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Joined:
September 2006
Posts: 10777
Location: Keepin' It Weird in Portland, OR | So, I grab my 1681 Adamas outta it's case to pluck-around with...
Inside the compartment I have the wrapper for the strings that are on it.
They are D'Addario EXP11 80/20's that I put on on 7-2-09...
It is written on the wrapper.
I have a brand new set in the compartment, but the old ones still sound good and have no dirt or corrosion on them.
I obviously don't play this guitar often enough, but I have taken it outside to play a few times. Especially in the winter, cuz I figure the carbon-fiber-laminate can handle the cold better than regular wood-tops.... Not so much the wood. I just don't want the finish cracking due to the cold, so I take an Adamas or the painted T.
Anyway... Am I just really cheap and lazy, or do others have guitars with old strings that still sound good and play well?
(How about you folks who have never changed the strings on your 12-String? :rolleyes: ) |
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Joined:
September 2005
Posts: 3618
Location: GATLINBURG TENNESSEE :) | I like to extend the life of my strings by wiping a little metal polish on them and buffing them off. It seems to work for me for a while. Makes me wonder if it's really just the corrosion that makes em sound dull. |
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Joined:
March 2008
Posts: 2683
Location: Hot Springs, S.D. | Jay had guitars he bought ten years ago that still had the original strings. He said they were just getting "broken in".
I have a "house guitar", and old beat up Yamaha that sounds pretty darned good, that is for the use of my regulars. Jay used to play that guitar every day. Eventually one of the strings started to unwind so I HAD to put new strings on it. But I put a set of used Elixers on it for him, because they are the closest to dead strings as it gets. (Sorry Elixer fans - but you know I don't like them.)
I like crisp new strings. If I owned a music store or something, all my guitars would get new strings every week. Oh, wait a minute...I have to go now. Time to change strings again. |
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Joined:
July 2005
Posts: 1609
Location: Colorado | I love the sound of strings about 2-3 hours old....just cannot afford to change them that often...how old is old?...when they sound old....I also have found the strings that sound the best are the ones Phil Keaggy, Brad Davis, Matt Smith, Unca Beal,(shameless plug), Tommy Emmanuel, and Jim Lauderdale play...oh...that goes for guitars too....OK OK ...Temp and Professor are strong too! |
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Joined:
January 2009
Posts: 4535
Location: Flahdaw | I'm not that picky. I could go 6 months or more, but I rarely do. My main player about every 2 months or less. |
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Joined:
February 2008
Posts: 747
| Originally posted by Old Man Arthur:
... but the old ones still sound good and have no dirt or corrosion on them.
Then they're OK - they might take a dive pretty quickly once you start playing them though.
I've had sets of strings sitting in the package for 2 or 3 years and my impression was that when installed on the guitar they didn't sound quite so good as they should have and didn't last as long as ones that were bought recently. That was my impression, maybe it's wrong or other factors came into it but I've been using the same type of strings for well over ten years so that much was consistent at least.
As for time between changes, it varies; if just practicing then I don't change them often; if I'm going to play somewhere then I'll change them a week or a few days before. I like strings to be played in a bit so they're in the zone that I'm used to. |
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Joined:
April 2008
Posts: 2985
Location: Sydney, Australia | SWMBO's piano got rust on the strings (a string change on a grand piano is neither a DIY nor a decision taken lightly) and the solution was to clean the corosion off with WD-40. Sounded better after they were cleaned. |
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Joined:
May 2010
Posts: 95
Location: Vancouver Island, BC | When "Scarface" (1981 Custom Legend)arrived in my life last January, I fitted a set of EXP 16.
Over time she settled into our climate and was played every day with the others. Over time she took a back seat even to my Balladeer. By early November I fitted a new set. Wow!! Acclimatized, with fresh spagetti she is blowing the others away. What a change.
So...if in doubt, treat yourself and your guitar. The deterioration is subtle and slow, you just might save yourself from GAS. |
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Joined:
July 2003
Posts: 3111
Location: Nashville TN. | My 1681 I use 1414 adamas strings nothing but compliments on the tone |
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Joined:
August 2005
Posts: 3736
Location: Sunshine State, Australia | I remember seeing an eBay auction some time ago for a somewhat aged Balladeer (or similar) and it was described as; "with original strings"... |
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Joined:
January 2006
Posts: 2120
Location: Chicago | The chronological age may not matter. If they sound good--keep 'em! My personal alarm goes off when I notice buildup of dirt and corrosion on the UNDERSIDE of the string. That means rapid fret wear.... time to change. Better 13 bucks for a new set than an expensive (untimely) fret dressing. |
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Joined:
January 2006
Posts: 5881
Location: Colorado Rocky Mountains | Because I'm always plugged in, I don't notice when strings begin going dead as quickly as I might playing only acoustic. When I do notice it, then that is when I change them. I'm getting six months to a year on most guitars using EJ16s, XL10s and Adamas 1818s. When I have a big gig planned, like the last two weekends, I'll put on a fresh set no matter what. All gear is strictly humidity controlled and I leave very little body acid on the strings, so I might get a few more extra miles than some players. |
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Joined:
November 2008
Posts: 1119
Location: Michigan | Classical ---every 3-4 weeks. Steel every month or 2. Classicals seem to keep stretching until they die. |
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Joined:
March 2002
Posts: 15665
Location: SoCal | Non coated strings last maybe a week or two. Coated strings last 3-4 months and look ugly long before the tone is gone...... |
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Joined:
March 2008
Posts: 2683
Location: Hot Springs, S.D. | Originally posted by twistedlim:
Classical ---every 3-4 weeks. Steel every month or 2. Classicals seem to keep stretching until they die. I only change the wound strings on my classical, unless the clear strings get rough spots. The wound strings stretch a lot too, but not as bad as the monofilament ones. And because they have no winds to collect skin oil and dirt, they don't go dead. |
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Joined:
August 2005
Posts: 616
Location: cincinnati, ohio | As long as they sound okay. Trouble is, loss of tone is a gradual thing, like when brakes slowly go bad on your car - you don't always notice until you don't stop. As a general rule I change every 2 months or so (and I play a lot). I wipe down the strings every time I put away the guitar. I use D'addario bronze lights.
As dobro mentioned, what really helps is to clean the UNDERSIDES of the strings. I put a soft cotton cloth (like an old washcloth) between the strings and the fretboard and run it up and down the length of the neck several times. I also check for flat spots on the undersides of the strings where they meet the frets (usually the first five or six frets). Eventually they'll break there. Most of the time they still sound good when I change them - or so I think, until I hear the new ones. :D
Of course you could always try that impoverished old bluesman trick of taking them off, boiling them in a pot of water, and restringing them.
Yeah, right... |
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Joined:
March 2007
Posts: 698
Location: Cork, Ireland | You may laugh but...
I know a fella who has a banjo which he hadn't played for 15 years, is now back playing it and hasn't changed strings since ( or indeed tuned them). |
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Joined:
July 2005
Posts: 1609
Location: Colorado | hard to tell the difference on a banjo |
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Joined:
January 2002
Posts: 14127
Location: 6 String Ranch | Over the last couple of years I've taken to cutting a small corner (1"x1") of the string package that shows the guage. On the back I write the date I put new strings on and throw it in the guitar. That tells me the brand, the guage and date. If I'm playing a lot and it's sweaty and sticky they'll last a week, maybe. Usually I get a month or two out of a set, sometimes double that.
But keep in mind I have several guitars and they are in constant and random rotation.
Strings sound dead because they get all kinds of spooo inbetween the wraps, or the wraps come unwound. So unless you like that sound change them. The third "death" is when they get flat spots and vibrate funny and out of tune.
I just changed strings on my longneck 12. What I put on are an old set, maybe 15+ years old. The wound were fine but the plain had a few faint spots of corosion. I just wiped them once with steel wool and they're fine.
Sure gave me a headache tuning it.
I've found one slight exception to dead strings.
On the '39 twins I've tried the brass strings, and basically didn't like them although they were better on May, the d18, than on April, the d28. When these go dead there is a certain sound that you get on these old guitars. The volume stays the same but sound of the string itself kinda goes away, and the guitar itself makes the noise.
That's not a real good explanation but basically that's it. Tony Rice and Peter Rowan said it better in an article a couple of years ago on why they liked dead all nickle acoustic strings. |
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Joined:
December 2009
Posts: 686
Location: Route 66, just east of the Cadillac Ranch | I change them when I can hear a difference, can't stand the odor, or my fingers turn green. It may be 6 months or it could be 2 years. Truth is, I enjoy changing strings as it gives me an excuse to handle the guitars.
I too put the empty string package in the case pocket, but I like the idea of writing the date on it.
Originally posted by Beal:
...they were better on May, the d18, than on April, the d28. I wanna see your calendar. |
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Joined:
January 2002
Posts: 14127
Location: 6 String Ranch | The D18 was made in May and the D28 was made in April of 1939, hence the names, they are 177 s/n appart, hence why they are twins.
There's a pic of Cliff playing the 18 at the Guthrie somewhere around here...... |
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Joined:
December 2009
Posts: 686
Location: Route 66, just east of the Cadillac Ranch | Much more interesting story than where I thought it was heading. Very cool. |
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Joined:
January 2009
Posts: 4535
Location: Flahdaw | Anyone else had a set of strings that sound GREAT for like 10 days, then start to sound like crap. Me, I get a couple months or so out of a set of strings, OR they sound like crap right away. I've never had this 10 day thing til this last set. (and I'm not a greasy, oily fingered guy like Beal) |
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Joined:
August 2002
Posts: 8307
Location: Tennessee | Originally posted by dark bar:
Anyone else had a set of strings that sound GREAT for like 10 days, then start to sound like crap. Yeah ... DR Strings color coated strings. The Red Devils, Cool Blues and the Black Beauties. They're good for a couple of outings, and then go dead as dirt.
DR has apparently recently changed how they formulate and coat their strings so I'll have to give the new ones a shot. |
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Joined:
March 2005
Posts: 12759
Location: Boise, Idaho | This is how a procrastinator does it: I will pick up a guitar and decide it needs new strings, so I put it away and get out another one, etc. Over the course of a year or so, all the acoustics got played until they all need new strings and I have no idea how many times or how long they've been played. The strings just look grimey on all of them.
Lately, I've been playing my two electrics, which both have really old strings, but never got played. One broke a tuner, so I used the other one, but it buzzed. I messed with the truss rod and should have changed the strings then, but wasn't sure I'd ever get it set. Then Grover sent me a new tuner and I fixed the other one. Should have replaced the strings then. Now they both play well and both need new strings. I think I've run out of guitars that don't need new strings, but I'm getting a Viper this weekend. I hope it comes with new strings or I'm going to have to stay home all weekend and change the strings on all the guitars. |
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Strings... How old is OLD?
