Thomastik-Infeld Jazz Swing Guitar Accessory - Flatwound Acoustic Guitar Strings - For a Rich and Warm Traditional Jazz Sound - Nickel Flat Wounds E, B, G, D, A, E Set

tl;dr: these strings are amazing and definitely worth the $10 extra over chromes, but make sure you can adjust the pole pieces of your pickups, or that you have the old style strat pickup where the G string has the highest pole piece. you will be disappointed otherwise. --- i will gush about these strings below, but first something important for those with pickups that don't have adjustable pole pieces: the core of the G string is very small, which means it is magnetically quiet to pickups. the B string on the other hand is solid wire and very loud magnetically. this is different from modern round wound electric strings where the unwound G is the loudest string. it's also different from chromes which don't have as big of a discrepancy in volume. many pickups without adjustable pole pieces have the pole piece for the G string in the lowest position to compensate for its usual loudness. if you can't adjust your pole pieces, or if you don't have the old stye fender pickups where the G string pole piece is set for a wound G, you will likely notice a huge difference in volume between the G and B strings. i've attached a picture showing how i adjusted my seymour duncan phat cats to compensate for the difference in volume between these two strings. if you can't adjust your pickups for each string or it doesn't have a similar layout of pole pieces, you will likely find that the B string is extremely loud and bright compared to the very quiet G string. if you are playing a melody across the G and B string they will sound extremely different in volume and tone. once adjusted they sound great. --- on to what makes these amazing: if chromes felt like a big step up to you when you first tried them, these will feel like as big of a step up from chromes. they sound and feel great. immediately upon removing the strings from the package they feel different. they are soft and flexible unlike most guitar strings which spring open when you unpack them. they improved the tuning stability of my guitar which i wasn't even aware was possible. with chromes i'd have to tune every time i picked up my guitar. now my guitar stays in tune for days at a time without issue. the string gauge was chosen so tension on each string is very similar. this is very noticeable, as it means all the strings require about the same amount of finger pressure to fret. the intonation adjustment on my guitar has my saddles almost straight across instead of staggered like normal, which i think can be attributed to the similar tension as well. the coating on the B and G string wears off in about a month of playing a few hours a day, but the tone of those strings slightly darkening up is actually a good thing as they are a bit bright out of the package. i likely won't need to replace them unless i need to remove them to work on my guitar. the strings seem to be nearly unbreakable as well. i've detuned and retuned them all several times while adjusting my intonation which can cause strings to become brittle and snap (d'addario i'm looking at you). i also bend the first three strings often and they have held up great and stay in tune after bending. these strings are to me obviously worth the extra $10 compared to chromes. they feel like way more than a 50% improvement in quality. get 'em! you definitely won't regret it.

You get your money’s worth; these are some very high quality flatwound guitar strings, probably some of the best you can buy. Made in Austria. The silk thread on the ends of the strings help guard against rubbing on the tailpiece as well as providing a better grip in the tuning pegs. I can’t believe how well my guitar stays in tune compared to using the classic round wounds. I put them on, tuned up and nearly stayed that way from the start. The 11 gauge are a great way to transition from round wounds if you’re new to flats, and are less drastic of a change. The 11’s are as similar to 10’s as you can get with flats and the wound G takes away that sharp, pinging G string sound. Flats will reduce string sliding noise and they sound a bit more mellow than rounds. Jazzy, vintage and great for finger style. If you want a very quality set of strings, these Thomastik-Infelds are beautiful and will last a long time, worth the investment for me. No they’re not cheap, but if you have a nice guitar and you want strings to stay in tune, these are THE string of choice.

With occasional cleaning and a bit of string lube, these can last many times longer than strings that cost a third as much. They are well worth their ever-increasing price (I remember when these were $16/set just a few years ago.) These do not sound dull, but they do lack a lot of overtones. This means that chords with close voices (used a lot in jazz) sound especially clear and consonant since the fundamental note competes much less with the harmonics above it compared to standard round-wound strings. Single note passages are less percussive and more melodic. The wound "G" string makes for better-sounding chords overall as plain "G" strings tend to be the slackest and least attractive sounding in regular sets. Played clean, these poke through the mix with other instruments without being harsh or brassy-- basically what a lot of players wish their guitar sounded like but have never tried anything other than the easy-to-get round-wound strings. Not strictly for clean jazz, with overdrive or medium distortion the JS110s can really sing with the assertive, meaty presence of a strong fundamental. With such subtle overtones even the harshest transistor OD/distortion unit can sound musical and presentable. Turn down your guitar's tone control a bit, drive the input stage of your amp, turn down your amp's bass control a bit, and you'll get a great horn-like tone from these that's hard to get any other way. Have you bought one of those 22-23" scale "micro" guitars for travel or easy practice? Put these on it and it will sound good enough to be your main instrument. JS110s will make anything they're strung onto sound better. These hold their pitch well, better than most common string sets. Your results may vary if you're constantly changing the tension on them via string bends or extreme vibrato. Also, the lower strings are nearly core-less and probably too fragile for a movable bridge e.g. tremolo/whammy bar. The magnetic output of the wound strings in these sets is *much* lower than standard steel strings. You will have to adjust your pickup pole pieces to compensate in order to get an even signal output from each. This is particularly important when using magnetic guitar-synth systems-- those systems were never designed to work with low-iron strings like these and will require very careful attention to clearances between the hex pickup system and the strings (especially the "G" and "D" strings). That said, I have JS110s installed on a Gibson SG with a Roland GK3 pickup and the system tracks just fine, but I did have to raise the software gain settings for the lowest four strings to get even triggering. Piezoelectric synth saddles probably make this a moot point. I first bought these because I was unhappy with the stock pickups on my favorite guitar and it seemed a cheaper upgrade to try rather than replacing pickups. Those stock pickups are still in service as the JS110s immediately moved the instrument's sound to a much better, more versatile place. I tried the others on the market too. Other flatwound sets felt stiff, heavier than their size. These 10s feel more like 9s. Soft, buttery, smooth, never stiff or rigid-- like cello or violin strings. Try these once before you drop $100+ into new pickups. We often get caught up in hardware marketing and overlook how important to the guitar's sound the strings themselves truly are. If you try a set and you like what you hear, you'll agree that though they're expensive they aren't overpriced.

I play an eclectic selection. Maybe an old-time rag like Freight Train or Moving Day. And then later I might be reliving my youth and playing Ride the Lightning or You Shook Me all Night Long. I am asking for a lot out of one setup for this. And these strings provide. You certainly can do the chugs and still have a pretty boom chick as well from these strings. When played clean, I can play those jazzy major 7ths and half diminished chords sound clear. Its like these strings traded out those higher harmonic overtones for much richer lower overtones. This doesn't give it less tone and timbre, but a warmer tone that plays nicer with dissonant intervals. The interesting surprise for me was how it sounded under high gain heavy distortion. I was playing Orion by Metallica and those third double stops sounded so clear. It still sound dirty and mean, but those notes just sound clearer even under heavy distortion. It is such a nice tone for the genre I really wonder why it isn't more common. String nose is reduced. I play a lot of stuff that has quick position shifts. And you know what brings, the squeaky string noise. Between keeping my calluses filed smooth and these string, I have almost conquered string noise. On the other hand it is near impossible to do a proper pick scape down the fretboard. There just isn't enough roughness to create much sound out of a pick scrape. I was able to get a halfway decent pick scrape adjacent sound by pinching the string between my finger and thumbnail, but that is kind of hard on my nail to be doing regularly. My guitar is pretty stable tuning wise thanks to the Jazz guitar design. No whammy bar and a single piece of wood from nut to bridge makes for a very stable platform. Having said that. They didn't take long to stretch out the strings and get them hold their tuning. I gave them a full day of playing and retuning and them. The next day I was still in tune and able to play a set of three songs with bends and aggressive picking and they were still in tune. Just a quick check and minor adjustment of a maybe 5 cents or so here and there to make them ready for another set of songs. I have to say I was hesitant to spend so much on a set of strings. They are pricey for sure. Were they worth it? Time will tell, but so far I am very happy with them.

First, these are my favorite strings. I love the way they play, and I love the way they sound. They feel less stiff than most flatwounds. They bend SOME, though certainly not as readily as your typical roundwounds. The sound is ... pure. They are NEVER boomy or unevenly responsive to touch. If you are REALLY fond of brightness, they may not be for you, but for clarity and evenness across the strings, they are unequaled. They are particularly good for "close" chords with a lot of intervals in proximity to one another, so they are (not a surprise!) great for jazz. I like 'em for rockabilly too (Turn the bass down on yer amp.), but that may be idiosyncratic. For more traditional blues, the rawness and easier bending of roundwounds might be preferable, but for blues with more harmonic complexity, I like these. They last forever, almost LITERALLY forever. TI's are almost spooky in this regard. Two concerns: First, they ARE expensive. No getting around it. But to me, given their playablility and longevity and beautiful sound, they are worth it. Second, I see a lot of complaints about strings breaking soon after installation, particularly the low-E and A. I have never had this happen, and I've been using them for years, on multiple guitars. I install them very carefully according to the directions, more carefully than I install your typical flatwounds, certainly. Think of them, maybe, as the Ferrari of strings: fussy but worth the trouble. They have pretty Cardinal Red cloth wrapping which can cheer you up on a dreary day. And finally, if you have a Jazzmaster and hate it, as I did mine, put a set of these on it. The difference is stunning. I suspect Leo had flatwounds in mind when he designed that guitar. He did name it "Jazzmaster," after all

These are great sounding flat wound strings. I use them on all my arch top guitars for jazz. The tone is classic, the feel is smooth and they are perfect for rehearsals, recording or performing music. They are worth the price and are professional level. I can think of several well known guitarists who use them on tour and in the studio!

I have been experimenting with strings ever since I bought an Eastman hollow body. I was turned on to flat wound, that aspect of the strings I was trying would never change. After trying various versions of strings offered by different companies including the George Benson strings made by Thomastik-Infeld (the George Benson strings were too heavy for me), these strings are a clear winner for me. The sound is rich and full, and my fingers glide across the strings. I have found the strings I will be using from now on.

These seem like good strings but the bass E broke before I had even applied much tension. I hope I can be refunded or at least receive a new bass E string to replace the one that broke.

Calidad superior, tono bastante calido, sin brillos estridentes. estupendo balance entre cuerdas. Mas que recomendadas

Brilliant strings.

Dieser Seitensatz lässt sich sehr weich spielen und hat einen wunderschönen Klang. Meine Gretsch verstimmte sich egal welche Seiten aufgezogen waren. Jetzt bleibt die Stimmung und ich bin sehr glücklich damit. Immer wieder gerne

Brilliant I’ve never put 12,s on jazz guitar wow what a difference !

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