Are your guitar string hunting days over?

[tapper mike]

Mine are. Even if someone comes out with a new end all be all I could care less.
I like what I like and forget the rest they are just a waste of time.

What about you?

[Deep Purple]

I care a lot less than I used to, but I think I take a little more care when choosing bass strings (not that I change them that often...)

[MadDogE134]

when blue steels came out i was pleased enough with them and quit 'looking around' but in the last couple of years i have been checking out some of the new technologies and materials just to see what is around these days. tbh i am not that impressed thus far and will probably just go back and stick with the blue steels... not sure if the freezing is/was a hype but after years of use i STILL think they are the brightest out of the pack to my ears and they certainly last longer imo than any other strings in quality of tonality. just my 2 cents

p.s. but i think a lot of 'lasting' lies in the person using them. not in how hard they are played but in the acidity levels in the skin oils of the user. salt/acid and tonality are NOT good bedfellows. cheers

[tapper mike]

When I got my first strat in the 80's The sales guy who was an ardent SRV fan couldn't recommend blue steels enough. I tried em and tuned my strat down a half step. It was great for raucous blues but it didn't last long for me. I had a thing for GHS boomers but honestly SIT's were close to the sound and cheaper. Then I got on the D'addario chain. Stuck with them forever. About 4 years ago I was looking for variety... It didn't go well. Went back to my tried and true.

[Bombadil]

More or less set. I'll use daddarios on my electrics, and Elixirs on my acoustics. I've just tried Pyramid flatwounds on my Gretsch, and am a bit ambivalent about them. The overall sound is a lot better focused than roundwounds, but I don't like the extra tension, even though the action is quite low. One good thing about the tension, though, is that there less intonation wobble up the neck. If I can't get used to them, I'll probably go back to roundwounds. My left hand started to tingle a bit, like the strings were causing carpal tunnel syndrome.

[Winstontaneous]

For electric guitar and bass guitar I usually use D'Addario XL roundwounds, nickel or steel depending on the tone I'm after. XL Nickels have a complex midrange that lasts even when the brightness is gone, and they're cheap as chips. For flatwound bass strings there's nothing quite like Thomastik-Infeld Jazz Flats (they have a silk winding between core and wrap that damps overtones), though I sometimes use D'Addario Chromes flats.

Ernie Ball, DR, Dean Markley and most GHS strings are fine, though IMO GHS Boomers just suck the tone right out of a bass...I would buy a set every once in a while just to see if it was me...nope, off they went into the recycling bin.

[Deep Purple]

I think I'm more concerned about getting a balanced set of strings for each guitar rather than worrying about brand, etc.

[Mister Natural]

I just get the cheapest ones I can find and don't think about it further

peace

[donkey tugger]

I just get the cheapest ones I can find and don't think about it further

peace

I did for years and years, but after that thread I started on the 'fancy' strings with all the claims about freeing/plating/rolled on the thighs of virgins under the light of a full moon etc, I decided to try some of the Elixir 'nanoweb' ones. Quite impressed to be fair- had them on the Variax for about three months and still sounding good, with no intonation problems. They cost about twice as much as 'normal' strings but seems to be worth it as they have lasted well, and I f**king despise the process of changing strings. Some people report them as being, 'slippery'; I haven't noticed to be honest, but given I miss the right strings/frets half the time anyhow I probably haven't noticed...

Got some on the acoustic now as well, so I'll see how they go.

[vurt]

ernie ball, super slinky.
no messing about, just what im used to

[BBFG#]

GHS Boomers Custom Lite for about 27 years now.

[Bombadil]

I have a Höfner Beatle bass, and I'm thinking of trying flatwounds on that. €45 a set. Probably wouldn't need to ever change them again in my lifetime. I see descriptions of flatwounds as 'mellow,' but the main strings on my Gretsch seem 'dull' to me in comparison to roundwounds. The funny thing is, they work perfectly together with the octave strings.

Elixir strings...I have a love/hate relationship with them. They detract from the sound of the guitar in some subtle, indefinable way, and it isn't just their brightness. I've tried other coated strings and hated them. My sweat tends to eat normal strings so that they're pretty much dead after a week of playing with them. So, the Elixirs are a compromise. Their prices jumped quite a bit over the last 2 years. I keep a lookout for the box of 3 sets that occasionally come around.

[justin3am]

Wait... there are different kinds?
I've always used Slinkys (neon green pack) on 6-strings and D'addario XLs (round) or Chromes (flat) on bass.

[jochicago]

I thought I didn't care until my last guitar purchase (acoustic).
It was used. I was playing it with the strings it came with 'cause I liked the sound. I knew I had to change the strings, then a friend wanted to hear it so I changed to new strings out of duty, and it felt like it lost 30% of the mojo of the sound. Now I wish I knew what strings were on before. Anyone knows a good string forensics lab?

[deastman]

I’m not a “real” guitarist, and I’ve only owned two electrics since 1987, so I haven’t compared and contrasted brands. The guys at the shop suggest Boomers 10’s, and that’s what I’ve always used. Seems to vibrate just fine.