Are light strings part of the gretsch sound?

Easy to check you intonation with tuner.. take a look. I’d be interested to know.. Setzer uses 10’s...some like the stability and timber of 11’s. Never tried 9’s. Seems 8’s would be very loose on a 6120 scale guitar but hey....
6$ mod.. shoot the moon!

 

As was stated, give it a try and check intonation.

Also check the relief after you tune to pitch with lighter strings and check to see that your strings are not to low at the nut. Also check their tone open just to make sure you have no sitar sounds from nut slots that are to wide.

Simple, completely reversible mod with no down side...Well, other than you might have to spend another $6, Heaven forbid, if you have to go back to 13’s.

Good luck

 

3$ a string!! Whoa! Keep em clean!
Sometimes I’ll pinch a string with a cloth n WD40 to keep things from corrosion..
3$...!

 

I cannot play anything thinner than 11-52 it looks and feels like rubber strings to me

 

My Gretsch came stock with .010's. For years I played the old hot rod Martin D-18 with .013's and it's about time to go to .012's. A change in neck tension affects the intonation and the string height. My advice is to find the gauge that you prefer on each guitar and stick with it. The temperment of a well tuned piano leans towards the 3rds being slightly flat and the 5ths being slightly sharp. The guitar is predominantly a sharp key instrument so try tuning strings 2 (fret 3),3 (fret 7), 4 (open), and 5 (fret 5) all to D after dialing in both E strings at the 12th fret. "Excellent overall tone is a matter of common cents."

 

pretty sure historically gretsches are closer associated with heavy strings?

 

10's work best for me on my Gretsch guitars. On my Gent I replace the 46 with a 48 just to get a little bit more punch on low E riffs.

 

In 1990, my Pre FMIC 6120 came with 0.12
Coming from 0.12, I spilled my blood into that fretboard fellas!

 

I play 10-46 on everything. Strat in Eb. The Les Paul that gets little attention, and the Gretsch.
Wait, I lied. My ESP is strung with 12s in D tuning but I can't remember the last time I played it. So point is of the guitars I play they are all 10-46. I had 11 on my Gretsch at one point but I bend a lot so the 10s are better.

 

Play what feels comfortable to you.

FWIW, I use D'Addario XL's on my electrics. 9's on my Phoenix, and 9.5's on my 6120, Gent, and Tele.

Best of luck.

 

Chris,

With over 50 years of ''string tinkering'', for me, Ernie Ball, Skinny Top/Heavy Bottom, 10/52, EB part number 2215, work the best.

All my guitars that I play have these, I love them on my Gretsch's and my short scale 325 Rickenbackers.

Give'm a try,

Best,

BIB.

 

I have no love for light strings. 10’s are about as light as I can stand, but I don’t use then on anything.
I use 11’s in everything.
I used to use Ernie Ball Power Slinkys, then Rotoreds, but now I’m using D’addario XL 115 11-49’s.
I buy them in bulk cuz I change strings every few weeks on the guitars I use the most.

 

I like 9s on my Telecaster but my Gretsch plays great with 11s.

 

No, I tend to think the best sounds out of older Gretsch models were produced with at least 11's.

Back in the day these skinny sizes didn't exist.

 

I've been using 10 - 52's from when i got my first Gretsch ,back in 1988.
I actually used a custom made up set until i discovered the Light top/Heavy bottoms .

I do have 10's on a few at the moment,59 6120 ,and the Falcons,maybe the Jet too.
11's on the Phoenix ,i think...

 

I used to use a hybrid 10 top / 11 bottom set on my Duo Jet and had my Compton made to suit. At that time my other electrics were strung with either 10s (Gibson) or 9s (Fender). Iirc you can go 1 gauge either way with the Compton without problems.

In the last year I have changed over all my guitars to Elixir Optiweb 10s. These work fine on my Duo Jet, with no tuning or stability problems (floating bridge stays put), and feel nice and easy to play.

I had to make slight truss rod and bridge height changes but that’s to be expected.

 

I came form playing 012 sets and I am now with 009. No more hurting fingertips, greater bending, great tone. No problem.
I have a very light touch, though.