I have a Dean acoustic Studio S Deluxe model (like the picture I have added) that I had bought for my wife for our anniversary in 2000. She was interested in playing and I bought it along with a bad (as in not good) instructional video. It has the strings that they put on it the day I bought it. Obviously, they are badly tarnished and flat sounding. It's a nice sounding guitar even with the old strings, but I am wanting a recommendation on what strings to use on it. The store I bought it from was locally owned and has since gone out of business, so I can't go back and ask them. I could go to GC and ask them, but I put more value in the opinons of the players on this site.
Thanks in advance.
Jim
I think the first question to answer is what gauge strings to use. 10s, 12s and 13s are your main choices here, corresponding to what are commonly called "Extra Light, Light and Medium." (Almost nobody seems to want or offer "Heavy" acoustic strings nowadays.) You can even put 9s on an acoustic if you like. Then you've got choices of materials for the winding wires in the wound strings. 80/20 brass (sometimes called "bronze," but it's brass) are pretty and yellow when new with a very "bright" tone, but brass tarnishes and dulls quickly with use. Most popular by far now are phosphor bronze wound, with a coppery appearance and tone that's not quite as bright but lasts longer. They're fairly recent, having become popular in the '50s. Nickel wound strings used to be popular on acoustics. They still sound good. (Most "nickel" strings now are wound with nickel plated steel, not pure nickel.) If you have a set of strings for your electric guitar around in an appropriate set of gauges, think about trying them. They have a brighter tone than brass or bronze, and they last a long time. Pure nickel strings aren't as bright sounding as the nickel plated steel.
I buy what's on sale or buy in bulk from places like: http://juststrings.com/
"A cheerful heart is good medicine."
Sorry for the delayed response, Ricochet! Your advice as always is much appreciated. I think I am going to try electric strings on it.
Jim
I like 'em. Try 'em and see what you think. You may or may not like 'em yourself. Never know till you try.
"A cheerful heart is good medicine."
