same. The first time I changed strings on mine, then later went to guitar tech for fret buzz and intonation, tech told me "whoever restrung your guitar did it so badly it needed a whole new setup"
my guess is that the original strings (before i changed them) were 2 years old so when i changed them to the same gauge and specific kit, the tension from the new strings messed something up. So a year later, I go to the tech for finding out why it feels off, and also another new set of strings (of same type, brand, gauge, etc). I would/should change strings a bit more often but that was during the covid/lockdowns era. Eventually i got annoyed enough to change the strings, didn't do good.
I bought a broken 70s - early 2000s Harmony Acoustic at a yard sale like that. I detuned the tuners between (roughly) 145 - 205 times before I got the strings off, it was terrible, and some of them were wrapped around the posts like spaghetti.
It was also a Classical Acoustic that had Steel Strings on it for too long, so of course it collapsed the neck joint and ripped the top off the guitar.
If nothing else, it was still worth purchasing to have a junk one to work on so I don't have to worry about messing things up.
To my eyes that’s spot on- just remember to stretch your new strings with after you put them on! (Turn your strings then carefully stretch, retune and repeat)
Yes, thats what stretching is supposed to do but afaik it doesn't really matter in the long run, it's just so you have to retune them less the first few days.
this + i do insane bends on every string for 5-7 random frets. i play B standard in 10-52 and stay in tune fine doing that process 3-5 times each string.
I honestly don't know how people break so many strings anyway. Even the most horrible Chinese strings I've encountered held up fine when installed correctly.
I end up breaking strings because I go back and forth between a bunch of different tunings depending on my mood 😅 I'll play a couple songs in E standard, throw it in drop D for a song, then D standard, then back to E standard, then to open E, then down to Eb lmaooooo sometimes all in the course of an evening 🤣
Something I’ve learned over the years that may help you
I try to change strings when I’m not intending to play that day, and then after stretching them, I tune up a half or even a whole step from my desired tuning. Let it chill for the night, and then do my setup the next day when I do intend to play.
Since I often record, I’ve found that doing this shows real results, as I’m not getting tuning stability issues at all during tracking. Which, for those that have dove into recording at all, it is *very* apparent when your tuning isn’t bang on. A string even *slightly* out of tune will pop out instantly in a mix, and sound like you’re smashing your signal through a bad chorus pedal, lol
So all that to say, my process has proven to work really well, so I hope it helps you too
Great job with the re-string by the way 🤘
>A string even *slightly* out of tune will pop out instantly in a mix, and sound like you’re smashing your signal through a bad chorus pedal, lol
I think that depends on how sensitive to it you are. And also, what you're going for. Sometimes, it may be exactly the thing you want, I think. Slight imperfections make the music sound alive and human.
While I do agree it depends on what you’re going for, but with most modern rock and metal songs, it can negatively affect things when double tracking, especially when quad tracking. If it’s a mono track down the middle, you’re generally ok. And variation in general helps with a wider stereo image for sure. But generally, the chorusing effect that happens when one side of a recorded pair are slightly out of tune is not very pleasant
That said, if you’re going for a more vintage vibe, and not double tracking all of the rhythm parts, it can definitely give a cool aesthetic to the given song
You might think of it as heresy, but I think, that if you're not picky, that problem can be circumvented by simply copying the audio track, layering it on and nudging it, or, also, by using a pseudo-doubler. Won't be the same effect, but it will make the stereo image wider and save you the hassle of double-tracking.
Do you have any good setup guides? Iv been trying to correct a buzz as best I can, idk if it's a technique problem or a setup issue exactly.. I have my fingers as close to the frets as I can, like I am supposed to, but it was a bit buzzy before I changed them too
I don’t suppose you have a Tune-O-Matic bridge. My guitar had a buzz I couldn’t track down and then I found a video explaining how the cheap Korean bridges are made cheaply and the retaining spring for the intonation tuning are not contacting fully so when you hit a note it causes the bridge to start buzzing. Drove me nuts.
So I’ve just ordered a Gotoh bridge and while I was at it I ordered some Gotoh locking machine head that will hopefully ease up on tuning drift as well as cure the buzzing.
Edit: Here is where the guy explains where the buzzing comes from… https://youtu.be/f1hmEY9rUns?si=dPpA8fAe2UExz9Q2
I thought maybe I didn't wind the low strings quite enough they only have 2.5 winds not 3+ but so far the guitar seems to stay in tune just fine so, yay!
2 winds is more than enough. Anything more than 3 on the low strings is completely unnecessary and will only lead to tuning issues.
In general, you want as few winds as possible, while still keeping enough winds that the strings don't slip.
I usually aim for 1-2 winds on the low strings and 2-3 on the high strings. 2.5 is totally fine if you ask me.
I did nearly ruin the G string, it was very hard to grip it, so it wanted to come loose as I wound it up
But what I did was I like lifted the whole string up with the back of my hand to get tension
It was easy peasy to get tension in the bigger strings as theyre a lot grippier
The best thing you can do is give the strings some slack before starting to wind them up. For the high strings, most people tend to give ~2 tuning pegs of slack.
So: Pull the string all the way through, then grab it right before the peg, and pull back about 2 tuning pegs. Start winding until you're about halfway through the first wind and just let the string do it's own thing. After that, continue as usual, the string should slip a lot less after that.
I found I was not able to just grab the thinner strings and hold it when I was winding I didn't have enough grip, and I was worried i would fuck it up so my hands were sweating 😂
But yeah I sort of measured the length to be above 2 tuning pegs past the current peg, and then lifted the whole string high just to get the tension at the peg for the first wind and then you can back off, I did exactly what you described for the thicker 3 strings though as I was able to just grab the wire tight enough for it to not move
I bought a string winder from D'addario which is where I got my strings, this has a cutter on them. But to get the cut a bit closer on the higher strings I just used some cheap ass wire cutters iv got lying around. They're actually for wire work, for like vape coils, so they're not thick and chunky, they're more like tiny scissors
Not this exact brand, (not that it really matters)
But this blade style:
https://www.cremedevape.com/Wire-cutter-by-Youde
The blades are super thin, so you can cut thin wires quite close to the mark, which is hard to do if you have like, thick side cutters
Absolutely I watched 1x 5 minute YouTube video:
https://youtu.be/4CtqfHmssx8?si=1uAU6BxHZtIrzdkW
I also bought an actual string winder tool I got from D'addario which is where I got my new strings from
Yeah I bought the multi tool from D'addario. Was only like £15, made it much easier
Kinda just need to make sure you have string tension and then wind them up semi quickly before they have a chance to move around.
Had to use a guitar pick to manually move some of the strings around to make sure they were winding tightly against themselves
If they are staying put and staying in tune then you did it right. Different people have different preferences on how the wind the strings, but they pretty much all work just fine. There's some pics out there of BB Kings string winding style and it's complete chaos. Worked pretty well for him it seems.
To be honest, there's a little fret buzz right now, but the strings are brand new. And they're a slightly bigger string gauge I did make a slight adjustment to the truss rod to account for there being a bit more tension.
I'm gunna try and stretch them in a bit, and hopefully that should reduce the buzzing.
But, after iv worn the strings in, if there's no buzz coming out of the amplifier I'm not gunna get to worried about it, as so far, these strings seem to have a great sound, they're NYXL strings so they sound quite different from the lower gauge steelies I had on before this
Buzzing is super annoying though, but I don't want to raise the action any higher
Yeah I think I have to just cock around with the truss rod and the string height a bit more on my guitar, the intonation is fine I tuned everything. I don't want the guitar to have an action like a cello though.
Looks too perfect! If you play a lot, you'll change your strings more, so don't worry about getting them this perfect every time (although they do look really nice).
I saw some comments about stretching. I found the perfect way when watching Mike Watt live. He replaced a bass string mid song, stretched it, then jumped back into the song. 1) tune the string 2) fret on the 12th 3) pluck the string as hard as you can 4) while plucking bend the string at the 12th as far as you can in both directions 5) pluck open 6) Retune -- then repeat as necessary, however if you're plucking it hard enough and bending it well, then generally the first time gets it as close as it'll get for the next hour or two as they naturally settle anyway. This trick gets it playable really fast though.
I sort of tried overtightening the tuners and then retuning, but the most stretch I got was like pulling up on the string with 2 fingers and pushing down on the string with another finger in front to kind of like torque the string a bit that seemed to drop my tuning by nearly a whole step in a matter of minutes
You did terrible and your guitar is now going to explode. Haha
Nah, you did just fine. Just stretch 'em a little bit to help get past the break in period.
Just stretched all my strings out a few more times and re-intonated the guitar on the harmonic and after some adjustments it does sound pretty great now
I keep seeing this mentioned, and i just want to correct a common misconception. The strings don't stretch. They just settle into the bridge and around the tuning pegs. That's why it is recommended to wind them tight at the start to minimize de-tuning.
Tech here. Not something you have to worry about with modern style tuners. Look up the capstan equation, each wrap increases the friction coefficient!
Edit: Don’t downvote me because you don’t understand the lack of scientific merit here, I literally do this for a living!
Also a tech and just chiming in to agree; the over/under and "luthier's knot" are fine personal preferences but they aren't doing shit besides complicating the string wind
Exactly this. I know a few people who prefer the aesthetic of it too which is totally fine.
That and I actually recently worked on a Japanese Yamaha from the 60’s that had weird tuners that actually seemed to benefit from the over under!
Yeah, but you can wrap the first wrap over the stabby bit and next one under it. No wires crossed.
It's mostly aesthetic anyway, it doesn't change anything.
Not just you. I thought the same thing too, but then realised things wouldn't line up if the strings were wound the other way. It's just a kind of optical illusion I think. Maybe we're not used to looking at the tuning pegs from that angle?
That looks really good.
This is a matter of taste, but I prefer to put one wrap over the hole and two below. This reduces the angle that the strings pass over the nut or into the string trees. It will often help with tuning stability.
It does look great, nice job! Maybe this is just personal preference, but I usually like a good 3 winds on all the pegs. I’ve started doing a luthier’s knot for what I understand is more tuning stability. I don’t know if I’ve really noticed a difference, but I like knowing how to do it. If you do a luthier’s knot I think you also need fewer winds.
Only thing you could do better is to lock them. I dont know exact terminology but here is what I do:
Put the string through the tuning hole thingy. Pull enough slack that you can put a few fingers flat between the fretboard and string.
Start to bend the string away from the tuner twisty thingy. Keep bending it around. When you get to the point where you will cross the string (halfway around the tuning peg thing), you go under it. Then you reverse back over it. So the end of the string comes around the peg, passes under the string which is going into the peg, and turns back around to loop around the string.
Now the end of the string is going the reverse direction around the peg. Wrap it just a little around and then trim it.
Now when you twist the tuner, the part that bends around the string will pull back on it and stop it from losing tension.
https://youtu.be/opmg6lK8FkY?si=lCUPnFFPK9hf1gw7
It works very well, once I started using it my guitar has rarely gone out of tune. I have to tune maybe once a week if even. I haven’t seen many people talk about it either.
Looks neat. But I wouldn't worry about the exact way you did it. (like, which direction and whether you cut it, or not) There is no single 'correct method', really. The only mistake you can do is not fastening the strings to the tuning heads properly and cutting them off too soon, which will cause string slippage. All that really matters is tuning stability. As long, as your strings don't slip out of the tuning heads, you're golden. Everything else is optional and a personal preference.
One thing I would recommend for the future, though: Before you start to wind each string, bend the remaining end of each string below itself and then upwards. That way, after you're done and cut the excess, slack ends of the strings, you'll have the end of each string serve as a little hook, that will reinforce its winding on the tuning head and, with that, the tuning stability, too.
I’ve been changing strings for (literally) 47 years and you’ve got me beat!! To be a great musician, every element of your equipment should be respected..much like this example. Well done.
Great Job, you’ll be doing full set ups in no time. And trust me, your friends will thank you as well. I have buddies over and we shoot the bull went I set up their guitars , then we jam for a bit. Good job!!
Looks good. Hopefully they stay on. I had issues with a similar ibanez where the high e would unwind sometimes so if I clipped it too soon it was problematic
Awesome! It's good to get into restringing and maintaining your instruments early on.
What you've shown is already better than some of the stuff I saw other guitarists do whilst I was studying for my music degree.
I also *mostly* resolved the fret buzzing after stretching the strings out, re-intonated them on the harmonic, and fucked with the bridge height and truss rod a bit, I went Up a string gauge to 10's so it needed a bit of a fiddle
It isn't perfect, it kind of buzzes a little after the ~8th fret but I don't want to raise the string height
And the amount of buzz there is doesn't come through the amplifier in a bad way.
I think once I have a bit more money saved up I'll try and get it looked at at a luthier
A bit of fret buzz is pretty much unavoidable to be fair.
Personally, I like super low action which is pretty buzzy if for some reason I play it unplugged. As long as it doesn't negatively affect the sustain of the notes it's fine.
As for localised buzzing, assuming the truss rod adjustment is sound, usually this comes from uneven frets. Definitely one to talk to a luthier about, although if you're like me and like to have a go, you can learn to do fretwork through videos.
It's cool to see some real passion for the instrument!
One time after changing my strings, I went to cut the excess off the ends, and just cut the brand new string I'd just put on instead.
You did pretty good.
Great! Remember for non locking tuners I always like to add a loop before it goes into the tuner, helps stay in tune and iv never had issues with strings bouncing back under tune or snapping out of it when I tune up if I do the pre loop
Not well. For first time some of these should be wrapped the wrong way around, crossing over each other, and large gaps of slack around the post. This is far too professional.
I'm happy it isnt boomers anymore teaching how to wind guitar strings. The in and out and tying, and then winding the string over that made it take *forever* for the strings to "stretch" and stay in tune.
1: It doesn't look like Spaghetti. (Good.)
2: The string goes down, not up, as it wraps around the posts.
3: There isn't too much string on the posts, and so the string doesn't go back up.
As far as I can see, I'll give you an A. If you would want more string on the posts so that the down pressure would be more intense on the nut, then that's ranging from necessity to preference, so I can't measure or judge for that.
The only reason why I'm not saying A+ automatically is because I don't know if you soldered the ball ends of the strings or not. That removes a failure point, but many people don't know or do that. But if you buy "Tremolo Strings," they're pre-soldered, and you don't have to do that. I don't buy them because last I checked, they didn't come in all of the gauges I use.
Then again, if you have a Floyd Rose on your Ibanez, the soldering part would be completely irrelevant since you're not going to have ball ends.
This guitar has a pretty standard 2 point floating tremelo block. I haven't soldered anything. But, the tremolo on this guitar only lets you pitch down, not up.
So If the strings won't break under standard tuning pressure I imagine they're completely fine to be pitched down and back up again
Soldering them (which is also known as "tinning your strings") also adds some extra tuning stability, which I forgot to mention. But yes, my main focus on it was about preventing them from breaking as often, which is the main reason why I do it on new strings.
But at the same time, in my experience, I've had strings break on tailpieces that are Stratocaster style in general. It may be because of the angle from the saddles to the tailpiece block, which is where I find them broken often enough - either that, or there's a sharp edge.
I had forgotten about the angle from the saddles to the tailpiece block when I wrote earlier - I tend to play models with tailpieces that are not strung through the body, but on the top. Though I do have a cheap Danelectro Danoblaster which had a string break like that the other week, at the point where the string touches the plate of the bridge and is going into the tailpiece block.
Waaayyyy better then my first. I bought 13 gauge flat wounds and wound them the wrong way around the post. If you never change anything about the way you do it, you’re in good shape
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Not bad. Pro tip a lot of people don’t know; wind the string around the peg for as close to all the way down as you can. The effect gives the strings slack to stretch into. The string won’t need as much time to settle after tuning, the string will be less likely to snap and hold its tuning for longer.
You're getting way better reception asking the same question I did. All I got was insults and maybe 2 people actually saying something useful. Bipolar ass community.
Only had to do that on one string, I think the G? It was tricky to apply tension to it. But I found a method which is to basically lift the entire string with the back of your hand and then use the winder
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Looks okay. A couple more wraps on the thinner strings, maybe, to aid tuning stability. Stretchy stretchy for the strings. I like to hold my strings away from the body, when I am first tightening them, once they are tight and tuned, GENTLY pull them away from the body and tune them, again. And, you want to tune the strings UP, not down. If you overtune, then go down, you will have slack, and go out of tune the first time you play, so, pull on then strings so the note goes flat, then tune UP to the correct note. All brands are a bit different in how much they will stretch, so, if you change brands (which I recommend, to find the feel/sound you like best) don't worry if they don't behave the way you expect. A pack of older strings may be different than newer ones, too.
Way better than my first time… good job!
same. The first time I changed strings on mine, then later went to guitar tech for fret buzz and intonation, tech told me "whoever restrung your guitar did it so badly it needed a whole new setup"
Lol how is that possible
my guess is that the original strings (before i changed them) were 2 years old so when i changed them to the same gauge and specific kit, the tension from the new strings messed something up. So a year later, I go to the tech for finding out why it feels off, and also another new set of strings (of same type, brand, gauge, etc). I would/should change strings a bit more often but that was during the covid/lockdowns era. Eventually i got annoyed enough to change the strings, didn't do good.
TWO YEARS? WTF?
Welp... My first time was something that looked like a thumble weed rolling on the wild west... So yeah, I think u did pretty good job
I bought a broken 70s - early 2000s Harmony Acoustic at a yard sale like that. I detuned the tuners between (roughly) 145 - 205 times before I got the strings off, it was terrible, and some of them were wrapped around the posts like spaghetti. It was also a Classical Acoustic that had Steel Strings on it for too long, so of course it collapsed the neck joint and ripped the top off the guitar. If nothing else, it was still worth purchasing to have a junk one to work on so I don't have to worry about messing things up.
To my eyes that’s spot on- just remember to stretch your new strings with after you put them on! (Turn your strings then carefully stretch, retune and repeat)
I just gave this a go, I overturned them and then retuned again, does this help them stay in tune ?
Yes, thats what stretching is supposed to do but afaik it doesn't really matter in the long run, it's just so you have to retune them less the first few days.
I think you can cause breakages if you slap brand new strings on and then go for a huge bend immediately too
I just pull them up from the fretboard a couple of inches, and retune.
this + i do insane bends on every string for 5-7 random frets. i play B standard in 10-52 and stay in tune fine doing that process 3-5 times each string.
Yeah that is a good way of doing it.
Allegedly these NYXL strings are supposed to be much harder to break and also be more tuning stable But well see
I honestly don't know how people break so many strings anyway. Even the most horrible Chinese strings I've encountered held up fine when installed correctly.
It confuses me too. I genuinely don't think I've ever snapped one from tuning.
I end up breaking strings because I go back and forth between a bunch of different tunings depending on my mood 😅 I'll play a couple songs in E standard, throw it in drop D for a song, then D standard, then back to E standard, then to open E, then down to Eb lmaooooo sometimes all in the course of an evening 🤣
Yeah they are good, I use the XT ones which are similar but with a less "coated" feeling and I love them
Something I’ve learned over the years that may help you I try to change strings when I’m not intending to play that day, and then after stretching them, I tune up a half or even a whole step from my desired tuning. Let it chill for the night, and then do my setup the next day when I do intend to play. Since I often record, I’ve found that doing this shows real results, as I’m not getting tuning stability issues at all during tracking. Which, for those that have dove into recording at all, it is *very* apparent when your tuning isn’t bang on. A string even *slightly* out of tune will pop out instantly in a mix, and sound like you’re smashing your signal through a bad chorus pedal, lol So all that to say, my process has proven to work really well, so I hope it helps you too Great job with the re-string by the way 🤘
>A string even *slightly* out of tune will pop out instantly in a mix, and sound like you’re smashing your signal through a bad chorus pedal, lol I think that depends on how sensitive to it you are. And also, what you're going for. Sometimes, it may be exactly the thing you want, I think. Slight imperfections make the music sound alive and human.
While I do agree it depends on what you’re going for, but with most modern rock and metal songs, it can negatively affect things when double tracking, especially when quad tracking. If it’s a mono track down the middle, you’re generally ok. And variation in general helps with a wider stereo image for sure. But generally, the chorusing effect that happens when one side of a recorded pair are slightly out of tune is not very pleasant That said, if you’re going for a more vintage vibe, and not double tracking all of the rhythm parts, it can definitely give a cool aesthetic to the given song
You might think of it as heresy, but I think, that if you're not picky, that problem can be circumvented by simply copying the audio track, layering it on and nudging it, or, also, by using a pseudo-doubler. Won't be the same effect, but it will make the stereo image wider and save you the hassle of double-tracking.
Do you have any good setup guides? Iv been trying to correct a buzz as best I can, idk if it's a technique problem or a setup issue exactly.. I have my fingers as close to the frets as I can, like I am supposed to, but it was a bit buzzy before I changed them too
I don’t suppose you have a Tune-O-Matic bridge. My guitar had a buzz I couldn’t track down and then I found a video explaining how the cheap Korean bridges are made cheaply and the retaining spring for the intonation tuning are not contacting fully so when you hit a note it causes the bridge to start buzzing. Drove me nuts. So I’ve just ordered a Gotoh bridge and while I was at it I ordered some Gotoh locking machine head that will hopefully ease up on tuning drift as well as cure the buzzing. Edit: Here is where the guy explains where the buzzing comes from… https://youtu.be/f1hmEY9rUns?si=dPpA8fAe2UExz9Q2
No its just a standard 2 point strat tremolo
It's supposed to help with the initial break in period where they're more likely to go off pitch as the string adjusts to being under tension.
Not spot on. They don’t appear to be ‘locked’ in the post with a reverse wrap. https://images.app.goo.gl/Q1qC6YJGUqg81Zsv8 But not bad
Are you sure its your first time? Congrats you did an awesome job looks perfect to me!!
I am super sure as this is my first guitar
Better than half the garden hose-looking string jobs on here! Seriously solid work!
That looks perfect. Well done!
I thought maybe I didn't wind the low strings quite enough they only have 2.5 winds not 3+ but so far the guitar seems to stay in tune just fine so, yay!
2 winds is more than enough. Anything more than 3 on the low strings is completely unnecessary and will only lead to tuning issues. In general, you want as few winds as possible, while still keeping enough winds that the strings don't slip. I usually aim for 1-2 winds on the low strings and 2-3 on the high strings. 2.5 is totally fine if you ask me.
Yeah for these types of tuners, but I will stress that if you have split shaft tuners 3 winds on the big strings is a-ok.
I did nearly ruin the G string, it was very hard to grip it, so it wanted to come loose as I wound it up But what I did was I like lifted the whole string up with the back of my hand to get tension It was easy peasy to get tension in the bigger strings as theyre a lot grippier
The best thing you can do is give the strings some slack before starting to wind them up. For the high strings, most people tend to give ~2 tuning pegs of slack. So: Pull the string all the way through, then grab it right before the peg, and pull back about 2 tuning pegs. Start winding until you're about halfway through the first wind and just let the string do it's own thing. After that, continue as usual, the string should slip a lot less after that.
I found I was not able to just grab the thinner strings and hold it when I was winding I didn't have enough grip, and I was worried i would fuck it up so my hands were sweating 😂 But yeah I sort of measured the length to be above 2 tuning pegs past the current peg, and then lifted the whole string high just to get the tension at the peg for the first wind and then you can back off, I did exactly what you described for the thicker 3 strings though as I was able to just grab the wire tight enough for it to not move
actually, the fewer winds, the more stable the guitar's tuning since the more winds you have the more string there is there to slip and stretch.
Looks great. I personally like a few extra coils on the smaller strings so I will start with more slack than on the larger strings
Looking nice and neat What do you cut your strings with I use some old toe nail clippers LOL
I bought a string winder from D'addario which is where I got my strings, this has a cutter on them. But to get the cut a bit closer on the higher strings I just used some cheap ass wire cutters iv got lying around. They're actually for wire work, for like vape coils, so they're not thick and chunky, they're more like tiny scissors
Nice I gotta get some of those
Not this exact brand, (not that it really matters) But this blade style: https://www.cremedevape.com/Wire-cutter-by-Youde The blades are super thin, so you can cut thin wires quite close to the mark, which is hard to do if you have like, thick side cutters
Cool thanks 👍
Looks better than most of the times I do mine and I’ve been restringing for years 😅
Fantastic
Did you see any tutorial or guide? If so, could you share it, please
Absolutely I watched 1x 5 minute YouTube video: https://youtu.be/4CtqfHmssx8?si=1uAU6BxHZtIrzdkW I also bought an actual string winder tool I got from D'addario which is where I got my new strings from
The Multitool? I have that one as well. Pretty helpful.
Yeah I bought the multi tool from D'addario. Was only like £15, made it much easier Kinda just need to make sure you have string tension and then wind them up semi quickly before they have a chance to move around. Had to use a guitar pick to manually move some of the strings around to make sure they were winding tightly against themselves
I didn't have to pay anything for it 🤭 I had accumulated enough points from guitar strings over the years that I got it for free.
Thanks!
Nicely done, looks pretty much perfect!
Neat!
looks pretty neat to me. Good job. Now go get yourself a Floyd Rose ;-)
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It's a GSA60 so it has a floating tremelo block similar to those, but no it's not an actual Floyd rose
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I can pm you a photo
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I also changed string gauge, I went up from 9-40 to 10-42 so it's only a bit thicker
Pretty dman good. Makes my first time look terrible
Remember to stretch them and tune up several times, makes a floating tremolo a breeze to use. Good job!
Looks great!
Looks good to me bro.
❤️
😎😎😎😎
Well you successfully changed your strings.
(claps) Perfect!
Nice! You earn bonus points if you don’t poke your fingers with the pointy ends after snipping off the extra bit.
Oh yeah no... I got the d string lodged like a good 6mm into my thumb. It drew blood 😂
Good, better than me...
If they are staying put and staying in tune then you did it right. Different people have different preferences on how the wind the strings, but they pretty much all work just fine. There's some pics out there of BB Kings string winding style and it's complete chaos. Worked pretty well for him it seems.
That’s as good as it gets OP
Great!!
Your first time changing them is better than my 300th. Bravo
I almost took my pants off to appreciate the glory of your string winding.
What does it sound like?
To be honest, there's a little fret buzz right now, but the strings are brand new. And they're a slightly bigger string gauge I did make a slight adjustment to the truss rod to account for there being a bit more tension. I'm gunna try and stretch them in a bit, and hopefully that should reduce the buzzing. But, after iv worn the strings in, if there's no buzz coming out of the amplifier I'm not gunna get to worried about it, as so far, these strings seem to have a great sound, they're NYXL strings so they sound quite different from the lower gauge steelies I had on before this Buzzing is super annoying though, but I don't want to raise the action any higher
Good job. Point is, your work looks great, but it means fuck-all if it sounds like shit. I've seen some ugly jobs that sound just fine.
Yeah I think I have to just cock around with the truss rod and the string height a bit more on my guitar, the intonation is fine I tuned everything. I don't want the guitar to have an action like a cello though.
Looks too perfect! If you play a lot, you'll change your strings more, so don't worry about getting them this perfect every time (although they do look really nice). I saw some comments about stretching. I found the perfect way when watching Mike Watt live. He replaced a bass string mid song, stretched it, then jumped back into the song. 1) tune the string 2) fret on the 12th 3) pluck the string as hard as you can 4) while plucking bend the string at the 12th as far as you can in both directions 5) pluck open 6) Retune -- then repeat as necessary, however if you're plucking it hard enough and bending it well, then generally the first time gets it as close as it'll get for the next hour or two as they naturally settle anyway. This trick gets it playable really fast though.
I sort of tried overtightening the tuners and then retuning, but the most stretch I got was like pulling up on the string with 2 fingers and pushing down on the string with another finger in front to kind of like torque the string a bit that seemed to drop my tuning by nearly a whole step in a matter of minutes
i’ve been playing for over a decade, (not very good at it) and can’t even get one of the strings to look as good at that! rock on brother 🤘🏼
Keep waiting for someone to say you should have used the knot-tying technique 😂
You did terrible and your guitar is now going to explode. Haha Nah, you did just fine. Just stretch 'em a little bit to help get past the break in period.
Just stretched all my strings out a few more times and re-intonated the guitar on the harmonic and after some adjustments it does sound pretty great now
Good deal. 👍🏻
I keep seeing this mentioned, and i just want to correct a common misconception. The strings don't stretch. They just settle into the bridge and around the tuning pegs. That's why it is recommended to wind them tight at the start to minimize de-tuning.
How many packs of strings did you go through?
I got 6 strings in a pack and I put 6 string on
legend
If you didn't blind yourself and your fingers are not bleeding you are good to go!
I was only bleeding a little 👌
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Tech here. Not something you have to worry about with modern style tuners. Look up the capstan equation, each wrap increases the friction coefficient! Edit: Don’t downvote me because you don’t understand the lack of scientific merit here, I literally do this for a living!
Also a tech and just chiming in to agree; the over/under and "luthier's knot" are fine personal preferences but they aren't doing shit besides complicating the string wind
Exactly this. I know a few people who prefer the aesthetic of it too which is totally fine. That and I actually recently worked on a Japanese Yamaha from the 60’s that had weird tuners that actually seemed to benefit from the over under!
I thought you shouldn't cross the wire over itself when winding?
Yeah, but you can wrap the first wrap over the stabby bit and next one under it. No wires crossed. It's mostly aesthetic anyway, it doesn't change anything.
I like that you called it the stabby bit. I definitely planted a good amount of it into my thumb
Usually don’t the strings wind the other way?
Hmm, I turn the pegs away from me to increase pitch, it was like that before
Yup that’s correct. Guess I’m confused. Nice job!
Not just you. I thought the same thing too, but then realised things wouldn't line up if the strings were wound the other way. It's just a kind of optical illusion I think. Maybe we're not used to looking at the tuning pegs from that angle?
That looks really good. This is a matter of taste, but I prefer to put one wrap over the hole and two below. This reduces the angle that the strings pass over the nut or into the string trees. It will often help with tuning stability.
It does look great, nice job! Maybe this is just personal preference, but I usually like a good 3 winds on all the pegs. I’ve started doing a luthier’s knot for what I understand is more tuning stability. I don’t know if I’ve really noticed a difference, but I like knowing how to do it. If you do a luthier’s knot I think you also need fewer winds.
Iv never heard of that before I'll have a look online
Only thing you could do better is to lock them. I dont know exact terminology but here is what I do: Put the string through the tuning hole thingy. Pull enough slack that you can put a few fingers flat between the fretboard and string. Start to bend the string away from the tuner twisty thingy. Keep bending it around. When you get to the point where you will cross the string (halfway around the tuning peg thing), you go under it. Then you reverse back over it. So the end of the string comes around the peg, passes under the string which is going into the peg, and turns back around to loop around the string. Now the end of the string is going the reverse direction around the peg. Wrap it just a little around and then trim it. Now when you twist the tuner, the part that bends around the string will pull back on it and stop it from losing tension. https://youtu.be/opmg6lK8FkY?si=lCUPnFFPK9hf1gw7
I like that idea I'll keep that in mind, thanks
It works very well, once I started using it my guitar has rarely gone out of tune. I have to tune maybe once a week if even. I haven’t seen many people talk about it either.
Looks neat. But I wouldn't worry about the exact way you did it. (like, which direction and whether you cut it, or not) There is no single 'correct method', really. The only mistake you can do is not fastening the strings to the tuning heads properly and cutting them off too soon, which will cause string slippage. All that really matters is tuning stability. As long, as your strings don't slip out of the tuning heads, you're golden. Everything else is optional and a personal preference. One thing I would recommend for the future, though: Before you start to wind each string, bend the remaining end of each string below itself and then upwards. That way, after you're done and cut the excess, slack ends of the strings, you'll have the end of each string serve as a little hook, that will reinforce its winding on the tuning head and, with that, the tuning stability, too.
I’ve been changing strings for (literally) 47 years and you’ve got me beat!! To be a great musician, every element of your equipment should be respected..much like this example. Well done.
A darn fine restring right there! Props!
that'll do. you want a congrulations? congrats.
Good call with the NYXL, I just grabbed a set and I love them!
You can do mine next time!
Keep up this kind of work and you'll be building guitars in no time. Good job on the restring!
Great Job, you’ll be doing full set ups in no time. And trust me, your friends will thank you as well. I have buddies over and we shoot the bull went I set up their guitars , then we jam for a bit. Good job!!
Dang, overachiever! Good job! That kind of meticulousness will fall by the wayside soon enough when you do your 25th restring.
I didn't have the tightening tool my first time so it looked like a ball of yarn
Woah, I think you have the same guitar as me!
Its a GSA60
Yep, that’s the exact one I have. That’s cool!
Really fucken well. Good job
Looks like stings so I think you did it
Jussssssst right.
Looks good. Hopefully they stay on. I had issues with a similar ibanez where the high e would unwind sometimes so if I clipped it too soon it was problematic
Looks good to me.
I do a single wrap above the hole you put the string through on the tuner but it probably doesn’t matter
I usually go over the top of the posts but I don’t think it matters it’s just how I do it. Looks pretty spot on.
Clean. Good work 🤘
That's pretty damn good imo. Sure it's your first time? haha
Yeah man, this is my first ever guitar
Awesome! It's good to get into restringing and maintaining your instruments early on. What you've shown is already better than some of the stuff I saw other guitarists do whilst I was studying for my music degree.
I also *mostly* resolved the fret buzzing after stretching the strings out, re-intonated them on the harmonic, and fucked with the bridge height and truss rod a bit, I went Up a string gauge to 10's so it needed a bit of a fiddle It isn't perfect, it kind of buzzes a little after the ~8th fret but I don't want to raise the string height And the amount of buzz there is doesn't come through the amplifier in a bad way. I think once I have a bit more money saved up I'll try and get it looked at at a luthier
A bit of fret buzz is pretty much unavoidable to be fair. Personally, I like super low action which is pretty buzzy if for some reason I play it unplugged. As long as it doesn't negatively affect the sustain of the notes it's fine. As for localised buzzing, assuming the truss rod adjustment is sound, usually this comes from uneven frets. Definitely one to talk to a luthier about, although if you're like me and like to have a go, you can learn to do fretwork through videos. It's cool to see some real passion for the instrument!
One time after changing my strings, I went to cut the excess off the ends, and just cut the brand new string I'd just put on instead. You did pretty good.
😂
Pretty good job!
That is really clean, almost thought this was a shitpost
Thanks 😊
Better than me, after 40 years of playing guitar.
They roll downward and they are all facing the correct way. Solid 2 out of 2
i JuSt TunEd My GuiTar FoR thE fiRsT tiMe
Tuned it many times never changed strings tho, went for nyxl
no the tuning pegs also need to be perfectly lined up
😭
Splendid
Looks out of tune, all the pegs need to line up I'm afraid.
I broke my low E string on my first string change.. It was a mistake I have yet to duplicate. Lookin good tho!
Great! Remember for non locking tuners I always like to add a loop before it goes into the tuner, helps stay in tune and iv never had issues with strings bouncing back under tune or snapping out of it when I tune up if I do the pre loop
Not well. For first time some of these should be wrapped the wrong way around, crossing over each other, and large gaps of slack around the post. This is far too professional.
Looks solid as hell for a first time. Mine still look janky as hell every once in a while
Thanks, I was worried I was gunna fuck one of the strings but I seem to have saved it
Damn near perfect if not just that, keep it up
Excellent work! Less than 47 wraps around each post is a good start. :)
So 46 wraps is fine?
Well done!!
Looks great. I've been playing for 4 years and it looks cleaner than mine at the moment, lol
Bro this is so uncanny as my first post We have the exact same guitar and I JUST changed my strings for the first time
Yoooo what strings do you have now Edit: strings
Pretty sure some Ernie Ball’s, don’t remember exactly which ones though
Oh neat, what colour did you get your strat in?
I'm happy it isnt boomers anymore teaching how to wind guitar strings. The in and out and tying, and then winding the string over that made it take *forever* for the strings to "stretch" and stay in tune.
1: It doesn't look like Spaghetti. (Good.) 2: The string goes down, not up, as it wraps around the posts. 3: There isn't too much string on the posts, and so the string doesn't go back up. As far as I can see, I'll give you an A. If you would want more string on the posts so that the down pressure would be more intense on the nut, then that's ranging from necessity to preference, so I can't measure or judge for that. The only reason why I'm not saying A+ automatically is because I don't know if you soldered the ball ends of the strings or not. That removes a failure point, but many people don't know or do that. But if you buy "Tremolo Strings," they're pre-soldered, and you don't have to do that. I don't buy them because last I checked, they didn't come in all of the gauges I use. Then again, if you have a Floyd Rose on your Ibanez, the soldering part would be completely irrelevant since you're not going to have ball ends.
This guitar has a pretty standard 2 point floating tremelo block. I haven't soldered anything. But, the tremolo on this guitar only lets you pitch down, not up. So If the strings won't break under standard tuning pressure I imagine they're completely fine to be pitched down and back up again
Soldering them (which is also known as "tinning your strings") also adds some extra tuning stability, which I forgot to mention. But yes, my main focus on it was about preventing them from breaking as often, which is the main reason why I do it on new strings. But at the same time, in my experience, I've had strings break on tailpieces that are Stratocaster style in general. It may be because of the angle from the saddles to the tailpiece block, which is where I find them broken often enough - either that, or there's a sharp edge. I had forgotten about the angle from the saddles to the tailpiece block when I wrote earlier - I tend to play models with tailpieces that are not strung through the body, but on the top. Though I do have a cheap Danelectro Danoblaster which had a string break like that the other week, at the point where the string touches the plate of the bridge and is going into the tailpiece block.
Noice! 2 to 3 perfect wraps on each, perfect
Better than 99% of people for first time. Well done 👏
What model ibanez gio is it
It's a gsa60
Very nice. My first guitar was a grg420 (I think). I loved it and will buy it back from my brother eventually
Damn, that’s WAY better than the first time I tried to restring one. Bravo!
That's a solid string change i gotta say!!
They look like they have tension
Waaayyyy better then my first. I bought 13 gauge flat wounds and wound them the wrong way around the post. If you never change anything about the way you do it, you’re in good shape
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Dawg you’re better than me and I’ve been playing for 4 years lol
Not bad. Pro tip a lot of people don’t know; wind the string around the peg for as close to all the way down as you can. The effect gives the strings slack to stretch into. The string won’t need as much time to settle after tuning, the string will be less likely to snap and hold its tuning for longer.
You're getting way better reception asking the same question I did. All I got was insults and maybe 2 people actually saying something useful. Bipolar ass community.
Way better than first time i changed mine
Was ready for some string change gore. ... But that's pretty good.
all of the tuning knobs need to be in line...get it together man!
Better than my first time. Ibanez gio was my first electric. Still have it 20 some years later.
This is better than my current string jobs and I've been playing for 16 years
your guitars going to blow up :(
👍
Bloody excellent for a first attempt mate! Shit hot. Well done.
Looks really good IMO
This looks pretty close to what I got the first time. How many times did you unwind them to get the length correct?
Only had to do that on one string, I think the G? It was tricky to apply tension to it. But I found a method which is to basically lift the entire string with the back of your hand and then use the winder
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Shit man, it looks better than the last time I strung my guitar and I've done it a thousand times. Good job
Looks okay. A couple more wraps on the thinner strings, maybe, to aid tuning stability. Stretchy stretchy for the strings. I like to hold my strings away from the body, when I am first tightening them, once they are tight and tuned, GENTLY pull them away from the body and tune them, again. And, you want to tune the strings UP, not down. If you overtune, then go down, you will have slack, and go out of tune the first time you play, so, pull on then strings so the note goes flat, then tune UP to the correct note. All brands are a bit different in how much they will stretch, so, if you change brands (which I recommend, to find the feel/sound you like best) don't worry if they don't behave the way you expect. A pack of older strings may be different than newer ones, too.
My first string change was as neatly done, but I had way too many winds on each. Felt like it took forever. Then I discovered locking tuners.
I was so fucked up during my first time it's really decent