Lighter Strings, Bigger Sound?

[jklemm18]

So I've been playing the J-45 all night and this morning and cant get over how good it sounds. I was shocked to see that the stock strings were 12's. My Grand Pacific was stocked with 13's and was not nearly as loud. Whats the deal is it the shorter scale? The x vs V bracing? I thought for sure all dreads needed 13's but am happy with the easy way the 12's play.

[Yale C]

Originally Posted by jklemm18

So I've been playing the J-45 all night and this morning and cant get over how good it sounds. I was shocked to see that the stock strings were 12's. My Grand Pacific was stocked with 13's and was not nearly as loud. Whats the deal is it the shorter scale? The x vs V bracing? I thought for sure all dreads needed 13's but am happy with the easy way the 12's play.

I’ve noticed the same things with my Martin dread, it has a BIG sound with the right light strings and still plenty of bass. If anything, the biggest difference I hear between the lights and mediums is the mediums sorta scoop the mids, which has its own appeal.

I’ve got some 12.5 Pb strings on the way, hoping they will truly be a best of both worlds.

[Goat Mick]

It really just depends on the guitar and how it's built. My '59 J-45 is very lightly built and sounds great with 12's. Recently as an experiment, I tried 4 sets of strings on it over the course of a couple of weeks. I started with 13's, then went to 12's, 11's and finally 10's. The funny thing is the tone or volume of that guitar didn't change. I ended up sticking with 12's because anything lighter felt to slinky under my fingers and there wasn't a tonal advantage to 13's. While this is true with my J-45, I've got several other guitars that are very picky regarding string size.

[jklemm18]

Originally Posted by Goat Mick

It really just depends on the guitar and how it's built. My '59 J-45 is very lightly built and sounds great with 12's. Recently as an experiment, I tried 4 sets of strings on it over the course of a couple of weeks. I started with 13's, then went to 12's, 11's and finally 10's. The funny thing is the tone or volume of that guitar didn't change. I ended up sticking with 12's because anything lighter felt to slinky under my fingers and there wasn't a tonal advantage to 13's. While this is true with my J-45, I've got several other guitars that are very picky regarding string size.

The Grand Pacific always felt stiff and there was no way 12's would have projected a good sound. Do you think scale length plays a part as well. I thought for sure the shorter scale length would have lesser sound. Im amazed.

[Goat Mick]

Originally Posted by jklemm18

The Grand Pacific always felt stiff and there was no way 12's would have projected a good sound. Do you think scale length plays a part as well. I thought for sure the shorter scale length would have lesser sound. Im amazed.

Honestly I can't tell my short scale guitars from my regular scale guitars by feel or by volume. I think you just need to try different string gauges on your guitars and let your ears and hands tell you what to use. I would try 12's on the Grand Pacific and see what happens. You may love them or you may hate them but you won't know until you try them.

[bufflehead]

Originally Posted by jklemm18

I thought for sure all dreads needed 13's but am happy with the easy way the 12's play.

Consider yourself fortunate to be disabused of that myth.

[cdkrugjr]

Well, if you control for every detail of the guitar's construction AND every detail of your playing . . .

. . . your brain will explode.

But strings are a fairly inexpensive experiment

[gmel555]

I once read a related "discussion" that made sense to me. Certain tops vibrate more freely with LESS tension on them from lighter strings and thus, produce more volume or at least more "dynamics". That is, the heavier tension from medium strings can restrict the top's movement. Whether its has to do with that particular piece of wood or the bracing (or a combination) I don't know. I'm not a luthier, but I believe this to be true with at least some guitars.

[ljguitar]

Originally Posted by Goat Mick

It really just depends on the guitar and how it's built.

Hi GM

I think the build is only one of at least 3-4 factors.

My observations make room for who you are, how you hear, how you play, and the style of music you engage in.