Acoustic guitars, like any other musical instrument, accumulate some wear as they are played. Depending on the brand of guitar, the body shape, and the type of strings it has, the sound will change as time goes on. Every guitar gets to a point where the strings need to be changed in order to keep the sound quality rich and full.
There is a distinct sound of old strings on a guitar, just as there is a wonderful sound with new ones. When the strings start to sound dull or have collected visible build up, it is an indication that new strings are prescribed.
Buying New Acoustic Strings
The highest quality of acoustic guitar strings, recommended and used by many musicians, are Elixir Polyweb. These are designed specifically for steel string guitars and feature long-life and crisp, clean sound. However, they are a bit more expensive because of their quality. For a cheaper, but still good quality brand, look for Martin or D’Addario. These brands lack the long lasting ring of Elixir, but still give a decent sound while they are fresh. Each of these brands makes a good bronze-wound string and it is acceptable to research a guitar brand to find out what type is recommended.
Be sure to buy only medium, medium-light, or light gauges of steel strings. Unless a guitar is a type that is specifically built for heavy strings, the tension of heavy gauge will damage the body. Medium is sometimes more difficult to play, so depending on skill level it may be best to stick with light and upgrade when possible. Medium strings give a richer sound, but light strings are amazingly flexible and playable.
Un-stringing and Re-stringing
When taking off the dull old strings, it is important to NOT remove them all at once. Guitar bodies are made to have tension on them, and it is unhealthy to have a completely stringless guitar. Here is a step-by-step guide to un-stringing and re-stringing your acoustic guitar.
- First, begin to loosen the 6th E-string (the thickest string with the lowest tone. When holding the guitar, it is the closest string to the player’s chin) by twisting the tuning peg. Depending on the guitar, this direction might be different, however, the pitch of the note the string plays should be going down (or flatter) as you loosen and going up (or sharper) as you tighten. As the string loosens, you will be able to remove the bridge-peg from the bridge (near the sound-hole) and take the string completely off.
- Remove the new string from its package. Depending on the brand it may be color-coded, or simply in an envelope labeled “6th-E.” Locate the ball-end of the string and fit it into the hole on the bridge delegated to the 6th-E string. Place the bridge peg back in over this ball-end. Run the string up the neck to the nut (simply a saddle on the neck) before the tuning pegs, and thread the end through the peg’s hole.
- Before tightening, make sure there is a bit of slack on the string. There must be enough slack to allow the string to wind a few times around the peg, but too much slack will mean too many winds and can cause extra vibration.
- Begin twisting the tuning peg in order to tighten the string. The string will wrap AWAY from the center of the guitar. This means counter-clockwise around the peg. Tighten until the string is fairly taught, but not completely tuned.
- Repeat these steps with the rest of the strings (5th-A, 4th-D, 3rd-G, 2nd-B, 1st-E) and tune the guitar after all the new strings are in place.
Optional Notes: Some people like to polish the neck as they go before placing new strings on. Polish will not do much for sound quality, unless the guitar is so dirty that it is effecting the vibration of the strings. Polishing is acceptable as long as there is never a time where all the strings are off the guitar at once.
Checking your Steel String Success
If everything has been changed successfully, then the guitar should sound rich and full when strummed. Small vibrations (called “fret-buzz”) can happen as the string settles in and reaches the correct tension of the pitch. Fret-buzz should disappear as the string becomes fitting in its place and pitch.
If the guitar continues to make undesirable noises, then take it to a shop and have a professional look it over. Worn bridges or an incorrect truss rod adjustment can make the guitar play strangely. These are not things a musician or beginner can replace or fix themselves, as an error can damage the guitar permanently.
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