Nickel vs Stainless Steel Flatwounds

**jjang1993** · 05-11-2022, 03:22 AM

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**j4zz** · 05-11-2022, 04:02 AM

Originally Posted by jjang1993

Hi all,

I have a question. Will nickel flatwounds like Pyramids wear EVO frets at a slower rate than stainless steel flatwounds like D’addario chromes?

I usually use roundwound strings and I notice after at least a month the intonation and tuning stability starts to degrade. With flatwounds, how much more life expectancy can I gain in terms of intonation and tuning stability if I switch to them?

For some reason, I thought nickel would be softer than stainless, so I'd expect less wear.

However, on the subject of life expectancy, I am hooked on Elixir Nanowebs. They are roundwounds. Not only do they last three times as long, they feel smoother and make less fingernoise, due to the coating.

**nevershouldhavesoldit** · 05-11-2022, 07:08 AM

Originally Posted by j4zz

I am hooked on Elixir Nanowebs. They are roundwounds. Not only do they last three times as long, they feel smoother and make less fingernoise, due to the coating.

I've never used them. How would you describe their sound & on what guitar(s)?

**j4zz** · 05-11-2022, 07:20 AM

Originally Posted by nevershouldhavesoldit

I've never used them. How would you describe their sound & on what guitar(s)?

I have used the Elixirs on many guitars, Teles, ES-335 types (inc. Epi. Sheraton), Washburn J3 (ES-175 clone), Ovation acoustic (bronze wound)

I think they are pretty much as advertised. Not quite as bright as uncoated, but not too dull either. Compared to some Thomastik flats I tried a while back, I like them much better. The Thomastiks were too "thuddy". This was on my J&D Luthiers archtop

**RJVB** · 05-11-2022, 07:30 AM

Originally Posted by nevershouldhavesoldit

I've never used them. How would you describe their sound & on what guitar(s)?

Listening to Michael Watts's videos the term "ideal" always comes to mind...

Of course I always also get that feeling one might hardly hear him without amplification...

**docsteve** · 05-11-2022, 10:23 AM

Originally Posted by jjang1993

Hi all,

I have a question. Will nickel flatwounds like Pyramids wear EVO frets at a slower rate than stainless steel flatwounds like D’addario chromes?

I usually use roundwound strings and I notice after at least a month the intonation and tuning stability starts to degrade. With flatwounds, how much more life expectancy can I gain in terms of intonation and tuning stability if I switch to them?

Thomastik flatwounds last you a lifetime. I change them once a year , and even then only because I feel guilty about not changing strings.

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**nevershouldhavesoldit** · 05-11-2022, 10:42 AM

Originally Posted by docsteve

Thomastik flatwounds last you a lifetime. I change them once a year , and even then only because I feel guilty about not changing strings.

Interesting! I also love TIs and use them on all my guitars. I recently changed a set of JS112s after 16 months on the archtop I use for my trio's regular weekly jazz gig plus about 2 to 3 hours of practice a week. They had no discernible physical wear and played as well as they did when new. But I had to change a set of JS112s on my Tele after about 6 months because the G winding was getting rough in one small area and there was visible marking on multiple strings from several frets. I use the Tele every Sunday at our blues brunch and on most of my outside gigs. But it hangs on the wall in our den (where my little studio is) and I grab it to play whenever I have a few minutes - so it gets at least 7 or 8 hours of hard play weekly.

How much do you play yours to go a year without needing a change?

**docsteve** · 05-11-2022, 04:03 PM

On average I play for about ten hours a week but I don’t play on stage much, and band rehearsals are only every other week. So no hard playing, I‘m afraid. After a year, there are markings on the strings, that’s true. That’s why I change them eventually.

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**Peter C** · 05-11-2022, 07:22 PM

Elixir Nanowebs, as they've been mentioned here, are great. The coating does, however, seem to deteriorate whether you play them or not, starting maybe after 3-4 months. Not going to last a year like people say the TIs do.

**j4zz** · 05-11-2022, 07:30 PM

Originally Posted by Peter C

Elixir Nanowebs, as they've been mentioned here, are great. The coating does, however, seem to deteriorate whether you play them or not, starting maybe after 3-4 months. Not going to last a year like people say the TIs do.

When gigging, I used to use a set of nanowebs until they became visibly fuzzy where the pick strikes them. I thought the sound maintained pretty consistantly during that time, not getting dull enough to concern me.

It may be heresy, but I think the reason that people think the TIs last so long, is because they start out sounding like a well used set of strings. If you like that sound, then yep, they'll stay consistantly that way for a long time. I admit this is coming from someone who has only tried them once

**Stringswinger** · 05-11-2022, 10:53 PM

I prefer the feel and sound of TI's to all of the other flatwound strings I have tried. And I would bet that they are a bit easier on the frets than any roundwound strings and probably the SS wound flats as well.

I do find that where I live (close to the ocean) that the strings do oxidize after a few months and I can only get about 4 or 5 months out of a set. They are expensive but worth it.

**j4zz** · 05-11-2022, 11:02 PM

Originally Posted by Stringswinger

I prefer the feel and sound of TI's to all of the other flatwound strings I have tried. And I would bet that they are a bit easier on the frets than any roundwound strings and probably the SS wound flats as well.

I do find that where I live (close to the ocean) that the strings do oxidize after a few months and I can only get about 4 or 5 months out of a set. They are expensive but worth it.

I too live close to the ocean. That's where coated strings shine (pun intended) for longevity.

**RJVB** · 05-12-2022, 08:06 AM

FWIW, Pyramid offered to polish the Monel silk-and-steels they made for me, presumably because I mentioned playing an archtop and I also ordered tape-wounds. I understand monel alloys are used in marine applications because of their resistance to corrosion.

**JohanAbrandt** · 05-12-2022, 09:19 AM

Monel is nickel copper alloy, just like pure nickel and stainless steel it is corrosion resistant because the oxidation process forms a coating which prevents further oxidation.

**RJVB** · 05-12-2022, 11:15 AM

Aluminium (oxyde) does the same thing, so EB's AlBr strings are probably corrosion-resistant too.

But IIRC stainless steel "works" in a slightly different fashion; if memory serves me well it's the chrome in the alloy that shields the Fe atoms from oxygen. If I'm not mistaken it's a property that gets lost if you overheat it, which is also why you can't make cast stainless steel. I don't think that would be the case if the protection came from a layer of some other metal oxyde. Besides, stainless steel doesn't go dull like aluminium because that protective layer comes back after you've polished it off.

**JohanAbrandt** · 05-12-2022, 01:22 PM

Originally Posted by RJVB

Aluminium (oxyde) does the same thing, so EB's AlBr strings are probably corrosion-resistant too.

But IIRC stainless steel "works" in a slightly different fashion; if memory serves me well it's the chrome in the alloy that shields the Fe atoms from oxygen. If I'm not mistaken it's a property that gets lost if you overheat it, which is also why you can't make cast stainless steel. I don't think that would be the case if the protection came from a layer of some other metal oxyde. Besides, stainless steel doesn't go dull like aluminium because that protective layer comes back after you've polished it off.

AFAIK the chromium oxidize and form a protective layer, so same mechanism, and you can cast stainless steel just fine.

However, at high temperatures chromium looses it protective ability so stainless steel corrodes then temporarily

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