Guitar Strings...

[Sebaztian]

I always wonder why everytime i use guitar strings made by other companies apart from D'Addario, it will tend to break easily... All of them have the same specs, have undergone some serious beat ups by my fingers and I found that D'Addario last longer than most of them.. Ernie ball strings are one of the worse in terms of such situation imo.. Is it just me or do you guys experience this as well?

 

[xpresso]

Been using Ernie Ball for a long long time. My strings only break once in every blue moon.
I change it every 2-3 months. I bend my strings alot too.

I suppose you play really hard. If that's so, changing to a heavier gauge might help.
Other possibilities to string breaking might be the way you string your guitar or a sharp edge on your guitar saddle or nut.

 

[predz23]

out of curiosity. what other brands have you been using?

 

[EugeneSmasher]

I'm a regular user of both Ernie Ball and D'addario strings, and personally I prefer Ernie Balls. I wipe my strings very regularly so my strings always last very long.

I've also used Dean Markleys, Everlys (excellent, but a little pricey) and GHS. The only brand I've had bad experiences with was GHS, and set after set, they disappointed me further and further... Tone not good, strings break while guitar's stored in the case, etc.

 

[dodgethis]

When wiping down your strings, be sure to not leave out the bottom as that's where most of the stuff your hands makes tend to accumulate to.

I go one step further by using rubbing alcohol to clean them once every few days. You will be surprised at the black/brown line that appears after one pass, though the brown is more of oxidasation being removed.

 

[relinquish69]

have you been buying strings from the same place? if so have you checked the strings for any form of rust before stringing it on your guitar? sometimes, new strings can have rust on them hence affecting their durability.

by the way just out of curiosity, how often do they snap? which string in particular? or different strings every time?

 

[mockingbird]

Hi there,

I've been using Ernie Ball Power Slinky and Dean Markley Blue Steel (both .11 gauges) and I do lots and lots of bends, but am yet to break one. The only time they break is when I leave a particular guitar out, (sometimes I don't touch a particular guitar for months) and then the strings get all rusty. That's when I bend them deliberately to get them to snap.

If your string keeps snapping (and they aren't rusty), there might possibly be a problem with your saddle or guitar nut. Look around these areas for sharp edges, which could lead to the rubbing of your string against it, causing the string to slowly wear off, and snapping eventually.

 

[Sebaztian]

Xpresso - yeah man.. I suppose I do play real hard.. Lots of people commented that to me.. Maybe I check the saddle and the nut and see if there's any sharp edges around..

Predz23 - I've used mostly Ernie ball, GHS, Dean Markley's before. None of them have a life expectancy as the D'Addario's for my guitar. I remembered using ernie ball before. The tone was ok to me, but after a week of using, the first string snapped. So i tend to avoid ernie ball from then onwards..

Dodgethis - I didnt know about the alcohol thingy.. Maybe I should try it out for myself..

Relinquish69 - No, have not bought strings from the same place. Usually when I need a set of strings, I'd go to the nearest guitar shop that sells the brand that I want and get it. Normally, the strings that is usually broken easily are from the first 3 strings ( the first 3 thinnest strings). How often they snap? It can be as easily as between 2 weeks to a month for me..

Maybe i'll try to check the saddle and the nut first and see if there are any sharp edges and so on.. Thanks for the tip bros

 

[relinquish69]

Relinquish69 - No, have not bought strings from the same place. Usually when I need a set of strings, I'd go to the nearest guitar shop that sells the brand that I want and get it. Normally, the strings that is usually broken easily are from the first 3 strings ( the first 3 thinnest strings). How often they snap? It can be as easily as between 2 weeks to a month for me..

that is pretty fast! I have this experience while tuning a guitar after capo-ing it (it is not going to be 100% in tune if a guitar is capo-ed) and snapping the 4th string. Only goes to show how tight the capo really is haha!

anyway, focus on where the string snaps, front or back. if neither, you could start checking your frets.

 

[theunknown]

Wow i played with many string brands and none have snapped before! After months! (I'm lazy to restring. hehe)

 

[Sebaztian]

Relinquish69, I think you're right. I found out that my frets are worn out and dented on some parts. Maybe it could be that.. Oh man.. the thought of the cost of refretting makes me drop my jaw...

 

[predz23]

Relinquish69, I think you're right. I found out that my frets are worn out and dented on some parts. Maybe it could be that.. Oh man.. the thought of the cost of refretting makes me drop my jaw...

You can just get the frets leveled instead of refretted. Or just get the problem frets leveled and leave the rest alone

 

[relinquish69]

You can just get the frets leveled instead of refretted. Or just get the problem frets leveled and leave the rest alone

I think what you meant is having the problematic frets smoothed out because you'd have to level the entire guitar after smoothing out those frets. fret leveling is definitely a cheaper alternative compared to refretting.

Of course if your frets really can't be saved, refret.

 

[Sebaztian]

You can just get the frets leveled instead of refretted. Or just get the problem frets leveled and leave the rest alone

Err.. I think I quite a lot of my frets are dented.. I think its time for me to either re-level it or re-fret it..

I heard some people say that re-levelling is actually more expensive in the long run coz, after about 2 years, then you have to still re-fret it coz you can't re-level it anymore..If you re-fret now, it will last at least 5 years or so.. Hmm... What do you guys think?

 

[naviros]

Depends on how heavily you play... or rough...

Also depends on the size of your frets.