Strings Question - Mixing Different Gauges, Just wondering.... Options

[Chief Brody]

Hello all,

I've got one of my guitars strung with Power Slinkies at the moment (11 gauge) and whilst i think they're great i'm beginning to find that my style of play relies a lot on bending and vibrato on the high E, B and G strings, which is a little bit tougher than i would like.

I was thinking of changing the strings completely to a lower gauge but i really love the Low E, A and D strings from the power slinkies, they are heavy and provide a great sound.

So i was just wondering if it's ok to just mix two different sets of strings, Power slinkies for the Low E, A and D strings and something lighter and easier to bend for the High E, B and G.

Whilst i can't imagine there'd be much of a problem doing it i just thought i'd ask for some opinions as to whether this would negatively affect anything, be it the guitar itself or the tone.

Thanks!

[Noangels]

I use Hybrid slinkies,heavy bottom and light tops on most of my guitars
The gauges are
9
11
16
26
36
46

I have my Jackson set up with some heavy fat strings,but thats detuned to drop C so the tension is
the same as my other guitars with the above strings.If you downtuned to that you would have normal
easy bends and less potential damage to your fingers

There shouldnt be a problem with mixing the strings.if you have a free floating bridge you may have
to adjust the spring tension.If its still too tense to bend perhaps you can downtune a semi tone to make
it more flexable for string bends?

[kjutte]

Hello all,

I've got one of my guitars strung with Power Slinkies at the moment (11 gauge) and whilst i think they're great i'm beginning to find that my style of play relies a lot on bending and vibrato on the high E, B and G strings, which is a little bit tougher than i would like.

I was thinking of changing the strings completely to a lower gauge but i really love the Low E, A and D strings from the power slinkies, they are heavy and provide a great sound.

So i was just wondering if it's ok to just mix two different sets of strings, Power slinkies for the Low E, A and D strings and something lighter and easier to bend for the High E, B and G.

Whilst i can't imagine there'd be much of a problem doing it i just thought i'd ask for some opinions as to whether this would negatively affect anything, be it the guitar itself or the tone.

Thanks!

If you have a floyd rose tremolo, this may cause problems due to the springs, else, no problem.
You may have to alter the tuning of the low strings to balance the tension though, else the neck may twist.
You gotta talk to a guru about that subject. Newbs won't have a clue.

[Bogdan Radovic]

Why not , you can experiment with gauges, just don't make it radical.
There are lots of hybrid sets out there , maybe there is one that would suit your needs ?
Anyway nothing wrong should happen to your instrument...

[Marcus Siepen]

I am using a hybrid set too, the D'addario light top/heavy bottom set. the gauges are .010 / .013 / .017 / .030 / .042 / .052
This set is a mix of a regular 10 and 12 set, and it is absolutely perfect for me. It gives me the tight heavyness that I need for my rhythm playing, and it makes leads and bends still comfortable. As long as you make sure the intonation of your guitar is fine there is no problem at all in using such hybrid sets.

[Ivan Milenkovic]

No need to mix 2 sets there are a lot of hybrid sets as everyone suggested. I suggest to try out one hybrid set to see how it works for you. 11s on the top strings can be heavy for bends indeed.

[Chief Brody]

Thanks for the replies guys. I didn't even realise you could get hybrid sets, i guess i should have known that any thoughts that pop into my head have been thought by a million guitarists before me hehe.

I'll definitely check them out, seems like they could do the trick!

Funnily enough the 11's aren't the hardest set i've had to bend. I have some 10 gauge Elixers on another guitar of mine and they are so damn difficult to bend that it really hurts.

I love the tone they produce but i don't think they're right for my style at all!

[Gus]

Thanks for the replies guys. I didn't even realise you could get hybrid sets, i guess i should have known that any thoughts that pop into my head have been thought by a million guitarists before me hehe.

I'll definitely check them out, seems like they could do the trick!

Funnily enough the 11's aren't the hardest set i've had to bend. I have some 10 gauge Elixers on another guitar of mine and they are so damn difficult to bend that it really hurts.

I love the tone they produce but i don't think they're right for my style at all!

I just tried a custom set. Here were my thoughts:
http://www.guitarmasterclass.net/guitar_fo...;blogid=56&

However, I think that from your description a custom set will be a perfect fit for you. On my case, I guess I will go for normal 009 package (been using 010 for a while), because what I really want is less overall tension (in my floyd rose).

And yes, different brands really make a difference. Actually when one change the brand one has to re-setup the floyd rose.
I love the Elixir sound and durability, but that´s one extra reason I will go for 009 Elixir (since 010 elixirs are a little bit hard)

This post has been edited by Gus: Aug 28 2008, 02:42 PM