Chat Place Forum

It's not just about the strings staying in tune, or not breaking. It's how they SOUND as well.

As you play, the acid in your hands eats away at the coating on the strings. Thats why you'll start to see black marks, and over time, the whole string will turn black and feel rough to the touch.

When this happens, the strings do not vibrate and resonate as well, meaning they don't sound very good. When you change your strings (ideally, one at a time), pull up on the string around the pickups, and let it snap back down. Listen to the sound it makes, and compare that to an old string and a brand new string. You should be able to hear a huge difference. Even playing for a couple hours will affect the strings.

So to answer your question, change the strings as often as you have a show. If you have a gig 5 nights a week, change your strings 5 nights a week. After all, you want to sound your best when playing live, don't you?

If you're just practicing, then who cares how it really sounds, and if you break a string it's no big deal, because you're not performing.
Content provided by Yahoo Answers.

cange them now and yu wil figure it out,,,, maybe you dont like new strings,,, i hate new strings,, 6 hrs in and 20 hrs later peak for my taste,,, 10or 11. 14. 18 32 .42 52. my favorite electrics

Hello there,

How often to change the strings depends on how much you play. At a minimum, change them once a year. If you play a few hours every day, you will need to change them every month or two. Also, the acidity in your sweat will affect how often you need to change them.

If you sweat more you will need to change them more often. The humidity the guitar is stored in will affect how often you need to change the strings. If you play with a heavy grip or aggressive picking, you will need to change them more often.

You can tell when to change them by these: If you have a hard(er) time getting the guitar in tune, it is time to change. If you tone begins to sound flat, it is time to change. If you run your finger along the bottom of the strings and get a gray/black color, it is time to change.

Good luck,

i only change my strings if they broke, obviously, and if the nylon chords start to peel..
but yeah, its up to you!

As often as you think you need to. Are you still in tune? Is that all that matters to you? Run your fingers down the G, B high E strings. Do they feel like crap? Does that bother you? It's all pretty much up to you. If you're still staying in tune just fine, and dirty strings don't bother you, then keep playing.

I change mine out every so often just for the sake of trying out new string weights.

If they don't break monthly.

I have had a set of strings on for over a year on one my guitars and I've played through many gigs with the same set on this guitar, I know how to change a set but how often should I change them?