Elixir Electric Strings.. opinons

[JcKerr]

Hey... when i got home sunday night, gone all weekend, i picked up my electric and my bottom 3 strings were rusted... crap... i tried to clean them... it's the first time i hadn't touched the guitar for a few days since i put the strings on...

 

i have an alvarez acoustic that came with nanowebs and i tried every other brand of strings on it but it never sounded as good as when it had the elixirs on it... so i went out and bought a set of them and it sounds perfect again...

 

my question is what are your opinons on elixer electric strings... i use either DR or Ernie ball string on my electrics... how do they compare and how long do they last, are they worth it or should i just keep with conventional strings... thanks for your opinoins!!

[JcKerr]

no one cares?

[jjpistols]

I hate 'em.

 

Strings are cheap, and changing them is not a chore - I enjoy spending the time tweaking my guitars, though.

 

I've had good luck with the free set of ClearTones I got to try, seems they'll last as long as Elixers, and sound/feel better to me by far. $15 a pop, though. If you really hate changing strings, I guess they make sense.

 

I'll stick with regular cheapies for now.

[JcKerr]

I don't mind changing strings at all i like doing it, but i just wondered if elixir's sounded better.... like on the acoustic

[jjpistols]

To me, they sound pre-deadened.

[ddlingling]

i hate elixirs on acoustic. sure they last a long time. but they sound only half decent for a long time. i'd rather have good strings that die fast but sound great for a little while. i dont mind changing strings.

[ddlingling]

and i'm a primary acoustic player btw.

[social]

I could never get into elixers. They just feel and sound all wrong to me. Then again, I don't have the ubercorrosive hand sweating going on. As it happens, Elixirs are the only strings I have outright not liked. Some brands I like more than others, but any will do in a pinch no problem, except elixirs.

[JcKerr]

I'm not an elixir fan either... i tried everything else on the acoustic and they all sounded dead.... martin diadaro eb etc.... elixir just sounds so much more alive on this alvarez... it must be why it came with them on it... it was wierd because i've always thought that elixirs sounded dead but on this acoustic it's like night and day with and without them

[NiceAlex]

I like Elixirs... I have them on my acoustic and electric and they're just fine. If you like them, use them.... if you dont, look around for something else.

[vmanmurph]

Many years ago I was put on a list to try out Elixer strings in the prototype phase. The first set I tried was lousy. The latex material just peeled off the string. A few months later they set me another set. They had obviously worked out the bugs. I think they are a great string, but I couldn't justify the cost. I tell people this. If you are a casual player (3 -4 times a year) I would go with the Elixers. If you play all the time just use a regular set. The cost evens itself out anyway. The latex part is only on the wound strings. Plain strings go bad too. Frank

[KoaFreak]

The tone of Elixirs is dead to me, and without tone, who cares how long they last? This is espeically important on an acoustic. Mine came with Elixirs, sure they lasted over a year (don't play that one as much), but the tone was never very good, so blah.

[espgold]

I use elixirs on all my guitars now. I also have an Alvarez acoustic/ electric that I use live and it sounds brilliant. Always get asked about that guitar after a show. How much of that is the strings? I don't know, but it certainly is not lacking tone-wise.

 

On electric, I used to use GHS Nickel Rockers so I like a smooth feel. The elixirs deliver that and last longer.

 

I still think I'm saving cash buying elixirs because they only cost twice as much, but they last four times as long(for me).

 

I can see how someone would not like them, though, if they just didn't care for the feel. And I agree that phosphor bronze sounds a bit livlier when first put on, but they start downhill like five minutes later.

[Maxx61]

Despite their claims, they're about as good for me as a room full of rocking chairs are to a long-tailed dog.

I can never get 'em to last more than two weeks without feeling like a $6/set.

[solitaire]

 

Originally posted by KoaFreak The tone of Elixirs is dead to me, and without tone, who cares how long they last? This is espeically important on an acoustic. Mine came with Elixirs, sure they lasted over a year (don't play that one as much), but the tone was never very good, so blah.

 

I agree fully. Personaly I love DMS strings their Alchemy acoustic line last forever and their BlueSteels last surprisingly long. I read somewhere their uncoated (shell coating, not polymeers) strings are treated with tarnishing protection, and bearing in mind the sub zero strings are hardened they don't tarnish too soon because of that. Rock on, why settle for less?