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Strings for a jazz guitar


Freeman Keller

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Time to restring my new jazz archtop (laminated hollowbody). I put plain old 10 - 46 nickle electric guitar strings on it when I built it (EXP 110) but I'm not sure that they are the best. I know that the guy I built the 335 for changed to heavier flatwounds. I don't play it acoustically, it has humbuckers, I bend one full step at the most. I'm trying to learn those cool jazz chords with unpronounceable names.

 

Those of you with electric archtops, how do you string them?

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I'm not a real jazzer, but have a couple of Godin 5th Ave's.

 

One has DAddario Chromes on it

 

da_prod_ecg24_main_2.jpg81ndrIYqnqL._SL1500_.jpg

 

and one has these on it

 

 

 

 

If you want the warm plunky jazz tone, go with the flat wounds. Half the key to they jazz tone is where you strike the strings. You kind a what to be over the neck pup and not the bridge pup, like a rock blues guy would too.

 

 

 

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Why go up in gauge? Switch to flatwounds. Elixir Polywebs also have a warmer tone than normal strings.

 

But my advice isn't based on years of playing in a heroin-shooting, bass thumping, string popping, road traveling jazz band. I'm just a dude who likes to play with himself.

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I'm not a real jazzer, but have a couple of Godin 5th Ave's.

 

One has DAddario Chromes on it

 

da_prod_ecg24_main_2.jpg81ndrIYqnqL._SL1500_.jpg

 

and one has these on it

 

 

 

 

If you want the warm plunky jazz tone, go with the flat wounds. Half the key to they jazz tone is where you strike the strings. You kind a what to be over the neck pup and not the bridge pup, like a rock blues guy would too.

 

 

This is what I've been using (but flat wound). Not sure what I have on my Guild but they feel like 11's.

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11-50 is what I use on my LP (not for jazz, or rarely, though it pulls it off brilliantly), and bends are still easy. I actually prefer the set up like that, I prefer the resistance of 11-50 compared to 10-46.

 

I'm not going to claim the tone is bigger or anything, I just like the feel better. As for the G, a plain G sounds different and has a crisper attack than a wound G. I prefer it plain personaly.

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Thanks for all the good suggestions. My two local jazz players both use Tomastic flatwounds - one guy likes 12's on his ES-165 and 11's on the 335. They are spendy little puppies but he says they last forever. I'll be ordered a couple of sets today and I'll report back in a week or two.

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What gauge are you going to go with Freeman?

 

 

I found a set of 0.011 - 0.050 in a local store. They normally stock 12's but were out, but I think I'll stay with these for a while. Put them on last night, tweaked the compensation (would third) and played them about two hours.

 

I like them a lot. Many thanks to Gardo, BP, and Grant for the suggestion. T_e_l_e, you should try a set on the 335

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T_e_l_e, you should try a set on the 335

 

Nah... i play d'addario 0.10's on all my electric guitars for well over 10 years, i fear to change :D

 

it seems this company has a typical austrian faith, you need to be famous abroard before somebody here recognize you, and to be famous herre first you need to be dead, like Falco once said....

 

 

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