How often should I change my strings?

[titansfan4196]

How often should I change my strings on my PRS S2 Custom 24?

I use Ernie Ball 10s.

 

[AP515]

Depends on how much you play and personal preference. If you play daily and want to keep the bright tone that new strings give you, 2 - 4 weeks is good for me. Some professionals change them daily or before every gig (well they don't, but their Tech does).

If you just want to keep them from rusting, about every 6 months will work.

 

[garrett]

However often you think you need to change them.

There's no one answer, but I tend to change mine once they start sounding dead and/or they get corroded and/or the intonation goes too far off.

 

[Shauncho]

whenever you feel the sound is dull. it all depends on how much you play it and how you store it, take care of it, whether you wipe the strings after use, etc. me personally, I think nothing sounds or feels as good as fresh strings so I change them pretty often. About once every 3-4 weeks if I'm playing a lot. But i'm only switching between two guitars right now so they each get a lot more play than someone who switches between many guitars. I know some people who like the sound of older strings and therefore don't change as often. It's mostly up to personal preference however at a certain point, playability is awful with old strings and they just feel horrible under your fingers. I wouldn't keep strings on a guitar more than a year without changing them unless it's in a case 24/7 and gets played like twice a year.

 

[CoreyT]

A little story here, long story short.
When I was a kid I always broke strings and they sounded dull after a week or so.
This was with Ernie Ball Super Slinkies 9-42, back in the early 70s.

Now that I am much older, wiser, and fatter, I have not broken one string since getting back into playing again May of 2012, and out of the eight guitars I own, I have only changed the strings on two of them.

The SG I changed them not too long after my dealer installed the Planet Waves Autotrim tuners, as I wanted to experience first hand how they cut the strings for you.
And I changed the strings out on my SE Santana back in 2013 as I wanted to see if it was difficult since it had a tremolo on it.
Took off all six strings at once, and no problems with a card behind the blade.

Now none of the strings were bad, and even my 2013 408 I have had since May of that year has not had them changed yet.
All of my guitars sound snappy and bright when playing.

My secret?
I think it is due to three things.
1. I never pick up a guitar to play unless I have just washed and dried my hands thoroughly.
2. After playing I use The String Cleaner on the strings if I have been playing for awhile.
http://www.thestringcleaner.com/
3. My hands never sweat when I play.

My 408 gets played every weekend, and remember the strings have been on it since I picked it up in May of 2013.
I keep expecting to break a string too with all the bends I do when trying to play solos, and they do not break.
Strange since I often broke strings when I was young.

I think keeping the strings clean, hands clean, and not sweating has contributed to my strings lasting so long.
I am going to change the 408 ones before long though, as I want to see how the Phase III tuners work.

 

[watelessness]

change them when they need changing, just like underwear.

 

[gball]

change them when they need changing, just like underwear.

Pretty much this. When they sound dull, won't stay in tune or feel wrong its time to go, and that can vary depending on a lot of factors. I find I need to change strings more often in the Summer, maybe because of the increased humidity? String are cheap and easy to change, so I always keeps a few sets around the house and whack the old ones of of there if anything seems off with them.

 

[henryjurstin13]

From my band experience - my hands would rust up strings 10 times faster than some other hands would. That played a LARGE factor in my changing strings way more often. Now that I'm only playing at home - I usually don't change until the tuning becomes unstable.

 

[ViperDoc]

It also depends on what strings you're using. Newer coatings claim to elongate string life. Elixir was the first I used. There are other treatments that also claim to elongate life, but I' haven't tried them.

 

[beas]

I find it helpful to wipe down the strings and fretboard after every use. This really helps me extend string life.

 

[WeFixFlats]

As for me, sometimes I just change strings on a guitar just to 'get close to it' again and remind myself why I bought it in the first place and to 'give it more love'. I also put a post-it note in the case with the date of the last string change so we don't go crazy wondering either. Ernie Ball Slinkys is my preferred brand($$$)

 

[tiboy]

Hey CoreyT, we have the same routine.

 

[CoreyT]

Hey, do you find your strings lasting longer and with less breakage going this way?

 

[László]

My hands are pretty dry, and I find that my strings can go as long as 6 months before they start to sound dull. However, I do change them more often than that, principally to prevent worn or even slightly corroded strings from abrading the frets.

Corrosion is certainly ongoing, even if it's not immediately visible to the naked eye. And corroded strings can't be good for the fret material.

 

[vchizzle]

change them when they need changing, just like underwear.

So about once every 3-4 months then? Give or take, of course.:rofl:

 

[gush]

Man oh man, you all have it rough! I get 2 shows out of a set of strings. Any longer than 2 shows and I'm taking a chance of breaking a string at a show.

So by default I never have dull strings. It's also why I got away from floyds, too much work changing strings all the time.

It also forces me to watch for sales on strings.

I know I could play lighter but im 49 and I've been playing since high school so Im sure changing now would be hard.

 

[vchizzle]

I change at least 1 of 2 guitars every show. No shows booked, whenever they start sounding dull to me.

 

[sergiodeblanc]

Man oh man, you all have it rough! I get 2 shows out of a set of strings. Any longer than 2 shows and I'm taking a chance of breaking a string at a show.

So by default I never have dull strings. It's also why I got away from floyds, too much work changing strings all the time.

It also forces me to watch for sales on strings.

I know I could play lighter but im 49 and I've been playing since high school so Im sure changing now would be hard.

Ehh... Get more guitars. You'll change strings less often.

 

[Pinch]

I change my strings when I hear the intonation going off. This usually takes between 3 to 6 months. I actually prefer the slightly duller sound and feel of older strings.

 

[squirrel211]

I broke strings like crazy until I started wiping them down after shows. I moved from 9-46 to 10-46 when I bought my Custom 24, because that's what it came set up with, and I actually broke 4 strings on it in the first 2 months. I broke the D string twice, and the A string and B strings once; with my strats I would always break the high E. In the last 7 months though, I haven't broken any strings! Bends got easier too.

Now that I'm thinking about it, I do need to change them.....