Elixir Strings positives and negatives

[Phantasmagoria]

Re: Elixir Strings positives and negatives

Sfarzo Alloy 5109's are pretty awesome. I've been using their 10's on all my (10-46 strung) guitars. The funny thing is, I only like/use the 10's (...9's sounded too bright/tinny on the 2 guitars I had them on)..but the 10's sound just awesome! I did'nt even realize they were "coated" strings until long after I'd started using them ( ...& they kept sounding great long after I expected them not to :laugh2. The coating is done so well that it's unnoticeable. They really last like hell too.

 

[Boogie Bill]

Re: Elixir Strings positives and negatives

I hate Elixir. Factory strings on my Taylor 710CE, and the guitar instantly sounded richer and warmer with D'Addario Phosphor Bronze. I probably used five sets and then switched. Got a couple of sets in a drawer that I will probably never use. Another problem was that they are higher tension, and I would break them.

I'll stick with my Fender Super Bullets and D'Addario XLs on my electrics. Elixirs just are not cost-effective for me.

I hear you about forgetting how to restring a particular guitar; I've done it myself, and felt pretty stupid.

Bill

 

[astrozombie]

Re: Elixir Strings positives and negatives

positive: long lasting....except if it breaks

negative: prepare for your sound to die

all sparkle and magic gone.

 

[SlyFoxx]

Re: Elixir Strings positives and negatives

My acoustic string history of the last 16 years...

I used to play out at least once a week long ago. I used D'Addario phospher bronze .12's A fresh set would have lost all the new zing (or as I think of it "goody") by the end of a regular night. But at that time my stage monitoring system wasn't up to the job and I often found myself being heavy handed just to get that few extra dB. I was also using green dunlop picks which are on the light side of heavy. In an attempt to cut down on string changes I tried the Elixer's. They held their tone a LOT longer but they also had a tendency to break so I went back to the D'Adds.

Fast forward a few years and my stage monitoring set-up had improved a lot so I found myself altering my technique...using a lot lighter touch as now the sound system could do all the heavy lifting. Backing off the right hand hammer and going to orange dunlops would keep strings from going "poing" all the time so I went back to Elixers and down to .11's...saving my fingertips some grief. I stayed there for about 10 years.

Now about a year or two ago I began to struggle with intonation issues with the low E string, especially at the 3rd fret. Well if that G ain't up to snuff about 1/3 the chords you play all night long are going to be sour. It wasn't too terrible but it just began to gnaw at me more and more. So I thought a change from the Elixer's might be in order...enter Martin Lifespan's. Same size...11's. All the strings are the same (in theory anyway) size as the Elixer's 11 15 32 42 52....save the G string which is a 23 vs. the Elixer's 22. But for some reason the intonation on the low E is Bob on with the Martin's. So I made the switch. However they don't hold the goody as long as the Elixer's do. It not much of a difference...I'd say they last 80% of the time but that maybe translates into 1 more change a year...I can deal with that.

 

[Diego]

Re: Elixir Strings positives and negatives

Elixirs for electrics have something strange in the high-end.
Something I could never point my finger at, but that I know I don't get with other strings like Dunlop, Ernie Ball or Rotosound.
The high-end response was weird in my humbucker guitars and downright annoying with single coils. "Abrasive" is the adjective that pops into my head.

They're also a lot tighter than regular strings from what I remember; I don't have particularly strong fingers and using Elixirs 10-46 tuned to E was a bit fatiguing, but with other brands I can use that gauge and tuning with no problems.

I now use Dunlops and haven't tried Elixirs again for about 18 months.

 

[Leon Of Late]

Re: Elixir Strings positives and negatives

Love em' on my Acoustics. I think they have great tone and I've tried all the good sets from the major brands. I did recently buy some Martin Lifespan that I'll try next, and I bought some Kurt Mangan Phosphor Bronze coated strings because I like his electric strings so much. With those plus the 5-6 sets of Elixirs I have, I'm good for the next two years or so on strings.

 

[ItsaBass]

Re: Elixir Strings positives and negatives

I have tried them at several points over the past 15 or 16 years, and I just don't like the way they sound. They sound dead to me right out of the pack. I don't really see the advantage in string life either. My regular strings work passably well for months and months, even years sometimes. That said, about 80 percent of my experience with them is on acoustic guitars. The electric ones were a bit better, but not enough to make me want to use them.

P.S. Another problem with them: The coating comes off, and then they wear like normal strings anyhow...only in the areas where the coating has come off.

 

[dave74]

Re: Elixir Strings positives and negatives

They sound dead in the lows and highs IMO right out of the pack. They do stay sounding the same for longer than standard strings though.
That coating really gets chopped in the picking area,,,and it doesn't take long for that to happen if you use heavy picks and lots of fast alternate.

Two thumbs down if you like a zingy presence and a thunderous percussive low-end.

 

[Vasshu the humanoid typhoon]

Re: Elixir Strings positives and negatives

Don't like them one bit.
I like flatwounds on some guitars though...but that is another sound.

 

[mijaddict]

Re: Elixir Strings positives and negatives

Not sure why everyone complains about the apparent lack of "life" and "sparkle" from Elixir's, to my ears they sound much more lively at a month old than brand new Ernie Ball's ever do.

Sent from my LG-D851 using Tapatalk

 

[Snake Aces]

Re: Elixir Strings positives and negatives

Positives: I love them

Negatives: The haters

 

[PFDarkside]

Re: Elixir Strings positives and negatives

I've never had them flake, ever. I'm not sure I've ever used polywebs though, is that a symptom of those only?

 

[SlyFoxx]

Re: Elixir Strings positives and negatives

Me too...never had them flake.

 

[RStabler]

Re: Elixir Strings positives and negatives

Pros: All of them.

Cons: None of them.

 

[DESERTRAT1]

Re: Elixir Strings positives and negatives

I tried Elixirs for awhile some years back but found that even though they resist corrosion they still suffer metal fatigue and go dead at about the same rate as any other strings.There's nothing about the coating that prevents that. Most pros change strings every couple of gigs or so and because of the natural loss of tensile strength over time, hence loss of tone, I like to change mine at least once a month. Since on average I can buy 3 sets of uncoated strings for the same price as one set of Elixirs it makes sense to me to go that route and always have a fairly fresh set of good sounding strings for about the same money.

 

[Mincer]

Re: Elixir Strings positives and negatives

I will add that I have tried the Nanos and Polys, and they do kill the tone if you are used to uncoated strings. I'd rather get my tone back, and pay less for strings (and not have the coating flake off all over me).

 

[Hank-]

Re: Elixir Strings positives and negatives

I use elixir nanoweb on my practice electric & on the one i rarely play and kept away in a closet for most times. They help lower fret wear for me

They do flake a little after a while but like powder rather than dandruff form. The plated plain steels can get tarnished & rust at the point of contact with the fretwire but for that to happen it takes a very long time, just need to check them on the underside weekly. As for the sound, not a big fan. I have one set remaining of these, after that I'm gonna try Daddario coated, have them on acoustic where they sound great & last very long so i have to check out their electric version next. Their coated classical strings on the other hand were beyond horrid sounding though, not to mention lasted shorter than their pro arte set

 

[davedvdy]

Re: Elixir Strings positives and negatives

I found them to last longer but only when I wasn't constantly breaking high E strings much more often than any other brand.