Help! Trying to figure out what’s going on with these strings!

[Norrin Radd]

I’ve purchased some strings from 2 different places in the last month. Same strings. I’m having major difficulty keeping the only set I’ve put on a guitar in tune. They just won’t hold tune at all - especially noticeable when using the tremolo. I’ve tried every possible adjustment on my guitar to no avail. I’ve lubed the contact points and tightened the trem springs so there is no float at all. I’ve stretched the strings thoroughly and played the set regularly each day for over a week. No dice.

Pics below of a set from each bunch. Anything seem off? Are one set counterfeit? Wondering if one batch is just super old. Would old strings be more apt to not hold tune? Even if the pack was never opened? Any help is much appreciated!

 

[beej]

Man, that's odd. I'm no help here, but maybe email the CS guys on Monday. They can tell what's original and should be able to help out dating the packaging.

 

[Norrin Radd]

Man, that's odd. I'm no help here, but maybe email the CS guys on Monday. They can tell what's original and should be able to help out dating the packaging.

I posted this same quandary on TGP and somebody there indicated that the pack on the left has the newer packaging and the one on the right is older packaging that was used prior to 2018. The thing is, the packs they say are from prior to 2018 I just bought yesterday at Guitar Center!