Taylor and Elixir HD lights

[Eb711]

Anyone other then experimented with their string gauge , only tried D'addario 12-53 EJ16 i believe and they did not float my boat. Could that have been because of the different gauges ?
I own a 512 with a pretty thin cedar top i dont want to stress the guitar with really heavy strings, but could i savely try out a medium set of strings ?
My dealer says i should buy Elixir HD Lights , dont get me wrong i do like them but they go bad really fast with my greasy fingers and have never had that problem with D'addarios bedore.

A set of elixirs cost €20 in the store here So what im trying to find out if anyone other tried medium strings on their HD Light designed guitars it came with?

( sorry if my english grammar is lacking )

[Eb711]

Never mind i strolled the forum and kinda found my answer i guess when im up for a next string change i try medium 13-56 Dadarrio EXP set .

[UberJohn]

I'm glad you posted, because I am looking for the same sort of recommendations, and have not found much in an hour of looking on this site.    Thanks for the recommendation of 13-56 D'Adario EXP coated strings.    I've also seen reports that the Martin MSP7100 or MSP7200 lifespan phosphor bronze is a good match.

I have a 2015 Taylor 814CE (the newly voiced model) and am a fairly new guitar player (about a year).  I was perfectly happy with the tone until I bought a Martin HD-35.  The mellow, harmonious overtones and long sustain on the HD-35 really impressed me.  Now I am trying to see what I can coax out of the smaller 814.

First I tried bone bridge pins, which made quite a noticeable difference in the tone. Both the expense and complexity of this mod were trivial, and it can be undone by just re-installing the original pins.  The tone is still Taylor, with more volume, more sustain, and more mids (those ebony pins are a large factor in the scooped mids.)  I took it to one of the Taylor factory rep events, and compared it with both the standard 814CE and the new 814CE Deluxe.  The Deluxe had the lushest overtones (adirondack spruce), and my 814CE had the second lushest overtones with overall highest volume and strongest midrange, which "cut through the mix" of the noisy room better than the other 2 guitars.  The rep remarked that it sounded like a couple sticks of mahogany were used in the bracing.  Bone bridge pins for the win!

Now I am trying out different strings.  Currently I have D'Addario EJ16 light PB strings in it, and it sounds pretty nice for finger picking. They don't cut though the mix like the Elixirs.  While warmer, they are still nice and bright, and sound great.

I might go for the bone saddle too.  I have seen a post on this site discussing Bob Colosi vs Taylor factory bone saddles - both are good.  It would surely have a large effect on the tone, and I 'd probably have to try out different strings again to find the best match.

Thanks,
John

[TLAW]

As an owner to be of a 914ce (shop tells me this Friday/fingers crossed) I'm curious to hear comments/opinions to these questions as well. I'm partial to Martin M2200's myself but thats for my HD28...not sure how they would translate on the 914. Obviously I didn't buy a Taylor to make it sound like a Martin...I tried the "Lifespan" strings in the past and never liked em' much...maybe they've improved.

I've not found a distinguishable difference between bone pins vs factory(to my ears anyway) BUT I've heard a DISTINCT difference when replacing mycarta nut/saddle with bone on my other guitars.

What I'm most looking forward to is the journey of getting to know my new friend & exploring what makes us "click"....

[Epic Audio]

All personal preference, so you will mostly need to experiment with different gauges and types of strings. Here's some info and opinion to hopefully help - If you have a light touch lighter gauge strings may be what you want as they are easier to press down, on the other hand they tend to not sound full as heavier gauge strings. Conversely medium gauge strings will require more finger strength to press down but offer a richer sound. In my opinion, and many others, non-coated strings provide a more open, musical tone; they also react to variations in playing greater than coated strings in that they are more dynamic. Coated strings are easier on the fingers and tend to be a little flatter and less dynamic than their non-coated counter parts. Depending on your style any of these may be for you. I think heavy strings are a challenge and are only for a small percentages of players. That said, if you like the direction medium stings go from lighter strings it might be worth trying heavy strings (if the guitar can take it). I do know many recording engineers do not like coated strings on any instrument for recording. I have had discussion about this with several top recording engineers, the belief is there is an interaction between the wound string and the coating that is not harmonious and results in producing some non-musical artifacts. Essentially, the wound string is surrounded in a 'tube' (the coating) that restricts its natural resonance and movement. I would be remiss if I didn't add that you may find you like different strings on different guitars, I know I do. good luck.

[Eb711]

Tried Daddario's medium gauge strings sofar ive only tried the normal ones EJ17 i believe and i like what i hear , even tough the g,b and e strings are the same gaude as Elixir HD lights they do sound different almost more stiffer altough they are the same gauge . The E,A and D are amazing just what the guitar needs .
Only took a slight tweak on the good old trussrod , mailed Taylor helpdesk if the medium string gauge wasnt a problem and Glenn Wolf said , "Go right ahead the bracing can handle it , only might require a little trussrod adjustment " and he was right . Altough i tuned to DADGAD at 1st week and after that i tuned to Open E but i might leave this guitar in DADGAD tuning 

If u like Elixir stick with it but dont be afraid to try other string brands !

[coachguitar]

Try out these: https://schneidermusik.de/shop1/product_info.php/products_id/14823?osCsid=f38da3ae6dac604965eb09d0d8610d32

Dogal RC148G Dogalive Acoustic PHOSPHOR BRONZE Round Core, 0.13-0.54

Cheaper than Elixir, sound great, no need to adjust truss rod.

Cheers!

[banjoguync]

I like 12-53s

[Epic Audio]

As a follow up to my earlier post - Attached is a picture of a Elixir Nanoweb strings (.013 to .056) that have been on a guitar about 3 months. I would guess these strings have about 100 to 120 hours of play on them, most of the time with a pick. It looks to me like the coating is fraying. This is seen in a few places but I tried to take the pic of the third string where it was most noticeable; you may have to zoom in to see it. I guess it's time to change strings. My concern is what is going on before the fraying is visible.

[Edward]

FWIW, the fraying of the nano coating is purely aesthetic.  There is nothing else "going on" here, nothing nefarious, nothing disintegrating other than what you see: the applied coating wearing off under normal use.  If they sound good they are still good.

Ignore the look and play them until you feel their tone merits replacing.  I play mine until they look fairly beat, but so long as the tone is still there, they stay.  If anything, I replace them when the wound G string starts to get fret indentations in the strings (I do lots of bends) and it starts to feel weird --bumpy-- under my fingers.

Edward

[Soof]

I have Elixir Nanos 13s on my 110e and have worked out just fine.

Of course, sound is very personal, but to my ears they sound terrific.

Plus they are the original strings that was on the guitar when I bought it.  Almost a year now.
So far there no signs of wear such as you mentioned.

[marc55]

I have Elixir PB Nanoweb Extra Light, 10-47 on my GSM, and I like the feel and sound.

m

[Jersey tuning]

I really like DR Veritas strings -- use them on my custom GC 12-fret, equivalent to an 812 or 912.  Here's a write-up from "Just Strings" website:

DR VERITAS™ Phosphor Bronze Acoustic guitar strings use DR’s innovative ACT (Accurate Core Technology) to produce strings with ultra-smooth, reinforced cores wires that not only give these strings four times longer life (without a coating), but also increase the strings’ richness of tone, their intonation accuracy and pitch retention. DR calls them, “loud, bright and accurate!” Melissa Etheridge, renowned, international artist, states, “VERITAS strings last 4X longer than other strings.” “I could feel the resonance in my chest,” says Ray Adkins.

DR handmade strings always combine old fashion craftsmanship with only the finest American made materials.

All DR strings are “compression wound”. Because the windings are so tightly fitted around the cores, they have more metal than most strings with similar gauges. DR says that this gives their strings longer life, easy bending and feel, and a brighter sound.


.......and they're made 3 miles from my NJ home.

Also have liked John Pearse's uncoated New Medium (.013-17-24-32-42-55) or Medium Lights (13-18-22-32-42-52) as alternatives to Elixir HD Lights

[Vindibona1]

I just posted a separate thread about Straight Up Strings.  Funny name and nobody has ever heard of them.  I got a set just to try and I have to tell you, they breathed new life into my  614.   My 614 came from one that I was contemplating selling to possibly my #1 acoustic!

I won't profess to know if they will have that positive effect on every guitar, but if you want low tension and great sounding strings, you should try them.  They are $8-10/set depending on the quantity you order.   So for $10 what do you have to lose? If you like them you'll get the Elixir monkey off your back.

[Knuckle47]

Wow, as I was reading the forum as a new member, I had replied to Vindibona1 about his string discovery.... as I scroll thru, I found this thread so here's my post of about 10 minutes earlier:

I won't have a Taylor acoustic to try these out on for another 2 months but I have several acoustic and jazz guitars that I have tried these in.  I have no clue how to predict the sound of these strings but I have them on a Hofner President jazz box style and a vintage Gibson L-0 acoustic oval hole. 

The are a mellower sound with almost a nylon tone.  Savarez Argentine 1610.  They have 10-45 and 11-46

You might hate them, but ....you may enjoy them