Elixirs Strings --are Condom strings

[MIKE 450]

Bob Dylan wrote the hit song "The strings they-need a-Changin!

Come gather round people,wher-ever you roam
And admit that the prices of strings have grown
And except that soon you'll be skint to the bone
If your money to you is worth saving
Then forget about Elexir's or you'll be skink to the bone
For the strings they need a changin

Come writers and critics who prohesies with your pen'
And listen to me I won't tell you again
All this talk of coated strings is all just a spin
And there's no tellin who it's skinking
As the loser buys those Elixir things
For the strings they need a changin

The line it is drawn the curse it is cast
If you'd clean your strings then they would last
How did those plucker's pluck in the past
The order is rapidly fadin
Just buy the cheap ones clean them the'll last
For the strings they need a changin.
----------------------------------------------------


Does that jog your memorey Lintin!

[Lentin]

LOL
Guitar, horses, and poems...
You've got everything

[MIKE 450]

Ah ha everything except the sun--for that I must travel to your part of the world Lentin--I also love motorbike racing but I get my fare share of it here in Ireland.

Send me the SUN Lentin send me the SUN!

[Lentin]

I love motorcycles also.. Three weeks ago I was in Jerez, under the SUN, spending some days with the Championship races..
Nothing to do with strings, but we can also write the word Flamenco somewhere (just in case)...
Jerez is located in Andalusia, the roots of Flamenco are there.

[Marty kelly]

Hi,all
Just a quick one on elixir strings, i have been using for quite a few years, i gig and tour constantly, and i pay for my own strings..ok.
I get through a set of elixir strings every 3/4 weeks, when i used the cheaper and nicer sounding strings, once a week at minimum, maybe even twice. So figure it out among yourselves and have a another think why there so popular.. Nothing to do with sound.
And i would never use them in the studio..

Ta for now

[MIKE 450]

Hi Marty,yeah your right good point- touring and giging can be less hassle when your not always changin strings. Years back my old band had a road grew which was fantastic--you simply arrived and played so to speak.

The real pro's always have a guitar tech who can change strings at the bat of a eye lid--kinna sad in a way to think that mybe those days are on there way out---I mean the days of big bands road grews etc-nowadays your more likely to find a guy on he's own singing to backing tracks- while play an electric via a pod.

Still who knows mybe it will all come back "the good ole days"
And as for Elixirs --- slightly over priced I'd say--but I did put a set on my twelve string, that's the advantage of coated strings --there great for 12 string.

[singlereed]

Hmm well, the Rotosound Nexus strings were truly horrible - they just made my guitar sound ugly and the two unwound strings felt like (and looked like) picture hanging wire. I think I have come round to thinking that coated strings do not really suit me, they seem to make bends, hammers and pulls more difficult than they should be. Anyway, I have put a set of Newtones on - I thought I'd try the Heritage low tension set and I am quite impressed; believe it or not, my playing seems more accurate and articulated, less punctuated by woolly notes. The strings themselves feel more under control in bends, hammer ons etc. I have a slight misgiving over the balance to the sound - I am used to hitting some of the strings much harder - those strings which normally have a much higher tension across the set.

[MIKE 450]

AH HA! I can't agree with you more singlereed --that's why I said I use Elixirs on my 12 string --there alright for strumming and handy for the 12 string which I don't use that often--changing strings can be a pain on the 12 string so spending the extra money for the smooties seemed like a good idea.

Playing 6 string is another ball game,as an x lead guitarist I liked a raw sound not processed in any shape or form. My set up for lead was strat straight into marshall then turn it up. On acoustic I find non coated strings have more snap very sharp non compressed sound. With Elixirs I find all of this is gone --they are to smooth and as I've said before on this thread --they suit the beginner because they are easy on the finger-tips.

With me it's NO PAIN NO GAIN! thanks for your post very interesting--you sound like someone who knows how to play!

[woodhope]

After reading the 'strings need a changing' I lol'd and lol'd
Well done.

My two cents:

I am always trying new strings.

I have been suckered on a couple of occasions with cheap no-name store brand strings.THE GREAT DEAL Buy 3 get one free etc. etc., But these are rip-offs. I have tried but also seen the muting on Elixirs and hate those strings. They remind me of 'the great deal' el-cheapies but on the other end of the scale. Buy ONE pay 3 TIMES

These might be alright for the person that never wants to change a string but why would you? New strings just have that awesome new feel. (I change my strings on average four times a year)

No matter where I roam I always come back to EJ16 Light 12-53. DaDdArIo just works for me.

And an interesting aside is I play harder than anyone I know. Kind of a folk punk thing. A Billy Bragg meets Tommy Saxondale thing.

And yet, I must be going for a world record in not breaking a string.
-- Or at least I was before I mentioned it.

Winston

[Walesy]

Its interesting that you still find playing acoustics painful Mike, my fingertips lost any feeling years ago. When I used to smoke, I could stub cigarettes out on my fingertips without feeling anything

I'll say it again, I just can't understand how/why people cant get the fact that different strings will suit different people, due to all sorts of contributing factors. There is no 'X string is better than Y' - it comes down to personal preference! If you don't like them then don't use them

[Ross A]

I'll say it again, I just can't understand how/why people cant get the fact that different strings will suit different people, due to all sorts of contributing factors. There is no 'X string is better than Y' - it comes down to personal preference! If you don't like them then don't use them

Exactly. Elixirs might not be my cup of tea (I hate them), but I do realise that is just a personal preference. Some people love them. Such is the world.....

[MIKE 450]

I can't agree with you more Ross--but then when I posted all this it was more about price/marketing etc--if poeple didn'et buy them they'ed ruduce the price--I think seven qid would be fare.

WHen my son returned home from New York I was amazed to hear how cheap stuff was. My son used to go into Sam Ash music store in down town N.Y. he brought me home some brochure's--which made me think has Gorden Brown got anything to do with our prices, EM!

[Ross A]

I can't agree with you more Ross--but then when I posted all this it was more about price/marketing etc--if poeple didn'et buy them they'ed ruduce the price--I think seven qid would be fare.

You're right, they are expensive - but maybe the price being high is what convinces the buyer that they are getting quality.

i don't know if this has already been mentioned, but apparantly these strings came about because at Gore-Tex (who make weather proof materials for the outdoor type) encourage their workers to come up with new applications and ideas for their products - and the suggestion came in to coat strings with a protective coating to make them last longer. I wonder if the clever chap (or not, depending on your point of view) gets a cut on each pack sold? Doubt it....

[MrSlippers]

Hello, just thought I'd butt in to this thread

Has anyone tried using the Fast Fret stick product as an alternative to Elixirs?
I use it on 'standard' strings and they certainly stay clean and bright for longer.
Considering it only costs about the difference between a set of Elixirs and normal strings, I reckon I was quids-in after my second string change...

I'd recommend anyone to try it.

[singlereed]

I have used Fast Fret for years on all my guitars and it certainly prolongs string life and generally keeps the guitar nice and clean on the fingerboard too. I don't think it makes ordinary strings last like coated ones, though. That said, I have gone off coated strings anyway....