Guitar String Beta Test?

Looks legit...

     So the D'Addario string company has decided to revamp their guitar string making process. They've revamped the coating, mettalurgy, heck - they even go so far as to say that these are the strongest strings out there, but are they?

     So the other day I get a kraft paper envelope from D'Addario in the mail. Opening it I find this stealth looking strings packet inside. I waited until this morning to put the strings on because I am a busy guy. (Actually I have been fighting a wretched cold.)

     I generally like D'Addario and their strings, so I was sort of excited to get the packet. I recently wrote about how their EXP strings compare to Elixir's on my Taylor 414e ltd.

     I put the strings on my Frankentele. It looks like a tele but has dual coil humbuckers and all of the pots have been swapped out. IT sounds more like a Les Paul these days than a Tele. It's a solid chunk of over driven tone with a slug of sustain and a face built for grunge. She's my second most used electric so I thought she was good candidate for the string beta. How did it go? I'm not so impressed with the performance of the strings or the tone, but rather than ramble, I will attempt to address all of the manufacturer's claims.

     Strongest set of guitar strings ever made. It's 30% stronger than any of it's predecessors: When I pulled the high E string out of the package I noticed shiny spots on the string. These are almost always nicks in the string that can cause strings to snap. While tuning the high E, the string broke halfway between the nut and the machine head. I was at D# and worrying that the string didn't sound right. You can usually hear when a string is getting ready to go. Based on where the string broke, I believe it to be a manufacturer's defect.

     Settles to pitch and holds pitch better: This seems to be correct. The strings did seem to settle out pretty quickly which for me is usually only an issue if I have to change right before a show or during a break, so for those limited instances they would be pretty good.

     I suppose this is as good a spot as any to mention that they have gone with a tin coating on these strings. This is to aid in corrosion inhibition. They also have a really good grippy feeling to them. You can play pretty fast and not have to worry about pull off slipping at all.

     The strings have 6% more magnetic permeability resulting in higher output in the 2 - 5 khz range for punch, crunch, and bite. Yeah... they don't sound that great to me. If a string is going to sound great with distortion it should sound great clean. I thought the tone a little on the dull side, and definitely not better than the original strings.

     Bottom Line: I probably won't buy these strings, nor do I think they will transform the industry. The company has a contest going on that invites people to put up a YouTube video of their "hardest fastest, best solo playing", and label the video with #XLFORMULA3. So far all I have seen is teens playing in their bedroom, which is the likely demographic for this product. For a good laugh go check out the dude who wears a cold weather face mask, and a hat with chicken bones all over it who calls himself "Bones The Guitarist". But hey whatever works for you eh?

*Update* I called the company and spoke to customer service. I wanted to let them know about what i saw on the high e. They sent me out another set of strings. Great job of Customer Service!

 Let me know if you have had a different experience with them, or if I overlooked something.

The Quest For Tone: DAddario EXP110

   

     Everyone has their favorite guitar string. Why they have that particular string as a favorite is a complex subject. Obviously no one can try all of the guitar strings available, so how do we get to a point where we can say that a particular string is our favorite?

     Most often it is from a magazine ad or a web endorsement by someone the guitarist in question idolizes. We also talk to one another and share opinions. I recently saw two gentleman guitarists almost come to blows over whether Elixirs are better than Ernie Ball strings. These guys need to get off the net and go practice chord inversions or something. Seriously...

     I have an American Standard Telecaster that I adore. The original strings on it were very nice, and communicated everything about the sound that I had come to love. The US standard Telecaster comes with Fender Standard Tension ST250L, Nickel Plated Steel, light gauge . They are great strings but the folks on the Telecaster forums (You can link to the Telecaster forums HERE) thought that they didn't last very long if you are playing a lot. I practice almost every day, and usually perform every weekend, so longevity is important for me.

     Elixir makes a couple of variants of coated strings (polyweb vs nanoweb) and while I use them on my Taylor, and Fender acoustic guitars, I have never been very impressed with them on my electrics. They sound great and hold up forever, but they are a little too slippery for the style of lead that I play. I like to be able to manipulate the strings without slipping off. One of the folks over at the forum pointed out that they had been very happy with D'Addario EXP110 regular light strings. They are coated similar to the strings from Elixir, but I think they are a little less slippery.
   
     The tone from the EXP's is crisp and dry. It sets a nice baseline for a twangy guitar like the Telecaster. I also put a set on my Yamaha AEX hybrid, which is notoriously brash and thin on the piezo pickup. The EXP's were actually able to tame some of the brashness out of the guitar because there are so many subtle undertones that the ear simply isn't assaulted by so much of the same frequency. They really are a great string.

     Settle in time seems to be about the same as other strings with some stretching going on for a while until they stabilize, but it is on par with the Elixirs. All in all I would recommend trying a set on your favorite electric. They are about $10 online, (I bought mine from Amazon), and I think they are definitely worth the money. I'm was not a fan before I tried these strings, but now I am hooked.

     You can link to D'Addario's website HERE.