String Spacing

Paul Brainard · From: Portland OR

Has anyone ever compiled a chart of the string spacing on various steels? I know older ones tend to be wider & sometimes straight (same at nut & bridge) which I like, and I'm curious how all the newer brands compare in this department.

Adrienne Clasky · From: Florida, USA

That is an excellent question. Is there much difference? This would certainly influence my choice of a pro model. I love my Carter Starter, but I would love it even more if it had slightly more space between the strings.

Thanks for bringing this up!

John Sluszny · From: Brussels, Belgium

Adrienne,Carter's string spacing is pretty standard.You'll get used to it,I'm sure.Practice...

John Daugherty · From: Rolla, Missouri, USA

There was a topic about string spacing. I remember replies by Buddy and Paul on the subject. They seemed to think they could play faster on the wider spacing. I play a 12 string which has a closer spacing than a ten string. For that reason, I have elected to only play one guitar. I had trouble trying to switch back and forth from the 12 to the 10. Some players mentioned that their 12 string spacing was about the same as some 10 strings. That is not the case with my 2 guitars.

Paul Brainard · From: Portland OR

True, practice is the key to everything & you probably can get used to any spacing. On the other hand, if the shoe fits. . it doesn't hurt to know what size is most comfortable. I certainly find slightly wider spacings easier to pick fast & accurately. That said, I think what the actual spacing is perceived to be is affected by the scale & taper of the neck. I was very surprised to find that my Shobud and Carter have almost identical spacings at the bridge, although the Carter feels a lot tighter to me when I play it. Maybe what's most important is the width at the point where your picking hand sits.

I dug out a slightly rusty set of calipers & measured up some of my steels - trying to take inside & outside measurements to average them out (but not really accounting for string gauges.) Here's what I got at the bridge & nut, in inches:

Gibson Console Grande
3/8 (.375) 5/16 (.31) taper 1.21

Shobud S-12
11/32 (.34) 9.7/32 (.30) taper 1.13

Carter D-10
11/32 (.34) 8.666/32 (.27) taper 1.25

National New Yorker 6
5/8 (.625) 7/16 (.44) taper 1.42

Magnatone Troubador 8
13/32 (.40) 5/16 (.31) taper 1.29

Dobro
7/16 (.44) 11/32 (.34) taper 1.29

Taper is just the ratio of bridge/nut, higher numbers are more tapered.

Wayne Morgan · From: Rutledge, TN, USA

I have BMI steels and Sho~bud, the BMI strings are quite a bit closer than the Sho~Bud, but I tend to favor the BMI over the spacing of the Sho~Bud.
Wayne

Kevin Ruddell · From: Toledo Ohio USA

One of the things I like about my Fender 1000 PSG is that it's very close in scale and spacing to my Fender Dual Pro and GeorgeBoard so there's not much adjustment when switching instruments. When I played a 25" scale guitar I had to reset myself some each time . I agree with the gentleman who said practice . This seems to take care of a lot

Adrienne Clasky · From: Florida, USA

Actually, I practice from two to five hours every day. I am "used" to the string spacing, but when I go to buy a pro model I think I'd like something slightly wider. Maybe not, though. The closeness does make pick blocking an unconscious act. On the other hand, I sometimes dig in for single note runs and pull up the overtones on a second note. I know, I know, practice. LOL.

Smiley Roberts · From: Hendersonville,Tn. 37075

The string spacing on a Dekley,is "tighter" than on Sho~Bud,Emmons,et al. Jim "Tex" Smith could verify the spacing for you,since he helped in the design & building of them.

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