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71 240z, Harleys and….STRINGS!
Back in the day when I had my wonderful Datsun 240z and later when I had my Harleys the big discussion was always oil. What kind, what type, what brand etc etc. It was always oil, oil oil. Now that Ive graduated into having a wonderful Martin guitar the topic is strings, strings and strings. What kind, what type, what brand etc etc etc.Well my small win is that I have made a decision and have chosen Martin strings…. Yea! Oh, as far as what gauge, what composition etc…..well Im still working on that and probably will be for as long as I dont croak and they still make strings.
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16 Replies
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The search is as much fun as the settling on which that you like. Whatever you do don’t try santa cruz strings. There is something in them that is addictive and they are 3x more expensive than other strings. Consider yourself warned. 😄
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oh geez. I know what you are trying to do. No! My mind is made up! thats it. but then again……
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LOL, @jumpinjeff , I haven’t ever tried Santa Cruz due to the price. But I don’t change my strings as often as many people do, so maybe I could afford them after all. 😎
MG 😀
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Strings, strings and many more things! Guitar geek-dom provides us with a wealth of rabbit holes 🐇which we can travel. Keep us update @Mrfredsporty ! 😃
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I will eventually drive myself nuts about this. Even though my Martin is a large dreadnaught so far my favorite strings for it are Martin authentic acoustic silk and phosphor with the flex core. This month I’m experimenting with the Tommy Emanuel signature.
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@Mrfredsporty , I don’t own a Martin guitar, but I decided to try Martin strings, along with a number of other strings. I picked Martin as my go to strings because of the tone, the playability and the price.
As far as gauge, that was easy for me. I went with light or extra light right from the beginning. The reason was playability and tone. I like the softer, more mellow tone of lighter strings. Also, they are easier on the fingers and better for finger picking.
For me, these decisions are always easy because I recognize I could change my mind any time I want in the future. Our guitar journey takes us places we never could have planned on or expected.
For instance, I have started playing songs with picks. I have messed around with picks from the beginning. I just never used them when I actually played. Now that new door could lead to my using heavier gauge strings on one of my guitars for use with a pick. Who knows. Since I use 10s it would be easy to go up to 11s or 12s. No need to go to the bridge cables that bluegrass players use, 13s. 🤣
MG 😀
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Funny enough just saw a video on acoustic guitar string gauge where they went from light gauge to heavy. Personally I thought the light gauge sounded the best. You can find it on YouTube: Does Acoustic String Gauge Make a Difference? Interesting to watch
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YouTube can really come thru. We’re you on a sub in the Navy?
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@Mrfredsporty I was, I had the privilege of serving in the submarine force for 10 years. From the East coast, to the West coast and overseas at Holy Loch Scotland.
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Very cool. I was corpsman with the Marines.right on brutha!
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Much respect from me, not sure I could of dealt with the crayon eaters 😂
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Ha ha. I heard that! In all seriousness the Marines treated me like a king and I would do anything for them.
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I’m old and plenty of time to try things. I have a Martin and a Taylor, both I play and rotate between them. The Taylor came with Elixer strings 12-53. The Martin came with Martin strings 12-53. I’ve had numerous guitars over the last few years. I’ve tried Elixer, D’Addario, Fender, Santa Cruz and others. One of the things about Santa Cruz, you don’t order by size like 12-53, you order tension (light, medium, heavy) so I called them and told them I usually play 12-53 so they sent me a comparable string. I also use the phos/bronze strings. I personally have begun to like the Elizer best and buy from Sweetwater but intend on leaving the Martin with Martin strings. It’s fun testing out strings. Steve
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Hello @WyoBoy52 ;
It is interesting that you have always played the same gauge as your guitars came with. You might try different gauges and see what you like best.
@subsailor731 , above, said he liked the tone of the lights the best when watching the video on YouTube that compared gauges. I play lights for the same reason. I also like finger picking the best. When I do use a pick I really like the tone of the really light picks, though I also use the heavy picks occasionally for contrast.
MG 😀
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Love the Santa Cruz low tension. I wait for a sale and order several sets. Also, I only use them on the guitars I play most often. On others I use Stringjoy, except on the 12 string where I use coated strings for longer life.
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maybe Santa will give me a set of Santa cruz for Christmas!. I hear very good things about them.
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