String gauge used by most of the players

[abstamaria]

Thanks, Jim.

What brand is the thin-gauge set, with a wound G, you have on your Strat? I have a spare Strat I might just string light for non-early-Shadows.

I thought that the shift by the Shadows to Burns heralded the switch to thinner gauge, too. No true then? I know little about Burns guitars. I'm thinking of buying one, but don't like the look!

Andy

[JimN]

Thanks, Jim.

What brand is the thin-gauge set, with a wound G, you have on your Strat? I have a spare Strat I might just string light for non-early-Shadows.

La Bella do a nice 10-46 set with a wrapped G. Cheap too.

I thought that the shift by the Shadows to Burns heralded the switch to thinner gauge, too. No true then? I know little about Burns guitars. I'm thinking of buying one, but don't like the look!

No, they continued to use medium gauge (Gibson Sonomatic 13-56 is a known example) for around four or five years.

JN

[abstamaria]

Many thanks, Jim. That is good to know.

Andy

[abstamaria]

Not wishing to foreclose the subject, but simply passing on information.

I was going through my email and found a note from ProGuitarShop on “five Tone Tips.” On string gauge, they say (emphasis mine):

“The first and, hopefully, most obvious way to improve your tone is to simply change your strings. A new set of your old favorites will always restore the clean, bright snap to your guitar’s tonal palette, but maybe it’s time to reconsider the effect the gauge and composition of your strings has on your sound. WHEN IT COMES TO GAUGE, THE SIMPLE RULE IS: HEAVIER STRINGS SOUND BETTER. Yes, it takes a little more muscle to fret and bend a heavier string and your fingertips will probably feel the difference. But while your hands build up to the task, the added mass of a heavier string will move more air, and alter the magnetic field of your pickups with much more force and definition, creating more and better sound.”

The article also recommends nickel for a vintage sound. Here’s the link, if you’re interested in the other four tone tips.

http://proguitarshop.com/andyscorner/5-easy-tone-tips

Best,

Andy

[John Boyd]

My current strings are Gibson L-5, 11-52. They're supposedly close to the Gibson Sonomatics I used as a youth in the 60's.
Cheers.
JB

[JimN]

My current strings are Gibson L-5, 11-52. They're supposedly close to the Gibson Sonomatics I used as a youth in the 60's.
Cheers.
JB

Gibson Sonomatic strings were medium gauge and were sized:

13p / 17p / 26w / 36w / 46w / 56w.

There are are still several makers offering string sets available in that original medium gauge, though many have bastardised the term by referring to 11-50 (or even, scarcely believably, 10-46) as "medium gauge".

In the second half of the 1960s (but definitely not in the early sixties), Gibson offered a set at 11-52 with (incredibly) a 12 thou second. They called this "Gibson Sonomatic Light Gauge." Note that they called them "light", even though they started with an 11. That was correct nomenclature at the time and in my submission, it is still correct today.

To my knowledge, Gibson do not currently offer anything called Sonomatic strings. They have changed the "model" name to L5, and "L5" strings are available in a variety of gauges from extra light to near-medium. However, the nearest to Sonomatics that Gibson now offer is the L5 set which runs in at 12/16/25w/34/44/56 (not the same as Sonomatics - only the bottom E string is the "correct" size).

JN

[geoff1711]

I used to play Ernie Ball light top (10) heavy bottom, but I've been on 10 - 46 for quite a few years now either Ernie Ball, Fender or D'Addario, so I guess I'm a whimp!!

Geoff

[RayL]

Hi Jim

If 13 - 56 is 'Medium' , what would be 'Heavy Guage' ? Would you actually use, say, 16 - 60 on a standard guitar or would Heavy Guage be classed as strings used for Baritone guitars (C- C, A - A, etc)?

Ray

[grayn]

Elixer 10-46.

I like the expressiveness of the lighter string. And they still give me plenty of tone.

[JimN]

Hi Jim

If 13 - 56 is 'Medium' , what would be 'Heavy Guage' ? Would you actually use, say, 16 - 60 on a standard guitar or would Heavy Guage be classed as strings used for Baritone guitars (C- C, A - A, etc)?

Ray

Hi, Ray,

Heavy gauge strings are certainly known, but are not often seen these days. Freddie Green (rhythm guitarist with the Count Basie Orchestra) was renowned for using a set which measured about 14-60 http://www.freddiegreen.org/instruments/setup.html. As it happens, I have a set of 14-56 on my Gibson ES175 (ex-Brian Dandridge).

There are players who use a 16 thou string (or even an 18) for high E (with 60 thou or more for the bottom E). http://www.professorstring.com/archives/thick_gauge_strings_partI.php

Sets like 11-50 (classic light gauge strings, always sold as such until the 1970s) can only be considered medium gauge if that term is so qualified as to make it effectively meaningless (eg, "medium in terms of what a typical shop might stock"). Heck, 11-50 is probably heavy if your terms of reference are what you might find at a typical pub rock jam session... Context is everything, and I prefer to use a wide context.

"Heavy" also has to be judged in terms of the tuning. 13-56 would be exceptionally light on a baritone guitar, but for EADGBE on typical guitar scale, it's medium. The same string can be light, medium or heavy depending on what it's being used for!

JN

PS: The craziness of some "modern" thinking on guitar string gauges is well illustrated by this eBay offering of "heavy gauge strings" sized: 010, 013, 017, 030, 042, 052 (!).

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/REGULAR-HEAVY-GAUGE-electric-guitar-strings-10-52-/300277894796

Perhaps the company selling them is well-named.