[DESERTRAT1]

I've experimented with various electric guitar strings and have always come back to the D' Addario 10-46's which is what I have always used. I don't know if they are the best available but frankly I've come to the conclusion that most of the recognizable brand names (depending on taste) are just fine new and that string life is the main priority. Given that, I spent a considerable amount of time and money trying to convince myself that coated strings were the way to go. My conclusion about them is that while the wound strings (E-A-D) certainly have a much longer life span than untreated strings, the coated unwound strings (G-B-E) don't hold their coating well which in the end requires string changes almost as often as regular strings. Additionally, in my mind, the primary cause of string death isn't so much corrosion as normal stress and the additional stress of constant string bending that eventually leads to loss of tinsel strength. Depending on your playing style that's going to happen sooner or later and coating does nothing to alleviate that. Given the price difference I've chosen to stay with strings that sound as good or better and can be changed three times for the price of a single set of coated strings. I don't mind changing strings when it's called for and doing it this way I'm getting more string life over all, as good or better tone and spending less money.