General Music Chat

I have to say these are my favorites.. .10 on little E string.. they do seem slicker than most strings I've tried, and although I am a crappy chicken picker I still like to practice at it, and Slinky's make it easier..they really are slicker than other strings imo..

oh, and planetguy, if you are still collecting the "sleeves" labels, I can mail one to you.. the luminescent green Slinky cover that is..

I switched to Ernie Ball Hybrids with the slightly thicker bottom strings four or five years ago. Then to D'Addario in the same config - very happy with them. They sounded just enough better than Ernie Ball to justify switching.

Talbot

I use GHS Boomers, always have, made right here in Michigan.

Boomers 10-46 on all my electrics.

Dunlop .88 mm picks, the green ones.

Ha, I just tried those green Dunlops, can't use them. They don't wear out out like Fender heavies. I have an unusual picking style where I cut into the string with the pick; it wears them down and gets pick dust all over the guitar but it gives me the pinched harmonics, etc. The Dunlops don't give!

Dean Markley Blue Steel .009, light top heavy bottom if possible...when I can find 'em...otherwise, whatever is cheap. If I'm playing regular gigs, I change strings about every gig, most anything will do. It's hard to find stainless strings, like the Blue Steels, so just about any nickel string will work if I can't find any. .012 for slide and lap steel. .012 GHS Curt Mangham bronze for acoustic. I tried out the Ernie Ball Slinkys in the early 70's when they first came out, hated 'em. Went back to Fender and GHS until Dean Markley appeared. Stayed with those ever since.

I played .010 gauge religiously for many years until they started to make my wrist hurt, due to tendon injury as a kid, had to switch to .009. I still like .010 better but can't play them, the wrist and bad tendon get really sore after an hour or two.

Green and yellow Dunlops have been my picks of choice for electrics for 20 years, the orange and red thinner ones for acoustic. They just refuse to wear out, I have some that have been used for 15 years or more...I lose them, and wear the pointed end round, but they never break. Fenders don't last 15 minutes...I break those things like crazy. I have a couple of the really heavy purple Dunlops too, can't remember the thickness. The green ones are the ones I usually grab. I also have a stainless steel pick I use now and then. And a 8 sided Mexican coin...

I tried Ernie Slinkys, wasn't particularly impressed with them. Cleartone coated strings are great and last a long time, but too damn expensive.
Got some Fender Super Bullets for my next changes on the Tele and Strat-clone, used to use them all the time 'back in the day', not sure what the new ones are like.

On acoustic I have been using Martin Life Spans, the taylor came with Elixers, which I didn't care for when I tried them on my othe racoustics, will see how they hold up on this guitar.

Jimmy - you're the only other person I've heard that uses the Fender Heavy picks, that's what I've used for 35 years!

oh, and planetguy, if you are still collecting the "sleeves" labels, I can mail one to you.. the luminescent green Slinky cover that is..

hey dane....thanks i still need some more for my wallpaper for my music room.
so if you send me a note, i'll get you my snail address.

and that goes for the rest of you deadbeats as well!

the score so far...exactly ONE LABEL sent to me from BM members!!! and that from lynryd dylan!

I will send you a note shortly Mark, already in an envelope ready to ship..

D'Addario blues

Dunlop is all you ever need to try.
Slinkys are a decent second.

Forget the rest...

i'm not so particular about brand (tho i am partial to GHS, FENDER, D'ADDARIO).....but it MUST be pure nickel for both bass and gtr. love the warmth and feel.

w flatwounds on my jazz boxes and thinline tele (a sometimes jazz axe) i can handle steel or other "composites" but there too i prefer pure nickel.

mandolins....i use D'Addario flats on my solid body elec. and usually go w sets of D'Addario J74 or J75 on my acoustic mandos.

ah, so much talk of strings...and so little labels being sent to poor ol' planetguy.

Ironically? The two brands that I won't use are GHS and Dean Markley.
GHS - string breakage, seem to like corrosion.
Dean Markley - Stiffy and string breakage. (brittle?)

Everything else is fair game, although I do think if you tried Dunlop, you'd stick with them. No pure-nickel bass strings though.

Dean Markley and Dunlop have never let me down - I'm not a fan of the broken string experience, but some folks might be.

Errr... That is Ernie Ball, and Dunlop