Strings For Drop & Low Tunings, What are your favourites?
zen
May 30 2011, 04:11 AM
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It's time to buy some string sets for my guitars.
I plan to tune my schecter and ESP Eclipse to D standard and/or Drop C.

Which strings do you recommend ? (Brand & gauge)
I currently use Elixir.

Which strings are your favourites when it comes to low tunings?

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del-4fr53e3
May 30 2011, 08:56 AM
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I loved my 11-54 in drop C smile.gif
Your ESP is 24.75", so you might want to try thicker strings than most people put on their 25.5"s smile.gif

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Cosmin Lupu
May 30 2011, 09:10 AM
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Hey man,

I also use 11-54 for the drop C tuning - they work very well for me. I also use Elixir, but since they don't make any 11-54 set, I always buy separate strings. smile.gif

For the drop A (on the baritone guitar) I use 13-70 - i never play any solos on that one though biggrin.gif

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TylerT
May 30 2011, 10:49 AM
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Hey zen. I use skinny top heavy bottoms by ernie ball for my guitars in Drop C.

Its a hybrid set, so the top strings are very close to 10 guage (good for soloing), and the closer you get to your C string the strings thicken to that of a 11 guage set.

Regular light (10-46) .010 .013 .017 .026 .036 .046
Medium (11-52) .011 .013 .020 .030 .042 .052

Light Top / Heavy Bottom (10-52) .010 .013 .017 .032 .042 .052

Best of both worlds biggrin.gif !

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zen
May 30 2011, 11:03 AM
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QUOTE (Sollesnes @ May 30 2011, 05:56 PM) *
I loved my 11-54 in drop C smile.gif
Your ESP is 24.75", so you might want to try thicker strings than most people put on their 25.5"s smile.gif



Wooo, never played with that gauge, will be fun .. thanks smile.gif

QUOTE (Cosmin Lupu @ May 30 2011, 06:10 PM) *
Hey man,

I also use 11-54 for the drop C tuning - they work very well for me. I also use Elixir, but since they don't make any 11-54 set, I always buy separate strings. smile.gif

For the drop A (on the baritone guitar) I use 13-70 - i never play any solos on that one though biggrin.gif


awesome, I'll try that gauge smile.gif Thanks
Elixir's are really turning out to be expensive. I love them but the expenses add up with time.

QUOTE (TylerT @ May 30 2011, 07:49 PM) *
Hey zen. I use skinny top heavy bottoms by ernie ball for my guitars in Drop C.

Its a hybrid set, so the top strings are very close to 10 guage (good for soloing), and the closer you get to your C string the strings thicken to that of a 11 guage set.

Regular light (10-46) .010 .013 .017 .026 .036 .046
Medium (11-52) .011 .013 .020 .030 .042 .052

Light Top / Heavy Bottom (10-52) .010 .013 .017 .032 .042 .052

Best of both worlds biggrin.gif !


Thanks Tyler, I'm gonna get 3 sets of that gauge.
Never used ernieballs. So thanks for the recommendation. Will try it this time.
Anything cheaper than elixir's good for now. I used to be a D'addario fan before moving to ELixir's.

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This post has been edited by zen: May 30 2011, 11:03 AM


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TylerT
May 30 2011, 11:06 AM
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Good choice!! Ive played lots of different brand and I like ernie balls the best, even though they're inexpensive.

Hope you like them dude

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Cosmin Lupu
May 30 2011, 11:46 AM
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QUOTE (zen @ May 30 2011, 10:03 AM) *
Wooo, never played with that gauge, will be fun .. thanks smile.gif



awesome, I'll try that gauge smile.gif Thanks
Elixir's are really turning out to be expensive. I love them but the expenses add up with time.



Thanks Tyler, I'm gonna get 3 sets of that gauge.
Never used ernieballs. So thanks for the recommendation. Will try it this time.
Anything cheaper than elixir's good for now. I used to be a D'addario fan before moving to ELixir's.


Hey man, try thinking on the long run smile.gif

If you use a set of Elixir strings, it'll probably last about 2 months of heavy abuse, maybe even more.

A set of "other brand" strings will wear off in about a week of heavy playing - if you are very conscious regarding your sound you will want to change the strings so your guitar will sound good and stay in tune.

The conclusion is:

- a set of Elixir strings lasts a lot more than about 3 sets of normal strings (from what I've experimented)
- you actually pay less wink.gif

PS: I am not endorsing Elixir smile.gif) i just love them

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zen
May 30 2011, 11:54 AM
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QUOTE (Cosmin Lupu @ May 30 2011, 08:46 PM) *
Hey man, try thinking on the long run smile.gif

If you use a set of Elixir strings, it'll probably last about 2 months of heavy abuse, maybe even more.

A set of "other brand" strings will wear off in about a week of heavy playing - if you are very conscious regarding your sound you will want to change the strings so your guitar will sound good and stay in tune.

The conclusion is:

- a set of Elixir strings lasts a lot more than about 3 sets of normal strings (from what I've experimented)
- you actually pay less wink.gif

PS: I am not endorsing Elixir smile.gif) i just love them


It does last long, I noticed that too. Interesting point.. Now you've influenced me coz I love Elixir's too. laugh.gif
I always use it in my main guitar and will always stick to it on that guitar. So I need to get them too.

The frustrating thing is when one or 2 strings of an elixir's set breaks. Although that is verrrrry rare.

Do you change the entire set or buy some additional single b & e strings?






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Cosmin Lupu
May 30 2011, 12:06 PM
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QUOTE (zen @ May 30 2011, 10:54 AM) *
It does last long, I noticed that too. Interesting point.. Now you've influenced me coz I love Elixir's too. laugh.gif
I always use it in my main guitar and will always stick to it on that guitar. So I need to get them too.

The frustrating thing is when one or 2 strings of an elixir's set breaks. Although that is verrrrry rare.

Do you change the entire set or buy some additional single b & e strings?


Since my sets are not bought as sets, i always have spares tongue.gif

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Ivan Milenkovic
May 30 2011, 07:49 PM
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I don't like Elixir, couple of strings broke on me, they came out expensive, and they have a bit dull sound.

They do last longer, however with constant gigging, it's normal to swap strings every week, so I guess 2 months of any kind of string would be a gamble.

This is why I use Daddario 11-52, although on drop C they can sound a bit floppy smile.gif

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rokchik
May 30 2011, 09:54 PM
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I've only ever used .10's but I don't drop tune a lot except to dropped D.

This may be a silly question but If you change the gauge of string would you have to adjust anything IE: action, intonation?

rok

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TylerT
May 30 2011, 10:53 PM
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QUOTE (rokchik @ May 30 2011, 04:54 PM) *
I've only ever used .10's but I don't drop tune a lot except to dropped D.

This may be a silly question but If you change the gauge of string would you have to adjust anything IE: action, intonation?

rok


For me yes! Every time I switch strings (even without changing gauge) I re-adjust my truss rod.

If your changing gauges then you should definitely re-adjust it, as it will throw your neck off otherwise.

A good rule of thumb is to add 1 to your guage for each half step you tune down

eg. E = 9 gauge

Eb = 10 gauge

D = 11 and so on!

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zen
May 31 2011, 02:06 AM
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QUOTE (Ivan Milenkovic @ May 31 2011, 04:49 AM) *
I don't like Elixir, couple of strings broke on me, they came out expensive, and they have a bit dull sound.

They do last longer, however with constant gigging, it's normal to swap strings every week, so I guess 2 months of any kind of string would be a gamble.

This is why I use Daddario 11-52, although on drop C they can sound a bit floppy smile.gif


Thanks Ivan, I've used D'addario a lot in the past when I used to play mostly with 9's.

QUOTE (rokchik @ May 31 2011, 06:54 AM) *
I've only ever used .10's but I don't drop tune a lot except to dropped D.

This may be a silly question but If you change the gauge of string would you have to adjust anything IE: action, intonation?

rok


I believe you have to ... and I hate doing it as I'm not so good at setting up my axe.

I'd rather spend time practising. smile.gif

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Mudbone
May 31 2011, 04:38 AM
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QUOTE (Ivan Milenkovic @ May 30 2011, 02:49 PM) *
I don't like Elixir, couple of strings broke on me, they came out expensive, and they have a bit dull sound.

They do last longer, however with constant gigging, it's normal to swap strings every week, so I guess 2 months of any kind of string would be a gamble.

This is why I use Daddario 11-52, although on drop C they can sound a bit floppy smile.gif


Great point Ivan. I've tried Elixirs as well, and just didn't think they were bright enough for my tastes. I like D'Addarios because of their brightness and Dunlops because they sound very even and balanced. But hey, different strokes for different folks.

Dunlop now makes heavy core strings specifically for drop tuning. So I'm under the assumption that using the heavy core strings means you don't have to go up much in string gauge when you tune down.

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zen
May 31 2011, 06:39 AM
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Just bought these:

1 X Elixir Electric Guitar Strings LIGHT-HEAVY 10-52
2 x Ernie Ball Electric Guitar String Beefy Slinky 11-54

Gonna get ernie balls heavy bottoms in the next purchase...hmm. Heavy bottoms laugh.gif

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Gitarrero
May 31 2011, 04:24 PM
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Got the Ernie Ball 54s as well, great choice wink.gif

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Chris Evans
May 31 2011, 06:03 PM
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I usually tune to E standard and use a light gauge of strings, normally Ernie Balls super slinky 9 gauge, but for the band we drop to D standard tuning, the super slinky`s are way too floppy, I was reluctant to change to a different set due to having a FR guitar and having to mess around with the truss rod and trem tension ... but! I found by using the Ernie Ball Hybrid set I didnt have to change a thing! ohmy.gif

The top three strings are the same as a regular set of 9 gauge and the bottom three are the same as you`d find in a set of regualr 10 gauge strings, this works nicely for me in this tuning with the added bonus of not having to mess with any tension settings smile.gif

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thefireball
May 31 2011, 06:52 PM
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QUOTE (Cosmin Lupu @ May 30 2011, 03:10 AM) *
For the drop A (on the baritone guitar) I use 13-70 - i never play any solos on that one though biggrin.gif


What brand do you use? And will they work on my Jackson SLSMG, even though it's not a baritone guitar?

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thefireball
May 31 2011, 07:54 PM
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Speaking of dropped tunings, listen to this crazy riffing! Gotta love it.

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rokchik
May 31 2011, 10:19 PM
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QUOTE (TylerT @ May 30 2011, 06:53 PM) *
For me yes! Every time I switch strings (even without changing gauge) I re-adjust my truss rod.

If your changing gauges then you should definitely re-adjust it, as it will throw your neck off otherwise.

A good rule of thumb is to add 1 to your guage for each half step you tune down

eg. E = 9 gauge

Eb = 10 gauge

D = 11 and so on!


Thanks for the reply Tyler. Good suggestion on the string gauge and tuning down smile.gif

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