Electric strings on an acoustic!!!

T.T. · September 2020

Just for the sheer hell of it I decided to put a set of Ernie 10-46's on my acoustic. Following a subtle TR adjustment it played beautifullly.

Tone wise... O.k, it doesn't project or glisten as much as the Martin 80/20's but it's not that bad. String bends and legato runs are a hell of a lot easier though.

I appreciate I am not the only player to do this. But, am I evil / commiting a guitar crime by doing this?

Comments please.

crunchman · September 2020

I used to use 10s on my acoustic - although they were proper acoustic strings. I do use 11s these days.

The 10s were a reaction from when I had 13s on it, and played it a couple of hours every day for 3 weeks. My fingers got very sore so I went to the other extreme.

T.T. · September 2020

For years I played Ernie 9's on my electrics. All of my guitar buddies said you should be using 10's. So I did. Maybe they were right.

But...

I heard about that magical evening B.B.King asked Billy Gibbons why he works so hard with heavy strings.
He started using 8's after that!

more · September 2020

Electric string are named that , because the wound strings work with the magnetic pickups better than the so called acoustic strings . You do get a better tone with heavier strings on acoustic guitars , but what the strings are wound with is more a personal thing and how the guitar reacts to you choice.

WindmillGuitars · September 2020

I've had four acoustic guitars in the last month in for setups / service which have appeared with electric strings fitted .. three were out of ignorance and one swore by the impact on his tone .. each to their own I guess!

T.T. · September 2020

I wouldn't choose them for tone. Just playability. Mine is not fitted with a pick up or mic'd.
Actually, going between my Electric and Acoustic is now with a more familiar feel.

BluesLover · September 2020

I have 10s phosphor bronze on my acoustic, it's quieter than with heavier gauges, but I'm only a bedroom player so that's actually a benefit, and it's so much easier to play, so for me it's a win-win.

ICBM · September 2020

Monel strings - nickel acoustic strings which look like electric ones - are all the rage at the moment...

chrisj1602 · September 2020

I seem to recall an Ernie Ball set that had EAD acoustic strings and GBe electric gauge so you could play a bit of lead should you feel inclined.

Adji · September 2020

It is actually a pretty common 'trick.'
The sound of it can be quite pleasant with certain guitars.

We (D'Addario) designed and released Nickel Bronze strings a few years ago as a direct results of these experiments. Several bluegrass and traditional players told us they were using electric strings and so we worked to come up with something of a hybrid. Nickel Bronze is essentially a nickel-plated phosphor bronze. They ring and sustain better than electric strings do (on an acoustic) but have an interesting hybrid, almost flat sound.

Sorry for what sounds like an advert haha, but worth checking out if you are interested in that sound.

https://www.daddario.com/products/guitar/acoustic-guitar/nickel-bronze/

crunchman · September 2020

Adji said:

It is actually a pretty common 'trick.'
The sound of it can be quite pleasant with certain guitars.

We (D'Addario) designed and released Nickel Bronze strings a few years ago as a direct results of these experiments. Several bluegrass and traditional players told us they were using electric strings and so we worked to come up with something of a hybrid. Nickel Bronze is essentially a nickel-plated phosphor bronze. They ring and sustain better than electric strings do (on an acoustic) but have an interesting hybrid, almost flat sound.

Sorry for what sounds like an advert haha, but worth checking out if you are interested in that sound.

https://www.daddario.com/products/guitar/acoustic-guitar/nickel-bronze/

I hated those strings. I got given a set at a guitar show. I took them off after a couple weeks and put regular phosphor bronze back on.

Adji · September 2020

crunchman said:

Adji said:

It is actually a pretty common 'trick.'
The sound of it can be quite pleasant with certain guitars.

We (D'Addario) designed and released Nickel Bronze strings a few years ago as a direct results of these experiments. Several bluegrass and traditional players told us they were using electric strings and so we worked to come up with something of a hybrid. Nickel Bronze is essentially a nickel-plated phosphor bronze. They ring and sustain better than electric strings do (on an acoustic) but have an interesting hybrid, almost flat sound.

Sorry for what sounds like an advert haha, but worth checking out if you are interested in that sound.

https://www.daddario.com/products/guitar/acoustic-guitar/nickel-bronze/

I hated those strings. I got given a set at a guitar show. I took them off after a couple weeks and put regular phosphor bronze back on.

Interesting man. Probably me that gave them to you.

People either love them, or hate them, rarely an inbetween.

It is very guitar dependant too, as are most strings.

bbill335 · September 2020

Adji said:

It is actually a pretty common 'trick.'
The sound of it can be quite pleasant with certain guitars.

We (D'Addario) designed and released Nickel Bronze strings a few years ago as a direct results of these experiments. Several bluegrass and traditional players told us they were using electric strings and so we worked to come up with something of a hybrid. Nickel Bronze is essentially a nickel-plated phosphor bronze. They ring and sustain better than electric strings do (on an acoustic) but have an interesting hybrid, almost flat sound.

Sorry for what sounds like an advert haha, but worth checking out if you are interested in that sound.

https://www.daddario.com/products/guitar/acoustic-guitar/nickel-bronze/

i am loving the dadd nickel bronze on my caballero. i don't require bags of volume and cannot stand the harsh treble of phosor bronze. these NBs sound very soft, warm and old-fashioned by comparison.

LastMantra · September 2020

I'm in the middle of lowering the action on a wee seagull acoustic for my son to learn on when he's a bit older and had planned to put on the lightest strings I can get away with. Tone isn't the main thing in this case.

p90fool · September 2020

I recorded a quick bit of noodling a while back using the undersaddle piezo of my Faith Venus into a Zoom AC-3 pedal straight into Cubase. I binned the on board preamp, and there's no post-processing in my DAW, it's just what the Zoom sounds like and is just a demo of my gigging guitar sound.

To avoid any bias in advance I never mentioned that the strings are 9-46 electric strings, which I've used since a hand injury a couple of years ago.

I wouldn't do any serious recording with this setup, but it sounds pretty good live and I can do a three hour acoustic gig without hurting myself. Why struggle?

earwighoney · September 2020

Adji said:

People either love them, or hate them, rarely an inbetween.

It is very guitar dependant too, as are most strings.

Some people seem to swear by the Daddario Nickel Bronze string sets, but like the Martin Monel strings they seem to be very polar in appreciation.

Btw, there's a very good video about Nick Drake's guitar sound which is a pretty good advert for old/dead Daddario Nickel Bronze strings, they might not sound that 'hifi' but they definitely capture the Nick Drake sound. From about 2.49 in the video below

One small question @Adji Daddario 85/15's are available to buy from quite a few retailers, but how come they have never been put on the website? They work really for a few guitars, they seem to be the ugly duckling of guitar strings, no one seems to pay them much attention.

ICBM · September 2020

p90fool said:

To avoid any bias in advance I never mentioned that the strings are 9-46 electric strings, which I've used since a hand injury a couple of years ago.

That's truly remarkable. I would never have suspected that!

And I'm not even a believer in heavy acoustic strings either, I usually use 11s.

rze99 · September 2020

I have a Taylor t5 with 10 to 52 electrics on them. It’s a hybrid guitar of course but the strings work well play easy and sound good. I have Guild D4 with Marrtin bronze strings and they sound more traditional and good but play with much more tension. I prefer to play the Taylor.

p90fool · September 2020

ICBM said:

p90fool said:

To avoid any bias in advance I never mentioned that the strings are 9-46 electric strings, which I've used since a hand injury a couple of years ago.

That's truly remarkable. I would never have suspected that!

And I'm not even a believer in heavy acoustic strings either, I usually use 11s.

Yep @ICBM ;, they're Elixir Nanowebs, same as I use on everything except my J-35, which has proper acoustic strings.

While it obviously works pretty well plugged in, the acoustic sound really is very weedy, though ideal for late night sofa noodling which the J-35 definitely isn't!

DavidR · September 2020

Anyone experimenting/liking electric guitar strings on their acoustics might enjoy a crack with Monels? Especially if its the tonal difference c.f. PB they like rather than the being lighter. Monel was popular on acoustics prior to PB coming along in the mid 1970's. PB was/is brighter and sparklier in tone which acoustic players loved. You had to change them more often to maintain the sparkle which the manufacturers loved. Everyone happy!

The older Monel is a steel resistant to corrosion especially from salt water hence the use for strings. The perception for tone and your preference is very subjective but Monel brings a more steely and some would say broader, more complex sound. Less sparkly and definitely less bright. Some feel they suit mahogany. I use 12's (Martin MM12) on my Martin OM28 Reimagined (Sitka/Rosewood) and Yamaha FG5 (a Sitka/Mahogany dread) and love them. Especially that they're so much cheaper. But I learnt on an FG in the early 1970's so was probably playing on Monel back then. I didn't really take an interest what I was playing on but the strings were definitely steel coloured rather than bronze coloured!

Anyway Monels worth a shot if you're exploring different tone IMHO.

thermionic · September 2020

The Monel (mainly nickel and copper) is of course only the windings, the cores and plain strings are steel like any other string.

I tried them on my Loar (pre-war Gibson style blues guitar) and I think they suited that kind of guitar very well). Will probably put them on again and leave keep the coated/treated phosphor bronze for more hi-fi sounding guitars.

Adji · September 2020

earwighoney said:

Adji said:

People either love them, or hate them, rarely an inbetween.

It is very guitar dependant too, as are most strings.

Some people seem to swear by the Daddario Nickel Bronze string sets, but like the Martin Monel strings they seem to be very polar in appreciation.

Btw, there's a very good video about Nick Drake's guitar sound which is a pretty good advert for old/dead Daddario Nickel Bronze strings, they might not sound that 'hifi' but they definitely capture the Nick Drake sound. From about 2.49 in the video below

One small question @Adji Daddario 85/15's are available to buy from quite a few retailers, but how come they have never been put on the website? They work really for a few guitars, they seem to be the ugly duckling of guitar strings, no one seems to pay them much attention.

Hey man, thanks for the link, watching now.

The 85/15 are a weird one. They are designed for the export market only (i.e. Non-US) and were originally called American Bronze. They were designed to give the 80/20 kind of tone, whilst being more affordable in emerging markets.
They have since developed an audience of their own, as you have experienced, sometimes it really suits a guitar. Honestly though, most people buy them because they are the cheapest D'Addario branded acoustic string.

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Electric strings on an acoustic!!!

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