What strings do you guys use?

[giovanni]

I use D’Addario 10s. I got a pack from stew max that’s gonna last me a lifetime.

I also use flat wounds 12s (or 13?) on my Reverend for a thicker jazz tone.

For folks who use flat wound: do you use these for everything or just a specific genre?

 

[Mentaltossflycoon]

Everything but I don't get anywhere close to metal or anything.

 

[Feral Feline]

Doh, I can't say "Everything" even though I'd liker to
I'm using roundwounds on one bass, bought Supernils on a whim, but I prefer Evah Pirazzi flats on all my other basses (kept breaking the Obligatos)...

I use EP solo set, "bumped" ie I tune them to regular pitch.

 

[CheapSuitG]

Stringjoy all around. Signature Balanced 10s on all the electrics not sure the gauge on the acoustic.

Tried one pack and within the hour ordered a dozen more. Love them, they sound great and coherent. Won’t go back to Ernie ball.

https://stringjoy.com/static/60e6a38bdb36738dfb0c3ad009a34575/3cd29/BAL_10_01_1268x1268_82a9fcfeae.webp

 

[lowpitch]

I prefer D'Addario XLs for their tone but since I mostly play custom sets made up of singles it gets kinda pricey with those. Ernie Balls singles are much more reasonably priced so that's what I've been playing mostly.

 

[finebyfine]

I use D’Addario 10s. I got a pack from stew max that’s gonna last me a lifetime.

I also use flat wounds 12s (or 13?) on my Reverend for a thicker jazz tone.

For folks who use flat wound: do you use these for everything or just a specific genre?

Everything but I don't get anywhere close to metal or anything.

I use flats for everything including doom metal. I wouldn’t use them for other genres of metal though. I got asked to join a punk band and might play rounds with it depending on the sound we're going for.

 

[bean]

XL or NYXL 11's for me. Anything less than 11s feels like mush after 10 years of using them. Also, a 3mm pick

 

[Guardians of the analog]

XL or NYXL 11's for me. Anything less than 11s feels like mush after 10 years of using them. Also, a 3mm pick

 

[Bricksnbeatles]

Depends on the guitar, but one of my favorite sets for standard tuning is a custom assembled flatwound set:
[9-12-17p-28-36-48]

sometimes I do D’addario chromes with D’addario plain steel, sometimes I do Curt Mangan stainless flats



For bass, I mostly do La Bella Deep Talkin’ Flats

 

[Noodles]

10’s. Pure Nickel wraps on wound strings. Pyramid or DR Pure Blues round core on P90/HB guitars. SIT hex core on single coil guitars.

Monel/NB/PB on acoustic. Mix of lights and mediums, round and hex core.

 

[pingpongcomputer]

NYXL 13-56 - C Standard tuning on my SG, after 15 years playing the upright bass they feel fine and keep good tension with the low tuning. My arms still look like twigs.
Thinking about trying flats. Any recommendations for something that maintains a bit of brightness?

 

[Gordo]

Slinkies for decades and then GHS Boomers for decades and then the store I repair at turned me onto NYXL's a while back and they're stoopid good.

Coated something or other for the acoustic to keep them bright. My sweat could dissolve tractor parts.

 

[drgonzo1969]

I had forgot about flat wounds... I have never tried them on guitar or bass because young dumb me dismissed them as jazz strings but I was curious about them after I saw someone on a rig rundown using them for something other than jazz. I am going to them a shot.

 

[finebyfine]

NYXL 13-56 - C Standard tuning on my SG, after 15 years playing the upright bass they feel fine and keep good tension with the low tuning. My arms still look like twigs.
Thinking about trying flats. Any recommendations for something that maintains a bit of brightness?

D'addario Chromes are the brightest flat wounds I've tried but some of the more expensive brands might be brighter - I haven't bothered to try because of how much I love chromes. I use the 11-50 set to tune to C# standard and that really helps compensate for the higher tension that flatwounds have. Chromes are bright enough that I would play pretty much everything except for some of the thrashier genres of metal and punk with them. I mostly play doom metal and psych rock and they're great for both for me.

IMO in your case it's probably worth checking a string gauge calculator to see what flat wound gauges would have similar tension to your 13-56 in C as the heaviest 13-56 set of chromes has higher tension than the 13-56 NYXL. It might be worth checking out the 7 string chrome set and just using the bottom 6 which would be 15-65.

 

[cdwillis]

I used to use those pure nickel EBs like GotA posted. They're good strings. I think they're a little warmer than a nickel wound steel string. They kind of sound broken in a little when they're fresh.

I've been using the regular 10-46 EB Slinkys forever now just because it's easier to buy them in bulk. I only have one guitar that's the typical 25.5" Fender scale length, the rest are either 24" or 24 3/4" scale. I use those same strings on all of them.

My only bass is a precision bass and it's got La Bella Deep Talkin Flats on it. I love the way they feel.

 

[drgonzo1969]

Anybody tried the ernie ball cobalt flatwounds? I love the normal ernie ball cobalts so I think the flatwounds might be a good staring point for me to try flatowunds out. This is probaly going to be a months long journey of trying out different strings. I haven't tried any coated strings since 2010 when I tried some elixirs out and didnt care for them much. hopefully some of these newer coated strings feel less plasticy.

 

[finebyfine]

Anybody tried the ernie ball cobalt flatwounds? I love the normal ernie ball cobalts so I think the flatwounds might be a good staring point for me to try flatowunds out. This is probaly going to be a months long journey of trying out different strings. I haven't tried any coated strings since 2010 when I tried some elixirs out and didnt care for them much. hopefully some of these newer coated strings feel less plasticy.

I have a set of the slinky flats that I've been meaning to try in my string stash. Their stainless flats weren't available when I bought those but they're what I would try now over the slinky flats. D'addario Chromes are $5 cheaper so they'd have to be insanely better than my favorite strings for me to switch over.

 

[pingpongcomputer]

D'addario Chromes are the brightest flat wounds I've tried but some of the more expensive brands might be brighter - I haven't bothered to try because of how much I love chromes. I use the 11-50 set to tune to C# standard and that really helps compensate for the higher tension that flatwounds have. Chromes are bright enough that I would play pretty much everything except for some of the thrashier genres of metal and punk with them. I mostly play doom metal and psych rock and they're great for both for me.

IMO in your case it's probably worth checking a string gauge calculator to see what flat wound gauges would have similar tension to your 13-56 in C as the heaviest 13-56 set of chromes has higher tension than the 13-56 NYXL. It might be worth checking out the 7 string chrome set and just using the bottom 6 which would be 15-65.

Thanks, I'm going to give the 12-52 set a try since they have higher tension that round wound. Since the 11's are working in C# the 12's should be plenty in C.

 

[Erik S]

Anybody tried the ernie ball cobalt flatwounds? I love the normal ernie ball cobalts so I think the flatwounds might be a good staring point for me to try flatowunds out. This is probaly going to be a months long journey of trying out different strings. I haven't tried any coated strings since 2010 when I tried some elixirs out and didnt care for them much. hopefully some of these newer coated strings feel less plasticy.

The elixirs come in three different coatings. I think I like the middle one in terms of thickness, but I always struggle to remember the silly names for the coatings.

One of my favorite things about the coated strings is that the wound strings don't squeak when I’m sliding around changing chords on acoustic. I also don’t change my strings until they’re awful, so coated helps there too.

I recently played a semi hollow at a music store with flat wounds on it and really liked it. I might seek some of those out for another non-squeaky option.

 

[swelchy]

This is the best strings I've consistently played...... I play Live a lot and not just a bedroom player... I used to be a super slinky or hybrid slinky fan but for the last ten years this is all that will go on all my guitars... Tension is perfect.. tuning is spot on and once they stretch in after first couple hours they are perfect until you decide they are getting grimmy...