make some fingerstyle passages more manageable.
There’s also much less wear on your fingers with lighter strings, so especially if you’re just starting out with a steel string acoustic, I would recommend going for lighter strings, until your fingers toughen up enough for heavier strings.
The downside of lighter strings though is that they don’t quite have the same volume as heavier ones, which was something I noticed soon after fitting them. So it’s pros & cons as usual.
The main thing is to experiment until you find the ones that suit your playing style the best.
I also came across this video, which shows how to change guitar strings, which you might find useful. I definitely recommend using one of those string winder tools, like the one shown in the video.
Chris
It’s amazing how much better a guitar sounds with new strings. Thanks for the helpful video.
Great post. I wrote a similar one a few years ago about how often you should change your guitar strings. Maybe it would be helpful to your readers too.
I personally like the sound of an older set of strings on an acoustic guitar. It gives it a sort of folk-like sound. I guess thats all style preference though.
Another note to readers: be careful about changing the gauge of strings on your guitar by too much. Your guitar was probably setup to accept a specific gauge and if you put on a lighter or heavier set it can cause the guitar neck to bow which can mess with your action, intonation, and sometimes cause fret buzz. However, if you do put on some lighter strings and you like them you can take your guitar into a shop to have it re-setup, or you can attempt to do it yourself by adjusting the truss rod.
Hi Matt, thanks for your comments. That’s definitely a good tip in your post, for prolonging the life of your strings by wiping down with a dry cloth after playing, especially in a hot environment. I’ve seen that if I don’t do that, as you say, lots of dirt just accumulates on the strings pretty quickly.
Good note of caution about changing the string gauge too much, will have to look into that on my acoustic.
Yeah, I agree that before you commit to stripping your strings you should give them a good cleaning. Alongside struggling with a rag, there’s a couple dedicated gizmos out there. I personally like the String Cleaner, which is a couple cleaning pads that sandwich tight around your strings. It takes like 45 seconds to strip surprising amounts of grime off your strings–and it’s amazing what a difference in sound and feel clean strings can provide.