String Gauge for D standard, 24.75 scale length

[mguilherme87]

Whats up, so I keep my 89' Fender strat in standard with 10's. 9's feel too loose to me. I have my Gibson SG in Eb tuning with 11's and it feels fine, doesn't bother me. I have an Esp Ltd Ec-401fr tuned a whole step down also with 11's and it just feels too slinky to me. The strings can go sharp if I dig in too hard while playing live. In the past, I had the LTD with 12's, and the Floyd decked with a trem stopper so that it was "dive only" with enough tension to keep the strings from going sharp during bends...The 12's at the time felt like just a little too much tension when doing bends on the lower frets of the B and E strings. Now that I've removed the stopper and returned the Floyd to full floating function, I imagine there wont be as much tension when doing single-string bends and am considering going back up to 12's for the tightness, ability to dig in without going sharp, and overall tone. Also considering getting rid of the guitar for en EVH Wolfgang special for the 25.5 radius, maple neck, and D-tuna. But then I loose the ability to raise the pitch with the tremolo which is both good and bad. Any thoughts or suggestions?

 

[Zhysick]

I'm using 9-46 in a 25.5" tuned in D sooooo... no, I have nothing to say for you I guess! LOL

 

[mguilherme87]

Yeah that seems like really low tension xD I'm seriously considering trading the LTD in for an EVH wolfgang special. being able to have the decked Floyd means little to no tuning problem in the event that I break a string, plus the D-tuna, the added resonance, and the maple fretboard and 25.5 scale length. I will lose the mahogany set neck, 24 frets, and the ability to raise the pitch. Also, Ive already upgraded the LTD with dimarzio PAF 36th Anniversaries and a Gotoh 1996t trem which is super-high quality

I'm using 9-46 in a 25.5" tuned in D sooooo... no, I have nothing to say for you I guess! LOL

 

[AkiraSpectrum]

This kind of thing is user preference and is best answered by your own experimentation. As long as you set up your bridge properly with the string gauge (keeping material and brand consistent when changing strings) then you should be fine.

Don't be scared to try different brands of strings, each brand's have different tensions and different 'perceived tension' as well, not to mention different 'slinkiness/flexibility'. Custom gauge sets can also help you fine-tune what you want exactly from string to string.

 

[Noisy Humbucker]

Ernie Ball Custom Gauge 11-52. I’m a D’Addario guy but I’ve always loved the feel of this set (and DAd doesn’t make anything to quite match it).

It tends to be my go-to for D on a 24.75” scale or C# on 25.5” (usually swapping the 52 with a 56 for drop tunings).

That said, I’ve also become a fan of the “Beefy Slinky” 11-54 set. The 54 is a nice compromise between standard and drop tuning. The plain 22 is a bit crazy, but swapping to a plain 20 doesn’t feel quite right either.

 

[Alex79]

Yes, try experimenting with different brands and gauges. I used the GHS Low 11-53 set for a long time, a 11-50 DR set and now I'm using a 10-52 Dadddario set. My guitars are the same scale but don't have a Floyd.

 

[mguilherme87]

Now these look very interesting!

Ernie Ball Custom Gauge 11-52. I’m a D’Addario guy but I’ve always loved the feel of this set (and DAd doesn’t make anything to quite match it).

It tends to be my go-to for D on a 24.75” scale or C# on 25.5” (usually swapping the 52 with a 56 for drop tunings).

That said, I’ve also become a fan of the “Beefy Slinky” 11-54 set. The 54 is a nice compromise between standard and drop tuning. The plain 22 is a bit crazy, but swapping to a plain 20 doesn’t feel quite right either.

 

[TheWarAgainstTime]

11-52 may do the trick. D'addario also has the 11-56 set if you need more beef on the bottom strings, or a few variations of 12's for tighter top strings.

 

[Shask]

I would personally probably use a 10-52 set. They are widely available.

 

[couverdure]

https://www.stringjoy.com/categories/strings/electric-guitar-strings/6-string-electric/0115s/

An 11.5 gauge set tuned to D should match the tension of an 11 gauge set tuned to Eb.

 

[mguilherme87]

Now that looks nice, would you recomend the balanced set?

https://www.stringjoy.com/categories/strings/electric-guitar-strings/6-string-electric/0115s/

An 11.5 gauge set tuned to D should match the tension of an 11 gauge set tuned to Eb.

 

[couverdure]

Now that looks nice, would you recomend the balanced set?

If you want it truly balanced, replace the 30 and 40 in the 11.5-52 set with a 28 and 38 respectively, which you could do since Stringjoy also lets you make customized packs.

For my preference, I'd go with the 11.5-60 set for that tuning/scale length since it would feel similar to 10-52 tuned to E on 25.5", which is what I use, and the heavy sixth string would have enough tension for Drop C as well.

 

[mguilherme87]

Awesome! I decided to purchase the balanced set before receiving your reply. Ill try them out and see how it feels/sounds and then go from there! If I'm digging the sound and but feel like the low end is a bit too tight still, Ill try the 28 and 38! Thank you for your help! I havent tried String Joy stings yet so I'm pumped to try them out.

If you want it truly balanced, replace the 30 and 40 in the 11.5-52 set with a 28 and 38 respectively, which you could do since Stringjoy also lets you make customized packs.

For my preference, I'd go with the 11.5-60 set for that tuning/scale length since it would feel similar to 10-52 tuned to E on 25.5", which is what I use, and the heavy sixth string would have enough tension for Drop C as well.

 

[Fortin Worship]

Whats up, so I keep my 89' Fender strat in standard with 10's. 9's feel too loose to me. I have my Gibson SG in Eb tuning with 11's and it feels fine, doesn't bother me. I have an Esp Ltd Ec-401fr tuned a whole step down also with 11's and it just feels too slinky to me. The strings can go sharp if I dig in too hard while playing live. In the past, I had the LTD with 12's, and the Floyd decked with a trem stopper so that it was "dive only" with enough tension to keep the strings from going sharp during bends...The 12's at the time felt like just a little too much tension when doing bends on the lower frets of the B and E strings. Now that I've removed the stopper and returned the Floyd to full floating function, I imagine there wont be as much tension when doing single-string bends and am considering going back up to 12's for the tightness, ability to dig in without going sharp, and overall tone. Also considering getting rid of the guitar for en EVH Wolfgang special for the 25.5 radius, maple neck, and D-tuna. But then I loose the ability to raise the pitch with the tremolo which is both good and bad. Any thoughts or suggestions?

I use the Dunlop heavy core 'heavier' set on all my 6's. They're 11-14-18-28-38-50. They work well for D standard and pretty good in drop C

 

[mguilherme87]

Just an update, i recieved the StringJoy balanced 11.5 set and its EXACTLY what I needed! The tension matches the other guitars just right now. It feels great. Thank you for the recommendation!

If you want it truly balanced, replace the 30 and 40 in the 11.5-52 set with a 28 and 38 respectively, which you could do since Stringjoy also lets you make customized packs.

For my preference, I'd go with the 11.5-60 set for that tuning/scale length since it would feel similar to 10-52 tuned to E on 25.5", which is what I use, and the heavy sixth string would have enough tension for Drop C as well.