80/20’s....meh or yea?

[12barBill]

Originally Posted by Standicz

Which is brass. So why do they call it bronze? Which is an alloy of copper and tin, according to my 6th grade history teacher. Are they simply wrong and OK with that?

From Elixir's website:

The 80/20 bronze name is a misnomer in the music industry as the metal wrap wire composition is 80% copper and 20% zinc, which is brass. Bronze is technically an alloy of copper and tin.

So its just a misnomer that got started and stuck.
Some things you just have to live with.

[DenverSteve]

Originally Posted by Treenewt

Like pretty much everything on this forum, it depends on the guitar ...

Period. !...

[virob]

Meh & yea for me. Never cared for 80/20 strings, until I tried them on a guitar that really liked them. They can help tame a guitar with too many overtones.

[Nick S]

80/20 has been my favorite for a long time. For sound and "feel." I like JP and GHS.
Also, I think that if I only use one space after a period you won't know how old I am.

[rokdog49]

Originally Posted by mr. beaumont

Really depends on the guitar.

My experience with 80/20's is that they start out brighter than PB, but after some hours of play, they mellow out nicely in a way PB never does. I like them on an archtop.

This^^^^^^

[FormerFoodie]

Originally Posted by eshrager

I have always liked and used PB's on my guitars - 80/20's just don't do it for me.

A couple of years ago I bought a Froggy Bottom C ADI over EIR. When I first played it it sounded fantastic - it confirmed what people had been saying about Froggys.

It needed some minor repairs and a setup, so I left it with my luthier to do the work.

When I got it back, it sounded like crap - muddy, flabby, unfocused, etc. In looking at the string wrappers left in the case, I saw that it was strung with PB's instead of the 80-20's it had come with. A quick switch over and just like that the magic was back. To this day I am amazed at the difference between the two types of strings. Apparently 80/20's are the string of choice of Froggy Bottom and most if not all of the guitars coming out of their shop come with them.

This.

I'm definitely a proponent of 80/20's now. I have them on all my guitars but one. They sound more organic to my ears and really work well with my guitars - not just Frogs, but others as well. It's tough for me to go back to PBs...

[Wade Hampton]

Something that still surprises me is how many players have never even tried medium gauge strings or 80/20 strings at all. Back when I first started playing guitar around 1977, both sort of seemed to be the standard.

Of course, I came up playing folk and bluegrass music and have always been acoustically oriented - I've never played any gigs where I was being paid to play electric guitar. So I'll readily concede that my perspective might not be completely mainstream.

Still, there has been a major shift in player preferences, practically a sea change. I know better than to try to proselytize for medium gauge strings, but those of you who have never tried 80/20 alloy strings, you really should give them a try on your guitars. You might be surprised how they might sound, because they sometimes do entirely confound the "common wisdom" on how well they work on some guitars.

It's an inexpensive experiment, so why hesitate?

Just a thought...


Wade Hampton Miller

[justonwo]

I use them when I want a guitar to be a little brighter. I think they sound fantastic on the right guitar (about half of mine). I use PBs on the other half. I like them as well.

[ManyMartinMan]

Originally Posted by Wade Hampton

Something that still surprises me is how many players have never even tried medium gauge strings or 80/20 strings at all. Back when I first started playing guitar around 1977, both sort of seemed to be the standard....

Well Wade (as Mr. Dylan said)......... the times they are a changin'.......

[Wade Hampton]

I haven't graduated to the walker stage yet, thank goodness, and still have most of my hair. But I agree that there's definitely been a change over the years.

Still, it puzzles me that so many people on here who seem eager to experiment with all sorts of variables on their guitars - like aftermarket bridge pins, different saddle materials, etc. - haven't even taken the obvious, rudimentary step of trying the various string alloys available to them. It's by far and away the simplest, least expensive and least time-consuming way to help dial in and optimize the tone of an acoustic guitar, yet so many seem reluctant to even try.


whm

[steelvibe]

Totally guitar dependent. The John Pearse 80/20 New Mediums are exceptional! Yes, 80/20s don't work on every guitar and they are not as universal as phosphor bronze, but I think they work great on say all mahogany, sapele, or darker sounding guitars (I personally think that PB strings on all mahogany guitars sound dead). But monel, aluminum bronze, nickel and phosphor bronze don't work best in every situation either.

Just my dos centavos.

[Golffishny]

I like 80/20's on any guitar that gets muddy lows with PB's.

[KevWind]

Originally Posted by Wade Hampton

Something that still surprises me is how many players have never even tried medium gauge strings or 80/20 strings at all. Back when I first started playing guitar around 1977, both sort of seemed to be the standard.

Of course, I came up playing folk and bluegrass music and have always been acoustically oriented - I've never played any gigs where I was being paid to play electric guitar. So I'll readily concede that my perspective might not be completely mainstream.

Still, there has been a major shift in player preferences, practically a sea change. I know better than to try to proselytize for medium gauge strings, but those of you who have never tried 80/20 alloy strings, you really should give them a try on your guitars. You might be surprised how they might sound, because they sometimes do entirely confound the "common wisdom" on how well they work on some guitars.

It's an inexpensive experiment, so why hesitate?

Just a thought...


Wade Hampton Miller

Agree, experiment and find out. Heck 1977 must have been the start of the age of enlightenment . Back in 64 seems like it was either steel or that new fangled nylon stuff for cat gut

[s2y]

I only use them on my baritone. Found that regular PB strings were a little too dull in the lower register.

[Slothead56]

Originally Posted by Wade Hampton

Still, it puzzles me that so many people on here who seem eager to experiment with all sorts of variables on their guitars - like aftermarket bridge pins, different saddle materials, etc. - haven't even taken the obvious, rudimentary step of trying the various string alloys available to them.


whm

And admittedly Wade I’m one of those people. Same strings, picks, straps and finger picks since I started playing in 1974.

I will say I’m pretty blown away at how good this guitar sounds. Someone mentioned 80/20’s tone down overtones....well this 12 fret, rosewood monster is an overtone machine. These really ring true with a lot of clarity. This weekends project is to put them on my OM 42 Koa and my old rosewood Gurian (another member mentioned that he has them on his). The Gurian JR has a really long scale and, like the HD 28vs, is so big it sometimes sounds....complicated.

Finally, congratulations to Wade for using the word “proselytize”. Excellent word.