12 gauge strings

swartzfeger

Member
Gang,

I'm almost exclusively a bassist... although I can play a little guitar (fingerpicked), I don't know a lot about the general accessories.

So... since my XL+ is arriving tomorrow, I decided to buy a new set is strings for my ES-339 Pro.

I figured I'd buy a set of 12 gauge with a wound 3rd for a bit warmer/fuller tone.

Now I'm wondering if the strings might be too heavy for the nut and/or bridge. Will I have to get this adjusted at my shop? Guess I could put them on and see what happens, and just go with 10s or 11s if it's a no-go.
 
If your guitar is mechanically sound, it should handle 12s just fine.

Whenever you change string gauge on a guitar, there are a few things to keep in mind:

If you don't adjust the truss rod, you could wind up with too much relief (if you've switched to thicker strings) or too little relief (if you've gone the other way).

Your intonation will be off until you set your intonation.

If your nut slots are too narrow for the new strings, you'll have to get them filed.


If you're not comfortable doing those things yourself, it's time for a trip to the shop.
 
Thanks Rex. Yep, the nut and bridge seemed to handle the heavier gauge just fine, but the low E seemed 'off' somehow. When I fretted octave at the twelfth fret, it was clear the intonation was off. So a trip to the shop's in order. :)
 
I figured I'd buy a set of 12 gauge with a wound 3rd for a bit warmer/fuller tone.

I think this is a huge myth in guitars...

I've been using 7's and 8's for years exclusively. 12's just makes it harder not sound better.

I've also noticed having a wound 3rd string takes the guitar a slight bit away from the "normal" sounding guitars
like any song/recording- something is just off a little when playing like lets say a Strat type song with a wound 3rd vs unwound- i think the pickup hight and whatever of a strat- is a little unique on the 3rd string and part of the characteristics to me on like a Beatles song, or other artists is that unwound third tone.

And I have had guitars with 12's, 13's- just keep going back to the 8's.
 
I played 9's for a long time. Switched over to 10's about twenty years ago. Then, a couple of years ago, I switched everything back to hybrid 9's.

What converted me? The realization that whatever I played on 10's I could play better on 9's. And finally admitting to myself that the tonal difference that string gauge makes is subtle, and is completely overwhelmed by my choices of gain and EQ, which make a much bigger difference. I use hybrid gauges to make the lower strings feel not so loose.

I tried 8's briefly, but I found them too floppy and too easy to break.
 
I agree that feel should be the primary factor when choosing string gauge. But tension is only part of the feel. There's also scale and string composition.

Lighter gauges are easier to play but harder to control. Where you want to land in that range is a personal decision.
 
I think this is a huge myth in guitars...

I've been using 7's and 8's for years exclusively. 12's just makes it harder not sound better.

Totally agree. I posted this on Facebook a year ago (FW 17!) and asked people to guess what gauges I was using. Most people said '11s' or '12s'..

But I'm using 8-46 in Eb :)



It does take a while to adjust to different tensions for sure and different gauges suit different kinds of playing and even different guitars. But the SRV fanatics who say 'big strings = big tone' are just reciting a cliche that's not necessarily true at all.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Rex
I think once a guitar is PLUGGED IN- the weakness of 8's is gone

I'd say 80% of my guitar playing is unplugged. An ELECTRIC guitar unplugged. (Writing, practicing, while watching tv)

So I was concerned that the 8's or even 7's were a little too "pingy" but plugged in it's always gone.
 
With all respect to you gents I couldn't disagree more about the 'myth'. At least for myself. Using multiple guitars with different gauges for different purposes I think it depends mostly on your style and purpose. I used LTHB on a SRV style Strat and the thickness of tone on the 4/5/6 was over the top. Especially on clear tones. After fighting the increased difficulty in playing such heavy gauges for a couple of years I went back to 9/42. I did play like a buzz saw, after the heavier string workouts, but the 9/42 sound was noticeably thinned. Step up to 10/46 to compromise. Still weak.

I do use 9 to 42 on most of my electrics. 10 to 46 on my Godin. Not a great deal of difference but to me even one step up was noticeable. Even the intonation subtleties of fret pressure with heavy vs. light.

I thought maybe it was isolated to my 6 string electrics but honestly I got the same results on a 10 string steel guitar which doesn't fret, my acoustics and Dobro as well. My conclusion was thinner strings result in thinner tone and thicker strings result in a thicker tone. The thinner tone can be masked on overdriven type sounds to the point of being irrelevant (ZZ Top), with thicker strings harder to fret yet, ironically, easier to strum. Also that I play 'some' stuff better on lighter and some stuff better on heavier.

YMMV and to each his own. No wish to spar. Just saying I may not be able to tell what gauge you are playing by your tone but I can definitely tell what gauge I am playing by my tone.
 
You gotta go with what works for you.

I get what you're saying. One of the things I meant by "harder to control" was that it's easier to srum or squish a thin string out of tune. Intonation is part of that.
 
  • Like
Reactions: mwd
I think this is a huge myth in guitars...

I've been using 7's and 8's for years exclusively. 12's just makes it harder not sound better.

I've also noticed having a wound 3rd string takes the guitar a slight bit away from the "normal" sounding guitars
like any song/recording- something is just off a little when playing like lets say a Strat type song with a wound 3rd vs unwound- i think the pickup hight and whatever of a strat- is a little unique on the 3rd string and part of the characteristics to me on like a Beatles song, or other artists is that unwound third tone.

And I have had guitars with 12's, 13's- just keep going back to the 8's.

Where do you get 7s?
 
First, Dunlop makes Billy Gibbons strings- which are 7's and 8's
My problem with those strings is- they're not "normal"
so where my normal 8 set is
8/11/14/22/30/38
the Rev Willy BG strings are:
7/9/11/20w/30/38
8/10/12/20w/30/40

I find the 11's on the 3rd strings- impossible to play and all over the place...

For a time I'd use an 8 gauge set and then special order single 7's on the top- D'Addario makes them.
On stage breaking them wasn't the problem as much as not being able to feel the string under my finger-

Something I was really impressed by were the D'Addario BALANCE TENSION 9's- which is like the feel of 8's with the less pingy feel of 9's.

But anyway- I'm lazy- and my guitars are easy easy super easy to play- super low action, 8-38 strings... well set up/maintained...thin necks- sanded down a little more...
And a lot of times if I'm selling an old guitar (and I've cut my collection down from 100) people will always be impressed with how the guitar plays/sounds/feels and its really just the 8's- and friends and people always say the same thing "wow what are these 9's?!?" - no 8's.

but anyway- I like my sound/tone and with how picky I am- if I felt 12's- 13's were better I'd use 'em.

(P.S. I stopped using 10's on my acoustics for Elixer 12's or 13's whatever my guitar came with stock- the guitar has a top notch set up/fret dress so i really don't feel it difficult to play because it's set up so well)
 
Can you tell the difference because of the transient sound of the pick attack?

I don’t know. I have no doubt that much of the difference in sound is more related to how the guitar is played differently with different gauge strings. At the same time that is part of our sound equation. I would also say that the differences were far more noticeable with the acoustics vs electrics.

I experimented for a year with different acoustic strings since the instrument was being amplified. I have a handmade Marler that has unbelievable projection and as you cuddle the thing you can feel it in your chest. It is set up so well it plays like an electric so it gave me a lot of margin for strings I could use and still be playable.

I found thinner strings did not project as well and the resonance that previously was in my chest was weaker. I went pretty heavy to establish my range of tolerance. Heavy strings strummed well and picking was more accurate from an attack standpoint but fretting got increasingly difficult for my fumble fingers. Projection and resonance were over the top. I ultimately settled for John Pearce 600L which is a 12 to 53. Good sound, decent playability and not such a radical difference between fretting my electrics and acoustics. I also had to strike a balance between mic’d vs electric sound as it is my go to recording guitar.
 
I get each of my guitars setup for the specific string gauge/type I'm using.. sometimes this requires a little work on the nut to accommodate heavier gauge strings. Going up to 12's would definitely require a tweak/setup for me on just about any guitar. I like 11's on Gibson electrics typically, although I'm using 10's on my main Les Paul these days (easier on my tennis elbow issues).
 
First, Dunlop makes Billy Gibbons strings- which are 7's and 8's
My problem with those strings is- they're not "normal"
so where my normal 8 set is
8/11/14/22/30/38
the Rev Willy BG strings are:
7/9/11/20w/30/38
8/10/12/20w/30/40

I find the 11's on the 3rd strings- impossible to play and all over the place...

For a time I'd use an 8 gauge set and then special order single 7's on the top- D'Addario makes them.
On stage breaking them wasn't the problem as much as not being able to feel the string under my finger-

Something I was really impressed by were the D'Addario BALANCE TENSION 9's- which is like the feel of 8's with the less pingy feel of 9's.

But anyway- I'm lazy- and my guitars are easy easy super easy to play- super low action, 8-38 strings... well set up/maintained...thin necks- sanded down a little more...
And a lot of times if I'm selling an old guitar (and I've cut my collection down from 100) people will always be impressed with how the guitar plays/sounds/feels and its really just the 8's- and friends and people always say the same thing "wow what are these 9's?!?" - no 8's.

but anyway- I like my sound/tone and with how picky I am- if I felt 12's- 13's were better I'd use 'em.

(P.S. I stopped using 10's on my acoustics for Elixer 12's or 13's whatever my guitar came with stock- the guitar has a top notch set up/fret dress so i really don't feel it difficult to play because it's set up so well)

Cool... Thanks!
 
Back
Top Bottom