Topic: String Gauges
People sometimes talk about strings being 10's or 9's or whatever
what does it mean
- Roger Guppy
- The Laid Back Moderator
- Offline
Re: String Gauges
Hi John,
Nowadays we are able to buy strings sets of various gauges, I believe they range from 8 to12, 8's being light (thin) and 12's heavy (thick).
Electric lead guitarist tend to prefer the lighter gauge strings as they can be bent easier to produce the sound and effect they want. I prefer the heavier gauge for acoustic as it give a fuller sound but a lot is down to style of play and personal preference.
The number 8 -12 is the gauge of wire for the high E string.
Hope that helps,
Roger
"Do, or do not; there is no try"
Re: String Gauges
When I first started learning guitar, I had a cheap acoustic and was having a very hard time with barre chords (I've got pretty girly hands for a dude). One of the guys I work with who plays told me to try a lighter guage string and it made a world of difference.
Re: String Gauges
Technically: Strings are gaged by their thinnest string. When you purchase a set of 10's, you've bought a set of strings that the high "E" string is .010" or ten one thousandths of an inch thick. The thicker strings, B, G, D, A, and E are gaged relative to this first string. Sometimes, the string package is labled "12-52. Meaning that the thinnest string is .012" and the thickest is .052" all the rest fall between.
Acoustic 12's are considered "light". Electric 10's are considered "medium". Never confuse electric strings with acoustic strings. Never put steel strings on a classical. Never put nylon strings on anything and the world will continue to revolve.
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