Members baldbloke Posted November 17, 2011 Members Share Posted November 17, 2011 String squeak happens. We all do it. Even the very best players are not immune to it. I try to reduce squeaking as much as I can. Not enough though. I need to practice lifting, moving and landing fretting fingers cleanly. I hate the sound of squeaking strings. And I suspect I make more string squeaks than I am aware of. Sometimes though, when I hear a new, to me, tune being played on radio by professional and sometimes well known artists I simply can not believe the amount of string squeak I am hearing. I mean, obvious, loud and repeated squeak. So bad that it makes me cringe to listen to it. But then, as a hobby guitarist, I do tend to notice it more than perhaps the average casual listener. I heard a tune yesterday by an upcoming British folk musician. Their new single. The squeak was so bad I find it impossible to believe that a producer would let a record be released like that. But it was released. Maybe Joe public doesn't mind guitar string squeak. Maybe it's just guitarists that are concerned about it. Rant over. An interesting video on Precision Polished Strings: [video=youtube;vd0ohPGVm2U] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members fastblueheeler Posted November 18, 2011 Members Share Posted November 18, 2011 Noticeable difference. But I gotta say I'm sick of that tune now. It was like being on hold for customer service for 5 minutes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members knockwood Posted November 18, 2011 Members Share Posted November 18, 2011 In that particular vid, I found the string squeak infinitely less troublesome than the very heavy-handed eq - or maybe it was just really bad amplification. Dunno. In general, I really don't mind string squeak. I actually like it sometimes because it reminds me that I'm listening to a human. As in all things, I suppose a degree of management/moderation is key. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Folky_Grunge Posted November 18, 2011 Members Share Posted November 18, 2011 It works really well in some instances, but it usually sounds bad, especially when playing something that requires a lot of slides. Surprisingly, most people I've heard talk about string squeak say they like it, so who knows? In that video, the squeak was pretty annoying, though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members poppytater Posted November 18, 2011 Members Share Posted November 18, 2011 I've never tried coated strings. Are they quieter squeakwise? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members baldbloke Posted November 19, 2011 Author Members Share Posted November 19, 2011 I've never tried coated strings. Are they quieter squeakwise? For sure. I suspect the precision polished strings are very expensive. Try some Elixirs if you want to cut down string squeak. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Opa John Posted November 19, 2011 Members Share Posted November 19, 2011 I've never tried coated strings. Are they quieter squeakwise? Well, D'Addario EXPs are coated and I quit using them specifically because of their squeakiness! Can't tolerate 'em. I switched to Martin MSP4100s and I'm staying with 'em! (at about half the cost!) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members baldbloke Posted November 19, 2011 Author Members Share Posted November 19, 2011 Well, D'Addario EXPs are coated and I quit using them specifically because of their squeakiness! Can't tolerate 'em. I switched to Martin MSP4100s and I'm staying with 'em! (at about half the cost!) True. I've used D'addarios and found them a bit squeaky. Elixirs though are quieter, squeakwise, than any other string I've tried. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Freeman Keller Posted November 21, 2011 Members Share Posted November 21, 2011 I've never tried coated strings. Are they quieter squeakwise? Back when I did the great string test one of the parts was a slide from the 2nd to 7th fret of the 4th string (I find that one pretty common is bluesy songs). In general the heavier the coating the less squeek, but you really have to listen to each. For example, a Polyweb has less squeek than a Nano, which has less than an uncoated string. Also there are some long life strings that are not coated, typically they are as squeeky as a "normal" string. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members garthman Posted November 22, 2011 Members Share Posted November 22, 2011 D'Addario "Flat Tops" http://store.daddario.com/category/145813/EFT16_Light_12-53 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members acousticdepot Posted November 22, 2011 Members Share Posted November 22, 2011 I've never tried coated strings. Are they quieter squeakwise? I find elixir nanos less squeaky ... but not totally un-squeaky. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Hudman Posted November 23, 2011 Members Share Posted November 23, 2011 Guitar strings squeak - coated or uncoated - there is no getting around it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members sixgunner455 Posted November 23, 2011 Members Share Posted November 23, 2011 People don't like that sound? Really? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members dparr Posted November 23, 2011 Members Share Posted November 23, 2011 Guitar strings squeak - coated or uncoated - there is no getting around it. If the strings don't squeak, the music won't speak. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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