How fast do you go through string sets?

[pushpull7]

I don't gig, so I don't worry about that. I do play almost everyday though for several hours.

I use 9-42 GHS boomer and I prefer to change them everyweek.....but usually go longer. They discolor pretty easy (any brand) and unlike some, I like fresh strings. I'm pretty good at getting them broken in quickly (whammy or hardtail)

 

[xeL]

D'Addario 10-52 in Drop C.

I've had the current set on for about 2 months and they are still going strong, this could be due to cleaning them down after every long playing session and the lower tension though.

 

[pearl_07]

I wash my hands before I play, but I don't wipe the strings down. Ernie Balls work good for me. ~7-8 hours of playing weekly and the mid July set that's on now is just starting to dull out. I've tried a few sets of Cleartones for my 6's and those lasted close to a year before I finally replaced them.

 

[Asrial]

I think last time I swapped strings was at christmas, using a pack of Ernie Ball. They sound dull now...
A month and a half, maybe two? It's my main guitar I'm referring to, which gets around 15 hours playtime a week.

I hit like a jackhammer.

 

[Fiction]

1-2 Weeks before the intonation on my High E string is gone, about 1-2 Months before the string are dead though. I put on a new set today on my old sixer after about 6 months, I forgot how great new sets sound, busted out a good 4 minute song as a result of proper intonation and not needing to tune certain strings in different areas to stay in tune for certain songs

 

[Dayn]

I honestly can't remember. All I know is that I tend to keep my strings on for one to two, maaaybe three months, depending on if I have any strings left in my stash.

I've never broken a string on my current guitar, and I usually wipe my strings down and use GHS Fast Fret. I found GHS strings to last longer than D'Addario though. I have a custom set of La Bella strings on at the moment, and have for about three weeks or so. They looked dull and I thought they sounded dull when I got them, but they're actually good. I'm withholding criticism until I get a new batch when I have to change them, because I got them delivered during some heavy-as-fuck rain; the humidity was so high my fretboard and the house's walls felt damp. They're going quite strong though. They should last well enough for another month at least.

 

[Mr. Big Noodles]

Man, I can't remember the last time I changed strings. When I do, it's usually out of the uncanny sense I get from their preternatural longevity and the thought of how the ancients once worshiped my strings as gods at one point over the expansive eons of cosmic emptiness.

 

[Alberto7]

I'm surprised that so many people keep their strings for well over 2 months! That is the most I will go with a set of strings. After that, they just sound absolutely dead and muffled for me, even though I wash my hands every time before I play, and I maniacally wipe the strings every 5-10 minutes into playing, including after I'm done.

I love the sound of new strings, so, ideally, I'd like to change strings every 2-3 weeks, but I'm just too lazy. I usually keep them for maybe 1-2 months before I finally decide to change. I use D'Addario strings.

I once did break two brand new E strings one after the other within 5 minutes of having changed them. I wanted to jump out of a window. I never really found out how or why they broke so easily. I haven't broken a single string on that same guitar ever since. In fact, I haven't broken a single string on any guitar ever since then, and that was some 5-6 years ago.

 

[dschonn]

I use d´addarios on all my guitars, aswell as ghs fast fret which helps alot, so i guess i´m changing strings every two months...

 

[JamesM]

Used to have a cock

I'm sorry to hear that bro.

 

[Randomist]

I don't break strings. Doesn't happen. So its usually about corrosion with me.

I have one very definite main guitar that i play quite a lot and EBs and d'addarios seem to last about a month.
I'm trying elixirs now and they've been on about a month... and they're getting a bit fluffy around the picking area where the coating is wearing out. Might need a change soon, then.
So I suppose its back to the showdown between slinkies and XLs.

I play 9's in standard and use dunlop 65 string cleaner occasionally to help, but I'm not overly keen on the feel of cleaned strings, feels like something's left behind on the string. Coated strings like nanowebs seem to have a similar "not quite right" feel to them.

 

[cwhitey2]

Depends on the brand and how often im playing. 1 set a month usually

 

[Cyntex]

I had a set of elixer nanowebs that where on my Schecter loomis for more than a year and they still sounded great. I barely sweat, if at all (I don't play live anymore). I do change up guitars every 6 or 8 weeks, so maybe thats why they last so long. Then again nanoweb strings are awesome, and they are well worth the price imo.

EDIT: might be worth mentioning that I have a very light pick attack and use as much economy picking as possible.

 

[Jontain]

Using ernie balls.

Strings can last me a while but I will aim to change them when 'they need it'. Can differ from guitar to guitar depending on which gets the most use. So anything from a few months to much longer.

Although I dont sweat a great deal when playing so they dont wear that quickly.

After playing and going to put away i will usually cover up the fretboard and give them a light rub with a WD40'd cloth, this keeps them in good nick and dries without leaving any residue behind that will get all over your hands when you next play. This may not be an orthodox method but it works well and keeps the strings bright.

 

[SirMyghin]

I find it interesting how many wait for corrosion on the strings, seems foreign to me as my strings just don't corrode. I love bright snappy strings, so they get changed long before corrosion. Usually you can see wear where the frets are on the bottom of the string when I change them, but that is about it.

 

[Alice AKW]

So, I saw someone here using the 10-52's in drop C, M using them in standard and doing Yngwie-esque bends is probably why I kill strings so fast XD

 

[Randomist]

I find it interesting how many wait for corrosion on the strings, seems foreign to me as my strings just don't corrode. I love bright snappy strings, so they get changed long before corrosion. Usually you can see wear where the frets are on the bottom of the string when I change them, but that is about it.

IMO corosion is a process, so its how corroded the strings get, rather than simple "corroded? (true/false)"

My fluffy elixirs have started to gather some crap in the fluffyness that I can feel under the tips of my fingers if I run them along the strings. The tone doesn't seem to have changed much, but then it was never like a new set of D'Addarios or Rotosounds... unfortunately I only have Elixirs in 9s ...and a pile of 10s and one pack of D'Addario11's

 

[SirMyghin]

No, strings are clean, and not blackening, therefore no corrosion As far as elixirs go, there is little in the string world I hate more than elixirs.

 

[Rich5150]

I use Dunlop Heavy Cores, Dont play out so usually about every 1 to 2 months for me

 

[damigu]

1-2 months usually.