New guitar strings

I changed the strings on the Alvarez/Yairi yesterday. I've been meaning to do it for months now, and finally got around to getting some new strings and taking the time to do it. Every Sunday I was hoping I didn't break one. And, geez, the last time they were changed was a year and a half ago: May 23, 2009. Ha, and I noticed from that post that they were changed on Nov. 17, 2007 the time before that. Must be something about Nov. 17.

Anyway, I decided to try some different strings. I was grabbing the usual set of Elixir Custom Lights and I happened to notice these Martin Lifespan SP strings. The sales guy said they were new, and they're supposed to be good. Apparently they've coated all six strings (instead of just the top 4) to give the "longest possible string life without sacrificing tone or natural feel." We will see. I got the custom lights in these too (MSP7050): .011-.052. What was wierd though, is they came 2 strings to a sleeve. When I first opened them I thought I'd mistakenly bought bass strings, but there were only 3 sleeves. Not that it's a big deal but, gee whiz, did they really save that much money by double-sleeving them? Whatever. So far they sound nice.

I used to use Martin strings a long, long time ago. They would sound nice at first, but then they really seemed to die in just a few playings. I hope that doesn't happen with these. I also bought a set of Elixir's just in case. I've never particularly liked the sound of Elixir's, but man do they last me a long time. I don't remember the last time I actually broke a string while playing. For someone like me it's worth it to have a quality string over one that sounds good, I suppose.

I got some new picks while there too. I've used Jim Dunlop .60MM for quite a few years now, and grabbed 3 of those. But I also grabbed some .46MM. I thought maybe the thinner pick might sound a little better too (and make the strings last even longer yet). I think it adds some depth; which I like.

So that's the story with that. Stopping in at the guitar store made me miss it though. I remember when I used to take Isaac to guitar lessons at this little music store in Huntington every week. I just hung out and chatted with customers and the people that worked there, and it was often the highlight of my week. I wish I could find a reason to do that in this store.

Peace out; and in.