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Thinking about going back to 9 - 42

Tim O'Sullivan

Tim O'Sullivan

Well-known member
Joined
Apr 22, 2003
Messages
5,881
Location
Christiansburg, VA
Hi there,

I recently had to put some 9-42 strings on a guitar I have that has a warped neck, and after playing it for a while I had forgotten how much fun they are! So easy and effortless to play!

I have been using 10-46 stings for over 10 years, but always used 9's 'back in the day'.

What is everyone using here on their balls? Does anyone notice any negative effects on tone using 9's?

I know that Brian May uses 8's or 9's and Billy Gibbons uses a 7 set, so I know that you don't need monster strings for a monster tone!
 
I use power slinkys most the time I feel for me I play better and more accurately with them for whateve reason.
I think they give a much thicker tone. They are a bit tougher to bend but once your used to them I never noticed a difference.

I tried 9s on my morse once and I pull the e strings off the fret board and to me it just sounded much thinner.
 
pypera8e.jpg
these are just fine for my maple boards but I use the super slinky on my rose wood boards and there also 9-42 don't know why but they sound just perfect like this!! I play a lot of leads on my rhythm hum-bucker so I just raise the hum-bucker higher then my lead hum-bucker to get that thick tone!! Size of strings only matter if I'm wanting to play in low tunings then I break out the power slinky's!!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Personally, I use regular slinkys half step down. Beef slinkys for C standard and hybrid slinkys for standard tuning... Suits me... I can't stand the 42 in the lower strings.. I like the full sound on the lowers strings while having that easier playing on the higher strings...
 
Cobalt Hybrid Slinkys (9-46) have been my favourites since the Cobalt series came out. Have them on my JP6 and my Silo Special.
 
Tim, my theory is the better I play the better I sound and the more inspired I am....so my answer is 9s
 
I've used the 9-42 for 20+ years. I've tried the thicker and thinner gauges and this has always worked for me. At least in standard tuning, my "D" guitar is 10-46 but that thing is an expert dust collector.
 
Most of the sound difference you hear when playing it doesn't make it through recordings. The notable exception is if you are trying to drive some overdrive or crunch with vintage Fender style single coils.

The major problem I have with almost all 009 sets is that a 011 is too thin for me as a H string. That's kind of annoying, especially since 010 sets usually come with 013 instead of the 012 that I want.
 
As we age it's good to avoid putting too much pressure on fingers when playing so I'm sticking to 9-42. I indeed remember the days when you could purchase separate strings from many manufacturers building up your own set...
 
I've never used anything other than 9-42. Heavier gauge sets just don't work for me. At least we can all choose what's best for us rather than settle for just what's available.
 
Thanks for all the replies and advice!

My fingers have been getting really sore as of late - I am sure that its the Winter but anyhow, I need to rock out and not have tender finger tips!

I put a set of 9-42 strings on my ASS and will give it a spin this weekend, I have two shows. I will report back and let you know how I get on!
 
Hi Tim,

I started out with 9s, switched to 10s for a few years, now I'm back to super slinky 9s. I'm happier with the 9s and I didn't notice a change in my tone.
 
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