Silk and Steel on Taylor

[icuker]

Saw a string comparison linked from this site, (sorry can't find it on search) that compared about 3 or 4 different types of strings. Was surprised that the silk and steel didn't sound bad so I tired a set of Martins' 11's on my Taylor. my wife noticed right away that it removed some of the bass from the previous strings but I do actually like them. It's almost like playing a classical guitar, easy on the hands and easy to bend notes etc. I've been wanting to play some swing style music so thought it would be fun to experiment. I would put them on again, even if I don't use them exclusively on the guitar.

[LakewoodM32Fan]

As a Taylor owner I can attest that for their major product lines they do have a brighter and more modern tone than their competitors. That said, the fact they exclusively ship with Elixirs only compounds that. Taylors strung with other strings get that brightness reined in...sometimes a lot depending on the string used.

If you go with Taylor’s custom builds, they can often pleasantly defy ones expectations of the brand. My custom Cedar over Coco is one such example.

[icuker]

My thinking was since they are already bright why not try to mimic the gypsy jazz guitar if possible by lighter strings. I love the sound of those guitars, so making a feeble attempt at that. I may try a set of Argentines on it down the road, but right now I am enjoying the effect of the silk and steel. I was in on a discussion on the Jazz section, and we talked about Taylor's 214 being a perfect body model for a Gypsy Jazz guitar design. Taylor would just have to redo the top into a ladder brace style to make it work. Mine is a 314ce btw.

[Hoyt]

Try GHS Silk and Bronze.

They sound closer to regular phosphor bronze, but take just a bit of the edge off. I've never really like silk and steel, even though I've tried them a lot. But the Silk and Bronze is perfect.