Are coated strings worth the price?

AndyT
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Sat Jan 09, 2010 8:27 pm

Somebody asked what is it that makes strings sound dead.

When you first put new strings on, they are tight. The windings are tight, the core is tight, the whole string is very tight. When you put it under tension you get lots of extra frequencies from it. These extra frequencies are the "crispiness" we look for in new strings.

After playing them for a while, they stretch. The windings get loose from constant motion and friction. Dirt doesn't help because it acts as a wedge on the windings making them loosen faster. Eventually, they get loosened to the point of not giving the extra frequencies because they are stretched beyond the point where they carry the extra tension. When that happens, most players will change their strings.

Now the question becomes, How many hours of your playing style will it take to stretch them past the crispy point. Depends on how you play, and the string composition. Keeping your hands clean helps as well.

Coatings make the string resist corrosion longer, but also slightly deaden the crispiness. Different core shapes and materials hold tension better than others, and different winding materials and methods likewise.

Also, different materials and shapes will have different resonant frequencies. You will get a deeper sound from a more dense core material and winding.

Any string sounds good when you first put them on. What works for you may not work for somebody else because of tuning and playing style and how clean hands are beforehand.


wrench
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Sat Jan 09, 2010 11:32 pm

Everyone who commented seems to have some understanding of strings, so back to Bear's question - is anyone getting enough life from coated strings to justify the additional cost?

Me - no.


BigBear
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Sun Jan 10, 2010 12:07 am

Okay, I can buy a 10 pack of D'Addario .012 phosphor bronze strings for $44.50 US or $4.45/set at www.juststrings.com. The Cleartones I like are $16.32 per set and the Elixir Nanos are $13.99 per set.

That is almost 4 times the cost. I think we all agree that the coated strings give longer life but are any of you getting almost 4 times the life from coated strings? I honestly don't think I am.

Like everyone else I hate changing strings but I think I am going to have to go back to regular strings. I just can't make the math work.


AndyT
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Sun Jan 10, 2010 3:58 am

Does the math work out? Maybe. How many of us have actually clocked how many hours of playing it took to kill a set of strings. Unless you actually do that, any other type of measurement is really very subjective.

I know I've had uncoated cheap strings that lasted me a single day. If they were free I wouldn't want them again.

I LIKE coated strings and I play guitar because I LIKE it and I LIKE the relaxing it lets me do. I use DR Extra Life coated strings because this is my hobby and I'm going to spend a few extra dollars to enjoy it more. A few dollars. Its worth it to me if only for the increased enjoyment it gives me.

Just like TG is only $20 month. Is it worth it to you to have better strings?


Catman
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Sun Jan 10, 2010 6:21 am

I have Elixirs on my guitar, and for me they are worth the extra money (where I live they cost $25!!--next time I will purchase by mail order from the US). I like the feel and the sound, and although I don't think they last 3x, they do last longer and I enjoy them more during that time.

On the other hand, I just put a set of Elixirs on my bass (in honor of the collaboration), and I don't like them at all.

David


reiver
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Sun Jan 10, 2010 8:07 am

I find this discussion very interesting, but more from a psychological standpoint than a musical one. And I have to say that I feel blessed that I have not got the well developed ear that some of you have. In my 30 years of playing I have never put on a new set of strings and thought ‘WOW - they are much better than the set that I’ve just taken off were when I put them on’. It must have saved me a fortune over the years. And to be honest, if my guitar playing sounded lousy an hour after putting a new set of string on it, I’d be far more likely to blame my own lack of ability than the strings. I’ll need to remember that one! I’d be interested to know if any of you have carried out any kind of blind test on the strings you use. And what is the impact of the cost? More expensive brand name pain relief medication is known to be more effective than identical but cheaper generic medication due to the increased expectation in the user. Could that be happening here? If taste in sound is subjective (and surely it is), you would expect some people to prefer the sound made by cheaper strings. Are they out there and keeping quiet? In the meantime - I think I’ll stick to my £6 D’Addarios.


Catman
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Sun Jan 10, 2010 8:24 am

Sir? Are you calling me a consumer?

My seconds will be calling on you.


waggis
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Sun Jan 10, 2010 11:34 am

I guess the one question you should ask yourself is whether you are happy with the tone of your strings.

Concerning price, I buy my strings on EBay at a lower cost than I find in the shops (in Switzerland everything is more expensive) and recently bought 3 sets of Elixir Nano custom light for $33. You might be able to find them even cheaper if you look around.

Adding to the washing of hands tip, I wipe my strings and guitar with a clean soft dry cloth after each session. Removing the perspiration and dead skin might help add to the life of the strings.


wrench
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Sun Jan 10, 2010 12:04 pm

reiver wrote:
I find this discussion very interesting, but more from a psychological standpoint than a musical one. And I have to say that I feel blessed that I have not got the well developed ear that some of you have. In my 30 years of playing I have never put on a new set of strings and thought ‘WOW - they are much better than the set that I’ve just taken off were when I put them on’. It must have saved me a fortune over the years. And to be honest, if my guitar playing sounded lousy an hour after putting a new set of string on it, I’d be far more likely to blame my own lack of ability than the strings. I’ll need to remember that one! I’d be interested to know if any of you have carried out any kind of blind test on the strings you use. And what is the impact of the cost? More expensive brand name pain relief medication is known to be more effective than identical but cheaper generic medication due to the increased expectation in the user. Could that be happening here? If taste in sound is subjective (and surely it is), you would expect some people to prefer the sound made by cheaper strings. Are they out there and keeping quiet? In the meantime - I think I’ll stick to my £6 D’Addarios.
I think some science might serve this discussion well. I have a set of D'Addario EXP11's with about 60 hours playing on them, and I expect they will deaden up soon. In contrast to reiver's comment regarding the difference between old and new strings, I think my strings go dead dramatically and quickly; and new strings are dramatically brighter to me. So in the interest of science here, when my current strings go dead (at least when I think they go dead), I will record an audio sample on Audacity, then record the new strings and do some analysis on the recordings. Reiver, does £6 get you EXP's or EJ's in England?

Life expectancy and cost notwithstanding, does your favorite sounding strings happen to be coated or uncoated?

Me - uncoated. D'Addario EJ16 80/20 Medium


reiver
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Sun Jan 10, 2010 12:24 pm

wrench wrote:

I think some science might serve this discussion well. I have a set of D'Addario EXP11's with about 60 hours playing on them, and I expect they will deaden up soon. In contrast to reiver's comment regarding the difference between old and new strings, I think my strings go dead dramatically and quickly; and new strings are dramatically brighter to me. So in the interest of science here, when my current strings go dead (at least when I think they go dead), I will record an audio sample on Audacity, then record the new strings and do some analysis on the recordings. Reiver, does £6 get you EXP's or EJ's in England?

Life expectancy and cost notwithstanding, does your favorite sounding strings happen to be coated or uncoated?

Me - uncoated. D'Addario EJ16 80/20 Medium
This recording will, I assume give predictable results. I'm sure the new strings will sound better My interest was in comparison of sets of new strings of different types. Brian Swerdfeger, VP of Taylor suggests this......
[paraphrasing] buy 4 or 5 different types of string and record your guitar with each set since we have poor audio memory.......you might be surprised to learn that you thought you liked a certain type of strings but after listening back realize you like a different set more.

I use EJ26 Custom Light or EJ16 Light.


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