Heavier Gauge Strings Are Better and Here's Why.

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[RobertBakerGuitar]

There's an Original Metal song at the end of the video for anyone who wants to hear it :)

[TheThorMalleuson]

Use what you like. I used 9's for years, switched to 10's, now use 8's. Some people like hoppy beers, others like whiskey. You be you.

[schecterseven]

Sometimes, I think the guitar wants to choose the string gauge.

[justinpaquette]

I'm a heavy handed guitarist, so I did the opposite. About a year ago I went from 10s to 9s to force me to get my shit together, its actually really helped me improve my technique

[potatoheadhaoy]

For me, it's mostly down to right hand stability. I pick pretty aggressively, and I use a small pick. In that context, I prefer 11s because they don't give quite as much as 10s or 9s, and it seems like that actually helps with my picking; lighter gauges are too "squishy" for me to play quick alternate picking runs with precision. I would actually recommend 11s if you seem to have trouble with picking, or prefer to play aggressively.

[rjeff]

I love the combination of the 10-52’s. I tend to be heavy on low side and lighter on high side and it makes hammer ons and pull offs easier for me also.

[GreenJeep]

I was going to go all 'BB King told Billy Gibbons; why you tryin' so hard with heavy strings?' deal but there is a good point here. I went from 9's to 10's a few years ago and still can get a little sharp. I am a 'dig in' player. I had been a dyed in the wool 9's since the 80's, but 80's stuff wasn't very strummy so you didn't really notice. Now I'm playing much more 'openly' and boy do I notice even on the 10's. You may have convinced me to try 11's. Callouses, take the

[JoseHenrique-xglp]

"Why work so hard?" - BB King to Billy Gibbons.

[swissarmyknight]

You have to find the right strings for your playing. Hendrix, Kim Thayil, and Tony Iommi are all really light touch players so they use thinner gauge strings. Angus Young and David Gilmour are more medium gauge players. SRV and Malcolm Young are heavy handed and play unusually heavy strings. Personally I'm a touch heavier handed on the bass strings and regular on the treble strings, so I play a lite top heavy bottom set. It does change the relative output of the various strings though, with the heavier ones being louder than they normally would. A word of caution: heavier strings when tuning down can produce a lot of excess low end that your amp or the engineer may not react well to. I use an EQ or something with a hi-pass filter to lop off that extra bottom before it hits the amp.

[chipmcdip]

I said it yesterday Robert...I want a BLACK SABBATH VIDEO!!!!

[ExplicableCashew]

With heavy gauge strings it's also a lot harder to accidentally fret a note out of tune by pressing too hard. I feel that with thick strings, I get more consistent notes and less fret buzz too because they "flop" much less as well. But bending is still a bit of a nightmare for me. Especially since I switched to flatwounds where the G is always wound. But for riffing and chords 11s are perfect, even on a 25.5" neck

[rangerdoc]

As my arthritis gets worse, I go lighter & lighter. It's really improved my technique. It's so easy to just bang away on heavy strings. I went back to 9s, then 8s & I let my amp do the work now. But if I get really excited and into it, yeah... I'll throw it sharp. Just gotta reel it back in. It's a lot easier as you get old and don't want guitar to be work anymore.

[oldgoldtopgoldtop]

I am more blues based and have long preferred using 12s and 13s. Usually 12 in standard and 13 when tuned down a half step but can vary. They sound thicker to my ears but what I really like is the "push back" I feel when playing and bending. I get a more of emotional connection especially in the blues styles of music I enjoy.

[orbithesun]

A set of eleven gauge strings on a Gibson ES or Les Paul is equivalent to having a set of ten gauge strings on a Fender Strat or Tele. This is due to the shorter scale length (24.75) on Gibson guitars.

[aaronworld]

I’m glad you brought up straight facts rather than saying something that’s more opinionated and can change depending on the persons ears

[mirokumarc]

11’s transformed my Les Paul, after years of strats on 10’s it felt like home again

[fearnpol]

Bryans Adams said most of this back in the 90ś about why him and the other guitarist in his band used 12ś. They just kept breaking strings and went up gauges until they stopped breaking them.

[dammitcarl]

I use 9-46 in E flat. love the effortlessness of light gauge strings, makes me play with much more confidence. Heaviest i can do is 10, heavy is just not for me.

[retiresoon]

I run heavy gauge strings on my electrics to keep a little continuity in feel switching between electric and acoustic all the time.

[fagyu]

Light top heavy bottom

That's it