So, I’ve been at this for around six months now and when I first got my banjo it had medium strings on it. I thought that they hampered my poor fingers ability to play as a newbee so I went to light strings and they were much easier to push. I did notice that the tone of my banjo changed a bit though. Not that it mattered so much but was a bit quieter maybe. So my question is, should I change back to the mediums now that my fingers are a little more used to pushing on the strings or keep the lights for a while? Advantages/ disadvantages of the lighter strings?
When to go back to Medium strings?
Well, OK I’ll go back and try them again. Thanks Ben
I went through the whole light vs mediums the first couple months cause JD and Ralph Stanley both use lights but like Ben I found they just didn’t have the resistance I liked of mediums but I did like the fact that they were easier on my fingers. After some experimenting I found that GHS PF145’s are a good compromise, they are what they call medium lights. The 4th string is just right to me, not to low and not too high and I like it cause I prefer the nickel wound as opposed to th pb wound 4th. Th G strings are 10s instead of 9s you find in light sets and 11s you find in a medium set. They are very reasonably priced too!
Thanks Brad. I can see that I’ll just have to experiment a bit to find a happy medium. I wonder if punching holes in a watermelon with my fingers will toughen them up a bit. Hmmmm
For me jack that was half the fun. Wait until u start tinkering with different bridges. Its all about what sound you like. I just wish my hand would heal up so I could pick my banjo again 