Strings: D'Addario NYXL Medium 11-49

[3bolt79]

Well, I thought I would try these on my new Epiphone IBG ES 335.

I am impressed with how easy they are to bend. They are even slinkier and easier to bend than the Ernie Ball Power Slinky strings, and easier than the regular D'Addario XL strings in the same gauges.

I was certain that they had less tension than the aforementioned XL's, but according to the info at D'Addario's site, they are actually a little bit higher in tension.

They are also said to be D'Addario's toughest strings. I was able to bend up a major third several times without breaking them. They treble strings feel as supple as 9's do on my Strats when bending, and they return to pitch after big bends.

I'm going to try a set of their medium too, heavy bottom strings and also a set of heavy top/heavy bottom strings as well on my new 335.

As far as the sound goes, they have a nice blooming sound when played clean. Also, they are not coated. They are supposedly made of some special type of steel that D'Addario produces themselves.

I found a 3 pack deal a couple of days ago for $17.00. if I can find a deal like that again I will order another pack.

If any of you have used the NYXL strings, please share your experiences.

 

[VictorB]

I use 11s, but have never tried these.

Next change I thing I’ll try them out.

 

[soulman]

I've never tried them but IME the Curt Mangan strings I use feel like they bend at little easier and last a little longer so they may very well be the equivalent of the NYXLs.

 

[TheVillageGrouch]

Never tried the NYXL. What do you all find appealing about them? I like mostly Slinkys. Pure nickel on the Lester are quite good.

 

[3bolt79]

Never tried the NYXL. What do you all find appealing about them? I like mostly Slinkys. Pure nickel on the Lester are quite good.

I really liked that I was able to bend my high E up a major third multiple times without it breaking at the saddle. I use mostly slinky’s though. These were an experiment as I hadn’t previously tried them. I like the slinkies with bends and they have a slightly higher tension that I liked when bending. Just the right amount of fight when bending.

 

[RWilke]

On my Epiphone Les Paul Classic which I purchased back in April, I have tried the d'Addario NYXL in 10 and 9.5 for the first time, and they came out as performing extremely well, both in terms of tone and playability, as opposed to the Ernie Ball I had been using previously. They are a few bucks more per set, but definitely worthwhile in my opinion.

 

[rolandson]

I preferred D'Addario over everything else because of their consistency. I could count on the same experience one set to another.

Sonically however I preferred Thomastik Infeld ... sonically that is, until the ball end braid on their guitar strings would unravel at the most inconvenient moments. Then they sounded awful. And so would I. This went on through multiple lot numbers. I had equally disappointing experience with their orchestral strings...sound great! Alive and Vibrant...

and then their manufacturing defect would rear its little head.

Full disclosure: D'Addario didn't pay me to say any of that.

 

[3bolt79]

There are so many brands these days, and the quality across the board is better across the board on most of them anyway, it’s hard to go too wrong with most of the modern strings.

 

[soulman]

There are so many brands these days, and the quality across the board is better across the board on most of them anyway, it’s hard to go too wrong with most of the modern strings.

And yet fewer manufacturers then brands. D'Addario and GHS both produce product sold under other labels and I doubt that product is of any lesser quality unless they've been asked to do so as far as materials used. Otherwise they're using the same machines with the same operators.

 

[3bolt79]

And yet fewer manufacturers then brands. D'Addario and GHS both produce product sold under other labels and I doubt that product is of any lesser quality unless they've been asked to do so as far as materials used. Otherwise they're using the same machines with the same operators.

I did a little digging and D'Addario states that the metals in these sets is special and manufactured by them and not available in other strings that they offer or make under other brands. Not sure if that's actually true, but that's what their claiming as far as the steel anyway.

 

[soulman]

I did a little digging and D'Addario states that the metals in these sets is special and manufactured by them and not available in other strings that they offer or make under other brands. Not sure if that's actually true, but that's what their claiming as far as the steel anyway.

That could easily be true. I was just focusing on the fact that there are less string manufacturers than there are string brands. That D'Addario has developed and uses a special steel for the NYXL Series makes perfect sense. I've found that Curt Magnan strings also feel as if he uses a higher grade steel as well. His standard nickel wound strings seem to last longer than plain D'Addario XLs like I often use.

 

[3bolt79]

That could easily be true. I was just focusing on the fact that there are less string manufacturers than there are string brands. That D'Addario has developed and uses a special steel for the NYXL Series makes perfect sense. I've found that Curt Magnan strings also feel as if he uses a higher grade steel as well. His standard nickel wound strings seem to last longer than plain D'Addario XLs like I often use.

Yes, they do last a long time. I used to use the Mangan’s regularly, but now they are hard to score locally. And, I can’t get the deals that I can get on D’Add, EB, and GHS when ordering in bulk. They are still considered a more boutique string in my area.