Adrian Belew and fresh strings

[posttoastie]

Hard to tell if Adrian had fresh strings here

 

[BuckNekkid]

“It only takes five minutes”.

I guess I don't change my strings often enough. No way I can do this in five minutes.

 

[Mike_LA]

Yah, great idea for everything but a 12 string......
Oh yah, huge Belew fan here as well...

 

[Esquire Jones]

Yeah, it actually took him about ten minutes while I was talking to him.

But you get the idea.

 

[Ron R]

Adrian is such a cool guy. It's a shame Robert didn't see fit to ask him to go out on that final KC tour.

 

[rand z]

I never liked the sound of new strings on my electrics.

I still don't.

I really only changed them if they got tarnished, developed flat spots on the bottom, hard to tune, or almost dead.

I thought that they sounded too bright for the R&B/Blues that we were playing.

(If I was playing strictly Tele in a country band, I'd want a brighter sound and change them as needed.)

However, on my "performing" acoustic guitar, I change them every other gig.

On my high end, stay at home acoustic guitars, I use Elixer strings and change them about every 3-4 months.

After years of experimenting... this works for me.

imo

 

[kLyon]

Great player, great singer, big fan here)

 

[buster poser]

So, the other day I was changing the strings on my Les Paul. They were months old and were sounding pretty stale.

It reminded me of the one time back in 1995/96 that I spoke with Adrian Belew in a recording studio in Boston.

He was preparing for his session and I had a few minutes to chat with him while he was changing strings on his strat.

I joked that he should have a roadie or a tech doing that for him. He was super nice and very gracious. He told me that changing strings is one of the easiest ways to ensure your tone is consistent and strong. (Paraphrasing)

He said “It only takes five minutes and it’s a great way to focus and think about the session at hand”.

He brought a refrigerator sized rack with him and played into a tiny Marshall combo amp.

Just one of those moments in time that I’ll never forget. A very nice experience.

So great. There's something zen about changing strings for me, no doubt. I enjoy it, good chance to give the guitar a maintenance checkup, tighten threaded items, give it a solid wipe down, etc. I have always changed the oil on my "fun"/sports cars for the same reason.

 

[Cyberi4n]

I change my strings after every gig. Firstly because I tend to sweat a lot whilst playing, and secondly because it gives me consistent tone. Not that the audience can discern ofc. It's also nicer to play. Costs the price of a large beer and is better for my gut than the beer would be

 

[eclecticsynergy]

Yep! My Dad had corrosive sweat as well, and likewise a rockin' guitar player I know who plays Les Paul's. My Dad could never wear a cheap watch because the plating would literally peel right off inside of a couple weeks, down to the base metal, and then that metal would pit and corrode like battery acid was on it and fall apart. Stainless steel watches, full SS band too, was all he could wear. Leather would fall apart almost overnight. As for my guitar buddy, he has to replace his tune-o-matic bridge every year or so. They literally just fall apart in the same way my Dad's watches did. No need to mention strings LOL! I completely understand your situation.

Yep, when I was gigging five and six nights a week I had to replace my Tune O Matic saddles every year.

I once dated a gal with a weird electrical field - digital watches wouldn't last even a week on her wrist. Many chemicals and medications worked backwards on her too. I'll never forget watching her drink two Jolt colas before bedtime so she could get to sleep.

 

[pippoman]

I change my strings after every gig. Firstly because I tend to sweat a lot whilst playing, and secondly because it gives me consistent tone. Not that the audience can discern ofc. It's also nicer to play. Costs the price of a large beer and is better for my gut than the beer would be

Ive never seen AC/DC live, but it’s fun watching them on YT. Angus sweats so profusely his guitar tech had to replace pickups and other parts fairly often because of corrosion from the salt! I’m surprised he gets through 3 or 4 songs without having to replace strings, let alone a whole concert!

 

[loopfinding]

I hate the way fresh strings sound. It sounds almost like a piezo or going direct into the board compared to what I’m used to. I know the audience doesn’t hear that, but I do and it bothers me.

Flats go dead fast and you hardly ever have to change them. They stay consistent for months. 11+ set plains almost never break. And I prefer that sound anyway, so it’s a win all around.

 

[Alex_C]

My pH seems to be metal friendly. I have gold colored hardware on a guitar that is 8 years old, and the plating is mostly intact. I also have some guitars with strings that are two years old, no corrosion or discoloration.

 

[Esquire Jones]

I hate the way fresh strings sound. It sounds almost like a piezo or going direct into the board compared to what I’m used to. I know the audience doesn’t hear that, but I do and it bothers me.

Flats go dead fast and you hardly ever have to change them. They stay consistent for months. 11+ set plains almost never break. And I prefer that sound anyway, so it’s a win all around.

I remember reading way back when that Eric Clapton would leave strings on right to the point where they wouldn’t intonate correctly. Basically old and funky.

And I used to follow that concept. Leave them on until the bitter end.

Nowadays I leave them on for months. But if gigging out I would lean towards fresh and loud and powerful.

Brash? Yeah maybe that too.

 

[Dismalhead]

One of my favorite guitarists too. Seen him a couple of times (once solo, once with KC). I've got one of his picks in my pick collection.