Has Anyone Ever Tried .008's on an SE Santana?
- Thread starter Gtr65
- Start date
I love everything about this guitar except for what I perceive to be slightly high string tension, and I've got .009's on it now. Maybe I just don't have the finger strength I did 30 years ago. I'm just really itching to try .008's on this guitar. I'd really love to know that I'm not the first person to ever attempt it, and I'm also concerned about the nut slots from the factory being too deep for .008's.
Hopeful Sinner
Angry Southern Gentleman
Man that short scale with 8's would be super duper slinky...
In theory---yes; however, for whatever reason, it's anything but slinky with .009's, at least mine is, to me.
andy474x
Knows the Drill
Is your action really high?
jfb
Plank Owner
I haven't played anything lighter than 10's in ages. Might need to check out the setup if it feels tension is more than usual for you cause Santana is a shorter scale.
CantankerousCarl
Occasionally Onery Member
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- Apr 29, 2012
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I had SE Santanas in the past...were always one of my looser feeling guitars. Agreed that if it feels that tense there may be something else at work...
I noticed very significant tonality differences when switching string gauges on both my Santanas and CU24s. You will probably lose some of that wonderful neck pickup roundness with that thin a string. IMO it sounds lovely with .10s!
I noticed very significant tonality differences when switching string gauges on both my Santanas and CU24s. You will probably lose some of that wonderful neck pickup roundness with that thin a string. IMO it sounds lovely with .10s!
Not at all.
andy474x
Knows the Drill
Very strange.
CoreyT
PRS Addiction
I am running 9s on my SE Santana, the EB Cobalts.
In fact I run the same strings on all of my guitars regardless of scale length, and they just feel right to me.
I ran 9s 40+ years ago, never did like 10s, and once tried the Extra Super Slinkies which are 8s I think, and they were to slinkie for me.
In fact I run the same strings on all of my guitars regardless of scale length, and they just feel right to me.
I ran 9s 40+ years ago, never did like 10s, and once tried the Extra Super Slinkies which are 8s I think, and they were to slinkie for me.
Well, I switched out the stock tuners on the Santana SE for Grover locking tuners, and then restrung with the Rev. Willy's .008 set. I had a couple of problems along the way---I put a bad kink in the High E string and had to ditch it for a single D'Addario plain steel .008 string that I had a couple of. Good thing, too, because when I was tightening it up to pitch, I apparently overshot "E" by a longshot because I ended up snapping the string. The 3rd one I tried went on without a hitch. I also went ahead and substituted a D'Addario .014 plain steel single for the set's .012 G string.
My first impressions of playing .008's for the first time in 29 years of playing: It was very strange. The A string (.030) seems too thin. So does the D string (.020)---very much so. The .014 G string had me wishing that I'd gone with a .015. Finally, the high E string is just pretty ridiculously thin.
I'm seriously considering switching back to .009's.
My first impressions of playing .008's for the first time in 29 years of playing: It was very strange. The A string (.030) seems too thin. So does the D string (.020)---very much so. The .014 G string had me wishing that I'd gone with a .015. Finally, the high E string is just pretty ridiculously thin.
I'm seriously considering switching back to .009's.
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