5 years, Changes you made in your likes? Picks, nut Materials, Strings, Procedures?

[AcousticDreams]

Over the last five years I have changed my likes on all the parts that make up an acoustic guitar sound.

Just last night I discovered that for some unexplained reason....two guitars using mostly the same materials, such as back and sides, same maker and model - Same strings = but One likes a slightly heavier pick material. Go Figure?

Please share with us how you have changed your mind on anything that effects the acoustic guitar. And most importantly, Why you changed your mind?.

Pick type, Pick thickness, Saddle & nut materials, Strings String Gauges, Tuners, and procedures. Anything that you feel has changed the sound of your guitar tastes or the stability & feel.

Personally:
+I Changed from Bone to Camel bone, and now to Unbleached bone. Unbleached bone a more open and less harsh tone. And I have changed the way I make my nut and saddles ridges, relief and slots for more articulation.
+ I Changed to mostly Rosewoods back and sides, and Red spruce tops. Red Spruce to hear more fundamentals, and Rosewoods for more lushness.
+ I Changed to Roundcores, as I like the feel and sustain. I have changed to custom gauges that I choose.
+ I Changed the type of thumpick & Gauge & material I used for Sound and feel. Blue chip metal band really feels good on my thumb. And Vespel sounds great.
+ I even Changed how I wind my strings on a post.

I am hoping is I will hear about something that will want to make me try -experiment with your discoveries.

Although, I have although been through lots of Bridge Pin changes....we should probably leave that out..so we don't start any wars...LOTs of Laughs there...

[Brent Hutto]

I wasn't playing the guitar five years ago but ten years ago I was playing mostly with my fingers (fingernails, actually) so I liked Elixir Nano strings for the extra zing they added to my rather dull tone.

Now I'm playing again and it's almost entirely with a flatpick (crosspicking, not strumming). So I hate the Elixir sound and have reverted back to the redoutable D'Addario EJ16 phosphor bronze lights.

[Jim Comeaux]

I haven’t been playing 5 years, and it didn’t take me even half that long to be converted from a diehard Martin fanatic to a person with more eclectic tastes. It’s kind of a long boring story, so I’ll spare you the details, but I truly believed that if it wasn’t a prewar Martin HD-28, well then it just wasn’t a REAL bluegrass guitar, and banjos had to be old Gibson RB-5’s and all mandolins had to be Gibson F-5’s, etc. yes Sir! I was at the summit of mount stupid according to the Dunning/Kruger effect graph. (Just Google it). Many years ago I played some bluegrass mandolin and banjo, but gave it up for about 20 years. I don’t know 8f it was just getting old that did it or whatever, but I have had an epiphany and I can finally see the difference between different and better/worse.

[Brucebubs]

I've gone from stringing the entire string on the post (blissful ignorance) to measuring and pre-cutting to the simplest method I can find - in the hole, pull back some, wind all under ( no over needed ) then snip off the excess when string is up to tension.

Thin nylon picks for warmth, thin celluloid for brighter.

Hated 80/20's for years, couldn't understand why anyone would ever use them ... until my Gibson SJ-200 last year.

[birkenweg42]

I have been playing for over forty years and have made many changes to my playing during that time. I started as an electric guitarist playing in bands and now I’m almost exclusively playing solo fingerstyle.
The biggest change during the last five years has been the addition of six or seven open tunings into my repertoire. Due to issues caused by rheumatoid arthritis I have also started to tune down one or two half steps.

[Silly Moustache]

I've continued to perfect my string changing method and my YouTube videos will show that.

I've focussed more on smaller guitars - Waterloo WL12 in 2016, Eastman E20-P 2019, Eastman E40-00 in 2020.
(Still got the others though!)

Still use Blue Chip "TAD" Picks and Wegen TF picks although I've experiments with some others, and experimented with polishing and bevelling the mass produced picks to see if they could be as god as BC and/or Wegen - answer - no.

Still use basic Shubb capos.

Moved increasingly to Martin strings from D'addario.

Got sick,got treated, still alive bit far more skinny, balder and older.

[DownUpDave]

Biggest change for me was going from thin nylon picks to Primetones and Ultex in the .088 - 1.3mm range. Somebody said “wanna change your tone change you pick” so true. I always stuck with PB strings, had a false bias that 80/20 was too bright and brash. I have now used 80/20 on a few guitars now with good results. Including a Martin 000-15m, go figure.

[Mbroady]

Experimented with a fair amount of guitars over the last 5 years and not much has changed. I still prefer spruce rosewood guitars with. One change I've made was moving from the K&K dual source pickups to LR Baggs Anthem (SL)
I found it to be the most versatile and most pleasing system to my ears.

I did experience an unplugged tone change on 1 out 4 guitars, but that guitar was already on the chopping block. Going to Put the Anthem in a Martin D-35 after the holiday weekend.

[BrunoBlack]

I’ve had/made more time in my life to spend playing music and having fun with my guitars. The changes over the past decade have been: moving away from dreadnoughts. I now enjoy 00–small jumbo sized guitars, thicker picks, playing more finger style, and using the internet as an incredibly valuable resource.

[EZYPIKINS]

Have done away with my cheaper poorer sound quality guitars, with funky electronics.

Now have 2 Martins (OM-28e, GPCPA1) and one Gibson (J-185ec)

All with different variations of the Aura preamp system.

J-185, Aura Pro.

OM-28 Aura VT.

GPCPA1 aka the Taylor Killer... Or Killer for short Aura F1

Have had many different acoustics and electronics. Nothing compares to the Aura systems, for on stage.

[Dru Edwards]

Picks - I've bought lots of different gauges and materials and experimented. I have an assortment on hand.

[Mr. Paul]

5 years ago I was down to "the only guitar I needed" post retirement. Didn't play all that much. Had never owned a Martin. Never even played a vintage guitar much less owned one. Didn't frequent guitar forums. Played with bare fingers. My singing was tentative. Didn't care for brussel sprouts.

All that has changed.



Except the last one . Happy Thanksgiving everyone.

[koko61]

I've always looked for guitars with rosewood back and sides, however all my guitars are now mahogany with a spruce top.

I also always denied the Dread, always using OM guitars, and now I'm crazy about my new Dread.

Regards.

[caperrob]

More like 6 years ago, I got a case of Martin fever after strumming a HD-28V. Way out of my price range so a GPCPA4 rosewood would have to do.

Due to a painful buying experience, I always wanted to get rid if it. I thought the right guitar was a 000-18 so a year ago one fell in my hands.

Then a few weeks ago one photo of a jumbo cutaway got stuck in my head. So now I own a Lakewood.

The experience completely changed my view of this brand vs that one. They are all great. It just depends on which one you like. And whatever one you pick, all that matters is that you just want to use it every single day.

6 years later, I care more about playing in the pocket and keeping my motivation to play than what pick, tonewoods, brand, strings I am using. I just want to be in key and on time

[shekie]

I've been playing for almost 7 years, in the past five probably the biggest realization and change has been that at my physical size and age, an OM/000 size guitar suits me much better than wrestling with a dreadnought.

Other changes/realizations:
I've gradually increased the thickness of the pick I use from a 73mm to a 1.5mm (Blue Chip TPR 60) and sometimes depending on the music, a Dunlop 207 (2.0mm).

I prefer non-coated strings to coated strings, although I currently have some Martin Lifespans on my 000-18 and can hardly tell that they are coated/treated.

I play better seated but sing better standing.

Weekly lessons if you can find the right teacher is money far better spent than all the fancy picks/capos/strings/tuners/straps etc.

I'm not going to become the next Dylan/Mitchell/Prine.......