New set of coated strings and Stainless Steel strings

I was looking at the product line at one of those American guitar stores and I saw the word Stainless Steel screaming at me. Stainless steel strings. Really? I was intrigued. I didn't know they exist! I have been using "Good Strings" and it says made with Korean steel on the packaging. I presume that's just regular steel. But, Stainless steel! Really? First thing that came to my mind way, how do they even work? Stainless steel isn't magnetic by nature, so there is no way the pickups can pick up any wave signals from the stainless steel strings.

After further investigation, apparently, only the wound strings are stainless. The first 3 non wound strings are just regular plain steel. There goes my hope of finding an alternative for elixir strings. Well, nonetheless I head down to Davis and asked for the cheapest set of stainless steel they have, which was SLT stainless steels. I shall test them and see how long they can last against Korean steel.

Taking a turn to SV Guitars, I decided to step in and see what range of strings they have. They have brands that I never even seen before in my life. Dr Duck strings and D-tuned strings are such examples. Do note that just because of my ignorance on string brands doesn't mean they are crappy strings. As a matter of fact, they aren't that cheap and with that price tag, I presume they aren't cheap get by strings like "Good Strings".

I saw Elixir hanging on the shelf, with out the "Made with anti rust steel" tag. Meh. I saw GHS Coated Boomers. Wait a minute. Did I read coated? I've tried DR. Those are really bad by the way. Never get DR color coated. Those are the worst coated strings ever. They sound like rusty strings even freshly from packs. Elixirs on the hand sounds new even when rusty (the irony). So the helpful staff from SV Guitars gave me a comparison of Elixir and GHS Coated Boomers. Apparently, these GHS coated last longer than non coated strings (They are coated for a reason you know) but not as good as Elixir. However, the objective review of the current batch of Elixir is that it rusts really fast. So, I guess that might actually bring them down to equal. I decided to just buy a pack to try them and see how they fair against Elixir.

Wait for reviews for both sets of strings!

Coated strings

I never was a fan of coated strings but due to my sweaty palms, I kill strings really fast, especially in this humid part of the word. My strings literally tarnish and turn brown as I am playing the guitar.Even so typically, with the wipe downs, string cleaner and coating liquid.

I usually use very cheap strings (since they don't last anyway) but for the guitars that I seldom play, I will actually put coat strings on them. My choice of coated strings will always be poly coated Elixir strings. I honestly have nothing but good things to say about these strings. They sound new from the day I put them on till the day the string breaks. They really do last 5 times longer than normal strings and usually, you can see the coating splitting open at the usual fret area or at the parts where you do your picking. Of course, there is no surprise that the that is the usual place for rusting. However, the interesting part is, even though there are signs of rusting, the strings doesn't sound dead at all.

The tone however for elixir strings is always brand new. It has no signs of sounding dead and to some, this may sound un-natural as there isn't a seasoned/broken in tone even after prolong playing. The best part is the strings always feel smooth and slick. Always shiny and new.

If you are one of those who dread changing strings or own a floating tremolo equipped guitar and changing strings is a bother, do give the elixirs a try. You will be pleasantly surprised on how long they last and save you the trouble of constant restringing.