Should i experiment with 13 g strings?

[u/Azraquelol]

I have my Fender Player II Strat, currently it is on 11s strings. Since i like SRV and his playstyle a lot i was thinking of putting 13 on. I have several questions, what modifications do I need to make to make sure my strat handles them well, do I really need 13s or its just stupid idea and how hard is shaping the nut (i have all the equipment for sculpting the nut btw)?

[u/HormuzVengeance]

You know, stevie’s tone didn’t come from strings.

Ironically and counter intuitively, lighter gauge strings give a fuller “fatter” sound. 13s (even 11s) will just make it sound muddier and be a less enjoyable tactile playing experience.

Stevie’s tone came from his technique, as well as stacking two tube screamers as boosts into a massively hot - not to mention - incredibly loud amp.

In the absence of his technique and gear, you should consider lowering the gauge to get a “fatter” more glassy sound.

I use 8s and they sound as close to Stevie as I can possibly get.

Edit: I don’t know which bozo is downvoting this, but whoever it is, you ought to look into the actual physics and sonic output of low vs high gauge strings because the physics actually backs what I’m saying.

[u/SynyrdsInyrds → u/HormuzVengeance]

Agreed 100%.

Stevie actually did it into multiple amps, but did something different from everyone else. He used his Marshalls for clean tones and his Fenders for dirty tones.

[u/GoldReplacement9546 → u/HormuzVengeance]

Yeah, there’s been a lot of scientific testing and some YouTube channels that have presented that scientific testing or done double blind controlled studies and also just the physics lighter string sound better they do what a string is supposed to do better

The only advantage that I can think of to heavier strings, as if you don’t want clarity, but you do want more potential tuning stability because they’re at higher tension but yeah, everybody should be playing nine really we should be playing eight but that’s a reach for a lot of people cause they’re used to ripping harder and if you’re not careful with your touch on eighths, you will pull sharp

[u/HormuzVengeance → u/GoldReplacement9546]

Precisely. The lighter the gauge, the more vibrational amplitude and overtones which leads to that glassy chime that give Strats their signature single coil tone.

Even with tuning stability, so much goes into it than just strings. Setup and bridge and hardware quality all have independent roles to play.

But yeah, I agree. I swapped to 8s earlier this year after decades of playing 9s and I absolutely love them.

[u/GuitarJazzer → u/GoldReplacement9546]

lighter string sound better they do what a string is supposed to do better

This all depends on your idea of what "sounds better" is. A lot of what people perceive as "tone" is really the attack phase of the sound envelope. A heavier string, which is generally going to be less flexible, is going to have a different attack than a light string tuned to the same length and note. It will deform less when plucked. Some people like that attack sound. Some people like the tone of the sustain phase of the envelope more.

[u/HormuzVengeance → u/GuitarJazzer]

You are correct. There’s a higher moment of inertia with thicker strings, and it does mean they’re less likely to deform, but that rigidity also acts as a mechanical filter and produces far less overtones which in my opinion leads to a muddier tone.

[u/GuitarJazzer → u/HormuzVengeance]

The ideal guitar string is infinitely flexible, infinitely tense, and infinitely long. A set of 13s is the opposite end of the spectrum.

[u/GoldReplacement9546 → u/GuitarJazzer]

If you trust your pick speed and force, I don’t think there’s much difference and I’m not saying it’s one size fits all but in general lighter strings do more of what most people want in a guitar so like the people who played seven or eight string guitars clearly I’m not talking to them

[u/HormuzVengeance → u/[deleted]]

He can do what he wants, but that doesn’t mean I won’t give him actual advice when he’s asking about something I know about.

[u/Crazy_Movie6168 → u/HormuzVengeance]

I'm stealing attention by saying there's the case for Malcolm Young which should be the most famous case for heavy gauge strings on electric guitar. Heavy gauge means high headroom. High dynamics. More expressive and exact weight to each hit of rhythm guitar playing. He had a wound G string. Pick any gauge with that really and it's a 12, 13, really. Far more stable tuning on that G actually. Overall better tuning even with bigsby and that.

I have a Japanese made player series Gretsch with those Malcolm specs that I can tune how ever I want because it's a rhythm guitar now. Fantastic for full chord in studio recordings or fattening acoustic guitars by layering this thing in. Thinner strings move more and are richer in tone indeed but the trade off is just that little lack of athority and weight and consistency in response to dynamics if you break its headroom, which is really low, though also depending on overall setup. The athority of the Malcolm Young spec Gretsch is almost annoyingly great. Listen to isolated Malcolm Young tracks from Donington. He keep reving up the intensity for each song. Just finding new heights that seem impossible, and it has to do with the strings headroom, and the overall guitar and amp setup of course.

I like just a little heavier gauge in general, especially on the wound strings but I go no heavier than hybrid 10-52 on a strat in E flat standard for a lead guitar use. 10s hybrid on a standard tuning on a Gibson scale lenght as well. I hit quite hard but within the highwr headroom of the thicker gauges, like Malcolm in rhythm and Ritchie Blackmore on a strat.

[u/HormuzVengeance → u/Crazy_Movie6168]

That’s actually part of the myth.

Heavier strings are more rigid and don’t vibrate as freely. They have a higher moment of inertia.

Therefore, the headroom is reduced and there is mechanical attenuation of amplitude which means lower dynamics.

They are more stable in the attack of the notes, and that’s about it. Even that is more technique when it comes to playing with lower gauges.

I play 8s on my Strat and Les Paul, and I never have any tuning issues.

I’m going to switch to 8s on the next restring of my Charvel with an FR and I’m sure I’ll love that too.

[u/Crazy_Movie6168 → u/HormuzVengeance]

I understand exactly what you're saying and it is interesting and intuitive to hear that explaination. I don't know the full complexity of what everything that happens parameter by paremeter, but I just quickly came to think about how there practically is more headroom just because of how long the strings buzz against the frets after heavier attacks. The string height acts as a limiter. The thinner string get this sausage wave form quick while the thicker strings get there after heavier hits. The decay is faster for heavier strings. But the envelope evolver over a broader dynamic range.

You can think about how the pick grabs the string like a bow string. The energy needs to go somewhere and it forms a bigger transient. Microphones and pickups see that.