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Post by John on Jan 3, 2007 5:35:42 GMT -7
Do you really need to change the non-wound steel strings of an acoustic guitar?
I change my strings often, and I don't bend or break them on the acoustic. But I can tell the wound strings have lost their brilliance, but the non wounds have not. What the heck, do I really need to change them every time?
Does anyone else skip a few changes?
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Post by zdogma on Jan 3, 2007 6:11:18 GMT -7
I don't think ther's any reason you couldn't, but it wouldn't work for me, I find my unwound strings get all corroded from sweat. They feel rough and the intonation goes way off.
I have switched to the elixir nanowebs, they last me 3-4 months (the unwound strings have a corrosion inhibitor, also). They are a bit slippery, but really keep that fresh sound. I used martin SP's before that, the sound was excellent when new, but they only last about a month.
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Post by mudskipper on Jan 3, 2007 7:13:20 GMT -7
if you are just playing open chords, you might get away with it. but as you press on the plain strings, you are creasing the strings (this on top of strings being stretched all the time), so your intonation and tuning will go out the door at some point. it also depends on your touch. i just change them all every time. i have a set of Elixir on my Baby Taylor and they seem to stay "brighter" than other for a longer period of time, partly because they don't start out as bright as non-coated strings. so you'd never get that bright snap and sustain when you put them on but the strings don't go completely dull as quickly as other strings, either.
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Post by John on Jan 3, 2007 11:39:10 GMT -7
I don't understand why intonation for a plain string would be different for a new or old string. I wouldn't keep the plain strings for a long time, just every change or two...or three. Heck, I change my strings so often anyway. I change them because the wound strings loose their brightness.
Musicians Friend has a special....there own brand of acoustic strings. Of course, they don't make them, they just buy them from a manuf. and slap their name on them. But for $2 a set...it was worth a try. I don't play acoustic enough to have zeroed in a particular brand. I got a resonator on Ebay for $100!, so I'm having fun with it. I'd never let a set go more than two to three weeks.
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Post by Hohn on Jan 5, 2007 13:00:14 GMT -7
Intonation changes because the strings lose their elasticity. Remember, a string doesn't just vibrate back and forth-- it also has waves that travel up on down the string.
jh
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Post by mudskipper on Jan 5, 2007 13:27:12 GMT -7
Intonation changes because the strings lose their elasticity. Remember, a string doesn't just vibrate back and forth-- it also has waves that travel up on down the string. jh intonation can change because strings are no longer straight. by playing your guitar, you are pressing on strings at various fret positions and strings get creased or dented (i know there is a better adjective for this). you can feel these bumps/crease/dents if you run your fingers under the plain strings over the fretboard. this, of course, happens with the wound strings, too, btw. another way to throw off intonation is to take the strings off (off the tuners, too) and immediately put them back on and retune. people do this all the time when they are changing pickups, etc.... the strings will twist and won't intonate (or vibrate) the way they should (or did) like before.
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Post by JebusCrebus on Jan 6, 2007 15:21:51 GMT -7
Gtrman3 what is your motivation not to change them, time, money ?? If you buy complete sets all the time you'll end up with tons of unwound strings, what would you do with them? It doesn't take that much more time to do 3 more strings. If you just buy singles for the wounds I don't think your gonna save any money, so whats the point? If you settle on a brand then you can buy a box at a time and start to save some coin, but the MF $2.00 a set "brand" sounds like something I wouldn't be interested in at all! To my ears nothing beats a new set of strings on my Acoustic, a new full set that is. [glow=limegreen,2,300]-J-[/glow]
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