String Changing – All off or one at a time?

[Aimelie]

All strings all at once.

I release tension, then cut the strings close to the headstock and carefully set the long ends all to one side and off the guitar’s top surface. Then unwind from the tuners while pulling upwards (and holding my breath), hopefully to avoid any scratches on my, as yet, perfect headstock.

Then I reach inside the soundhole and, with a cloth to cushion my fingertip, I pop up the bridge pins one at a time while keeping equal and opposite pressure on the bridge from the top side with my other hand.

Bridge pins are kept in order and each goes back in the same hole it came from. (I can see that the grooves cut into the pins vary according to string gauge, so not mixing them up seems wise.)

Wipe down with special attention to fretboard cleaning and around the tuner pegs prior to restringing.

The whole thing has me pretty nervous with a new guitar, but I insist on doing it myself and not depending on the guitar shop even though they insist it’s no problem for them and would do it at no charge.

I’m a guitarist. I must be able to handle changing my own strings. (This is what I tell myself each and every time while wondering if a trip to the guitar shop wouldn’t be easier and certainly less stressful.)

[Goat Mick]

In the old days I used to do them one at a time. It just seemed easier to do it that way sitting one the couch with the guitar in front of me. Now that I've got a workbench I take all of them off so it's easier to wipe down the entire guitar before the new set goes on.

[ChrisN]

Usually 1 at a time. I like to keep tension on the neck and body, without the more severe release/restoration of tension with the "all at once" change. The less flexing of braces, etc., the better, it seems to me.

Another reason is that the reduced tension uptake of 1-at-a-time means fewer turns of the tuning key to get to tune, which means less of each relatively abrasive wound string gets dragged through the nut slot, so my nut should live longer than if did all-at-once changes.

That said, every few changes I'll do all-at-once to clean things up a bit.

[handers]

All off, wipe the neck, esp at frets where smudge can build up.

Hans

[rearis]

I changed three and then three.

[Cool555]

I used to change all strings at one go, meaning removing all the strings first before stringing them again. For most of my guitars, they have little issue with such a method. But strangely, for my 00-15m, the neck seems to take about 24 hours or so before going back to its original action. This guitar's neck seem to move more than my other guitars after a string change.

So sometime last week, I tried using the "removing one string at a time" method, starting with the thickest to the thinnest strings. It seems to be perfect for this 00-15m. After all 6 strings were done, the action was the same as before the string change.

So, I came to the conclusion, that both methods of changing strings are good, depending on how "moveable" (sensitive) the neck of the guitar is.

[Tannin]

Having said (back when the world was young and this thread was only a short one) that I change them all at once these days without the slightest ill effect, I do take care not to slack off or tighten up one half of the neck at a time.

I have no idea whether there is any value in this practice. It just seems to me that a twisting force on the neck (through having the three strings on one side up to tension and the other three slack or missing) can't be a terribly good thing for a wooden instrument, particularly as the truss rod is designed to control bow in a single axis, not twist.

When I remove strings, I slack off a turn or two on one side, then a turn or two on the other side, and so on. Putting new strings on, I don't tune E B and D up to pitch until I have some strings on the bass side to balance the tension.

Anyone else do this? Is there any point to it?

[Robin, Wales]

Originally Posted by Cool555

I used to change all strings at one go, meaning removing all the strings first before stringing them again. For most of my guitars, they have little issue with such a method. But strangely, for my 00-15m, the neck seems to take about 24 hours or so before going back to its original action. This guitar's neck seem to move more than my other guitars after a string change.

So sometime last week, I tried using the "removing one string at a time" method, starting with the thickest to the thinnest strings. It seems to be perfect for this 00-15m. After all 6 strings were done, the action was the same as before the string change.

So, I came to the conclusion, that both methods of changing strings are good, depending on how "moveable" (sensitive) the neck of the guitar is.

Yep - that sort of why I started this thread. Wood is really quite "plastic" and the strings hold the neck under a LOT of tension. Plus the neck is crucial to the resonance of the guitar. So why risk messing up a great tone and good action if you don't have to?

Originally Posted by Tannin

Having said (back when the world was young and this thread was only a short one) that I change them all at once these days without the slightest ill effect, I do take care not to slack off or tighten up one half of the neck at a time.

I have no idea whether there is any value in this practice. It just seems to me that a twisting force on the neck (through having the three strings on one side up to tension and the other three slack or missing) can't be a terribly good thing for a wooden instrument, particularly as the truss rod is designed to control bow in a single axis, not twist.

When I remove strings, I slack off a turn or two on one side, then a turn or two on the other side, and so on. Putting new strings on, I don't tune E B and D up to pitch until I have some strings on the bass side to balance the tension.

Anyone else do this? Is there any point to it?

If I do have to take all the strings off then I'm pretty careful to release and then raise the tension evenly. And will bring the D and G strings to pitch first and work outward from there. But that's a hang over from setting up hundreds of reso guitars every year!

[Rosewood99]

Originally Posted by rearis

I changed three and then three.

That seems to work best for me also.