Well, guess I’m gonna stock up on strings, not sure why I haven’t before now. I mostly play banjo, mandolin, and guitar, and I can get three sets of each for about $55. Strings usually stay pretty comfortable to me for 2-3 months so $55 twice a year really isn’t that bad. Plus I can buy them from the general store and get free shipping since it’s over $49
When String Snapping Goes Wrong
If you can get that much life out of a set of strings kudos to you!
I have to change mine every 2 weeks and it’s hard not to change them every week
Thankfully(ish) I’m not changing strings 3 instruments at a time though! That would be rough on the billfold haha
Every two weeks!?!? Mine are still practically new at two weeks! Good thing you don’t play banjo, mandolin strings last me a lot longer than banjo strings. You’d be changing banjo strings every other day
My banjo strings last much longer than guitar strings. Since I don’t play guitar hardly ever more than around the house I don’t change them as much as I would like to but if I were playing it live it would be about every week or two. No reason for that if you are just playing around the house like I do.
I’m usually around every 2 weeks too but that’s because I only play one instrument. I do notice that during time periods when I’m playing both of my guitars a lot, I keep the same strings on each of them for sometimes months, since I’m going back and forth. For someone who’s been used to keeping strings on for a year, I think every 2-3 months is a good start.
I always change my banjo strings every couple months at least, because when they get too much rust on them playing up the neck becomes nearly impossible I just don’t play guitar enough to justify changing them super often. I have been playing more lately so I might start changing them more often. I’m pretty sure I last changed them in January, so I’m long overdue haha. And mandolin strings sound good for me for a long time, I honestly like the tone when they lose their initial brightness. I change them after they get uncomfortable to play, which is usually every couple months.
I like the feel of older banjo strings. I agree they aren’t as bright and snappy when they’re not brand new but I don’t mind the tone. Sometimes on the banjo a set of strings break in and start to feel smooth. The guitar is totally different though. I would change my guitar strings once a week if I played more.
This is why I don’t practice mandolin Mando strings would be junky after a week of consistent practice. Same with banjo strings. Guitar strings, 3 days if they’re anything but Elixirs, which I can stretch for a month or more. If Elixirs went out of production I don’t know what I’d do… and seriously, no other coated string has made any difference for me. They all last the same amount of time except Elixirs which will take anything I throw at them.
Either y’all are way pickier about strings than I am or I just have unbelievably dry hands
Plus they rust on their own. I can put new strings on the banjo, play the banjo for 5 minutes, and it’ll need a string change after a few weeks
Yeah, I’ve found that strings last longer on an instrument if you keep it in the case vs leaving it out. Kinda weird. I always have my mandolin in it’s case when not in use, my banjo is on a stand but I would keep it in the case if I wasn’t too lazy to get it out every time
I kinda feel bad about demoing instruments because I can wipe out a decent amount of the string lifespan in a playing session
Me too but snapping them brings them right back to their state of newness, so my 5-minute string-killing ability doesn’t bother me anymore.
It’s the unwound strings that I really wreak havoc on. As far as the wound strings, snapping helped for about 90 seconds the time I tried it
Fiddle strings on the other hand have lasted me a good long while but I’m no good at fiddle so it doesn’t make much of a difference either way.
I’m seriously gonna try that.
I love the sound of Nickel Bronze D’addario stings on my mandolin but they don’t last me but about a day.
I use XS’s because they last longer and not for tone
Oh yeah, unwound strings are so annoying to play once they’ve rusted. And then the wound ones completely lose their tone.
Maybe I should just wear gloves when I play.
I’ve got 3 sets of new strings coming so my guitar will be good in a couple days . I’m always really impressed with how fast stuff from Ben gets here, even with just standard shipping it’s never been more than 3 days or so.
That’s actually way harder than it looks😂