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Post by creamburmese on Nov 20, 2014 14:57:55 GMT
I have a new Taylor 712 and it indeed came with Elixir HD lights - to my ears they add a mellow roundness that is not usually part of the Taylor sound. In fact to be brutally honest I normally don't like the Taylor sound at all and don't bother even playing the Taylors on the wall of the Guitar Center, and I'm not fond of Elixirs either. But on this occasion after I'd been through all the Gibsons, Martins, Breedloves etc, someone recommended I try the little Taylor, and I literally couldn't stop playing it. To my ears it sounded better than everything else in there (with the possible exception of a Martin authentic) and played a good deal easier than the Martin (not to mention it was half the price). Which is why I went home without it and then went back the next day and bought it. I've since tried one other set of strings on the Taylor, but immediately replaced the HD's - the strings are definitely part of the sound. I haven't tried the HD's on any other guitar yet though, so I'd be interested in hearing what you think of them. My only concert is the 13's - I normally play 12's or 11's - the Taylor is shorter scale so for me they aren't noticeably harder to fret but personally I might have a problem on a full scale guitar.
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Post by clydeslide on Nov 21, 2014 12:40:28 GMT
HD's? They're the ones designed with Taylor aren't they? Yes, looks like it. At least, that's what they mention on their website. Great, let us know what you think as I was quite interested in these when they came out.
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Akquarius
Cheerfully Optimistic
Posts: 2,510
My main instrument is: Towet Fingerpicker, Dreizehnter SJ15 "Akquarius"
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Post by Akquarius on Nov 30, 2014 12:03:57 GMT
I finally managed to restring my Akquarius with the new set. I decided to leave the relatively new set of D'Addario DADGADs on the Lakewood as a comparison in terms of playability.It might be nice to have this possibility during the next weeks. Stringing is a bit funny, because the coating gives the strings a kind of slippery handling, but the stringing itself is easy and without any issues. Now, after about an hour of use, I notice three remarkable things. First: nearly no need to retune. I usually have to retune strings several times after I have changed them until they have finally settled, most problably because of my lousy stringing technique. This is not the case here. I had thought, that because of the coating the strings might not be very stable in terms of staying in tune. I was wrong ![:)](//storage.proboards.com/3218224/images/rBu6Z_cEBMxaUS4Ea5Qu.gif) Second: They're loud. My playing is not what you'd call soft and the Akquarius is a powerful monster anyway, but these strings are notably louder than the D'Addarios or the Thomastiks. Third: the .053 6th string is a bender. This might become an issue, because I tend to use my left thumb a lot on this string. And this tends to slightly bend the string. In this case this unwanted bending might be more than slight. Right now the sound is bright and clear, though not stingy or metallic (I hope you know what I mean. Describing a sound is a bit complicated). The squeaky noise when sliding notes is, of course, much less noticeable. I'm quite curious how the sound is going to develop. After the first hour I have to admit that I really like playing these HD's. Time permitting, I'll try to do some recording this afternoon to give you an audible impression. I will play this set for a week or two and then replace the 6th string with the .056 string I also ordered. Over here the Elixir PhBr HD's are only slightly more expensive (appx. 80 pence) than Newtone Masterclass and a little less expensive than Thomastik Spectrum Bronze. All of these are appx. double of what I pay for a D'Addario DADGAD set, though. What might make the whole affair expensive is the extra single .056 sixth string. They charge 4 GBP for this one alone. Time will tell if I actually need it.
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Post by fatfingerjohn on Nov 30, 2014 12:46:28 GMT
Interesting report Bernd. I'm trying a set of HD lights on my Turner 6er and so far so good. However, whatever I try on my Taylor I keep returning to D'addario EXPs. I played Elixir coated for a couple of years on my Taylor as that is what they had fitted when I bought it 5 years ago. I loved the sound, the life and that they kept in tune forever although the slippiness took some getting used to, particularly in first week or so of new strings.
About 2-3 years ago, on a friend's recommendation, I tried a set of D'Addario EXP11 coated 80/20 lights for a change (coated I believe with a different technique than Elixirs, before winding?) and liked them just as much with the added benefit of being less slippy. I have experimented occasionally since (including recently, just before Halifax, with a set of Newtone Masterclass) but always go back to the EXPs. (I liked the Newtone a lot but definitely didn't get anywhere near the life out of them and after about 6 weeks was retuning frequently, particularly when changing from one environment to another.
I have just tried moving to a set of EXP mediums (instead of lights) for the first time and quite like the extra oomph in the base.
In UK I can get the D'addario EXPs at about £10 for a single set which is OK for me as I get 2-3 months out of them.
Good luck with the HD lights.
John
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Post by Banadog on Nov 30, 2014 14:12:40 GMT
Fatfinger..if you like EXP's ...Classical Guitars Plus are selling them for 3.49 along with other strings. Free p+p over ten pounds!
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Post by fatfingerjohn on Nov 30, 2014 14:45:16 GMT
Fatfinger..if you like EXP's ...Classical Guitars Plus are selling them for 3.49 along with other strings. Free p+p over ten pounds! Just ordered 3 sets thanks. Hope they're genuine because at this price its a snip!!!
John
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Post by Banadog on Nov 30, 2014 15:51:53 GMT
No worries about them not being genuine fatfinger, Classic Guitars Plus are a great company. There are however more and more fake Elixirs around, I would advise anyone buying from a non Elixir dealer to check the windings at the ball end before using . The plain steel strings on the fake sets will have significantly fewer wraps than the genuine ones. Also the paper envelopes tend to be not as white as the real ones.
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Post by thejamsinger on Nov 30, 2014 17:45:16 GMT
My Faith High Gloss Venus came with D'Addario XL's fitted and it sounded beautiful. Had the strings for nearly 5 months so decided to change them. I put Elixir Nanowebs on and they've change the sound completely. Made it sound a lot brighter. Not sure I like the way they've changed the sound. I mainly use a plectrum but do a bit of fingerpicking. Will leave them on for a week or two. Was nearly tempted to get the old ones out the bin and put them back on as I preferred the sound of the old D'Addario's even though they were 5 months old. Will probably go back to the D'Addario's. Each to their own.
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Post by thejamsinger on Dec 2, 2014 21:09:09 GMT
Well have to say after a few days the strings sound nicer on the ear. Think I might be coming round to them.
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