And so begins the long road of finding the right strings

[JTFoote]

My absolute favorites strings, bar none:

Newtone double-wound round-core phosphor-bronze medium gauge.

These aren't cheap, but they last so long, I save money when I use these over other more recognizable, more readily available brands.

I like these as much as Wade likes the John Pearse sets. John Pearse are my second choice, if the Newtone strings don't work out on a particular guitar. Rarely do I have to look for something beyond these two brands when mixing-and-matching on a new instrument. It usually depends on the wood types, and the amount of tension I prefer, to determine the strings selection, alloy, and gauge.

Normally, I use phosphor-bronze on rosewood guitars, and 80/20s on mahogany. But YMMV, of course.

... JT

[Iolas]

I tried the Alchemy GoldPhos and hated the string noise...way too loud for all the sliding I do.

[Iolas]

Btw, has anyone tried out the Ernie Ball phosphor bronze acoustic strings?

[Cue Zephyr]

I would have liked to try the ERNIE BALL EB 3144 Power Slinky sometime, but they are even more expensive than Elixirs. i doubt they're worth it but I cold be wrong.

[skatalite]

I also recommend Ernie Ball Earthwoods. They come in all sizes, but this is what the packaging looks like:



I was impressed with them before I went to EXP's.

[Iolas]

I put the DR Rares on first..and wow I like them already. Really mellow/warm sound. The chimey sound of the Elixir Nano PBs are gone.