string tension

[casperh7]

I like strings to be really low in tension, so bending is easy, as i use a lot of that in my playing, aswell as extensive vibrato. I was wondering if theres a way of avoiding sticking 9's on as they sacrifice tone, is there a way i can set my AXIS ss (hardtail) up to compensate for this?

C

 

[Mark-NL]

I use the Ernie ball coated titanium .009 on my ASS. If there is any tonal change from .10 (which I've used before), I fail to notice it.

(There's bound to be some of course, but the difference is too small for me to notice. I wonder if anyone would hear any difference in a bandsetting anyway.)

 

[DrKev]

is there a way i can set my AXIS ss (hardtail) up to compensate for this?

Not really. You can change the feel a little under your fingers but the physics is set in stone - without using a different gauge or brand of string, a certain pitch requires a certain tension. That's all there is too it.

But listen, changing to 9s doe NOT sacrifice tone. SRV has a lot to answer for in the myth and superstition ridden marketplace! Yes, there is a difference between, say, 12s or 11s and 9s but between 10s and 9s the difference is minimal. Certainly, you will be the only person to notice. And Billy Gibbons has been using 8s for much of his career and anybody sounds thicker and meatier than SRV it's BG!

When I made the decision to go back to 9s from 10s the deciding factor was this - tone means nothing if you don't play well, and I play better with 9s. Sounds like you will too.

Besides, think how lucky we are as guitar players - we don't have to fork out the kind of prices that bassists do (or, God forbid, double bass players) do for strings. For little more than the price of a pint, you can afford to try.

 

[TNT]

use #2253's 9-42 - kick it down a 1/2 - lower the action to micro buzz- straighten the neck out perfectly - put the pedal to the metal - it'll purrrrrr like a kitten!!!