Are you buying the right strings for you?

I was browsing through YouTube the other night, when I came across the following video from Phillip McKnight, entitled "Are you buying the right strings for you?"

Now, I'm pretty passionate about strings, so having watched a bunch of this dude's videos in the past and developed a respect for him, I thought I'd see what he had to say.

He's right, but - in my opinion - for the wrong reasons.



I think I'll do a video on why this is, but allow me to explain as best I can here.

Phil first got me wondering what steroids he's taking when he says that "heavy strings are easier to play - fact". In my experience, that's totally not true. As it turns out, Phil seems to be of the opinion that a 46 on the low E is a "heavy" string.

OK, let's address this one right now. I floss my teeth with 46's. I don't want to be seen as having a go at the dude; he clearly knows his gear and is a pro at running his store, and as I said, I have a lot of respect for this guy. His theory of and explanation of the physics behind string tension are sound (no pun intended).
But honestly, even before I'd even heard of 7-string guitars, I thought a 46 was a light gauge. For the past 20 years, I've been playing 52s on the low E, if not 56s. A matching set of those has a corresponding high E gauge of 11 or 12, depending on the set.

Now, having played this as my preferred gauge for so long, I can categorically say that heavy strings are not easier to play than light ones. Not by any stretch of the imagination. Even with thick callouses, I get deep grooves in my fingertips from voicing chords! I get cramps in my left hand if I play for more than a couple of hours at a time. This isn't a technique thing either; fat strings require a load of force to push down on the frets.

Oddly enough, my preference for heavy strings has caused me a lot of difficulty since transitioning to 7-string guitars some 15 years ago, as most "complete set" of 7's bottom out at 56 for the low B, which is just silly, in my opinion. Especially when Ibanez insists on retaining the 25.5" scale length neck for their 7-string models.

But I digress.

Phil here is absolutely right in the overall advice; finding the right gauge for your playing style is super important. In high school, I was often good-naturedly mocked by my friends for playing "steel girders" as strings. These same friends have since come around to my way of thinking.

Feel free to get your light strings if you're a lead player, or your medium-lights if you like the occasional solo wank, but for the love of god, don't start thinking that 46's are "heavy" - or that heavy strings are easier to play.

Absolutely play around with different gauges to see what works best for you. What sounds best for you. My chosen strings might cause me pain, but in my opinion, the short-term pain is worth the long-term gain in tuning stability and great tone.