80/20’s....meh or yea?

[Scolaguitar]

Originally Posted by rokdog49

The sizzle will wear off. At that point, you may like them a lot.
They will sound warm and growly for about ten hours or so and then they get to sounding dull.
I like the way they sound on my J45 after a couple of hours playing time and then for the next ten hours or so. Then on to a new set.

Ok the sizzle has died down a bit and I am liking what I hear. The growl is coming back. Maybe a little more overtones which I'm not sure about yet. Overall, I think I will like them even more as they break in more.

Next set I'm finally tying the Retros for this guitar.

[Treenewt]

I’ve had a set on my Larrivee for about two weeks now, and I’m dang impressed. I haven’t played a massive amount lately, but they suit this OM quite nicely, and still sound great.

I have a set of PB XT on the way to try, but unless they blow my mind, I may run with 80/20 for a while!

[Oldguy64]

Originally Posted by Slothead56

I have used PB Lights on pretty much every guitar since 1974. Just like the way they sound and feel. Predictable.

Goaded by the AGF (I have to blame someone!) I put 80/20’s on my HD 28vs. Yikes! This is a different guitar! To my aging ears they sound more mellow, less “snappy” and feel lighter than light.

Not sure if I’m in for the long haul as I tend to not mess with success (I also only ever play Fender Medium picks....since 1974) but it is interesting to occasionally “take a walk on the wild side”.

Opinions and comments?

I have an Alvarez MD70ce. It from late 2013 by the serial number.
When I got it in 2014, I’d been using EJ16’s pretty much on everything.
I had a set of 80/20’s lying about, so I put them on and I hated them.

I put on a set of EJ11’s and that guitar has mellowed over the years.
I now find that she. 80/20’s get “played in” they sound a lot like new PB’s.
Of course YMMV.

[rokdog49]

Originally Posted by Scolaguitar

Ok the sizzle has died down a bit and I am liking what I hear. The growl is coming back. Maybe a little more overtones which I'm not sure about yet. Overall, I think I will like them even more as they break in more.

Next set I'm finally tying the Retros for this guitar.

A few more plays and the overtones will fade even more.
It will be interesting to see how many hours you can get in the "sweet spot."
The Retros will also need some break-in time but they will hold their sweet spot longer.

[rokdog49]

Originally Posted by Golffishny

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

That would be a J45. I still think the 80-20's need an hour or two of break-in to get rid of the initial zing.

[Fresh1985]

I use 80/20 on rosewood guitars. My 00-28vs loves them. Seems to boost the fundamental and treble on this guitar which balances it out beautifully.

Opposite applies to mahogany. PBs seem to boost the overtone and bass content to my ears.

Obviously these results vary greatly depending on the individual guitar and are just my opinion of course

[Murphy Slaw]

I've always preferred 80/20's on my J-45. It's Rosewood / ebony.

I also prefer them on my J-15. It's Walnut.

[rokdog49]

Originally Posted by Murphy Slaw

I've always preferred 80/20's on my J-45. It's Rosewood / ebony.

I also prefer them on my J-15. It's Walnut.

80-20's will go on my newly-acquired J15 soon.

[Murphy Slaw]

Originally Posted by rokdog49

80-20's will go on my newly-acquired J15 soon.

I bought mine new, it was strung with the 80/20 Gibson Masterbuilt's and had 2 new sets in the case. I've experimented a little and it simply sounds best with 80/20's.

Now that Gibson has given up on uncoated strings, the consensus is they were GHS strings.

That's what I'll buy next.

[AndrewG]

I prefer a bright tone so 80-20 is my choice over the duller tone of PB.

[Scolaguitar]

Mine have finally settled down and I'm very pleased! At first they're very harsh but 2 days on and off playing and they work great for this particular guitar which is adi-top, sapele body.

[phcorrigan]

I was using 80/20s on my HD-28V, then moved to the new Martin LifeSpan medium PBs. They give me a mellower, less-bright sound and last far longer than I expected them to.

[gmel555]

Generally I'm a Phos Bronze, guy and they sound at least good on everything I've tried them on; in most cases they're the best. With that said, my Larrivee L-09 seems to benefit from the added brightness of 80/20 along w-a pleasing clarity/presence on the bass end. I'm using D'Addario Nickel-Bronze now on my small body LDBO. I find 80/20s "die" sooner than PBs, so I've been thinking about trying a coated 80/20 set on the L-09, although I generally don't like coated strings.