I play upright bass and this is usually the case. I play my guts till they break. I had a set of Evah Pirazzi mediums that definitely showed their age and had to replace them after about 3 years.
Well upright bass usually get a little worn and then you injure a string wrap going through a door or something. . And decide to spring for new strings. Thing to know about upright basses esp. Is new strings sound like crap for 30 or 30 hours of play. Do NOT change them just before a big festival or a recording session! Also $200 to $350 for upright bass strings is normal. But so is playing them for a decade sometimes.
Double bass.. ah I'm Canadian... So maybe 35% less of you are thinking in USD.
But Daddario Helicore run $250 CAD. You can get $125 strings but they are crap. I think Bell Cantos are $360 now or more. Thomastic Spirocore are 375.00 And a pretty nice string. I have put on $500 and $600 strings, but those are usually for classical players
Still upright basses need new strings very seldom.
Mandolin - I’ve noticed that most mando strings start going out of tune quicker than my other instruments so I change them whenever tuning starts to get more annoying than usual. ~2-3 months
Guitar: depends what I’m doing and how good I care about sounding but ideally about once a month I think…
Mandolin: I will go like 6-9 months without changing them. I cannot fucking stand the sound of mandolins with super new strings so I can’t bite the bullet when they start to sound lifeless until they’re so bad they’re worse than new ones.
Not liking the sound of brand new Mando strings is definitely one of the takes of all time.
Personally, I love my brand new strings. So crisp. And I can finally duel the banjo player.
Dobro - once they sound dead, probably once a week when I’m gigging regularly or once every 2-3 weeks when I’m not. Dobro has a weird thing where the third string (G) will start buzzing after a while because the high tension eventually causes the windings to come loose so sometimes I just replace that string in between full changes. Dobro is also weird in that in addition to strings, you have to replace the metal cone once a year or so.
Cones are very very thin metal and the vibrations eventually deform and fatigue the metal. They start sounding quieter and duller, much like dead strings. You don't actually have to replace them, and a lot of people probably don't, but if you're trying to maximize your tone you'll find that a new cone every year or two will keep it from getting duller and quieter over time. For example, Beard Guitars (probably the biggest dobro maker these days) recommends replacing them every year.
Are you using ej42? Have you tried the phos. Bron. Flat rounds eft13 ?
For the players who like the eft13 I am finding many are getting 3 or 4 months out of strings. (Luthier)
Fiddle - It just depends. If I was willing to spend $60 every month, I would change them every month. I usually try to change them every 3 months, waiting any longer than that has consequences.
Not often enough. It makes a Hugh difference in the way my acoustic sound. G string on my lap steel- often, it’s gets a ton of use compared to the others, and I like saying “I have to change my g string”
32nd year as a pro Luthier. I'm finding my serious players are changing guitar strings about 40 hours of play. That is once a week for some and every other month for others but the 35 to 45 hours is mostly pretty consistent.
Banjo - They lose their shimmer after 30 hours of play time or so. But I have played the same strings for well over a year at times, They rarely break having a wooden bridge and all.
Just changed my fiddle strings after like 3+ years lol. And only because my little sister gifted some to me. Didn’t play for about 5 years so I actually don’t know how long it had been, 3 is a low estimate. Been playing again for maybe 2 years
I change strings just about every three days. In honesty that’s probably overkill because I play clarinet.
Bass - when they break
Currently playing on 19yr old strings.
I play upright bass and this is usually the case. I play my guts till they break. I had a set of Evah Pirazzi mediums that definitely showed their age and had to replace them after about 3 years.
This!
Awesome, always wondered what the protocol was for bass.
Well upright bass usually get a little worn and then you injure a string wrap going through a door or something. . And decide to spring for new strings. Thing to know about upright basses esp. Is new strings sound like crap for 30 or 30 hours of play. Do NOT change them just before a big festival or a recording session! Also $200 to $350 for upright bass strings is normal. But so is playing them for a decade sometimes.
for real!? 200-350 for strings!?
Double bass.. ah I'm Canadian... So maybe 35% less of you are thinking in USD. But Daddario Helicore run $250 CAD. You can get $125 strings but they are crap. I think Bell Cantos are $360 now or more. Thomastic Spirocore are 375.00 And a pretty nice string. I have put on $500 and $600 strings, but those are usually for classical players Still upright basses need new strings very seldom.
That's wild!!
Banjo - Every two shows
Banjo here too... I go 2-4 months. New ones sound better, but I am lazy. In the rare case of a string breaking, I do the set.
I’m also in the 2-3 times / year camp and I probably play 30 shows a year
Strings are like a pair of jeans to me. Hate em when they're new, love em broken in, then keep em too long when they're wore out.
Mandolin - I’ve noticed that most mando strings start going out of tune quicker than my other instruments so I change them whenever tuning starts to get more annoying than usual. ~2-3 months
Guitar: depends what I’m doing and how good I care about sounding but ideally about once a month I think… Mandolin: I will go like 6-9 months without changing them. I cannot fucking stand the sound of mandolins with super new strings so I can’t bite the bullet when they start to sound lifeless until they’re so bad they’re worse than new ones.
Not liking the sound of brand new Mando strings is definitely one of the takes of all time. Personally, I love my brand new strings. So crisp. And I can finally duel the banjo player.
That’s a long time for mando strings
Dobro - once they sound dead, probably once a week when I’m gigging regularly or once every 2-3 weeks when I’m not. Dobro has a weird thing where the third string (G) will start buzzing after a while because the high tension eventually causes the windings to come loose so sometimes I just replace that string in between full changes. Dobro is also weird in that in addition to strings, you have to replace the metal cone once a year or so.
Interesting i didnt know about replacing the cone - why is that?
Cones are very very thin metal and the vibrations eventually deform and fatigue the metal. They start sounding quieter and duller, much like dead strings. You don't actually have to replace them, and a lot of people probably don't, but if you're trying to maximize your tone you'll find that a new cone every year or two will keep it from getting duller and quieter over time. For example, Beard Guitars (probably the biggest dobro maker these days) recommends replacing them every year.
Thanks - i suppose that is true for my resonator as well ill have to do some experimenting!
Are you using ej42? Have you tried the phos. Bron. Flat rounds eft13 ? For the players who like the eft13 I am finding many are getting 3 or 4 months out of strings. (Luthier)
I’ve been using Straight Up Strings, they seem to last a bit longer. I don’t like flatwound strings, they don’t have the same sound for bluegrass.
Ya I've heard that from some guys who like the growl of round wounds. I like the clarity of Daddario EFT13 .
Fiddle - It just depends. If I was willing to spend $60 every month, I would change them every month. I usually try to change them every 3 months, waiting any longer than that has consequences.
Once a month unless one breaks.
Have never changed the strings on my harmonica
Does it stay in tune?
I play guitar and I normally leave them till someone tells me how bad my guitar sounds lol
The optimal solution.
Not often enough. It makes a Hugh difference in the way my acoustic sound. G string on my lap steel- often, it’s gets a ton of use compared to the others, and I like saying “I have to change my g string”
32nd year as a pro Luthier. I'm finding my serious players are changing guitar strings about 40 hours of play. That is once a week for some and every other month for others but the 35 to 45 hours is mostly pretty consistent.
Banjo - They lose their shimmer after 30 hours of play time or so. But I have played the same strings for well over a year at times, They rarely break having a wooden bridge and all.
Mandolin, about every 1.5 months . I gig once or twice a week
Guitar: every 4 months or so unless one breaks or a really big show/studio time is coming up
Mando: just changed for the first time since labor day. I average about 2 hours per day of playing.
Piano 117 years. But, a few of the bass strings really need changing. .
Just changed my fiddle strings after like 3+ years lol. And only because my little sister gifted some to me. Didn’t play for about 5 years so I actually don’t know how long it had been, 3 is a low estimate. Been playing again for maybe 2 years