strings to give a vintage J50 more jangle?

[elasticman]

I have a decision to make. I have 3 slope Gibbies and need to thin down to one.

1951 J50 – great bass, dry and woody but kinda quiet and sometimes TOO mellow
2018 J15 – crisp tone, loud, great bass. modern neck. Killer looks! Burst!
2018 J35 – very close to the J15 but more traditional looks. No longer made.

One school of thought is that the 2018s are not rare and could be had down the road, but the J50 is not gonna come my way again. At least not affordably! I got a good deal.

Adding to my angst is that I'm a LEFTY!

so the point of the post: are there strings that might give the old beast more jangle? That would push it WAY ahead of the other 2 and make my decision easier. Right now it's strung with PB mediums.

[Jim Owen]

Hi Stretch,

Have you tried round cores? That might give you a wee bit more sparkle? Some folk like DR Sunbeams. I’m fond of Pyramids or Newtones.

Don’t try Nickels or Monels—most likely that’ll move you in the opposite direction.

[docwatsonfan]

Ernie Ball Aluminum Bronze , medium lights
set 2566

12 16 24 32 44 54

the packaging says

"superior projection and clarity"

I had the same thing with one of my guitars, and this set helped

[rokdog49]

Originally Posted by docwatsonfan

Ernie Ball Aluminum Bronze , medium lights
set 2566

12 16 24 32 44 54

the packaging says

"superior projection and clarity"

I had the same thing with one of my guitars, and this set helped

Yep,yep,yep.

[elasticman]

Originally Posted by docwatsonfan

Ernie Ball Aluminum Bronze , medium lights
set 2566

12 16 24 32 44 54

the packaging says

"superior projection and clarity"

I had the same thing with one of my guitars, and this set helped

thanks, I'll try those. BTW the neck on the '51 is SO comfy and worn in. I love it.

[zmf]

Originally Posted by elasticman

Right now it's strung with PB mediums.

I assume you've tried 80/20's?

[Rosewood99]

Use a wooden pick. I will do exactly what you want.

[oliverkollar]

PB lights.

I have a '50 J45 it sounded choked with mediums. I switched to D'Addario EJ16's Loosened up the feel and sound big time. I actually believe I gained some volume as well.

[Jim Owen]

Originally Posted by oliverkollar

PB lights.

I have a '50 J45 it sounded choked with mediums. I switched to D'Addario EJ16's Loosened up the feel and sound big time. I actually believe I gained some volume as well.

Yes--sometimes just a slight shift in gauge can make a big difference. I had 13s on my J 50 for a while, but found that 12s sounded better to me.

[1Charlie]

I use John Pearse PB Lights on my ‘49 J-50. Lots of power and jangle.

[elasticman]

Originally Posted by paulzoom

Use a wooden pick. I will do exactly what you want.

i thought that was a joke. I looked it up. Never heard of wooden picks.

[AZLiberty]

Try some DR Sunbeams.

[Pitar]

The only way to get that on a j-50 is to graft a Taylor onto it. Gibsons don't typically favor the treble side regardless of the string gauge/alloy. I've always heard their midrange prominence with a kind of fast decaying (thuddish) bass register; the Gibson sound as it's come to be called.

[Skarsaune]

Thin down to one?!? Nonsense!!


:-)


Couldn’t imagine having to get rid of my ‘67 J-50 or my 2016 J-15.
Different horses.

[TBman]

Jangly = lighter trebles. Use 12 16 and 22