Time for new strings on my Tele

Hey all,
I'ts time to change my strings on my Squire tele standard, and I'd appreciate
some input. What brand and what size have you found sound & feel the best?
I play a little of everything (country,classic rock,folk) so I need some flexabilty. Also I'm thinking of having the guitar "set up" is it ok to do it with
fresh strings or should I wait until they're broke in?
Thanks

I switched to ErnieBall hybrids.Like 'em alot. you get the best of both worlds.

Strings are a personal thing. What works for one will not work for another. Are you comfortable with the strings that are on the guitar? Does the guitar play in tune? Is this the first string change on a new guitar? If you decide to have the guitar set up, just let pro change the strings this time around.

Good luck.

Dan

Hey all,
I'ts time to change my strings on my Squire tele standard, and I'd appreciate
some input. What brand and what size have you found sound & feel the best?
I play a little of everything (country,classic rock,folk) so I need some flexabilty. Also I'm thinking of having the guitar "set up" is it ok to do it with
fresh strings or should I wait until they're broke in?
Thanks

As the other post said it's a personal thing, but I'll chime in that DR Tite-Fits were a nice change for my Telecaster. I went up from .09 to .10 and the high strings feel better for me 'cause I played acoustic for 30 years prior to electric, but they are nice and flexy and they honestly sound better (to me) than the Fender and webstrings.com sets on same instrument. They do cost a bit more, but we're talking just a few $.

For bending I have always liked a hybrid set of 9-46. I have used 10-46 and flirted with 10-52, love those thick low strings.

These days my tele is always tuned down a whole step, and I use 10-46 GHS Boomers because our local Wal-Mart actually carries them. There is no music store within about a hundred miles from my home so I can run down to "Wally World" and pick up a set, I usually buy 3-4 sets every time I go. GHS Boomers are all they carry, I played D'Addarios for years and I would put on a new set before every gig but about halfway through night they would lose that new string luster and sound a bit dead, never broke one at a gig though and that's a plus. I played Ernie Balls before that and I was never super impressed but they beat not having strings at all. Heck I was even impressed with the Musicians Friend's strings at $1.99 a set.

I bought a new USA made Tele a while back and it came with Fender Bullets 10-46 and I really liked those, but like I said I have a pile of GHS Boomers lying around so maybe when I use them up I might buy the Fender's but everything I have get is usually through mail order.

Oh and the Boomers aren't bad, not as much twang compared to the D'Addarios but the Boomers stay brighter longer and actually still sound new after a 4 hour gig with my sweaty fingers.

This is an old discussion, but in my view...the bigger the strings, the better the tone! 11-52 works for me and not tuned down, but you may need a few adjustments over a few weeks to get the neck used to them. Once you and your neck are used to them, it's tonal bliss.

Personal preference. I like strings that fight back a bit... some D'addario 11's... I usually use rotosound though, because they are british. :)

I suggest trying some different brands and guages, and deciding which ones you like best.

Have A SQ STD, had always used super slinky's but changed to 12-54's last month and it has been a big improvement in tone and had brought new elements into my playing.

I use D'Addario jazz/rock strings, .11-.49. The older I get the more I've found that a gentle approach with heavier strings is the one for me.

D'Addario 10-52

Hey all,
I'ts time to change my strings on my Squire tele standard, and I'd appreciate
some input. What brand and what size have you found sound & feel the best?
I play a little of everything (country,classic rock,folk) so I need some flexabilty. Also I'm thinking of having the guitar "set up" is it ok to do it with
fresh strings or should I wait until they're broke in?
Thanks

if it was just fast metallic speed picking, then i would say go with 8s or 9s, roundwounds, d'addario xl's or ernie balls

but if you want to render some more mellow classic rock licks, country, and even some folk which may mean some fingerpicking, then go with roundwound 10s...they're cheap and a happy medium for many styles on the electric guitar

i would say the same for you if you had a strat, lp, sg, ibanez, yamaha, or paul reed smith boutique axe

....................

i personally use flatwound 11s on a hollowbody for jazz, and roundwound 11s on a solidbody for rock stuff

but i think 10s are way better for rock and the only reason i use 11 roundwounds on a solidbody for rock is that i don't want to weaken my fingers and i want to stay used to the higher tension of 11s for jazz

it's often hard to have a slinky feeling guitar with 9s or 10s for rock and pop, and a stiff guitar with 11s, 12s, or even 13s, which are very good for jazz

however, there are some rock players who like an 11s (or higher) set but it's still fairly uncommon because it's pretty hard to bend the B and G strings since they are so stiff on a set of 11s

Almost all of the classic rock and country guitarists of the 60s and 70s used 9s. That's what I use, and usually I buy Ernie Ball strings. If you do a lot of bending, and especially if you play country, you'll get a much more fluid sound with 9s.

If you don't bend a lot and like to play harder on the strings, 10s are better. I don't see any reason for heavier strings than that on a Fender unless you're strictly a jazz player.

As far as when to have the guitar set up: You should put on a fresh set of strings, but do a little playing and bending first so the strings will be broken in enough.

I personally like the DR Pure Blues 11s. I love the all-nickel construction. nice and warm but still twangy. as for the gauge, keep in mind that I also play upright bass, so my hands are pretty rediculously strong.

I personally like the DR Pure Blues 11s. I love the all-nickel construction. nice and warm but still twangy. as for the gauge, keep in mind that I also play upright bass, so my hands are pretty rediculously strong.

do you like the action high on guitar with those strings?

of course, i don't know if it's possible to have ultra low action with 11s on any guitar comparable to what action one can get with 8s on a very flat radius fingerboard which fender does not make outside of some of their custom shop guitars

i could not imagine playing upright bass because i can't even handle it when i raise my 11s, where i still get the best tone however...so i compromise and have medium/medium low action with my 11s so i can still reasonably play with some speed if i need to

hitting chords are fairly easy, even with 12s or 13s, and slow single note passages are still do-able

i did have a stage in my life, more than 10 years ago, when i worked with weights a lot and i was able to easily play on heavier gauge strings :)

I suppose it's reasonably high. I'd have to measure and see what others consider high. the tele is pretty much set up the way I got it used. all I've done so far is set the intonation with the new strings.

.....You haven't Played a Tele! After 40 years of Tele-Blasting, I'm hooked on 9.5-44s. Better tone than
9's, benner tuning stability and bends than 10s.
Made for Teles. Sometimes tough to find - only one
of my local shops sells them, but MF has them cheap.
They're unbelieveably the optimum string gauge and set-up for vintage Teles.