#16
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I have been using d'addarrio 80/20 bluegrass gauge on my Gibson Hummingbird for years and always heard that classic Hummingbird / Stones kind of tone with that set up. We have a phenomenal guitar shop near Atlanta called Righteous Guitars. The have the only PLEK machine from here to Nashville I think and I needed some fret work. They took the guitar in during the lockdown, did an amazing set up and I picked it up a week later. They asked me my string preference and I blurted out EJ16 because that's what most of my other guitars wear. Long story short the EJ16's don't sound as sweet on this particular guitar so the 80/20s will be going back on once I can find a set.
Horses for courses I guess. |
#17
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Now departed Gibson Masterbuilt 80-20’s and Newtones on my two Gibbys.
I have fifteen sets of the Masterbuilts, probably last me a 18 months or so. I can’t exactly describe why they sound better on my Gibson’s, they just seem to accentuate the inherent voicing. I’ve got some Newtone 80-20 Roundcores too. Those are excellent strings. Thankfully they work very well also. They do have a tendency to corrode quicker, but hey until they die, they work great for me.
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Nothing bothers me unless I let it. Martin D18 Gibson J45 Gibson J15 Fender Copperburst Telecaster Squier CV 50 Stratocaster Squier CV 50 Telecaster |
#18
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I'm kind of 50/50 on these 80/20s. They do deliver a little better bass and fundamentals, but then they get duller quicker. I still have several packs left, and I think I'll experiment with some of the less popular alloys before I return to PB. I'm talking about aluminum, Monels, and nickel bronze.
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Eastman E1SS-CLA-LTD Eastman E1OOSS-LTD Cordoba Fusion Orchestra CE Cordoba SM-CE Mini Classical Acoustic Ibanez Blazer 21 MIJ Stratocaster 2 Yamaha PSR-SX900 keyboards I play professionally Roland FP-90 digital piano I play for pleasure with piano VSTs. |
#19
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I prefer 80/20 strings on most guitars, though I've had a few that just sound better with PB (monel too, for an occasional change of pace). Unlike most people, I don't find 80/20s to be especially bright, except for the first hour or so of playing time. On the contrary, I find 80/20s to offer a cleaner sound than PB, more fundamentals and fewer extraneous overtones, more "guitar" and less "string." Bear in mind that I much prefer guitars that offer string fundamentals and plenty of note separation. Different tastes and playing styles might be better suited to PB.
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#20
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80/20's are all I use. Phosphor Bronze strings sound too harsh when new to my ear.
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Rick Ruskin Lion Dog Music - Seattle WA |
#21
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I've been working on getting familiar with a used Taylor K14ce (Koa) guitar I recently purchased.
I always heard these Koa guitars were very bright, but actually I find it harder than I thought to get notes on the higher strings to sound out properly. This is true both fingerstyle and with a pick. My previous "main" acoustic was a Martin OM which does very well with those type of notes notes. As expected the K14 does much better on the bass though. Anyway I've been experimenting with strings to try and add a little more high string clarity. I believe the guitar had Elixir Phosphor Bronze strings on it but I tried replacing them with some Elixir 80/20's and it seems to have helped. Do you have a suggestion of other strings that might do well for this situation? |
#22
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Quote:
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Barry Sad Moments {Marianne Vedral cover}: My SoundCloud page Some steel strings, some nylon. |
#23
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EJ16's have been my string of choice for years, but just for kicks I tried EJ11's 80/20's, and my Gibson J-30 absolutely loves them, and a big added plus is their easier to fret and easier on my finger tips.
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#24
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I will be using 80-20's in the near future. I mistakenly ordered them, twice. Both in Martin and D'Adarrio mediums, for my D1AT.
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#25
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My modern voiced Furch Alpine/Cocobolo Grand Auditorium loves to have 80/20. The PB just made it sound meh when I got it. I get more responsiveness and bass response with the 80/20 to my ears.
I will say that D'Addario EXP 80/20 are some of my favorites, but the regular non-EXP D'Addario are only run of the mill imho. |
#26
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I used to use PBs forever than I switched from Daddario PBs to Elixer nano 80/20 ... Now I go back and forth between PB and 80/20 , I find I like the Elixer nano hd lights either PB or 80/20. To me 80/20 is kind of the smiley face eq and PBs a tad more in your face sounding in the highs and mids. .
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#27
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Quote:
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#28
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I like them ... but sadly I don't think they like me or my body chemistry.
It may be, however, not my fault as others have reported they did a quick death. I've always been told that the 80/20s just don't respond well to certain chemicals in a person's skin or perspiration and so they die soon. I know that they will sound great but in a few hours ... let alone days ... the ones I've used from several manufacturers, will all start to like six strands of spaghetti. However, they seem to me louder and more responsive than phosphor bronze strings so I wouldn't mind using a cheaper set for a jam or maybe even a gig ... but I would have to realize that I would be probably forced to change them the next day or so.
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Martin X1-DE Epiphone AJ500MNS Alvarez AD30 Alvarez AD710 Alvarez RD20S Esteban American Legacy Rogue mandolin |
#29
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Quote:
To me, this just illustrates how so widely varied and subjective all of our string (and tonewood) impressions are. |
#30
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I've been using 80/20 strings on my darker sounding acoustics, especially an Eastman E20D.
For my all-Koa Taylor K20C, I like Martin Retro Monels... |