Rick Beato on string gauge

[Highcastle_of_Tone]

I like 9s on the frankenstrat, all others have 10s.

 

[Kamil Kisiel]

I posted earlier, then removed it, but I recommend the Hendrix's guage set : 10-38 with a thinner G string.
You get best of both worlds.

That's actually the reverse what I'd want. I find heavy top, skinny bottom to be better. The low strings maintain their pitch better for heavier chugging / riffing and you can still do big bends with the upper. Actually that makes me want to try a 9-46 set or something like that..

 

[twenty4_7spy]

I enjoy most of Rick's content, but this video seems incomplete to me. I think he should expand the string gauge tone discussion to include, at a minimum, clean vs dirty, pickup selection, and pick selection. He and Rhett have talked about some of this stuff in other vids, but never have put it all together.

I've been a 9-42 player my entire life, and have experimented with 10s a few times but always returned to 9s. The biggest change for me was moving to Gibson Vintage Reissue Pure Nickel sets. They last forever and lose that fresh string tone slowly. But I must not have corrosive sweat, which is a good thing.

 

[deathbyguitar]

Don't you get it? Having strong opinions means you're automatically correct.

 

[jefferski]

Having an iPhone and a Youtube account means you're automatically correct.

 

[iaresee]

I just flipped through the video and listened to the clips to hear what I could hear. I must have missed the part where he told everyone the One True Way to do it?

 

[chris]

Having an iPhone and a Youtube account means you're automatically correct.

I just flipped through the video and listened to the clips to hear what I could hear. I must have missed the part where he told everyone the One True Way to do it?

it's sort of the approach and attitude, especially in the thumbnail or text.

he could have said "Are you using the wrong string gauge?" but instead said factually "you're probably using the wrong string gauge." subtle difference, but it's click bait that makes everyone watch the video to prove to themselves that he is possibly wrong with such a bold statement. sure it says "probably" but come on.

take the "axe-fx is an iPad" video from a few weeks ago. i commented heavily and got responses, and it finally came down to him just trying to say "caveat emptor" buyer beware.

i said wow, if you just said that, you probably wouldn't get such a reaction from the "fanboys" like you are. no response.

it's youtube. it's clicks. you have to say things this way to get interaction. i hate it.

 

[Morphine]

I just flipped through the video and listened to the clips to hear what I could hear. I must have missed the part where he told everyone the One True Way to do it?

He didn't, but you know how it is.

 

[levipeto]

"axe-fx is an iPad"

A computer is a calculator.

 

[chris]

then you have this follow-up:

 

[Admin M@]

I posted earlier, then removed it, but I recommend the Hendrix's guage set : 10-38 with a thinner G string.
You get best of both worlds.

I played those for many years.

 

[iaresee]

Alright, I'm making the joke.

"Can't make butter with a toothpick, honey"

- Robin Williams

 

[iaresee]

it's sort of the approach and attitude, especially in the thumbnail or text.

he could have said "Are you using the wrong string gauge?" but instead said factually "you're probably using the wrong string gauge." subtle difference, but it's click bait that makes everyone watch the video to prove to themselves that he is possibly wrong with such a bold statement. sure it says "probably" but come on.

take the "axe-fx is an iPad" video from a few weeks ago. i commented heavily and got responses, and it finally came down to him just trying to say "caveat emptor" buyer beware.

i said wow, if you just said that, you probably wouldn't get such a reaction from the "fanboys" like you are. no response.

it's youtube. it's clicks. you have to say things this way to get interaction. i hate it.

I try not to get too emotionally invested in internet stuff. Keeps my reactions a little less extreme and is generally good for my overall mental state and happiness level.

 

[aziz]

10.5! 11 is too much and 10 not enough. 9s try run away from under my pick when I play.

 

[shemihazazel]

I try not to get too emotionally invested in internet stuff. Keeps my reactions a little less extreme and is generally good for my overall mental state and happiness level.

Words to live by. Social media is generally a toilet.

 

[Fro]

I used 11’s and Jazz III picks for a long time. Then I realized it was too hard to play and it wasn’t the tone I was after. I’ve been bouncing between 9’s and 10’s for the past 10 years. It depends on the guitar (Gibson or Fender) and if I’m tuning down a half step or not. I’m super stoked now that Ernie Ball makes a 9.5 set (Primo Slinky). I bought some but haven’t tried them yet.

FWIW – I switched picks when I switched strings. I didn’t like the thicker picks with the thinner strings. I really like the Dava picks. It feels looser when I strum but stiffer when I solo.

 

[skunc]

All this is subjective. A bunch of “experts” sitting in a room making generalized broad sweeping statements. I am not intending to sound dismissive or disagree with any of their information or points. RB is extremely competent and provides a great service to musicians hungry for knowledge.

Anyone that has been part of a R&D team knows that after all is said and done, one person (a complete layman, or worse-an industry end user) can lay to waste all of the planning and info you’ve gathered-sometimes accidentally. I’ve been in the room with audio engineers that were very proud of their “groundbreaking” innovation only to be sent back to zero by an unassuming artist or sales person.
Bottom Line- great sounding guitar will always be great sounding guitar. Even if it’s a Strat with 007s thru Fender Champ or an archtop with flats thru a Polytone and even if it’s thru an Axefx!! Great sound and great tone are always great sound and tone no matter how you get there.

 

[chris]

many people take any written word or any published video on the internet as fact. it's really a problem. i think some people still think that if it's "published" it was approved by some team who allows things to go out to the public - like TV, News, or books from the 90s or earlier.

but it's not. anyone can say anything and make it appear as fact. and these people just believe it right out of the gate. that's what youtube $$$ depends on, and of course no one is going to work hard to give people their own brain to think for themselves.

i feel we have another 5-10 years of this, as people are still just discovering YouTube today. but it will renaissance as anything does, once the mass of people realize that it's just opinion and none of this really affects their own lives.

 

[Fro]

many people take any written word or any published video on the internet as fact. it's really a problem.

I agree that this is a problem too.

But this is what I got out of this thread:

On YouTube, A few people who had differing opinions on string gauges and the effect on tone made a video recording several different string gauges.

One of the people in the first video made a second video and recorded 2 different string gauges on their own guitars.

A bunch of people on this forum talked about how interesting these videos were. Some people came to the same conclusions. Some thought the comparisons could have been done differently. Most people stated what string gauges they currently use and why. 2 people said they were going to try 9’s again, but one was mostly because of aging joints.

And that was it, really.

I thought this was a great example of what I like about this forum. We’re just discussing what we do and why we do it. That’s what guitar players like to do, talk about gear.

 

[Morphine]

once the mass of people realize that it's just opinion and none of this really affects their own lives.

Most have already been there for quite a while.

The interesting thing is always how people watching the exact same video can have such drastically different takeaways.

I saw three dudes giving their opinions on string gauges. Some people saw a couple of Youtubers looking for clicks insulting their intelligence cause they said they're using the wrong strings.