Larrivee Sitka/Mahogany OM strings

[Silence Dogood]

Any chance you've tried strings that sit a little on the brighter side of TI wounds?

I'm waiting on a three pack of GHS vintage bronze strings. I was told they sit in-between phosphor bronze and silk and steel tonally. We'll see. Just experimenting...as always   

To my ear, the SCGC strings were similar but brighter and more like a regular PB guitar string.  They feel pretty awesome too IIRC. 

[BlueBowman]

To my ear, the SCGC strings were similar but brighter and more like a regular PB guitar string.  They feel pretty awesome too IIRC. 

Definitely one of my favorite string sets. I'm heavily stocked with them at the moment, but it's always fun to see what else is out there.

[Silence Dogood]

Definitely one of my favorite string sets. I'm heavily stocked with them at the moment, but it's always fun to see what else is out there.

Lately I've been using the old school SIT PB strings and they are great.  Fairly cheap and basic but just a good all-around guitar string.  I hardly ever see anyone talking about SIT strings but I like them a lot. 

The TI's are next level strings but I find myself nerding out too much with them and getting lost in details.  It is easy to get distracted from the fact that I'm playing my guitar and not using it as a means to be a string scientist. 

Sometimes I remind myself that old dudes like Doc Watson probably just used whatever "strang" was around.  Same with a pick, etc.  Today it's all gotten too complicated, but I admit it's a fun rabbit hole to tumble down.
 

[BlueBowman]

The TI's are next level strings but I find myself nerding out too much with them and getting lost in details.  It is easy to get distracted from the fact that I'm playing my guitar and not using it as a means to be a string scientist. 

It's a rabbit hole, for sure. The incredible amount of info available to us combined with the incredible amount of options (guitars, strings, gadgets, etc), it's no surprise some of us lost our footing and tumbled to the bottom of the hole! But without that info, I would likely NOT be playing both the guitars and strings I currently play. I'm all the better for having them in my life.

Nerding out is fun, but I agree with you: it's best moderated. The goal is always making music. And as I just told one of my AGF friends, I might buy lot of guitars, but I make music on every single one of them. That's my justification (that, and I try not to lose too much money!). If I'm not making music, then on it goes, hopefully to someone who will play music on it.

The only nerds worth scolding are the collectors...but that's a whole other kettle of fish 

[Silence Dogood]

It's a rabbit hole, for sure. The incredible amount of info available to us combined with the incredible amount of options (guitars, strings, gadgets, etc), it's no surprise some of us lost our footing and tumbled to the bottom of the hole! But without that info, I would likely NOT be playing both the guitars and strings I currently play. I'm all the better for having them in my life.

Nerding out is fun, but I agree with you: it's best moderated. The goal is always making music. And as I just told one of my AGF friends, I might buy lot of guitars, but I make music on every single one of them. That's my justification (that, and I try not to lose too much money!). If I'm not making music, then on it goes, hopefully to someone who will play music on it.

The only nerds worth scolding are the collectors...but that's a whole other kettle of fish 

Great post.  I give myself seasons where I have permission to nerd out on gear and gadgets (harmless fun as long as all the bills are being paid), and then there are seasons where it's all about the music.  I have learned to just recognize it as seasons: sometimes it's all shred electric guitar; then it's acoustic instrumentals; then it's singing songs, and then sometimes it's getting out my mandolin and playing old Irish music (or "Castle Music" as my daughter calls it).  Seasons!  Enjoy them all!

[StringPicker6]

I think it comes with all hobbies, and the internet helps. People all over the world geek out on gear for golf, tennis, playing pool, fishing, you name it. It adds color and dimension to our lives, and brings a sense of fun and excitement. The trick is to know how far is too much financially, especially when it affects your family's finances if you have people you support.

[BlueBowman]

...playing old Irish music (or "Castle Music" as my daughter calls it).

You must've weaned her on some great movies, because I completely understand that reference. I've had the same thought about certain Irish songs!

I think it comes with all hobbies, and the internet helps. People all over the world geek out on gear for golf, tennis, playing pool, fishing, you name it. It adds color and dimension to our lives, and brings a sense of fun and excitement. The trick is to know how far is too much financially, especially when it affects your family's finances if you have people you support.

For anyone following the acoustic forums long enough, I know of at least two people who let the addiction ruin their finances. In both cases, these guys shared their stories online. There are surely many others.

Personally, my own uncle let GAS wreck his life years ago. Three kids and a wife, they had to downsize houses because of it (I suppose it could've been even worse than that, as they still at least had a home). They are all on better footing these days, and my uncle seems cured of his worst GAS impulses. That makes it easier for me to state that it was he who opened up the amazing world of high end acoustics for me. I'm grateful for that, even though it cost him considerably.

[B0WIE]

 I see things like that as being more behavioral disorders than anything specific to guitars as the same thing happens with cars, collectibles, etc.
 While I've been "collecting" guitars for about 25 years and I'm very passionate about it, if it starts going to far I get the mental equivalent of eating too much and getting an upset stomach. I think it relates to being homeless when I was 18. Ever since then, I always need to feel like I have a safety net.

 As off-topic as that is, I can actually tie it back to strings because sometimes, when I get bored of an instrument, trying a new brand or type of string can be as exciting as a new instrument. In fact, giving an old friend a new voice can sometimes be even more exciting than a new guitar, for me. Two of my first guitars had the same strings for at least 20 years. I never bothered changing them as they are "cheap" instruments. I recently re-strung them and discovered just how delightfully these guitars have aged in the last 20 years. I never realized it because of the dead strings. It's really like having new instruments.

[Silence Dogood]

@BlueBowman: I have no idea where my daughter came up with "Castle Music" but it surely fits.  I don't play pub tunes but mostly stuff like O'Carolan tunes, which sound like classical music.  When she was about 6 or 7, I was playing one day and she strolls into the room with her stuffed unicorn in-hand (she's 17 and still has it!).  She wasn't really paying attn to me but I guess I said, "Do you like that old Irish music?"  She fired back, "Daddy, that's not Irish music, that's castle music..." and went on with her playing.  As far as films go, the LOTR trilogy has been in constant rotation her whole life, and my wife constantly watches the BBC stuff.  Who knows where it came from?

@BOWIE: Man, you are so right!  Trying new strings (and picks) can be like getting a new guitar.  And there are so many different brands of each that a person can try them all, and in ever possible combination, and still not spend the equivalent of a new guitar purchase. 

As far as GAS train-wrecking someone's life, that's insane.  I've never heard stories like that but I don't doubt it.  I know guys who have spent themselves into oblivion on guns, motorcycles, knives, tobacco pipes, etc.  It's not about the thing but as BOWIE says, it's more of a behavioral issue manifesting itself in a particular area.  I know that early on in my married life, a trip to the guitar shop often meant a cold wind would be blowing through the house when I got home.  I spent money we didn't really have on BS back then. And my wife would always say, "Why are going to LOOK at guitars you can't buy?"  It genuinely stressed her out and it caused some issues early on.  Wish I could have been wiser. 

[BlueBowman]

I see things like that as being more behavioral disorders than anything specific to guitars as the same thing happens with cars, collectibles, etc.
 While I've been "collecting" guitars for about 25 years and I'm very passionate about it, if it starts going to far I get the mental equivalent of eating too much and getting an upset stomach. I think it relates to being homeless when I was 18. Ever since then, I always need to feel like I have a safety net.

Yes, exactly. It all comes from the same place. Moderation in most things is healthy and worth striving for. I've battled my own demons with detrimental behaviors. Shoring up our mental health is key. Sleep, diet, exercise, meditation/music, and community. Getting at least four out of five right has really kept my mental demons at bay.


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Silence, I was referencing period dramas that take place in the Middle Ages with castles and groups of playing minstrels. Certain songs remind me of those movies. LOTR's is definitely a good one!

And to keep from veering off into yet another thread branch, I'm gonna start a new thread on this topic.