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Topic: Strings for My Washburn J-6 Jazz Guitar? |
Jim Cohen
From:
Philadelphia, PA
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Posted 28 Feb 2009 2:37 pm |
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I'm spending a little more time woodshedding jazz guitar stuff lately and need a new set of strings for my Washburn J-6. What do y'all recommend? I'm thinkin' flatwounds, right? Any particular brands, gauges?
Thanks,
JC
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www.RonstadtRevue.com
www.BeatsWalkin.com |
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Bo Borland
From:
South Jersey -
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Posted 28 Feb 2009 3:14 pm
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JC.. how mellow do you want to sound? flatwounds are very mellow.
I would go for a medium round round, then adjust your neck and intonation .
Bb |
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Andy Greatrix
From:
Edmonton Alberta
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Posted 28 Feb 2009 7:56 pm
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Are you thinking of using a wound third?
If so, maybe you could try medium gage elixir strings.
They have a space-age coating that makes them pretty smooth.
I forget who makes them.
They also make a light gage set with an unwound third, (10-46) I hear they've come down in price. |
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Jim Cohen
From:
Philadelphia, PA
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Brian Herder
From:
Philadelphia, Pa. USA
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Posted 28 Feb 2009 10:14 pm
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Jim, If like the flatwound sound, go for it. They have that authentic 50s bebop type of tone. I have them on my "jazz" guitar, and also on my Strat for slide and Curtis Mayfield stuff. Try some Thomastik-Infeld George Benson flats.. they have a .012-.053 set and a .014-.055
Those European strings are very musical sounding and are more flexible than something like D'Addario's of the same gauge, so you can go heavier than you might otherwise think.
Also, an archtop feels better with heavier strings.. regular gauge strings feel very wimpy on there (IMO). If you need any set up assistance (I do repair work), let me know.. I live nearby. |
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Andy Greatrix
From:
Edmonton Alberta
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Posted 1 Mar 2009 5:56 am
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Jim, I think the wound thirds make the chords sound fatter, more in tune and the single note runs sound more like the jazz players of old.
Mind you, a set of 10-46 with an unwound 17 gage and a Buzz Feiton tuning system will also keep you very much in tune.
If you are going to use heavier gage strings though, you might want to ask someone who is more qualified than I if your Washburn (how good is the quality of wood used on your neck and body)can handle the extra tension. |
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Jim Cohen
From:
Philadelphia, PA
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Rick Schmidt
From:
Prescott AZ, USA
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Posted 1 Mar 2009 9:34 am
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| Hi Jim...I personally prefer the heavier set of the Thomastik-Infeld Benson Flats if the axe can handle them. Great, balanced sounding strings that last a long time. You can really do the Freddie Green chunk and the single line thing equally well with a heavier set IMO. Not alot of bending though. |
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Darvin Willhoite
From:
Roxton, Tx. USA
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Posted 1 Mar 2009 2:36 pm
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I like D'Addario "XL Chromes" with either a .012, or .013 on top.
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Darvin Willhoite
MSA Millennium, Legend, and Studio Pro, Reese's restored Universal Direction guitar, a restored MSA Classic SS, several amps, new and old, and a Kemper Powerhead that I am really liking. Also a Zum D10, a Mullen RP, and a restored Rose S10, named the "Blue Bird". Also, I have acquired and restored the plexiglass D10 MSA Classic that was built as a demo in the early '70s. I also have a '74 lacquer P/P, with wood necks, and a showroom condition Sho-Bud Super Pro. |
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Brian Herder
From:
Philadelphia, Pa. USA
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Posted 1 Mar 2009 5:42 pm
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| Yeah, the Chromes are nice too. Really smooth finish. The Thomastics have a sort of a "twang" that other flats don't though.. but I am a fan of any flatwound string for certain applications. I used to have them on a 1954 Gibson J-160E and it sounded really cool... just like The Beatles' I Feel Fine. |
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Ron Randall
From:
Dallas, Texas, USA
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Posted 1 Mar 2009 6:48 pm
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Hi Jim
Take a look at Thomastick. They have unique flatwounds. Definitely that George Benson sound.
I think you would want a wound G, to be consistent with the tone, timbre.
I prefer medium to heavy gauges. They stay in tune. Jazz guitar generally does not require a lot of string bending.
Consider a fairly heavy set and tune the guitar down a half step. Old Family secret!. |
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Jim Cohen
From:
Philadelphia, PA
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Posted 1 Mar 2009 9:11 pm
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Sorry to display my naivete, but how will I know if my guitar 'can handle' the heavier gauges? The neck snaps off? 
Found some Thomastik-Infeld George Benson flats (.012-.053) Should any archtop be able to handle those gauges ok?
_________________
www.JimCohen.com
www.RonstadtRevue.com
www.BeatsWalkin.com |
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Dave Harmonson
From:
Seattle, Wa
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Posted 1 Mar 2009 10:12 pm
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| I'm no expert on anything I don't believe, but I haven't heard of an archtop that couldn't handle a wound G. I've got a couple of archtops and I use round wounds .012 to about .052. I agree that putting slinky strings on an archtop just doesn't work out. With the heavier strings you can hit it harder and get that good chuck on your closed chords. I prefer the round wounds to flat, but that's just my choice. |
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Mark Durante
From:
St. Pete Beach FL
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Posted 2 Mar 2009 3:25 am
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| Archtops such as yours are meant to have medium to heavy strings, definitly with a wound third. You can use light strings if you want but that defeats the whole purpose of a jazz box. |
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Jim Cohen
From:
Philadelphia, PA
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Andy Greatrix
From:
Edmonton Alberta
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Posted 2 Mar 2009 6:33 am
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| I think those are medium. |
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Dave Mudgett
From:
Central Pennsylvania and Gallatin, Tennessee
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Posted 2 Mar 2009 7:05 am
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I said pretty much everything I could on jazz guitar strings here recently: http://bb.steelguitarforum.com/viewtopic.php?t=152579
You can see from the links that typical jazz medium flatwounds are .013-.054/56, jazz light flatwounds are .012-.052/53, and extra lights are more like .011-.050 or so. The Thomastiks are a bit lighter on the bottom strings and have a softer core, so they don't feel as heavy. Their .011-.047 set is pretty light for a jazz box, but still sound pretty good to me. I love 'em on a Les Paul or Tele. Their .012-.050 set is also not overly heavy at all. I can do some reasonably wide bending with those if I want to. I just have to be careful not to bend the 3rd string so far I break it.
A newer archtop should be able to handle up to medium gauge strings. However, potential issues are too much neck relief (correctable if your truss rod works properly), top sinking (shouldn't happen if the guitar is structurally sound), and neck joint issues (should be fine unless there's a problem). All bets are off on an older archtop - one needs to carefully verify all this before putting on a set of heavy strings.
My take. |
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Jim Cohen
From:
Philadelphia, PA
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Michael Haselman
From:
St. Paul
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Posted 2 Mar 2009 11:26 am
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...and thanks to Dave I got the Fender flats, .12-.52 and I like them a lot. I went right to the link to juststrings.com and got some. I have a Jay Turser J-136 that I'm having lots of fun with. Flatwounds are so smooth to play, and no string noise when changing frets is way cool.
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Mullen RP D10, Peavey NV112, Hilton volume. Hound Dog reso. Piles of other stuff. |
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Don Drummer
From:
West Virginia, USA
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Posted 2 Mar 2009 11:35 am
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| I used flat wounds for years and liked them. I noticed Joe Pass, Joe Di Orio and others did not and changed. It took some getting used to but the overall resonance of single note lines improved. I use Di Addario EL stings . They are a light gauge set with a wound 18 foe the third string. The first is a 10 which I toss and use an 11. Once the brightness mellows it sounds good. BTW arch top guitars with a trapeze tail peice ar not suitable for string bending. This according to a luthier who makes jazz guitars. It looks like your axe has a wood bridge Jim that should make for a mellow sound. I once had a chance to look at Tuck Andres' Gibson. His strings are the heaviest and the action the highest of any I've seen. But he's from another planet. Don D. |
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Jim Cohen
From:
Philadelphia, PA
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Stu Schulman
From:
Ulster Park New Yawk (deceased)
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Posted 2 Mar 2009 12:33 pm
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Jim,I use Thomastik JS 111 flat wounds .011-.047,I use them on a 50's Sivertone.Ilke them becasue I can still bend a little as much as George Barnes did.I have a few extra sets that a friend gave me,If you send me your addresss I'll give you a set.
Stu
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Steeltronics Z-pickup,Desert Rose S-10 4+5,Desert Rose Keyless S-10 3+5... Mullen G2 S-10 3+5,Telonics 206 pickups,Telonics volume pedal.,Blanton SD -10,Emmons GS_10...Zirctone bar,Bill Groner Bar...any amp that isn't broken.Steel Seat.Com seats...Licking paint chips off of Chinese Toys since 1952. |
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Jim Cohen
From:
Philadelphia, PA
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Chris Reesor
From:
British Columbia, Canada
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Posted 6 Mar 2009 11:56 am
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Jimbeaux;
If Wes-type octaves and half step grace-note slides are what you're after, flats are a must, IMO. No string squeaks!
I've had good results with D'Addario Chromes- long life and a good feel. 12-54, or 13-56, no lighter, or you may have some trouble with the floating bridge moving around, as well as sacrificing some tone. Your Washburn should handle these with no problems.
Jim Hall uses 12-54 with a plain 20 3rd or so, more for vibrato than bends. On a Gibson ES 165, I found this setup great for old school jazz sounds, as well as T-Bone Walker type stuff- full step bends on the 3rd no prob. anywhere above the 3rd fret (I have strong hands, though).
Your bridge saddle is most likely cut to suit a wound 3rd, so a new custom saddle will be necessary to use a plain string there, or a tuneamatic type, which will change the tone and attack.
I've never played one of those J6 Washburns, but as I recall they got quite a good review in Guitar Player some years back. What is the scale length, by the way?
Happy ii-V's,
CR.
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Excel Superb U12, MIJ Squier tele, modified Deluxe Reverb RI, Cube 80XL, self built acoustics & mandolins |
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