Guitars and String Gauge Discussion

Sixstring said:
Ok I'll bite, How are the strings all "balanced" in tension?
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I would assume they're manufactured in such a way that they require a consistent amount of tension to come to pitch.

Doesn't seem that hard to understand...

I've heard of other balanced tension sets before but never tried them.
 
Yeah, interesting blog. Given the guitar players mentioned all used strats/single coils, I wonder if it makes a difference with humbuckers?
Also kinda wonder how the standard sets of gauges came about t in th first place?
 
Sixstring said:
Ok I'll bite, How are the strings all "balanced" in tension?
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I know how it works with other companies. D'Addario, for instance:

Regular 10 Guage set is 10 - 13 - 17 - 26 - 36 - 46

Balance tension set is 10 - 13.5 - 17 - 25 - 34 - 46

The idea is that when tuned to pitch, the balance tension strings will all feel like they have the same tension to them.

I'm personally using Ernie Ball 10's, and just switched to the Pure Nickel. The tone is soft and more consistent through the life of the string. I've never tried anything that was balanced tension, but I would be curious if I felt a noticeable difference.
 
Fro said:
I know how it works with other companies. D'Addario, for instance:

Regular 10 Guage set is 10 - 13 - 17 - 26 - 36 - 46

Balance tension set is 10 - 13.5 - 17 - 25 - 34 - 46

The idea is that when tuned to pitch, the balance tension strings will all feel like they have the same tension to them.

I'm personally using Ernie Ball 10's, and just switched to the Pure Nickel. The tone is soft and more consistent through the life of the string. I've never tried anything that was balanced tension, but I would be curious if I felt a noticeable difference.
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Ok I understand it now! makes sense I guess, I have been playing D'Adderio EXL110's for as long as I can remember, though I have tried other string brands, SIT, Dean Markley... I can't really think of playing anything else. Though I have been curious about using a wound B string.
 
Sixstring said:
Ok I understand it now! makes sense I guess, I have been playing D'Adderio EXL110's for as long as I can remember, though I have tried other string brands, SIT, Dean Markley... I can't really think of playing anything else. Though I have been curious about using a wound B string.
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Not sure how what he said was any different than what I said... But as long as you got it now ;)
 
unix-guy said:
Not sure how what he said was any different than what I said... But as long as you got it now ;)
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You posted that "they require a constant amount of tension to come to pitch" well if you think about that statement any guitar string requires that.

The way Fro posted it I could see that they are trying to match the tension of each string so the tension is the same across the fretboard.
 
Sixstring said:
You posted that "they require a constant amount of tension to come to pitch" well if you think about that statement any guitar string requires that.

The way Fro posted it I could see that they are trying to match the tension of each string so the tension is the same across the fretboard.
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Actually, I said "consistent" not "constant"... Meaning the tension is the same (consistent) for each string.

Anyway, no biggie - glad it makes sense now.
 
I'm a big fan of Rotosounds and I use them on everything.

They're ALMOST as bright as D'addario, but a bit smoother. They last a little bit longer than the D'addarios as well.

My only complaint is that their quality control is a bit iffy. Some new packets of Rotos sound amazing, some of them...not as amazing. Generally still sound better than D'addarios (even a "meh" packet), but sometimes it's awesome.
 
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The thing that I wanted to point out in this post is that some of the greats had the money and technical support to play with custom string gauges...something, that they believed were key to their sound. When they put together their personal preferences they were aware of the balance and blended them to suite what they heard...very interesting topic.
 
Been using Elixir Nanoweb 10-46 for a long time but recently switched to Ernie Ball 2251 Classic 10-46. The feel is different but like the Ernie Ball strings more.

Think I will order a couple sets of Stringjoys and give them a try.
 
I just put some Stringjoy Balanced 10s on my Kiesel Zeus. The low E is 48 which I’m really liking. The only other difference from a set of normal 10s is the B string at 135. Tuning stability has been outstanding.
 
I recently got a set of Rotosound 10 46’s with my Bare Knuckle pickups and they sound great.
 
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I use the Ernie Ball Hybrid Slinky Cobalts. Been using them since they came out. Just something about them I really like. They almost have this already broken in feel to them fresh out of the box. Most new strings feel very slippery at the upper frets on the high strings but the Cobalts feel broken in to me. They seem to last forever and “knock on wood” I never break a string. I used 10’s for years but I’m older now with hand and wrist issues so I’m using 9’s to make my life easier.
 
favance said:
The thing that I wanted to point out in this post is that some of the greats had the money and technical support to play with custom string gauges...something, that they believed were key to their sound. When they put together their personal preferences they were aware of the balance and blended them to suite what they heard...very interesting topic.
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Or just plain old placebo effect? Which I think is what fuels most personal preferences.
 
I just changed from Elixir Optiweb 9-46 to D'Adarrio NYXL 9-46.

Not much between them but the D'Adarrio sounded a bit brighter to my ears.
 
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