Heavy strings on a telecaster -- thoughts?

[Mr. Bertha]

I've got a 1999 USA Standard Tele strung with 10s. I'm considering moving up to 12s or maybe evens set with a wound G. Anyone tried this and liked/disliked the results? Now, keep in mind I'm not a blues or country player and I don't bend strings much, so traditional tele tones aren't a must-have for me. I mostly just want to add some girth to compliment the bright pickups. Thanks in advance.

[tdarian]

Some of the West Coast blues guys use 12s or even 13s on Strats, Teles, and Esquires and do seem to get meaty tones that still sound like Strats, Teles, and Esquires, just "more muscular" if that makes sense.

The only way you will know is if you try, and I'd suggest moving up one guage at a time and plan on adjusting your set-up each step of the way.

[mojocaster.com]

I used 13-62 strings on all my guitars, including Teles, for a while. All it got me was sore wrists. I am now down to 9s on all my guitars.

Bottom line: I frankly don't believe that it had any true, meaningful impact on my tone.

[arthur rotfeld]

If you aren't a bender, why not try it? The wound G could make a big difference in particular.

If I had a twin to each of my guitars, one would have 9s or 10s and one would have 12s or 13s.

[Boris Bubbanov]

I suggest trying 11-49s or perhaps some 11s with bigger bottoms, 11-52?

You can adjust your intonation; and the nut may be OK as is.

In a short time you may be playing like yourself - bigger meatier tone but not so big (for most guys) as to cause wear to your joints, etc. or injury.

A jump to 12s is gonna be rougher on many guys. Switching from 9s or 10s to 12s or 13s while maintaining A-440 tuning on the same electric guitar would cause a lotta guys to bust out. If you made the nut slots larger for the 13s, then to go back to 9s you might need to replace the nut, also.

I'd be hard pressed to jump back and forth, these big jumps that Arthur suggests. I usually play 11-49s and when I pick up a guitar with 9s, I sound exaggerated and phony.

[Mr. Bertha]

I suggest trying 11-49s or perhaps some 11s with bigger bottoms, 11-52?

You can adjust your intonation; and the nut may be OK as is.

In a short time you may be playing like yourself - bigger meatier tone but not so big (for most guys) as to cause wear to your joints, etc. or injury.

A jump to 12s is gonna be rougher on many guys. Switching from 9s or 10s to 12s or 13s while maintaining A-440 tuning on the same electric guitar would cause a lotta guys to bust out. If you made the nut slots larger for the 13s, then to go back to 9s you might need to replace the nut, also.

I'd be hard pressed to jump back and forth, these big jumps that Arthur suggests. I usually play 11-49s and when I pick up a guitar with 9s, I sound exaggerated and phony.

I hadn't considered adjusting the nut....it's been so long since I've used anything but 10s I overlooked details like that.

I'm not too concerned about soreness or joint pain -- I play lots of acoustic with heavy strings with no problems. Once upon a time I played 12s on all my electrics, but that was years ago and I've never tried them on my tele. I'm just going to go for 12s....will a jump from 10 to 12 necessitate a new nut? I can do the setup myself, but I don't have the tools to file the nut.

[djw]

11-49s are great, bendable but still pretty meaty.

FWIW, I definitely believe a heavier string gauge can have a dramatic effect on tone, but it also depends on how you play. I play pretty percussively and hard, so heavier gauges sound much waaay better for me; playing the same way on lighter strings sounds like crap. YMMV.

[djw]

I suggest trying 11-49s or perhaps some 11s with bigger bottoms, 11-52?

You can adjust your intonation; and the nut may be OK as is.

In a short time you may be playing like yourself - bigger meatier tone but not so big (for most guys) as to cause wear to your joints, etc. or injury.

A jump to 12s is gonna be rougher on many guys. Switching from 9s or 10s to 12s or 13s while maintaining A-440 tuning on the same electric guitar would cause a lotta guys to bust out. If you made the nut slots larger for the 13s, then to go back to 9s you might need to replace the nut, also.

I'd be hard pressed to jump back and forth, these big jumps that Arthur suggests. I usually play 11-49s and when I pick up a guitar with 9s, I sound exaggerated and phony.
Yep. +1 on all of the above.

[stormin1155]

I've gone to Earnie Ball Heavy Bottoms 10-52 which have some nice solid meat at the low end without ripping up your fingers so much. I hardly noticed the difference in playing ease going from regular 10s.

[Bryan T]

I used .012s for a time, but am happier with .011s.

[cber1517]

I use .11-.49's on my Teles and love them. I can still bend enough for country licks - maybe I'm used to them :dunno I won't ever use anything lighter.

[rwijaya]

i use 10.5 still feels like 10, but has that fatter tone to it without damaging your finger tip. 10.5 still can bend like crazy.

[Boris Bubbanov]

I hadn't considered adjusting the nut....it's been so long since I've used anything but 10s I overlooked details like that.

I'm not too concerned about soreness or joint pain -- I play lots of acoustic with heavy strings with no problems. Once upon a time I played 12s on all my electrics, but that was years ago and I've never tried them on my tele. I'm just going to go for 12s....will a jump from 10 to 12 necessitate a new nut? I can do the setup myself, but I don't have the tools to file the nut.

You won't need a new nut, but there's a good chance you may have to enlarge the slots - mebbe try some Big Bends Nut Sauce first - if that ain't enough, drop back down to 11s or get those cleaner thingies for use on acetylene torches. They'll be good enough for one job.

[DavidH]

Less snap and more sustain, for the same touch, that's my experience. 10s sound plinky and thin when i play them, i play 11s. 11s will do it, no need to jump from 10s to 12s, that's a little extreme.

[shredtrash]

I think you're asking for wrist trouble by going higher than 11's; especially if you gig and bend a lot. I play 11's on all my gigging guitars now but they're Gibson scale or shorter so it's a breeze. On a Tele, 11's should be sufficiently meaty IMO even if you don't bend a lot.

[ssdeluxe]

I used 13-62 strings on all my guitars, including Teles, for a while. All it got me was sore wrists. I am now down to 9s on all my guitars.

Bottom line: I frankly don't believe that it had any true, meaningful impact on my tone.

+1

me too

[rwijaya]

if you want more tone and sustain, raise the action ;)

[Polynitro]

You may lose some twang unless you downtune. Other than that , go for it!

[Yutaka]

I hadn't considered adjusting the nut....it's been so long since I've used anything but 10s I overlooked details like that.

I'm not too concerned about soreness or joint pain -- I play lots of acoustic with heavy strings with no problems. Once upon a time I played 12s on all my electrics, but that was years ago and I've never tried them on my tele. I'm just going to go for 12s....will a jump from 10 to 12 necessitate a new nut? I can do the setup myself, but I don't have the tools to file the nut.

I've started using Pyramid Gold flatwounds .012-.052 on my Tele a few weeks ago, and liking the sound a lot so far. For enlarging the slots on nut, I just used some leftover roundwound strings and a piece of sand paper (not sure that's recommended, though...).

As for the bright pickups - lowering the height of them might help somewhat.

I went for Pyramid flats for the same reason you speak of. I've read that these sets don't sound as dead as other brands, so I wanted to give them a try. These sound more solid and clear to me than roundrounds in lower frequencies. I feel that wound 3rd actually gives better tonal balance between the strings, too, and it is great for stopping me from playing some seudo blues lick stuff I don't do too well. :hide

I may change my opinion completely in the future, but I'm liking the change so far. Good luck with your search.

[straightblues]

I have both heavy guage and lighter guages on my 4 teles. I like the way they both sound. I think the lighter guages get more of a country twang sound.

[jaydawg76]

I've put 11's, per customer request, on the last couple guitars I've sold. The difference was impressive. I'll be trying some 11's on my own tele next time I change strings.

[Big White Tele]

11's for me

[Mr. Bertha]

First off, thanks for all the replies fellas.

shredtrash I think you're asking for wrist trouble by going higher than 11's; especially if you gig and bend a lot. I play 11's on all my gigging guitars now but they're Gibson scale or shorter so it's a breeze. On a Tele, 11's should be sufficiently meaty IMO even if you don't bend a lot.

as I stated originally, I don't really bend at all, so I'm not too worried about that. As far as wrist soreness, I play lots oc acoutsic with the same scale length as my tele with the equivalent of 13s...no wrist trouble so far, and nice big callouses keep me comfy.

[QUOTE]I've started using Pyramid Gold flatwounds .012-.052 on my Tele a few weeks ago, and liking the sound a lot so far. For enlarging the slots on nut, I just used some leftover roundwound strings and a piece of sand paper (not sure that's recommended, though...).[QUOTE]

thanks for the tips about widening the nut slots. Are those pyramid strings a wound G?

[street]

I used to run 11's with a wound G on my tele and strat, then went down to 10's and now have 9's on my tele and 10's on my strat, but I tune the strat down a whole step.

I bend quite a bit, but never had sore wrists with the 11's.
I dropped the string size based on tone decisions and same for tuning down a whole step on a strat.
Still run 10's on Gibson's.

I've found that the more years I play the lower my action gets and the lighter the strings.
I also think I'm getting the best tone I've ever had.
I get a great sustain on my tele and I'm running 9's with fairly low action.

For heavier percussive rhythm work I would bump up string gauge and action.

[Yutaka]

Are those pyramid strings a wound G?

Yes, wound G .022. I think the Pyramid Gold flats are quite expensive, though, at $20+ a pack in the states (I've paid 11 euros here). These are supposed to last for a long time. After a few weeks of playing 3-4 hours a day, I think they feel and sound as good as new.

[Guitar Matt]

i use 12 15 19 28 38 52 on my tele and those strings sound a hell of alot better then 10's.

[Ishmael8765678]

don't buy the telecaster in the first place...for some reason, i don't like the headstock. think it looks gay. strats are much cooler

[wingwalker]

Bigger strings do give a bigger tone but if your hands can't deal with the extra tension that you'll not only cause damage to yourself but your tone will suffer...if you're not strong enough to play with fat strings cleanly then it's a waste of time.

[Old Tele man]

...first thought: BIG sound

...I use 11-48's on my Tele.

[GuitarsFromMars]

I've got a 1999 USA Standard Tele strung with 10s. I'm considering moving up to 12s or maybe evens set with a wound G. Anyone tried this and liked/disliked the results? Now, keep in mind I'm not a blues or country player and I don't bend strings much, so traditional tele tones aren't a must-have for me. I mostly just want to add some girth to compliment the bright pickups. Thanks in advance.


10's are adequate...

[diego]

I have 13 -56 on one of my teles... but it's tuned down a minor third.

The rest have a standard 10 set. I don't like the way the heavier strings sound on the teles, although I'm sure there are folks that make them sound great.

[strat a various]

I've never seen a Fender that needed a nut-job to handle 12s. I've got 14s on my acoustic, so 12s feel pretty twangy on the Strat. Re: Teles, the ones I've tried with 13s, including one I sold, worked fine. Has Fender resized their nut grooves in the past ten years or so?
I think twang is a function of hand strength and pick up height. Light strings can rattle and hiss too much to be twangy. Matter of taste.

[Jazzydave]

I've used 11s at a minimum on all of my guitars and I bend quite a bit and "shake" my chords. There's just something about having to dig into them more that I love. I feel more connected to the guitar...

[afrischnj]

same with me

[MatthewK]

don't buy the telecaster in the first place...for some reason, i don't like the headstock. think it looks gay. strats are much cooler

I tried, but I can't come up with any way you could be more wrong.

And yes, 11s are where Teles start to sound good, and they were designed for the wound G.

[audiodrome]

I've been thinking about doing the same thing if only because on my main gig I'm always switching between my Gibson J-30 acoustic (with 12s) and my Gretsch 6120DSV (with 11s), so when I play the slinky Tele with 10s I find myself fumbling all over the place. I don't mind giving up a little bending as a compromise for better intonation and a more aggressive tone. What do you think?

[clothwiring]

I use 11-49s by D'addario on mine. I love it with some meat to the strings.

[djw]

I've been thinking about doing the same thing if only because on my main gig I'm always switching between my Gibson J-30 acoustic (with 12s) and my Gretsch 6120DSV (with 11s), so when I play the slinky Tele with 10s I find myself fumbling all over the place. I don't mind giving up a little bending as a compromise for better intonation and a more aggressive tone. What do you think?
Sounds good to me. It feels effortlessly macho to manhandle slinky strings like that, but I miss being able to really bite into them and the whole affair feels flimsy and meager.

[p.j.]

I've got a 1999 USA Standard Tele strung with 10s. I'm considering moving up to 12s or maybe evens set with a wound G. Anyone tried this and liked/disliked the results? Now, keep in mind I'm not a blues or country player and I don't bend strings much, so traditional tele tones aren't a must-have for me. I mostly just want to add some girth to compliment the bright pickups. Thanks in advance.

I went to 11's on my tele for a while but found that bending was too much of a pain and went down to 10's. For me, 10's are perfect because they sound good and let me do all the bending I want. If you aren't a bender then going up in gauge w/ a wound "g" totally makes sense. Maybe try some flats on there too if you haven't already? Experimenting w/ strings and picks is a lot cheaper than experimenting w/ pickups and amps and often makes as much if not more difference to your overall tone.

PJ

[62Tele]

11's on my Teles, 11's or 12's on my semi hollow, 13's on my acoustics. If I go lighter then 11's I tend to overplay and sound pretty stupid.

If you want to hear something different and for the right application very cool, throw a set of flatwounds on a tele.

[Trego]

Another vote for the move to 11's that's what I had on my G&L ASAT Bluesboy. They worked great!

[Crazyquilt]

I find it more challenging to get twangy tones from heavier strings, but I can generally compensate by adjusting my attack & where I strike the string. Strength isn't a big deal to me; I play heavily strung Nationals, which really DO need heavier strings to get their cones moving.

That being said, I feel like my Teles sound the most like Teles with 10s; the farther I go from that, the more challenging it is (but never impossible...) to get good Tele twang. 11s are no problem, although I can't abide the feel of 9s.

[101Volts]

Attention

This topic is over six months old.

Just an FYI. But with that in mind, I'll still contribute to the topic. A set of 12s or 13s will be hard to bend on most Teles due to the fretboard radius. I wouldn't go any heavier than 11s for a Tele that has a 9.50 radius. Heavy strings bring out more tone but they're also harder to do hammer ons and pull offs on so keep that in mind.

[PedalFreak]

A set of 12s or 13s will be hard to bend on most Teles due to the fretboard radius. I wouldn't go any heavier than 11s for a Tele that has a 9.50 radius. Heavy strings bring out more tone but they're also harder to do hammer ons and pull offs on so keep that in mind.



They will be harder if you are not use to them. But if you take the time to get use to them, and build up your hand strenth there isnt any problem. I use 11-52's on one of my teles, and have no problem. But then I'm use to them. It'll just take a little while to get use to them and get the hand strength to bend/play them.

[PedalFreak]

If you want to hear something different and for the right application very cool, throw a set of flatwounds on a tele.


This is a big thing with the Nashville session guys right now :)

[Boris Bubbanov]

if you want more tone and sustain, raise the action ;)

Well said.

I tried, but I can't come up with any way you could be more wrong.

And yes, 11s are where Teles start to sound good, and they were designed for the wound G.

Well said on all counts.

I find you can get pretty decent intonation with straight barrel saddles on a 7.25 radius Tele with 11s and a wound G string. I find it much harder to get optimal intonation with straight barrel saddles if the G is plain (although I do prefer that sound) or if the radius is flatter, or if the strings are Hi-Lo like a 10-52, and finally it is hard on 9 guage strings in general.

++

Another thing is, I can play with more abandon without pulling notes sharp if I use 11s. I guess some of it is what you are accustomed to, I suppose.