JOURNEY OF660 Strings Evolution

rmsstrider · #1 05-20-2018, 07:35 AM

Just wanted to share my "journey" of experimenting with various strings for my Journey OF660. They came stock with Elixir PB light nanowebs and sounded pretty good I thought. I will say here that the nut was cut perfectly ,but I did lower the saddle height a bit and I didn't need to touch the truss rod.
Of course being a new guitar to me I had to experiment with different strings. So I tried regular Daddario 80/20's lights and liked the sound I was getting, but still not quite right. Next up was Earnie Ball aluminum bronze lights. These were great, but didn't last very long for me. With all these strings I felt that the treble was a bit thin, so I tried a set of Elixir 80/20 HD nano coat. The have standard light base with medium treble. Better now, but I wanted a slightly warmer tone. So a couple of days ago I put on a set of Martin medium gauge PB lifespans. Now I'm getting close! (Note, truss rod did not need any adjustment with mediums) The tone and volume is much better to my ears. And since the guitar is set up nicely, the medium gauge plays easily ,at least for me. Now the final fine tuning was to drop the tuning down 1/2 step. Perfect! Imho. Tone,volume,sustain, plays easily and the guitar sounds to me much larger than the small body size.
I am enjoying this little guitar more each day.[emoji1]

Braindead · #2 05-20-2018, 08:13 AM

Thank you for your report! It tells me I am just starting with my used OX.

kramster · #3 05-20-2018, 10:41 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Braindead

I am just starting with my used OX.

Indeed!... All part of the mostly fun of it.

Iwasonlyhuman · #4 05-21-2018, 06:10 AM

I appreciate this thread since I am about to purchase a OF660 soon. Quick question since it is related to strings overall: Have you noticed differences in the string life when collapsing the guitar and resetting it? I would think that constant change in tension would lower the life, but haven't noticed any threads on that.

rmsstrider · #5 05-21-2018, 06:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Iwasonlyhuman

I appreciate this thread since I am about to purchase a OF660 soon. Quick question since it is related to strings overall: Have you noticed differences in the string life when collapsing the guitar and resetting it? I would think that constant change in tension would lower the life, but haven't noticed any threads on that.

I think my string life has been average for this guitar. I will admit that lately I have been just leaving it strung up because it is such a joy to play. I have only had for about 4 months , so maybe another Journey owner might chime in here.

kramster · #6 05-21-2018, 11:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rmsstrider

I think my string life has been average for this guitar. I will admit that lately I have been just leaving it strung up because it is such a joy to play. I have only had for about 4 months , so maybe another Journey owner might chime in here.

I leave mine all put together and playable lately ...only take it apart to show or freak out folks... that's what it's for I think.

PeteCady · #7 05-21-2018, 11:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kramster

I leave mine all put together and playable lately ...only take it apart to show or freak out folks... that's what it's for I think.

Likewise. In fact, I went out and bought another gigbag, a cheap one, sized to fit the OF660 not broken down, so I could take it out locally without having to take it apart and put it together again if space was not at a premium.

rmsstrider · #8 05-21-2018, 02:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PeteCady

Likewise. In fact, I went out and bought another gigbag, a cheap one, sized to fit the OF660 not broken down, so I could take it out locally without having to take it apart and put it together again if space was not at a premium.

I have been guilty of putting it in the backpack with the neck sticking out the top.

bsman · #9 05-21-2018, 03:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Iwasonlyhuman

I appreciate this thread since I am about to purchase a OF660 soon. Quick question since it is related to strings overall: Have you noticed differences in the string life when collapsing the guitar and resetting it? I would think that constant change in tension would lower the life, but haven't noticed any threads on that.

I think I can answer that. I have an OF420B (wood, not CF overhead), and have not found that string life seems to be impacted by the mechanical stress from assembling/disassembling.

On another note, I currently have a set of D'Addario Nickel Bronze strings (lights) on my Journey and have been very satisfied with these as far as sound, playability, and life (I'm still on a set I put on before a trip the last week of March, and they're holding up quite well.) Prior to that, I used a set of Dunlop 80/20s and did not care at all for the tone.