Knox in Box
Rustbelt refugee.
I also had a thing being a chunky guy, that on some guitars, especially mahogany necks, the added tension on the trussrod kept my neck from bending from the weight of my hand resting on it. No shit, this is a thing.
Hey all you heavy gauge string users...
- Thread starter micwalt
- Start date
Motorik
Kick Henry Jackassowski
I did not know that was a thing.
baimun
Funkasaurus Rex
The Michael Schenker vibrato method.
Steverino
black sheep
Just my lowly opinion, but as far as electrics go, the strings I choose are for playability and feel, and I can't play with feeling when I'm distracted by heavy gauge strings. If I'm distracted, I'm not playing to the heights of my incredible ability 
.
I sincerely doubt the people we play for/to would notice the (possible) loss of tone of a lighter gauge string. What they will notice is your subpar/crappy playing as you struggle with a too-heavy set of strings.
I started out with .008s, then to 9s, now at .0095. That seems to be an ideal gauge for me.
.I sincerely doubt the people we play for/to would notice the (possible) loss of tone of a lighter gauge string. What they will notice is your subpar/crappy playing as you struggle with a too-heavy set of strings.
I started out with .008s, then to 9s, now at .0095. That seems to be an ideal gauge for me.
Knox in Box
Rustbelt refugee.
Yeah I have some heavy hands and arms, if I'm being lazy and hanging my hand on the neck it can sound out of tune. Pick my hand up and support it myself and it's back in tune. Hard maple necks are better, and stiffer strings and more tension needed on the truss rod seams to stiffen the neck and counteract it.
Highernoon
Burninator
Through the years I've had on my SG 8's, 9's, 9-46's, 10's, 10-52's, 11's, flat-wound 11's,
12's with a wound G and flat-wound 13's. I currently have it set up with a set of 10-52.
Before the low E tuning key broke I've had a set of those EB 11-54 on it and I remember
liking it quite a bit, I wish I had more time to try them.
As far as I remember every time I've changed to a different gauge I had to tweak the amp settings.
I do like the effortless legato on light strings, and I can't imagine myself
playing Runnin' With the Devil style bends on 11's.
I do like the fat/round/whatever sound on heavy strings,
and that I can hit them hard without them getting all outta whack.
12's with a wound G and flat-wound 13's. I currently have it set up with a set of 10-52.
Before the low E tuning key broke I've had a set of those EB 11-54 on it and I remember
liking it quite a bit, I wish I had more time to try them.
As far as I remember every time I've changed to a different gauge I had to tweak the amp settings.
I do like the effortless legato on light strings, and I can't imagine myself
playing Runnin' With the Devil style bends on 11's.
I do like the fat/round/whatever sound on heavy strings,
and that I can hit them hard without them getting all outta whack.
Bones McHorror
bones
Gibbon's tone is always great, but for my money, you can't beat the early stuff
BTW, there's a bootleg out there called "En "Belgique" where Gibbons plays an absolutely smoking version of Baby. Highly recommended listening.
And the very best is his outro on LaGrange
DinoMikeSr
I have the box
There is so much bullshit out there spread by the artist themselves that no one really knows anything IMO. Billy was 22 years old in 1971, and that's when B.B. King laid the light strings news on him and that's from the interview below. In his book, BFG, also refers to this B.B. King consultation but doesn't give an age or year. January 1971, ZZ Tops first album was released so it's easy to conclude that BFG was playing heavy strings on that. Anything later is a guess. With Tres Hombres, BFG, also started recording using a 55 hard tail strat along with his 59 Les Paul. On Jesus Just Left Chicago there is also a 52 Fender Broadcaster.
It's also hard to find information on when different guitar string gauges started to be produced in sets separately. Someone I know who talks about playing in the early 60's is that he remember strats coming from the factory with light strings (12's). In the early 60's Ernie Ball had students who had trouble fretting the heavy G string and he went to Fender to get smaller G strings and that's when custom string sets started. To get a lighter sets of guitar strings players would take a set of guitar string and a set of banjo string and create there own custom sets.
Music Radar.
Billy Gibbons: “BB King strummed my guitar, looked at me rather quizzically and said, ‘Why you working so hard?’”
By Ed Mitchell (Guitarist) December 30, 2019
Best of 2019: The Texan guitar great talks BB, Bo and his Big Bad Blues record
Back to the blues
The blues is in Billy G’s blood. In fact, it runs through the whole ZZ Top organisation. Looking back to the 70s, it seems obvious that the ’Top helped keep the blues’ heart beating when the music was fighting to stay alive…
“We never had anything but admiration for the blues giants,” says Billy G. “Dusty, Frank and I, we shared so much of the same influences, but we never said that we’re going to rescue the blues. We didn’t do that.”
While Gibbons became acutely aware of rock’s shift from psychedelia to a heavier blues form in the late 60s, his love affair with the music developed many years earlier, as he explains.
When I was five years old, my mom took myself and my little sister out to see Elvis Presley live. I said, ‘Man, that’s what I wanna do!’
“Well, growing up, we had a house keeper who listened to blues radio all day and all night. It didn’t seem to be anything out of the ordinary. It was always around - at least around the house. Then when I was five years old, my mom took myself and my little sister out to see Elvis Presley live. I said, ‘Man, that’s what I wanna do!’”
The next encounter with greatness sealed the deal. Billy continues: “My dad was an entertainer. When I was seven years old he said, ‘Listen, hop in the car. I wanna take you with me. I’ve got business to take care of at the recording studio.’ We went into the studio, he parked me in a chair and said, ‘You’ll probably like this, they’re recording a band. I’ll be in the office if you need me…’ It turned out to be a BB King recording session. So, between seeing Elvis Presley and BB King I thought, ‘Man, this is it. This is for me!’”
BB King and Billy G’s paths would cross countless times over the years. It’s a testament to Gibbons’ skill as a guitarist that he was so respected by ‘The King Of The Blues’. And BB would often give his younger compadre some useful words of advice to work with.
“BB King left me with probably the strongest statements you could ask for,” Gibbons recalls. “Firstly, you should learn to play what you want to hear. Not what someone is trying to teach you. Follow what’s in your head.”
The second piece of advice was life changing, shattering a supposed tonal golden rule, an assumption most of us make. It also explains why Billy likes his guitar strings on the slinky side…
“I was about 22 and just starting out with ZZ Top,” he says. “I was in the dressing room and BB said to me, ‘Can I play your guitar?’ I said, ‘Sure man.’ He strummed it a few times and handed it back to me. He looked at me rather quizzically and said, ‘Why you working so hard?’ I said, ‘What do you mean?’ He said, ‘Those strings. You got real heavy, heavy strings.’ I said, ‘Well, isn’t that how to get the heavy, heavy sound?’ He said, ‘No! Don’t be working so hard!’
“That was something new! I was mistaken in thinking he was using these extra-heavy strings. I guess he was right there at the beginning when super-light strings were beginning to show up.”
It's also hard to find information on when different guitar string gauges started to be produced in sets separately. Someone I know who talks about playing in the early 60's is that he remember strats coming from the factory with light strings (12's). In the early 60's Ernie Ball had students who had trouble fretting the heavy G string and he went to Fender to get smaller G strings and that's when custom string sets started. To get a lighter sets of guitar strings players would take a set of guitar string and a set of banjo string and create there own custom sets.
Music Radar.
Billy Gibbons: “BB King strummed my guitar, looked at me rather quizzically and said, ‘Why you working so hard?’”
By Ed Mitchell (Guitarist) December 30, 2019
Best of 2019: The Texan guitar great talks BB, Bo and his Big Bad Blues record
Back to the blues
The blues is in Billy G’s blood. In fact, it runs through the whole ZZ Top organisation. Looking back to the 70s, it seems obvious that the ’Top helped keep the blues’ heart beating when the music was fighting to stay alive…
“We never had anything but admiration for the blues giants,” says Billy G. “Dusty, Frank and I, we shared so much of the same influences, but we never said that we’re going to rescue the blues. We didn’t do that.”
While Gibbons became acutely aware of rock’s shift from psychedelia to a heavier blues form in the late 60s, his love affair with the music developed many years earlier, as he explains.
When I was five years old, my mom took myself and my little sister out to see Elvis Presley live. I said, ‘Man, that’s what I wanna do!’
“Well, growing up, we had a house keeper who listened to blues radio all day and all night. It didn’t seem to be anything out of the ordinary. It was always around - at least around the house. Then when I was five years old, my mom took myself and my little sister out to see Elvis Presley live. I said, ‘Man, that’s what I wanna do!’”
The next encounter with greatness sealed the deal. Billy continues: “My dad was an entertainer. When I was seven years old he said, ‘Listen, hop in the car. I wanna take you with me. I’ve got business to take care of at the recording studio.’ We went into the studio, he parked me in a chair and said, ‘You’ll probably like this, they’re recording a band. I’ll be in the office if you need me…’ It turned out to be a BB King recording session. So, between seeing Elvis Presley and BB King I thought, ‘Man, this is it. This is for me!’”
BB King and Billy G’s paths would cross countless times over the years. It’s a testament to Gibbons’ skill as a guitarist that he was so respected by ‘The King Of The Blues’. And BB would often give his younger compadre some useful words of advice to work with.
“BB King left me with probably the strongest statements you could ask for,” Gibbons recalls. “Firstly, you should learn to play what you want to hear. Not what someone is trying to teach you. Follow what’s in your head.”
The second piece of advice was life changing, shattering a supposed tonal golden rule, an assumption most of us make. It also explains why Billy likes his guitar strings on the slinky side…
“I was about 22 and just starting out with ZZ Top,” he says. “I was in the dressing room and BB said to me, ‘Can I play your guitar?’ I said, ‘Sure man.’ He strummed it a few times and handed it back to me. He looked at me rather quizzically and said, ‘Why you working so hard?’ I said, ‘What do you mean?’ He said, ‘Those strings. You got real heavy, heavy strings.’ I said, ‘Well, isn’t that how to get the heavy, heavy sound?’ He said, ‘No! Don’t be working so hard!’
“That was something new! I was mistaken in thinking he was using these extra-heavy strings. I guess he was right there at the beginning when super-light strings were beginning to show up.”
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DinoMikeSr
I have the box
From BFG's book, he notes that TV Dinners was recorded with a 1955 Gretsch Round Up and it's pictured in the book. I just found this out myself after checking the book again.
cvogue
Yes, that's Oolong. :)
micwalt
Too Controversial To Have An Athleisure Line
Change is bad!
Always.
telecaster911
Kick Henry Jackassowski
I dropped to 9s on the blue tele and 9.5 on the SEone to see how it goes. A little unwieldy on the first night but the back of my left hand has been a little sore and hoping this will help.
reverend1
Kick Henry Jackassowski
telecaster911
Kick Henry Jackassowski
The 9.5 we in fact daddario. The 9s were Ernie Ball Classic.