strings

Welcome ross.  You'll get lots of answers on this one.  I won't suggest any brands, but I can say that most people on here in past discussions have said they like the light strings.  They are easier on your fingers and still sound good.  The heavier the strings, the deeper the sound, but then your fingers will suffer.  I bought some Martin mediums recen tly and I like them, but I still may go back to the lighter streings next time.  Elixer nanoweb bronze are popular.

There is no best set of strings.  Strings are relatively cheap and easy to replace.  Plus they wear out fairly quickly, so you get frequent opportunities to try new things.  My recommendation is to start with a set of light phospher bronze strings, probably .11's or .12s from D'Addorio.   Take notes on the sound, whether you like it or not, and then try something different next time.  Take notes in the same notebook about what you think about those strings, etc.  Keep doing that until you find a set of strings that suits your budget and your playing style and pleases your ear. 

Phospher bronze strings ring like a piano and are good for strumming.
For fingerpicking I like silk & steel strings or Elixir nanowebs. 

My go-to brand, aside from Elixir, is D'Addorio.  GHS and Ernie Ball are also popular.  While Martin strings are popular among many, I have never been satisfied with the sound of them on my guitar. 

Ultra-lights on an acoustic, in my opinion, do not sound good.  If you are using ultra-lights .10s or .09s, don't be surprised if you find the sound weak and a bit jangly, with poor depth and resonance.  A lot of 'learner' or 'starter' guitars come strung with ultra-light strings because they take less strength to use.  For me, that's not worth the compromise in sound. 

- Zurf

As for the weight, Check with the manufacture!  They can tell you what tension/weight the top is designed for... Some guitars are built to sound best with mediums and some with lights. Putting lights on a heavier built guitar will lesson the responsiveness, and putting mediums on a guitar designed for lights can cause major structural issues! Always check with the manufacture!

Tone is so subjective and what I like you may not, so I'm not going to try to tell you what's best for you. Just try different brands and compositions till you find the ones that suit your style and guit...

As a side note... Don't get too hung up on string weight (light,xtra-light,medium,etc...) every brand has different tensions for their strings... Some brands xtra lights have the same lbs of tension as others lights, some mediums will feel like another brands lights as well. You can find string tension charts online that will tell you which brands carry what tension.

Here's a quick breakdown of some of the more popular brands and their strings lbs of tension at various tunings..

This first section is using D'Addario strings:

STANDARD TUNING E A D G B E TOTAL
LIGHT 26.0 29.9 30.5 30.2 23.3 23.3 163.2
MEDIUM 29.0 34.0 36.8 35.3 26.3 27.4 188.8
HEAVY 31.9 38.8 44.7 38.0 29.3 31.5 214.2

TUNED DOWN 1/2 STEP D# G# C# F# A# D#
LIGHT 23.2 26.6 27.2 26.9 20.8 20.8 145.5
MEDIUM 25.8 30.3 32.8 31.5 23.4 24.4 168.2
HEAVY 28.4 34.6 39.8 33.9 26.1 28.1 190.9

TUNED DOWN FULL STEP D G C F A D
LIGHT 20.6 23.7 24.2 24.0 18.5 18.5 129.5
MEDIUM 23.0 27.0 29.2 28.0 20.9 21.8 149.9
HEAVY 25.3 30.8 35.5 30.2 23.2 25.0 170.0

DADGAD D A D G A D
LIGHT 20.6 29.9 30.5 30.2 18.5 18.5 148.2
MEDIUM 23.0 34.0 36.8 35.3 20.9 21.8 171.8
HEAVY 25.3 38.8 44.7 38.0 23.2 25.0 195.0

OPEN D D A D F# A D
LIGHT 20.6 29.9 30.5 26.9 18.5 18.5 144.9
MEDIUM 23.0 34.0 36.8 31.5 20.9 21.8 168.0
HEAVY 25.3 38.8 44.7 33.9 23.2 25.0 190.9

OPEN G D G D G B D
LIGHT 20.6 23.7 30.5 30.2 23.3 18.5 146.8
MEDIUM 23.0 27.0 36.8 35.3 26.3 21.8 170.2
HEAVY 25.3 30.8 44.7 38.0 29.3 25.0 193.1

NOTE: FIGURES SHOWN ARE IN LBS USING A 25.5" Standard] SCALE LENGTH
FOR A 24.75" SCALE LENGTH MULTIPLY TENSION FIGURES SHOWN BY 0.95
FOR A 24.90" SCALE LENGTH MULTIPLY TENSION FIGURES SHOWN BY 0.96
FOR A 25.25" SCALE LENGTH MULTIPLY TENSION FIGURES SHOWN BY 0.98
FOR A 25.40" SCALE LENGTH MULTIPLY TENSION FIGURES SHOWN BY 0.99

For 12 strings:
Martin 12-String 80/20 Bronze Extra Light Acoustic Strings
D'Addario Phosphor Bronze Acoustic Guitar Strings - 12-string Light
010/010 014/014 023/008 030/012 039/018 047/027
Standard tuning: 258 lbs.
1 halfstep down: 230 lbs.
2 halfsteps down: 205 lbs.

Elixir Acoustic Guitar Light 12 String
010/010 014/014 023/009 030/012 039/018 047/027
Standard tuning: 262 lbs.
1 halfstep down: 233 lbs.
2 halfsteps down: 208 lbs.

D'Addario Phosphor Bronze Acoustic Guitar Strings - 12-string Extra Light
09/009 013/013 021/008 029/011 036/016 045/026
Standard tuning: 224 lbs.
1 halfstep down: 200 lbs.
2 halfsteps down: 178 lbs.

Dean Markley Bronze 12-String Acoustic Guitar Strings - Medium
.012/.012 .016/.016 .026/.010 .034/.017 .044/.024 .054/.030
Standard tuning: 366 lbs.
1 halfstep down: 326 lbs.
2 halfsteps down: 291 lbs.

Martin Marquis 12-String 80/20 Bronze Light Acoustic Strings
.012/.012 .016/.016 .025/.010 .032/.014 .042/.020 .054/.030
Standard tuning: 330 lbs.
1 halfstep down: 294 lbs.
2 halfsteps down: 262 lbs.

Elixir Acoustic Guitar Heavy 12 String (for C# tuning)
.013/013 .017/.017 .030/.014 .039/.018 .047/.027 .056/.035
3 frets down: 323 lbs. Surely no one tunes these up to standard. We'd have heard their guitar imploding.

Elixir Acoustic Guitar Medium PolyWeb Coating (6 string)
.013 .017 .026 .035 .045 .056
Standard tuning 192 lbs.

Other manufactures specs are available online....

I just put acoustic Ernie Ball Ultra Lights - 10's - on my steel string acoustic ... I really like the sound a lot.  I didn't lose anything in the bass and the trebles aren't too tinny sounding either.  BONUS - the set of strings cost less than $5 - they were suggested at the local music shop.  I will probably try the Elixer's next time just for the heck of it.  On my Classical... I've had different strings on it every time I've changed em and haven't found anything yet that I really want to stick to.  For me, strings are like coffee... I like to try all different kinds! 

Rebel!

You can do anything you put your mind to!
And I refuse to do anything on the guitar just because it's been done that way for ages....unless it works out for me of course. If it doesn't, I'm doing things my own way.

Electric strings on an acoustic are great for me and my style. But I wouldn't put anything smaller than 10's on there unless you're got a REAL LIGHT touch. But that's just me, I can't play with 9's or thinner on my electric either...

You know it!

=]
Dm

i am also a tutor and the reason i was asking this is because it is for a beginner student and i normally use heavy strings as i have been playing for 10 years and teaching for 2 years and i just couldnt think what strings would be better for this lad because i have always played on heavy strings but he found these to hard on his hands this is because he hasnt been playing that long

Phosphor Bronze 12s.... Pretty much your favorite brand will do.  I like D'Addario for the price and longevity, but Silk N Steel are also quite good.  Don't have a very high opinion of the D'Addario EXP line, like Zurf says they go dead too quickly.  Nothing against coated strings, Elixers are good, Nanowebs anyway.

It all comes down to sound and price.  Change them regularly so $40.00 strings are overkill in my book.

Take Care;
Doug

well, i've had my guitar for almost two years, and i can play pretty good. my only problem with strings is how often to replace them. can anyone answer that question?

awesome! thank you very much zurf!;)

I put a set of Elixer nanos on about 3 months ago and they still sound great! Much better sound and life then the Martins I had been useing