Can string gauge change the way you play ?

**Lionelsax** · 04-22-2014, 08:04 PM

This is a strange question, I've got a very good guitar, I'm not so bad on punk and blues style, I'm a little bit jazzy when I can.
I play a solid body with 10-46 strings but sometimes I can't feel them and I'm not very inspired, the guitar makes me sleep, out of rhythm when I improvize, my head moves but my brain slightly sink into I don't know.
I ordered 11-48 flatwounds strings in order to stay awake, is it possible ?
I want to wake up !!!

**mr. beaumont** · 04-22-2014, 08:38 PM

Not a weird question at all.

I refuse to play anything thinner than 11's with a wound G. Life's to short!

**Lionelsax** · 04-22-2014, 09:04 PM

Originally Posted by mr. beaumont

Not a weird question at all.

I refuse to play anything thinner than 11's with a wound G. Life's to short!

Thanks, the first electric guitars I touched were two Gibson L5 and Johnny Smith, the guy was playing on 13'...
I was more a rock'n'roll fan then I bought a bad copy of a stratocaster (Jim Harley) and learned on my own with 9' and 8', the guitar had never been in tune and I bended a lot... With bad habits that all guitarist know, the blues scale in five positions !
Then I bought my lovely guitar (Gibson Nighthawk Standard 3 picks) and went on with my bad habits although I began to learn jazz chords progressions, I stayed with my bad habits.
Now I know jazz is my music (I'm bald) and want to play in a jazz style with a nice sound...
What was the topic ?
I wanted to buy a jazz guitar in 1996 but just found the solid body I've got.
Last week, I was thinking about buying a cheap jazz guitar but I heard someone on the forum with a telecaster and it was great... So I thought, let's give a new life to my guitar and if I want to play rock'n'roll again, I will buy a cheap electric one.

This is the sound I had (I can't play anymore I broke the G string two days ago) with bridge and neck pickups (10-46), on the Nighthawk, the pickups selector is quite weird... I'm using two pickups and there is no amp... Sorry for my playing.

**ESCC** · 04-22-2014, 11:38 PM

I agree with your approach. Before changing guitars try different strings and picks. I'd suggest considering a bump up to 12s if your still board after trying 11s.

**peterbright** · 04-22-2014, 11:45 PM

Strings are far cheaper than guitars. I'd also try 13's

**tonedeaf** · 04-23-2014, 12:15 AM

I generally use .12s on my archtops. I recently got a Heritage 576, promptly mounted up some GB .12s and went to work. It was good but I could not fine tune the thing to where I wanted it. After much frustration I decided to go down a size and the .11s really made a difference.

**TonyB56** · 04-23-2014, 01:55 AM

You should get a thicker louder sound with heavier gauge strings but you will find them harder to bend. You have a very relaxed smooth bluesy jazz style which is probably why you tend to fall asleep, it has happened to me but then I'm old (excuse). I like your playing it has a sort of moody sax feel to it. You could try more up tempo tunes to cure the sleep aspect

**Lionelsax** · 04-23-2014, 02:04 PM

Thanks for all your advices, I hope I won't have to touch the truss rod.

Originally Posted by TonyB56

You should get a thicker louder sound with heavier gauge strings but you will find them harder to bend. You have a very relaxed smooth bluesy jazz style which is probably why you tend to fall asleep, it has happened to me but then I'm old (excuse). I like your playing it has a sort of moody sax feel to it. You could try more up tempo tunes to cure the sleep aspect

You're right, I will try up tempo tunes.

**Lionelsax** · 04-24-2014, 12:15 PM

Guys, I've got my strings, one word : wonderful !
This is the end of 20 years of shredding... It sounds good without any wondering.
You might be right, 12 or 13 would be better but I'm scared for my guitar.

**TonyB56** · 04-24-2014, 12:59 PM

Slight adjustment to the truss rod and redo the intonation the guitar will be fine.

**Lionelsax** · 04-24-2014, 05:01 PM

This is the sound I've got now, I don't play better but it sounds as I want.

**pingu** · 04-24-2014, 05:13 PM

yes , i used to use 10's and was constantly
moving to the next note .... or vibrato and bending
because the sound of the note wasn't satisfying

now i play 14 benson TI and each note sounds
great by itself .... so I can play simple melodies

also the instrument now sounds much more in tune

very happy

**TonyB56** · 04-24-2014, 06:21 PM

That's quite a nice mellow tone, you could probably go to 11's without having to touch anything except possibly the nut slots but if your happy with 10's it sounds fine.

**Lionelsax** · 04-24-2014, 06:41 PM

Originally Posted by TonyB56

That's quite a nice mellow tone, you could probably go to 11's without having to touch anything except possibly the nut slots but if your happy with 10's it sounds fine.

Well, I put 11-48 strings.

**Lionelsax** · 05-23-2014, 05:26 PM

Flatwounds work also for rock and roll and it's fun, a very vintage sound !

**oldane** · 05-31-2014, 02:35 PM

I had LaBella 15-56 flatwounds on my plywood archtop until LaBella screwed up the wound strings in the newer batches of the string set (very dead sounding right out of the package, sometimes intonation problems). The older incarnation of that set sounded great and lasted forever (even the plain strings). After I used my last set of old batch LaBella, I have been using TI Swing or D'Addario Chromes flatwounds. They both sound good but different. The TIs are old fashioned nickel wrapped and have that typical 1950s "thud" tone (think Tal Farlow or Jim Hall in the 1950s). The D'Addarios are stainless steel wrapped and thus more twangy - in fact too twangy for my taste when new but they calm down nicely and become more mellow after 2-3 weeks of use.

According to rumours, Howard Roberts used 16 and 18 as the high E and B string.

Switching to heavier strings necessitates adjustment of the truss rod but that's easy. Just turn the nut only 45 degrees a time and then check before proceding. Often a minor adjustment will do. After getting the relief where you want it, adjust the action to taste at the bridge. Finally adjust the intonation.

**MarkRhodes** · 05-31-2014, 03:50 PM

I use .11s. I asked a tech about going to something heavier but he discouraged me from it. Not on general principles but because, he thought, my guitar (Ibanez AF85) would not sound any better with heavier strings and would be stiffer to play. So I'm sticking with .11s on this guitar. I had switched to some GHS roundwounds but after tonight's private gig, I'm going back to D'Addario Chromes. (I like TI's too, but have a set of Chromes on hand, so....)