D’Addario Guitar Strings – XL Nickel Electric Guitar Strings – EXL110-3D
$17.00
BESTSELLING SET – XL Nickel are our best-selling electric guitar strings, revered by players since 1974. VERSATILE, BRIGHT TONE – Nickel-plated steel wrap wire provides a bright, versatile electric guitar tone, great for a variety of musical genres. FOR THE ULTIMATE PERFORMANCE – Like all D’Addario electric guitar strings, XL Nickel are made with our proprietary Hex-Core, ensuring perfect intonation, consistent feel, and reliable durability. EARN REWARD POINTS – XL Nickel sets have a code on the recyclable VCI bag, which you can register to earn Players Circle points. MADE IN THE USA – XL Nickel electric guitar strings are made in the USA—drawn to our exacting specifications at our New York production facility.
Curt Wuollet –
Not a big change. Edit: A big change!
Hard to judge, I replaced the strings on a new guitar. Would like something a bit brighter. Could be the strings that came on the guitar were the same type as some had mentioned. They’re fine, just a little dark.Edit: that was my initial review. Not too impressed. But, let me explain.I got the strings to see if they would help with a pernicious problem. I got a new guitar, an IYV Les Paul copy, because my style these days was more like acoustic playing than blow the doors out rock n roll. The bullet strat I got a few years ago was way too twangy and didn’t sound good doing this, so I was discouraged. Sounding good and right is very important to me. The LP copy was better, but there was still that annoying twang on chords and I couldn’t unhear it. So, I thought new strings might help. No, they sounded pretty much the same, hence, the lackluster review. But, I started analyzing just what was going on. It’s the G string, it sounded horrible on the LP and even worse on the strat. It doesn’t do that on my old Harmony Sovereign acoustic. Then the epiphany !!. Acoustic strings have a wound G string !!. After some looking, I discovered that Daddario makes a set of XL’s with a wound G, EXL110W They arrived this morning. Wanting to test ASAP, I removed that cursed G string from the LP and strung the .018 wound G from the new set. A chorus of ahhs, light from above, my new guitar finally sounds like it should. I couldn’t be happier. The bare G set is probably fine for different styles and some may _like_ the twang, but for me this made the difference between good and bad, crappy chords or beauty. I may even try a set on the strat. Sorry to combine reviews, but this is where the site takes me to review the new set. I’m gonna go play now. Hope this helps others who have the same problem.
9 people found this helpful
MachTwang –
Great strings.
This product does exactly what it’s supposed to, sounds great on a guitar.
One person found this helpful
Irmary –
Las mejores
Las mejores
Matt PhelpsMatt Phelps –
Affordable quality
I’ve used this brand for years. I’ve also used many others. These strings are consistent throughout the batches. I like lighter low stings and thicker up top. These are a great balance. Without having to pick individual string gauges to get what you want. They can rock or they can be warm.
Rick Morse –
Great
Big fan of these strings.
Mark D –
After 35 Years Playing Slinkys …Switching
Originally (waaay back in the day), I had learned on these D’Addario 10-46s! ..but my guitar teacher at that time told me try EB Super Slinky 9’s, as he was having a hard time bending the 10’s.. So I did, and for 35 years I played those lighter, slinkier strings.A few years ago, I woke up one day not happy with my strings, so I started looking for strings which provided a more aggressive, tighter, and better defined sound. I play all kinds of music so any strings I use need to cover a really wide range of tones, and do that well.I tried a few different brands and gauges over the period of about a year, including the expensive coated strings, etc., Well, long story short, and after burning through thirty sets of these strings, the D’Addario 10-46s are my new go-to strings. They are more balanced sounding across the scale, arpeggios and chords are better defined, they feel tighter, less “slinky”, and that’s okay. I can hit these strings hard and get them to roar and chime or barely brush them and get truly musical nuances from them. Distorted, acoustic/clean, edge of breakup, blues, metal, rock, pop, Satch-stuff,. …They do it all. They are priced right and I’m Happy to spend my money on them.Back for my 40th set of these strings.. and I’m sure I’ll be back for more.
6 people found this helpful
ZiltoidTheOmniscient –
You’ve got to trust your strings. D’Addario makes it easy.
My daily drivers for many years. You’ve got to be able to trust your strings, especially when recording or playing out. And if you’re on a budget, it’s more important that you get value out of each set.I don’t break strings in normal use; practicing, playing out, recording, whatever. Occasionally I’ll break a string stretching a new set, and I mean occasionally. Recently I tried Dean Markley Blue Steels in the same gauge, since I have a replica Hentor Sportscaster – the infamous hot-rodded Strat Rush’s Alex Lifeson played in the early 80s with the Bill & Becky Lawrence L500L in the bridge – and Lifeson used Dean Markley Blue Steels in this gauge – 46-9. I tried them out to see if there was a tone differences, to see if it was a necessary part of the “replica.” I bought a 3-pack. The B string in the first pack broke during stretching (and I was being extra-cautious, in case they were weaker than the D’Addarios), so I opened the second pack and replaced the string. THE SECOND ONE BROKE during stretching. The B string in the third pack didn’t break, but I burned three packs of strings for one change, and that’s just simply unacceptable.I’ll break a high string occasionally when using D’Addarios, but never, ever like that. And I play hard. Having a replica of one of Lifeson’s axes, you might guess I play a little Rush here and there. The secret to sounding like Lifeson is less distortion than you think, but hitting the guitar harder. His chords sound like explosions partly because of how hard he’s hitting the strings. Despite hitting them harder than your average player, I don’t break D’Addarios while playing. (Of course, it helps to change your strings regularly, I normally don’t go more than about two weeks on a set, and breakage increases exponentially with string age.)Another thing I started doing because of my research on my replica Sportscaster, was using these regular bottom/super light top strings. I grew up playing on 9’s, but the whole set was “super light” – so the bottom E was 42. With these strings, the three bottom strings are heavier. This gives me a more balanced and versatile sound – I still have the light strings on top for leads and Gilmouresque 1.5-step bends, but I can really dig into the lower strings for super-heavy chording. I imagine that the heavier bottom cushion the blow of Lifeson-style hard-hitting chording, and absorb a lot of the energy that might stress the higher strings. I’ve gone to EXL-125s on my other electrics as well.On the occasion that I need to play in a lower tuning, like open C, I like the EXL-115’s, which are 49-11. I should see if there’s a set that’s like these for lower tunings, with heavier lower strings, maybe 52-11, but the 49 gauge seems to tolerate tuning down to B with just a little variation in pitch if you hit it hard enough.
2 people found this helpful
Mr. XangMr. Xang –
Favorite & to my taste, best brand for my guitars. For my basses… .
For this semi-acoustic Ibanez Tallman TM-71, I was using the D’Addario’s .095 nickel sets. But I added piezo pick ups to it & the .095’s didn’t have enough mass to drive the piezos, with enough current as to not need a pre-amp or a pedal to feed the mixer that I use for my guitars, basses, keys… etc. Worked perfectly & I wish the set of these nickel “balanced tension” string set ended at .044 or .042, perhaps even a set starting at .0105; but c’est la vie. C’est la vie too… D’Addario or anyone made a 5 string bass guitar set in .050, .068, .086, .104, .122; since I like a lot of bottom on the thins. And not too floppy, “muddy” and/or lacking definition on the fat ones. GHS’s “pressurewound” are good, as well as OK with the round core cheap .045-.125 round wound oriental or whatever. A great set for this semi guitar axe & I’m looking forward to use them on the LP’s, SG, strats, or the other guitars I use/have.
CC –
Have purchased 2xs now
These works nice and are great quality! My son plays guitar often and really enjoys these strings. When he gets a new guitar he always switches them out to these.
Giz –
I’ll never buy a more expensive pack again! D’Addario Nails It!
Went from a pair of DR Blues which I had tuning instability with and the D string frayed like crazy with under 2 months of occasional play. After switching to these this guitar stays in tune like a champ. After first setup and tuning I played it the next day about 12 hours later and every string was almost perfectly in tune. It was kinda eerie as before my guitar would never stay in tune that long with the DR Blues 10s.Tone:Tone is on the bright side. Not too bright but definitely bright. Tone is subjective but it was even and I got good harmonics out of it.Feel and Playability:Like Butta. All I can say. The balanced tension is really really really nice. I can’t stress that enough. If you are the kind of guitar player that likes easier bends on the 3,2nd and 1st strings then you will love this set. Im also curious if the balanced tension is lending itself to better tuning stability. I’m not sure but it is something to think about.Overall:These strings are great so far. It’s too soon to talk about durability since I’ve only had them for like 2 days but so far I’m really impressed. The 7 dollar pack of DR Blues ended up just disintegrating on me in less than 2 months. Try D’AddarioI don’t think you’ll be disappointed in fact I think you’ll walk away ashamed of yourself that you didn’t try them before. And YES strings can make a huge difference in the setup, feel and tuning stability of your guitar. Not all strings are created equal. I gave stability a 4 stars and will update to 5 stars after about a week or so of playing if it continues on the track its on.****UPDATE 1-10-20*****these strings still kick ass and I play anywhere from 1-2 hours a day about 4-5 days a week. They’ve stayed in tune like champions with my locking tuners. No signs of wear other than than fact they are not as shiny as when I got them new. I do wipe the down every now and then though.For the price these are the strings to get and on a locking trem 25.5 scale guitar they play like butter. Will be my go to strings.
7 people found this helpful
Moe –
Perfect for a slightly higher tuning on a baritone guitar
As someone who is primarily a keyboardist but also plays guitar, I often find the standard guitar tuning to be limiting and arbitrary, and I’m always looking for ways to extend the range. I bought a baritone guitar and really enjoyed using the lower tunings, yet some of my tunings , such as C# standard don’t really work very well on a 27″ scale baritone or a 25.5″ scale guitar. There was either too much tension on the shorter scale guitar or too little on the longer scale guitar. Intonation issues all around. I had just about given up hope on setting up a guitar with this tuning and just using a capo on a baritone guitar tuned to B standard, but I thought I would give this set a try, and wow, it’s perfect. Even tension across all the strings and none of the sitar like buzz that regular medium gauge strings gave me. I use my guitar for alternative rock, dream pop, and post-hardcore, and I love the way these strings feel. If you’re not so picky about your strings, maybe you’ll get by with one of the easier to find sets, but it’s awesome that D’Addario offers these at such a low price. I’ve been buying their strings for years, yet I’m still impressed at the range of strings they offer and just how well their strings balance. I can’t say enough good things about them. So happy to find a set that works for my guitar.
Josh –
Nice strings
I was only using Ernie Ball before these too and a lot of people will say it’s not the strings that make you sound better but the skill of the guitar player. Well when I put these on I guess my skill level increased too. I sound like Eric Clapton now and I didn’t change anything but these strings lol. They bend good too, you know when you really feelin it and bend like crazy as if you are a rock star but you’re just in your room yourself? There is no fear in them breaking whatsoever.
Mutronium –
Perfect for 6 string Banjo
I bought these for my Dean Backwoods 6-string Banjitar. They work perfectly giving the Banjitar more of a authentic Banjo sound. They take a little bit of time getting used to the smaller size strings since I’m used to finger picking with regular guitar string gauges, but these are what the Banjitar needed. Regular 09’s or 10’s on the Banjitar just never sounded or felt right. I hope the EXL150H stay in production, cause now I’m thinking of using them on one of my guitars.
Amazon Customer –
Works as advertised
Arrived on time and work great! Zero issues.
Oscar lopez –
Exelente
Muy util exelente
BluezNotez –
Worth
Worth the money
Myself –
Daddario strings are amazing
If you haven’t used tons of brands of strings and know the differences in them, then I recommend that you always choose D’Addario, they have a highly manufactured brand of strings no matter which one you try. If you like the feel of 8 guage but need just an extra bit of tension for tuning and string wobble then I highly recommend these 8.5’s
One person found this helpful
Charles OBrien –
Hooked on D’Addario
I try other strings from time to time, but I always keep coming back to D’Addario XL’sI think there’s a song in that somewhere….Copyright!
Jason Luther –
It’s d’addario
Why write a review? We all know by now the rep this company has. Have these on my js32. So I bought for my 7. I’m a huge nyxl fan. But these do the job. Great tone and feel. These are my goto when I want something nice for stuff I don’t play much.
Tom Mayes –
These strings have been a favorite for 30 years and counting! Thanks
Been using these strings for 30 years. Thanks
Larry D. BurnettLarry D. Burnett –
Can you say Colorblind?
I have bought 10-packs of these strings, before this order for qty 25 sets. I read the reviews for this 25 set pack and couldn’t understand what could possibly be frustrating about a container the strings come in… I get it now. I am color blind, and the way the strings are provided in this “string dispenser” box is, you need to pull one string at time by matching the color of string ball to the corresponding color shown on the box. I’ll probably need to just pull them all, then organize them by size – hopefully that works without getting tangles as others have mentioned.
2 people found this helpful
Felipe MujicaFelipe Mujica –
Excelentes
La cuerda más confiable y de mejor rendimiento, un clásico.
One person found this helpful
steve –
For life
I have been using these for decades. Every time I try another brand, I come back. These are better than the NYXL. Those sound weird.
One person found this helpful
Joe Sixpack –
great
Great string at a great price. Definitely recommend.
Placeholder –
Best sounding strings i ever owned.
I have purchased these strings and Elixir poly web strings at the same time.Elixirs came in faster so I put them on my guitar first.they sounded all right for some time and did the job.after a year they started to sound strange and dull, so I wanted to order another elixir set.I am so glad that i didn’t, let me explain why.as soon as I put these strings on everything changed, the sound is just amazing.my only regret is that I played a whole year with elixirs and did not use these strings. the sound is a lot better.I have sweaty hands and everybody told me to put elixirs on my guitar, although they never rusted they never sounded all that great.theses strings also did not rust so far 4 months in use. also you get 3 sets in the price of 1 elixir… it’s a no brainer.
Theo –
Just trying them out
I’m a big fan of D’Addario strings. Been using EJ16 acoustic strings for years and love them. I needed some electric strings for my new AF-55, and I had a few set of Fender strings which I first used to replace the strings that came with the guitar. I found them lacking so I ordered the EXL 115’s and I think I will stick with these. Nice and clear, great for my playing style! Not sure about the longevity, I will say so far, so good!
Michael O’Meara –
best strings on the market
love these boxes
One person found this helpful
D. Jones –
“Da-Dairy-O” produces great USA-made strings at a great value
Some say “daw-dare-e-o”, “de-ah-dare-e-o”, “dad-ar-ee-oh”, or “dee-ah-dare-e-o”Others shorten it to “D-adds” or even “Daddy-O’s”. Took me a while to figure that last one out.I was trying to find out info about “Daddy-O strings” and why people thought they were so great. Duh.While people may disagree on how to say the name, few debate the idea that these are great strings.* Less expensive that most string sets out there, especially if you buy multi-packs* Color-coded to make string changes easy* Easy to find from most any vendor or music store* Made in the USA* You can collect “players points” for SWAG* They are sealed in a special “environmentally friendly” package to keep them fresh and corrosion-free* They have one of the widest range of string-size combinations availableIf you are just starting out and do not know what to put on your new guitar then the phrase “set it up with EXL-120s” or “put on some Da-Dairy-O” nines” is a good choice, at least for a strat or tele-like guitar.I personally like them better than Ernie Ball Super Slinkys aka “EB Pinks”, but I cannot quite put my finger on “why”.You can pay more for coated strings, cryogenic frozen strings, boutique strings, and all that but if you do not know what any of those are then you probably haven’t been playing long enough to find value in them.Almost every guitarist has a set of strings they “swear by” because they work wonders that no other string can – they make them play smoother or faster, their last set of strings lasted for 6 years, or whatever.I just appreciate a great value, and D’Addario strings are just that.BTW, for the record the official pronunciation is “Da-Dairy-O”:>> “We receive letters each week regarding the correct pronunciation of the D’Addario name. Some years back, we even ran an ad that illustrated an easy way to pronounce the D’Addario name. The name is pronounced phonetically as follows: Da-Dairy-O. A simple way to pronounce the most difficult name in musical accessories!”
One person found this helpful
RE –
High quality strings reasonably priced
Arrived quickly, sound wonderful. Longevity we’ll see.
Hawk eye –
These work fine for Standard Baritone guitar tuning.
I’ve used D’Addario strings for nearly 10 years. Their strings have always performed well and consistently from set to set for a reasonable price. I’m sure there’s nicer strings out there but among the four brands I’ve tried, D’Addario has worked best for me.I recently bought a Hagstrom Viking electric baritone guitar, and it arrived with the protective smut the factory smears on the fretboard, and corroded strings. After a week of playing to make sure no gremlins were hiding in the guitar I pulled off the old strings, cleaned the fingerboard and put these D’Addarios on. The guitar’s tonal nature to my ear is very dark, dull, and woody. These strings made the right kind of tone tweak to it; They restored some of the highs in the guitar’s tone yet they don’t sound tinny or brittle.For my six string electrics, I run either EXL 110’s or EXL 115’s (10-46’s and 11-49’s) and for my acoustic, I run EJ16’s. These strings perform just as well as the just-listed string types in all aspects, to include tuning stability and reliability. When the time comes to change strings on the baritone again, I’ll pick another set of these up!
Michael D J….. –
These are good enough for Joe Satriani
I love the value of these large packs of strings. And if the .010’s are by this company are good enough for Joe Satriani? Then yeah, they are probably good enough for you. I used to use GHS boomers. Glad I made the switch. I used to break strings like crazy with the boomers. These last so long I have to remember to change them because the sound is getting dull or the black oxidation is showing up on my hands. I know these are not the fanciest strings or most expensive you can buy. But they sure do play and sound like they are fancy and expensive.
B. arcarioB. arcario –
The real deal
These are absolutely the real deal, don’t buy cheap counterfeits.
GEO –
Best Strings Made
I have a long review on other purchases of this great string company
One person found this helpful
yep –
Best-sounding, longest-lasting, best-playing, affordable strings for electric guitar
First off, reviewing guitar strings objectively is extremely difficult. Any new set of strings will generally sound, feel, and play better than any old set of strings. Moreover, changing strings, tuning them, and breaking them in takes enough time that it is practically impossible to get an exact AB comparison across different brands in real-time. You need two otherwise identical guitars with otherwise identical wood, setup, electronics, fret age, etc, and you need to fit them both with new strings of the exact same gauge and type but different brands, in order to really assess the differences between two brands objectively. Which is close to impossible.That said, I personally own four electric guitars, and the studio I work at has about a dozen more. Over the past 15+ years as a musician, sound engineer, and stage hand, I have almost certainly played or recorded well over a hundred. So while I cannot personally swear to have done a scientific head-to-head double-blind test between every brand of strings, I can say a few things pretty categorically. And I have tried a ton of different makes of string, from Ernie Ball to GHS to La Bella to mail-order to store-brand, etc etc. (For bass, I prefer other brands than D’Addario, but that’s a seperate review).Sound-wise and playability-wise, these D’Addario Nickel Wounds are great. They have a high-quality, “as-expected” sound for a new guitar string, straight down the middle of how a roundwound nickel string should sound.Longevity is a more-complicated story, and widely misunderstood. First off, here are the things that compromise metal guitar strings, in approximate order or importance:1. Metal fatigue. Over time, bending and vibrating a piece of metal causes it to become more brittle and to develop microscopic cracks. Tension, stretching, and deformation exacerbate this condition, which is why even coated strings that are never played become dull and dead-sounding after a couple months of sitting on a guitar, compared to an identical set sitting in its package. This wears out strings faster if you play them, but also even if you just leave them sitting on your guitar. In my experience, D’Addario strings are among the best, if not the best, in terms of mainstream commercial guitar strings when it comes to staying supple, soft, and flexible.2. Surface oxidization/corrosion. This is where coatings can help. Exposure to air, moisture, skin oils, perspiration, etc has a corroding effect on metal strings. Those black, coppery-smelling stripes that you get on your fretting hand are the product of some kind of chemical breakdown in the alloy your strings are made from, releasing certain minerals from the metal onto your fingers. These effects are often over-stated in the marketing materials of coated-strings: they are real, but they are not usually anywhere close to the first thing that kills a set of strings. The conspicuousness of the symptom (black, dull-looking old strings) is often confused with the effects of metal fatigue, and people sometimes think that if they can keep their strings shiny, they will sound and play like new. Not so. Coatings only help the specific problem of surface corrosion, which can be a real one, but is a minor one for most players who keep their guitars in conditioned spaces and who play with clean hands. After a couple weeks of being installed at tension, even coated strings start to succumb to metal fatigue, and need to be changed even if they have never been played or taken out of the case.3. Physical deformation is the final and most unavoidable symptom. Unless your frets are made of softer metal than your strings (and we should hope that they are not), then playing your guitar inevitably creates “flat spots” on the strings, where they contact the frets. Probably similar at the bridge and nut. These become physical deformities in the string’s resonant characteristics, as well as exacerbating metal fatigue and compromising surface integrity at those points, affecting both of the above.Taking all of the above into consideration, and assuming that you want soft, supple nickel strings that won’t chew up your frets, I think these are your best overall choice. My one exception might be if you have serious problems related to surface corrosion, due to bodily PH imbalances or outdoor gigs, etc, in which case you might benefit from coated strings. But for most players, the strings are going to wear out from metal fatigue long before corrosion has a real effect on the sound or playability.
230 people found this helpful
Gary WoodGary Wood –
What has happened to business pride in this world?
I love D’Addario strings and this photo is no reflection on the product itself, however, I am amazed at the lack of pride that some businesses have in there own business! This photo is taken from what was in the Amazon shipping bag that I received in the mail! The Amazon package was in perfect condition, so the string box had to have been put in the package in this condition! Thank goodness the strings are OK!
tarboulton –
I’m surprised how well these strings stay in tune
I was surprised how well these strings stayed in tune when I first put them on. I can’t speak to their longevity since I’ve only had them on the instrument for a couple weeks. I can bend them and they don’t go out of tune very much. I think if you really want to bend strings, get a lighter set; these are a good compromise if you don’t do a lot of bending. I think the tone is good – not too bright.
canuco –
Excellent.
Excellent. Nice and bright for ST guitar.
Chris Henrich –
Great strings for down tuning
Got these to use on a gig where tuned 1/2 step down.
MarkMWS –
Consistently good
I’ve been using D’Addario strings for years. I try other brands, but always return to D’Addario. They last a long time and sound the best to my ears.
Lizy –
It’s ok
It’s ok
Frank lee –
Not a bad string
I just got the wrong set when not recommend this gauge but the string itself is decent
2inthevalley –
Only D’Addario for me over 30 years
I have always used D’Addario strings because you can do minor 3rd (1 1/2 step) bends and they keep on going without breaking and stay in tune. Of course, when you first install them you need to stretch them a bit to break them in…but they are high endrance…the best.Would Like to add that I recently had one set where the ball end was deffective….I emailed them and the Replaced the whole set plus included 2 extra e and b strings (top 2). Thats customer support…kinda like AMAZON
Esteban A. –
My favorite strings.
I have sweaty hands and these strings seem to last longer than Ernie balls. Sound great as well and seem to be the only strings that don’t snap when doing my boomer bends.
Customer –
Perfect set
I’ve been using Daddario strings for 20 years, because they last forever and stay in tune well. This hybrid set is a perfect combination of super light top and regular bottom strings.
Jordan R. –
better than slinkys
I always used super slinkies – i think cause they were fun to say when i was 16 and starting out.Switched to D’Addario and maybe im just snobby in my senile years – but it sounds better.Dont forget to try lighter gauge strings too. Would be a shame if you only played standard gauge your whole life and had no reference or reason to appreciate them.
One person found this helpful
Ron P –
LONG LASTING ARTICULATE SOUNDING STRINGS
As a gigging musician, I have to have reliable strings that deliver great tone. I’ve tried other brands, but I always come back to D’Addario strings and for the past 29 years or so I’ve used them exclusively.I buy in bulk and use 9-42 on my Teles and Strats and 10s on my Gibsons. I also use the bronze 11s on my only acoustic. I change them regularly, so they don’t have a chance to go dead. Yes, they’ll eventually go dead – I’m the only one who puts new strings on my father’s guitar and I only visit about twice a year, and his strings go dead after about a year but it’s so gradual he doesn’t seem to notice. But on my own guitars I change them out at least every 2 or 3 months, and on my Teles which get the most play, every few weeks.But, as already mentioned, I buy in bulk for discounts and it only takes a few minutes to change strings. I’m sure there are other great strings out there, but my search is over. These simply work for me.
Erik E –
After years of searching, I won’t be using any other strings!
This is written from the perspective of a guitarist from a metal band that uses Drop C tuning.I’ve gone through a good amount of strings in my 12 years of playing guitar. It has only been within the past 4 years that I really am adamant about changing strings every 3-5 months… I have a Floyd Rose on my main guitar, so as some of you may know, it can be bothersome to restring with that configuration. However, now that I have found these, I absolutely don’t dread the process because the payoff is just too great!I use 11 gauge strings considering the drop tuning, gotta get that proper tension! It’s something I can’t explain but these strings seem to be perfect each time I put a new pack on. Most guitars were designed to be tuned to standard including mine, with lower gauge strings feeling like rubber bands when downtuned. I absolutely used to play strictly in standard until joining this metalcore band. I never imagined downtuned strings and when I first did it, I was just using improper gauge and hated the way my guitar played. Fast forward to being introduced to 11 gauge and trying all different types of strings.. I kept getting an adequate feeling, but it wasn’t until these strings were suggested to me by several different people that I finally found the perfect fit. It feels like I’m playing standard tuning again, but I’m not!Truly these are special and they just FEEL premium on your fingertips. There’s a satisfying, full sound that is produced by these strings and they are smooth, yet textured in a way that glues your fingers when pressure is applied, but are buttery smooth when transitioning to different parts of the neck.D’Addario have hit the nail on the head with these and I highly suggest everyone to at least try these out! Everyone I know who touches my guitars loves these! Oh, yeah I did forget to mention, I use these strings on each guitar I own! Even at standard, a few quick adjustments and these strings feel great.
41 people found this helpful
Murphy Shea –
Finally: a G-string without the sour twang!
Like almost every guitarist in history, I have always had problems sour-sounding, overly twangy G strings. On my Strat especially, it just seemed impossible to get the open G – really any note on the third string – to sound as clean and pure as the others. Then one day I came across an old acoustic that did not have this problem; on close inspection I saw that it had a wound 3rd string, rather than the straight (unwound) G string that virtually every other light or medium string set on the market has.Some of the thicker “jazz” or acoustic string sets have a wound third string; Dean Markey makes a “Blue Steel” medium (.011-.052) set with a wound G. But as far as I know only D’Addario makes a “light” set (suitable for most electrics, especially if you like bending strings) with a wound G – the EXL 110W’s.I have to say, after receiving the D’Addario EXL 110W’s and restringing my Strat, within five minutes I went back on Amazon and ordered five more sets. The strings are lively and bright – but not too much so – and far more importantly, the wound 3rd string completely solved the sour/twangy G problem. It’s got to be the thinnest wound string out there – .018 – but in spite of the winding I have little trouble with bends, even at the lower frets. I am going to put EXL 110W’s on my Les Paul as well, I like them that much. For the picky, these strings are slightly more “talky” on the slides than the previous Fender bullets were – but not annoyingly so. Maybe over time, as a little oil builds up on them, they will quiet down a little.Some say that an .009 (ultralight) is a better gauge string for a Strat (Strats come from the factory with .009’s), but the .010’s seem just fine to me. The slightly heavier gauge did however put a little extra relief (concave bend) in the neck, but a quarter turn on the truss rod (clockwise, when looking over the headstock, using the allen wrench that comes with the guitar) fixed that and now the strings play just as low and fast as the .009’s did.All in all, VERY happy to have finally solved the “sour G” problem! Love these strings!
One person found this helpful
Andrew Jurgielewicz –
The 25-Pack Doesn’t Corrode!
Didn’t see any reviews of the 25-Pack when I bought it, but took a gamble any way as they were only $75. The 25-pack comes as a box with a small hole with a rubber cap that contains the ends of the strings. You just pull whatever color you need.I’ve used about 1/2 the box in the past 3 months (April to July in a room with the window open), and I’m still pulling strings that look like they came out of a fresh 3 pack. Great deal!
2 people found this helpful
Gordon Tubbs –
Great for Heavy Handed Players!
I regularly play acoustic and electric guitar and so my playing technique is very “heavy handed”, which is somewhat necessary for playing an acoustic guitar if you really want good intonation and presence. Unfortunately, electric guitars require more finesse and dexterity if you want to get the most of your vibrato or bends, which is why 0.9 to 0.11 gauge string sets are the de facto preference for every player.Back in the 50s and early 60s, guitar strings didn’t come in the lighter gauges that we have them today. 0.12 and 0.13 sets were commonplace. Electric guitar strings were more or less lighter-gauged acoustic guitar strings. This is how the Beatles were able to get those thick clean tones, and how Stevie Ray Vaughan (who also used 13s on his Strat) came to create his legendary tone as well. “Heavier is better” is just a myth though. Dozens of guitar heroes use standard gauge strings, sometimes as light as 0.8. It really just depends on your playing style and the amount of physical response you want from your strings. In this case “heavier is better…” IF you have a strong picking technique and hard attack.These days I have been playing a lot of heavy metal and I needed strings that wouldn’t flap around when playing those tight galloping rhythms and alternate picking runs. I decided to try out this “Baritone” guitar set on my Les Paul, and I’ve been really impressed with the thickness of the tone. You don’t necessarily need a Strat-scaled guitar or anything longer to rock these strings, so long as you adjust your bridge accordingly.Another benefit of using .13s is that the G-string is WOUND, which means more tension and less tuner slippage while playing. Every guitarist knows what I’m talking about when I say how frustrating it is when the G-string slides out of tune more so than any other string. On this set, the G-string is a wound 0.26, so literally twice the thickness of the high e-string. While this doesn’t make it totally immune to tuning slippage, it’ll get you really close.The last benefit of using .13s is that it is like resistance weight training in every respect. After playing a couple months on .13s, if you go back to .9s or .10s you’ll feel like you can fly across the fretboard with ease.
29 people found this helpful
Antone De Rock –
Good strings in a multi-pack
I like D’Addario strings and was really happy to find this pack of strings that was 3 sets in one box. I don’t go through strings too often but I do have four electric guitars and if I get the chance to play more than usual and notice I need a change, I am glad I have some at the ready for one or more guitars with a new set of strings. Also the price for this bundle is great! I plan on ordering another box so I can have two boxes in my supply box. The D’Addarion strings have always had a great feel and tone. They are bright and sing really well on my Strat, Tele, or Gibson Rd Standard. I play a mix of Rock, Pop, and eager to start developing some Jazz chops. I am confident these strings will play right in.
Roger B. Stevens –
good value
if you want to try light strings these are a great place to start
SlowRide –
Good string-Great gauge-Why cost more per pack for 3 pk?
Using 120 EXL+Some years ago, I decided I didn’t like 9’s or 10’s anymore, so when I discovered 9.5’s, I got excited.I’ve tried every other 9.5 set out there and none feel like the middle ground between 9 and 10 like these. They’re perfect for me gauge/tension-wise.I also love that they’re pretty bright sounding without being harsh or brittle sounding and I can get controlled feedback without killing ears or it getting out of control too fast.*** They seriously need to do something about quality control though. Inconsistent surface on unwound strings, strings bent in random places and I had five high e strings break on me in five different sets out of the same bag on first tune up to pitch about 8 months ago. Only had one do that since, but I never break strings on my main guitar, so it’s not the guitar.Break one and you loose a set if you never break strings and never have a need for the singles.*** Don’t buy the multipack. 3 pack = 13.99 and 3 single sets comes to 13.14.We should be getting a discount for buying multiple sets at once, not be charged more.I’ll keep that 85 cents, thank you very much-
3 people found this helpful
Malcolm W. Collins –
Price
Speed of delivery, quality of product
M t r x –
highly durable strings.
i buy D’s cuz they last. they retain more tone over stretching than most other brands, and since you can’t a 60 low E with blue steel, i stick with these. i tried some high gauge ernie balls, and they lost their tone pretty quick. i tried some fat GHS boomers, and those things just got rusty really fast. so far these D’s have stood up to a lot of handling and many sessions. 8Di been using the 9 string version pack to hit some barritone tunings on my 6 string guitar and they work great and stay in tune. not too much stretching, but there is some.the gain on these strings is great too. though i think maybe i got more gain out of the GHS. probably cuz they have less nickle and more ferris. not sure.anyways i recommend D’Adarrio for anyone looking to try a good balanced string that will last more than a couple of weeks in the studio without them getting rusty or losing too much tone.They’re tough too. I have never broken a D’Adario string, but i’ve broken plenty of blue steel and ernie balls in the past.D’Addario should sponsor me.
10 people found this helpful
Steve Lawn –
Good price!
Good price on great strings.
Jeff –
These are what I use and recommend.
Everyone has their own theories on what gauge/composition of string they want to use, so I won’t go into why I prefer light top – heavy bottom, or why I prefer round wound nickel, I’ll just review D’Addario strings as a whole.- Which string is which within a pack is denoted by colored wrapping at the bridge end of the string. The color coding of the strings is really nice for quickly determining which string is which gauge, especially if you are trying to replace a string quickly during a performance. It isn’t exactly tricky without the color code, but I like it. I know lots of players who HATE the color coding because depending on the instrument, you can see it after they are installed. Personally, I think it’s subtle at best, and you’d really have to be looking for it, but on a lot of fixed bridge instruments, the colors are visible.- The strings come in a plastic bag to reduce exposure to air, something along the lines of a sealed opaque sandwich bag. I have no clue how “fresh” the little baggy is keeping my strings, but I do know that I’ve had packs of these strings rattling around in gig bags for a pretty long time and they have never come out of the package tarnished.-The big reason I buy D’Addarios is they don’t seem to break as often as other string manufacturers. It’s most noticeable on my bass, where D’Addarios never break, but Ernie Balls and others occasionally do. If you have issues with strings breaking you might want to give D’Addarios a try.- I don’t notice a tone difference between these and much more expensive strings like Elixers. I know people who claim to, so you’ll have to see for yourself. I think they sound great.
3 people found this helpful
Tim D. Barnett –
Good quality and long lasting tone
I’ve used D’Addario strings for as long as I have played guitar. Not my most favorite brand but still good quality and keep tone anddurable. Highly recommend, great value
Kimberly Wiles –
Used for years
All my hubby has used for years. He’s been playing for 50+ years. So he knows what he likes.
Jelena P. –
11-56 . My favorite set for drop C
Been playing guitar for over 15 years. I play all kinds of styles, I like a well balanced set for lead playing and rhythm . I bought the 11-56 set for one of my guitars that’s tuned to drop C and I love it. The low strings are tight enough that there is no string rattling or excessice buzzing and the high strings aren’t too loose or too tight, great for bends. I greatly prefer these over the Ernie Ball 11-54 set.. I tried them and removed them a few days after. My problem with those is the G string is overly tight and sounds awful, it rings out terribly and has a weird sound to it. Also the low end strings aren’t tight enough that I end up getting string buzz on the lowest notes. Not going back to those and sticking to these from now on! Great set!
2 people found this helpful