What do YOU find unique in string brands?

[Leo Chang]

fenders feel soft and daddarios feel hard in my opinion. especially 1-3 strings. too bad i cant get dr strings where i live. i would love to try them out

I buy them online sometimes when my local stores run out (they seem quite popular)

I have had good experiences with http://www.stringsandbeyond.com/
VERY fast shipping.

[demeyes]

I used d'addario for a while then changed to Ernir Ball and haven't looked back. I like how they feel and seem to keep their tone for a good while.

[wilkinsi]

... DR's turn my fingers black if I don't play the guitar everyday...

This happens to me every time I buy a new guitar. The shop keepers don't clean them thoroughly prior to purchase. No bull. I bought my Warrior 18 months ago, and kept the factory strings for 14. It takes ages to clean the soot(?) off the board with bog-standard guitar polish. I recently had the strings changed on my new Kelly and I still get black fingers. I don't think it makes any difference which brand of strings I use. I'm using Ernie Ball Super Slinky 9's on both guitars and only the Kelly puts the soot/black on my fingers. I chose the EB's because I wanted less tension on the strings, making bends easier. But I think it's really down to how the guitar is set up. I can play my Warrior a damn sight easier.

[gravol]

Has anyone tried the DR Pure nickel strings?
I want to try the DR´s but since I want a 012-052 set with a wounded G string the only set for me would be the Pure Blues PHR-12.
Gauges: 012-015-024w-032w-042w-052w

Would it be a big difference in durability, tension or tone compared to "normal" nickelwounded strings with steelcore?

[toejam]

Has anyone tried the DR Pure nickel strings?
I want to try the DR´s but since I want a 012-052 set with a wounded G string the only set for me would be the Pure Blues PHR-12.
Gauges: 012-015-024w-032w-042w-052w

Would it be a big difference in durability, tension or tone compared to "normal" nickelwounded strings with steelcore?

I've never played those, but I did try some Fender pure nickel strings on my Strat a couple times. They're a little warmer/darker sounding, and they're softer than steel strings, so they'll take a lot longer to wear down frets.

[Eric_kv2]

I'm using Thomastik Infeld Power Brights. They are a bit expensive depending where you get them but they have always lasted the longest out of any string I have ever used.

[guitarsjb]

Ernie Balls last me practically forever. Even when they need to be changed, they still have good tone and stay in tune (unless they're REALLY old, in which case I change them).

GHS makes a lot of the "name brand" strings - D'Addario, Dean Markley, etc - but Ernie Ball makes their own, and I use them on everything.

Dean Markley Blue Steels were great when they came out but they die quickly under casual use.

Regular Dean Markleys aren't much better.

D'Addario plain (1-3) strings feel square, and it takes forever to get them stretched.

GHS just plain blow. Never had a set I liked.

S.I.T.s do not stay in tune (made by GHS)

With EBs I don't HAVE to wipe down the strings when I'm done. While it may be part of "good housekeeping" to do so, you just don't have to do it with EB Slinkys.

Yep, EB slinkys all the way here. They've never let me down, last forever.

[skorb]

EB slinkys for me too, all the time.
I used to use Super Slinky's but when I started playing with my band regularly, I found the 9's bend too easy on some of the odd chords we use, so I went to 10's with great results.

[Robert Burns]

Heres what Ernie Balls did after an hour of playing! Dirty strings imo.
Since switching to DR "Extra Life" Coated string...(ruby red, jewel blue,
black) ive played for 9 weeks straight, and the tone is bright and punchy,
and my fretboard is about 10% as shadowed in the pic... compared to 1 hours play of
the EB's! At $10.50 a set, you might think the DR's are expensive..
but ill buy 1/3rd to 1/2 LESS sets in 2 years, which makes them a bargain!
Plus they are very smooth, and great for slippin and sliding on the fretboard. Coating does NOT come off! At this rate, i'll only need 3 sets
of DR's a year. Stays in tune great too on OFR. Im a DR man for life,
until i try some elixers. If their better? But i doubt it.

[evolutionised]

I buy them online sometimes when my local stores run out (they seem quite popular)

I have had good experiences with http://www.stringsandbeyond.com/
VERY fast shipping.

haha thanks leo. not worth net-shopping for strings imo. usually i can't wait for it even if it only takes a few days to arrive . prices are quite good on that site

and back to topic: daddarios claim they have an environmentally friendly package but it's got that brown plastic bag. dont know if its degradeable or not but it doesnt seem like it does. so it's not environmentally friendly afterall i guess. quite hilarious.

[Spivonious]

D'Addarios are my favorite right now. They seem to be a nice middle ground between the (IMO) tight-feeling DRs and loose-feeling EBs. Haven't tried any others.

[Dreamland_Rebel]

the main difference in string feel is the core wire. i. e. ghs "boomers" and DR "tite fit" have a round core wire. this gives the string a looser feel. less tention at pitch. it also gives it a slightly different sound. i personally think it makes them sound less muddy compared to standard hex core strings such as d'addario and dean markely.

[sysin]

I agree, although DR's turn my fingers black if I don't play the guitar everyday. All the rest are strings, excepting GHS boomers. On vintage trems I use Fender Bullets, then RPS Ernie Ball on others, DR's for guitars I want the strings to last for awhile. Martin Marquis on Martins. Adamas strings on Ovations and Pyramid Flatwounds on my Gretsch's and Pyramid Gold Flatwounds on my 12 string electrics. DR's on 6 string basses and Fender and Rotosound on 4 string basses. Gibson strings on my Mandolins. I could go on:ROTF:, but 9 times out of ten on electrics, I use Ernie Ball strings. I just have for years. I remember when Ernie first came out with the strings in the 60's, we used to go over to a bin and pick them out individually. Ah those were the days

So THAT's why my fingers are black! Never heard of DRs until now (living under rock i guess)...After getting my new ('89) Fusion Deluxe, I didn't bother adding new strings, and I noticed my fingertips were getting black. Must be DRs on there.

I've been a lifelong Fender 150XL guy. But based on all the pos feedback, I'm gonna try them.

[wilkinsi]

Some people stretch their strings before putting them on. Wouldn't that cause the crap stuck between the coils to fall out?

[toejam]

Some people stretch their strings before putting them on. Wouldn't that cause the crap stuck between the coils to fall out?

How do you stretch a string before putting it on?