Flatwound Strings - how long do yours last?

[deacon Mark]

I sometimes have been using flat wounds which normally I never did just not enough acoustic zing, but have a certain sound that is nice at times. So 2 years ago I a set of Dadarrio Chromes 12-54 on my Hollenbeck and still have not change them. Now to be fair they don't have daily hours of playing on them but 2 years and certainly playing them. They right now intonate fine and sound good. They don't look beat or worn but I am thinking these still have plenty of life. 2 years longer than I would ever go with round wounds even it I hardly played them. How long do you get?

[Stringswinger]

I get about a year out of TI Flats (and I change the plain strings once or twice between full set changes). I find that the pure nickel wraps start to corrode after about 10 or 11 months.

[Tal_175]

TI flats when new are perfect but to me they get too dull after two weeks. D'addario Chromes start out a bit bright but after a couple of weeks they reach the darkness of a brand new set of TI flats and stay that way for at least 6 months. So Chromes are more economical and convenient for me.

[vinnyv1k]

+1 what Marco (SS) said.

[John A.]

My Godin Kingpin has been my ongoing string testbed.

TI Jazz Swings (12-50) -- I get about 4 months, then they start sounding completely dead and giving me tuning problems.
Chromes -- (12-52) about 6 months
LaBella Rollerwounds (12-52) sorta flat, sorta round, less squeaky than rounds) -- I've had them on for about 2 months, and they've lost a lot of brightness, but are still in tune.
GHS Rollerwounds -- I forgot how much I got out of them, but I wound up taking them off before they were really beat up because they squeaked almost as much roundwounds even after they'd been on for a long while. I'm gonna guess they'd last 6 months, though.

I've got Chromes and Martin Retros in my drawer, and I think I'm going to go back the Chromes next. I think I like their sound best, and they've lasted the longest of the flats I've tried. But I do prefer the lower tension of the TI's. Once I use up all the strings I've got, I'm going to try an 11-50 set and swap in a 12 for the high E.

I have a feeling I'm harder on strings than I lot you guys. I've only got one archtop (though I do split my playing across other guitars), and it's kind of my "beater". I play it outside a lot, took on a beach vacation, and am in general not very careful about wiping the strings clean.

John

[rob taft]

I play pretty much the same guitar every day roughly at a minimum 2 hours a day. I use TI Flats an .11 set. I used to use .13s, then .12s, now .11s. I get about 7-8 months out of a set but change the two plain strings about 1/2 way. I don't wipe them down, nor is the guitar in a case but I also have fairly neutral sweat and in steamy FL it is always inside and in a stable environment.

[hot ford coupe]

You know about how much I play. I get at least a year out of a set of .012s on my DA. When the sound gets too dark, I'll change them but I know it takes forever for them to get too dark.

[bleakanddivine]

I change my TI flats about every 5 years, whether they need changing or not.

[Emperor]

I use JS 112 on all my good guitars. The one I use the most (Fender Custom Shop Jazzmaster 1998), gets new strings maybe three or four times a year, depending on how many gigs I play.

[citizenk74]

D'Addario flats in various sizes. I change 'em every year, just for practice.

[Jim Soloway]

About three or four months. I play a LOT.

[TedBPhx]

Just finished re-stringing my Gibson 175. Saw this thread and felt guilty. Those TIJS112s had been on close to a year. Took the opportunity to give it a good clean and buff and tighten all the little screws and nuts that always seem to loosen. Now it’ll take several hours to get it sounding good again.

[Doctor Jeff]

They last til I change them LOL.