strings to give a vintage J50 more jangle?

[Rosewood99]

Originally Posted by elasticman

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

No joke. My Thalia wooden pick gives my one guitar a jangly sound I like. Sounds terrible on every other guitar but seems to work on that one.

[Wade Hampton]

Elasticman, in most cases on most guitars 80/20 bronze strings will provide a livelier treble response. Somewhat counter-intuitively, they can also increase perceived bass response by adding more clarity to the sound of those strings.

That's what they do on my Martin D-18. It has an Adirondack top, and I was pretty sure going in that it would sound best with phosphor bronze strings. But part of the due diligence I go through whenever I get a new guitar is to try two or three different string alloys and gauges, just to see which will work best, and much to my surprise the John Pearse 80/20's were the clear winner in that comparison test.

They really did help define the bass response better while simultaneously making the treble response sing.

So my suggestion is that you try some John Pearse 80/20's and try them in a couple of different gauges. I use both medium and bluegrass gauge strings on that guitar - that just depends on which set comes to hand first!

Hope this helps.


Wade Hampton Miller

[stormin1155]

Another vote for EB Aluminum Bronze.

[jedzep]

Most of these guys have good advice. Aluminum anything sounds tinny. My '50 J50 loves Dunlop 80/20 13's, tuned down a whole step.

You're smart to hang on to that one.

[elasticman]

tried the Ernie Ball AB's. Yuk! They make my '51 J50 sound anemic. Totally lost it's woodiness AND tone.

so those are out.

On to the DR Sunbeams...

[elasticman]

put DR Sunbeams on the '51 J50. Much better. All I had was a set of custom lights, but the tone is there.

Custom lights seem to be a lot easier to fret too!

[BFD]

GHS - Bright Bronze or Contact Core Bright Bronze. Too much on some guitars; might be perfect for what you're looking for.

[hayvis]

I would go with John Pearse 80/20s. Contrary to everyone else that's mentioned them, I use DR Sunbeams because they're less jangly with more thud. Everything I've experienced and read says exactly that about round cores - Because they are denser with more contact with the wrap wire, they are mellower and thuddier in tone, not brighter.

Speaking of which, to get more clarity from my DR Sunbeams, I now use a lighter thumb pick (Fred Kelly Slick pick light). This makes them perfect for my taste. Going down thickness will definitely get you brighter and more articulate.

[DMZ]

I used the Martin Monels lights on my previous owned 1959 J50 with a full bone saddle. Did quite well to my ears as they do on a mahogany guitar.