HELP NEEDED: Acoustic Guitar Strings Article

We're interested in publishing an article about guitar strings on our blog. We had a writer start on the article, but it's not quite what we had in mind.

We like the way it's broken up by different string types (could use some fact checking), but the recommendation for a specific type of string in each of those sections is a little light on helpful details about why a particular brand of string is worth trying. It doesn't have to be those specific strings, we'd just like to provide readers with a good recommendation (mini review) for each category.

Would any of you guitarists be interested in helping us improve the article?

Here's the article in its current state:

Buying strings for an acoustic guitar can be a daunting task, especially for someone who might not know what they’re looking for.

While it’s important to experiment a little to find the feel and sound that you like best, it can help to have a vague idea of how to achieve different sounds in the first place. That’s why we’ve put together a guide on how to choose which guitar strings to buy.

String Material

Bronze

Bronze strings are clear and bright and ring for a long period of time. The bright tone lends itself well to a wide variety of music styles, however in situations where the guitar needs to cut through the music and be heavily featured, bronze strings will be well suited. While they sound great, however, bronze strings need to be replaced more often because they oxidize quicker than other strings. A good example of bronze strings is Elixer’s Nanoweb 80/20 Bronze strings.

Phosphor Bronze

Phosphor bronze strings are quite a bit darker and warmer than bronze strings, however they still feature a crisp bronze sound compared to other acoustic guitar strings. Not only that, but they are longer lasting than straight bronze strings because of the inclusion of phosphor. All major string makers make phosphor bronze strings, however a great example is Martin’s SP series.

Brass

Brass strings have a sound that some would describe as “jangly,” as they are quite bright and metallic. This makes them perfect for things like country and in situations where the guitarists may use a slide. Brass guitar strings are a little less common than other types, however a good example of some are made by Yamaha and are branded as being for folk music.

Nylon

Nylon strings have a much more mellow tone with a lot less sustain compared to other strings, and they are used most often in classical music and songs in which a softer sound is required. A word of warning, however, you cannot simply decide on nylon strings – classical guitars are built specifically to use nylon strings, and using nylon strings on a guitar not made for them – and vice versa – could do significant damage to the guitar. If, however, you do own a classical guitar, and good example of nylon strings would be D’Addario’s Pro Arte series.

Gauge

While string gauge won’t have as much of an effect on sound as string material, it will have an effect on your playing, which will affect sound. Thicker strings are simply harder to press down, making them hard to play. Those that use thicker strings will generally get callouses thicker and faster, and these strings are a lot harder to bend. They are, however, louder and offer more sustain. Lighter strings are easier to play and bend, however they do not offer as much sustain. String gauges start at around 0.010 inches for the top string, and go to 0.059 inches for the bottom string. A light set of strings will include strings between 0.011 to 0.052, while a heavy set will include strings between 0.014 and 0.059.

Conclusions

Between string gauges and the materials there is a wide range of sounds that can be achieved on any acoustic guitar. The right set of strings can make even a cheap old guitar sound half decent, so make sure to experiment and find that perfect set of strings for your guitar.

I'll do it if you can give me a week to pull it together. There's a lot left out here like 80/20s and such... also there's no discussion of application. I use different trings for recording than I do for open mics for instance, not only material but also gauge. Light strings record well and sit in the mix for tracks with lots of arrangements, but when the guitar is solo most of the time there is bandwidth for heavier stings and a needfor a stronger fundamental that heavies provide. Also, Brass is great in light gauge to maximize jangle where you want the acoustic guitar to do double duties as a shaker like in an early Bowie track, whereas Bronze or Phosphor Bronze is sweet with heavy gauge for a round, bluesy tone when you just have guitar and vocal. Mating a body size to a string gauge/formulation and microphone/preamplifier is an art in itself. If a guitar has a pickup in it, the type of pickup influences my choice of strings too. Piezos like Bronze strings, at least to my ear, while a magnetic pickup like Kurt Cobain's Nirvana Unplugged Martin or Lennon and Harrison's P90 equipped Gibson Jumbos would do better with 80/20s to get more sparkle out of the magnetic pickup.

Also, while you can string a Martin with Nylons (though only Willie Nelson makes this sound good), you will ruin a guitar designed for Nylons if you put metal strings on it....

That's actually a pretty good article! But as an acoustic guitar player myself it does leave me wanting a little more. Here are my notes:

"Buying strings for an acoustic guitar can be a daunting task, especially for someone who might not know what they’re looking for." --> It's hard for everyone bc there are so many different types and brands!

"A good example of bronze strings is Elixer’s Nanoweb 80/20 Bronze strings." --> What is 80/20 exactly? Id love to know

"but they are longer lasting than straight bronze strings because of the inclusion of phosphor." --> Whats phosphor, and what does it do? Maybe a little more detail there?

"...and good example of nylon strings would be D’Addario’s Pro Arte series" --> Hmm, again, why?

"While string gauge won’t have as much of an effect on sound as string material, it will have an effect on your playing, which will affect sound." --> Bit of a weird sentence...

Hope this helps

I feel Jimmi is a trustworthy source for this.

Thanks, man! I can't promise that it'll be a definitive article, but I can cover more bases than the article has so far and fill in some real-life applications for every string type so guys walking into the big box guitar store will have an idea what they are looking for. I will also talk about coated strings like Elixers.