What guage do you use for Db?

[Chistopher]

I just use the same 10-46 I use for standard. But I also hear people saying you should go up a half size for every half step, which I don't particularly care for.

What do you guys do?

 

[GuitarStv]

I usually like 11s in standard, so I'd start with 12s or 13s.

 

[jeremy]

i also use 11s in standard tuning. for Eb, i might stick with 11s. Db, id be at 12s at least. i used to have a strat tuned a whole step down for this blues/rock trio i was in. even then, i used 12s and they felt slinky. if 10s work for you, dont let others convince you to change. might be worth your time to try 11s and see how it feels, but there are no rules. if you like 10s then run with it

 

[Seashore]

I don't play in Db, but I like C# a lot. (yes I know, I know)

My favorite set for this on my 24 75" guitars is a custom set from Kalium. 63-51-37-24w-17-12.

I also get a set from Stringjoy that's slightly thinner overall, with a thicker bottom string, because it's for a 25.5" guitar in drop B. 68-44-32-22w-15-11. I've used that on my Gibson in C# with no problem and the lower tension is kind of nice. I can't go the other way though, 63 is too floppy if I need to tune in drop B on one of those guitars.

I have yet to find an off the shelf set with the right feel. I've tried most. It's enough of a difference that the extra cash for custom sets is worth it to me. A 46-10 set wouldn't work for me at all.

Edit - wouldn't you know it, Ernie Ball now has the Mammoth Slinky set. 62-48-34-24w-16-12. That's the closest off the shelf set I've seen to what I like for this tuning.

 

[Hsb]

Ive used 10-46s for years. I've tried other sizes and didn't care for them in either my 24.75" or 25.5" guitars. Even sets like the light top, heavy bottom just doesn't feel right under my fingers. I mean if 10s are good enough for the folks I grew up listening to that were tuned Db, its good enough for me.

 

[Chistopher]

I think smaller strings are better because they have that loose wobbly sound to them that just sounds amazing with high gain

 

[Ashurbanipal]

Gotta use 9s like Tony . Thus, there are no rules, just depends on what you like to hear/feel. Obviously, you have to have feather touch with light strings, some feel the benefit is a tighter sound.

 

[Seashore]

I guess we've all got our own equally valid ideas about what sounds amazing with high gain. Thicker strings sound and feel better to me in lower tunings. I have a range of tensions that I like for a stiffer or looser feel, but going super loose isn't my bag outside of rare occasions where I want to doom out. I play with high gain in low tunings basically all the time, so my setup has to work for everything I do as a base guitar sound/feel; it can't just be a one-trick pony I pull out for a different texture. Use a tension calculator, figure out what you like, and do that.

 

[Chistopher]

Use a tension calculator, figure out what you like, and do that.

Use a calculator to tell me what strings I need? What's next, pull up an excel spreadsheet to tell me what my favorite flavor of ice cream is?

 

[Seashore]

Use a calculator to tell me what strings I need? What's next, pull up an excel spreadsheet to tell me what my favorite flavor of ice cream is?

No, it doesn't work for ice cream. Ice cream is a thing of the heart and can't be reduced to bloodless data.

 

[weepingminotaur]

My 24.75" scale LTD EC-1000 is in C#, and I'm using 12-56, which is fine, but I might go a tad lighter (11-54) for a bit more responsiveness on fast riffs. Running 10-46 on this guitar would feel like swimming in spaghetti for me. But everyone's different.

 

[Seashore]

My 24.75" scale LTD EC-1000 is in C#, and I'm using 12-56, which is fine, but I might go a tad lighter (11-54) for a bit more responsiveness on fast riffs. Running 10-46 on this guitar would feel like swimming in spaghetti for me. But everyone's different.

I was playing the Skinny Top/Heavy Bottom 52-10 in E standard on my Gibsons for a while, and then I went to a set with 9.5 on the top, and now I'm playing what amounts to a 50-9 set on my 7-string with a 68 instead of a 70 for the low B. I am moderating in my middle age.

 

[GuitarStv]

No, it doesn't work for ice cream. Ice cream is a thing of the heart and can't be reduced to bloodless data.

Besides, everyone knows that chocolate is the correct flavour.

 

[jeremy]

ewww... no thank you

 

[weepingminotaur]

I was playing the Skinny Top/Heavy Bottom 52-10 in E standard on my Gibsons for a while, and then I went to a set with 9.5 on the top, and now I'm playing what amounts to a 50-9 set on my 7-string with a 68 instead of a 70 for the low B. I am moderating in my middle age.

I too am moderating in middle age. After a few years of being more on the heavy gauge side, then swinging back to light gauge side, I'm realizing that I just like balanced tension across all my guitars in relation to their tuning. The exception would be my semihollow, which I use almost exclusively for jazz, so there I'll go 11-50 chromes for some increased tension.

But I don't regret the experimentation. It's helped me figure out what I like and what feels good to my fingers.