LESSON SERIES - SKILL LEVEL 1

Changing Guitar Strings

Series Overview

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In this series, we’re going to go over how to change the strings on the acoustic and the electric guitar. This is a very important skill to learn for every guitar player. It’s just like learning how to change a flat tire on a car. You would never want to be stuck in the middle of nowhere and not know how to change it.

We’ll start off by going over some more general information about strings so you’ll know exactly which ones to buy. Then, we’ll go over how to change the strings on the acoustic guitar and electric guitar. Finally, we’ll go over how to set the intonation of your guitar so you can get your guitar sounding its best.

In the next lesson, we’re going to take a look at the different types of strings. 

All About Guitar Strings

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There are a ton of options out there when you’re buying guitar strings. There are a number of types of strings that you’ll want to get yourself familiar with. In this lesson, we’ll go over some general information about strings, the different gauges of strings, and the different types of guitar strings that you may encounter.

Knowing when it’s time to change your strings can be a little confusing for newer guitar players. There are three main ways to tell your guitar strings need changing. The first way, is by looking at them. If they look dirty or grimy it’s time to change them. If your guitar sounds dull or flat, it’s another way to know you need to change your strings. Finally, if your guitar strings feel rough and dirty, you’ll want to get some new strings.

There are many types of strings of many different sizes. For acoustic guitars you can get phosphor bronze, which sound warmer, or you can get 80/20 bronze which are going to sound brighter. Typically, acoustic guitars use .012 gauge strings. For electric guitars you can get flat wound strings, half round strings, or round wound strings. Flats are the mellowest, and rounds are the brightest. Electric guitars usually use .009 or .010 gauge strings. If you want your strings to last longer, you can spend a little more money and get coated strings.

In the next video, we’ll take a look at how to change the strings on an electric guitar.

Electric Guitar Strings

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A lot of newer guitar players are afraid they might mess up their guitar or break a string when changing their strings. But it’s a good skill for all guitar players to have, and there really isn’t much you can do to mess things up. In this video, we’ll go over how to change strings on the many different variations of electric guitars.

Electric guitars come in many shapes and sizes. There are a number of different tuning pegs and bridges out there that you’ll want to be aware of. This lesson will cover how to change the strings on most of the different electric guitars that you might find. You’ll want to make sure you have a wire cutter/clipper and a string winder. It’s also nice to have a neck stand to put the guitar in a better position and a polish cloth for cleaning the guitar.

In the next lesson, we’ll learn how to change the strings on the acoustic guitar.

Acoustic Guitar Strings

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There are two main variations when it comes to acoustic guitars. We’ll go over how to change the strings on both of these. It’s important to be able to recognize when it’s time to change the strings on your guitar. You can check to see when it’s time to change your strings by looking at them, listening to them, or feeling them.

The main difference between changing the strings on an electric guitar and an acoustic guitar is dealing with the bridge. Steel string acoustic guitars have bridge pins that hold the strings in place. With nylon string guitars, you’ll tie the strings to the bridge. Also, when you’re stretching out the strings, a nylon string guitar will take longer.

The next lesson will be about setting the intonation on an electric guitar.

Setting Guitar Intonation

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The guitar can be a tough instrument to consistently keep in tune. In this lesson, we’re going to go over setting the intonation of your electric guitar. Setting your intonation is done by adjusting the saddles of the guitar to make the low notes and the high notes on a string play in tune. This is a more advanced practice, but it’s a great skill to have if you want your guitar playing its best.

Get out your tuner and start off by making sure your open string is in tune. Then, fret that string at the 12th fret. If the note is slightly out of tune, then you’ll need to adjust the saddle. An easy way to remember which way to adjust the saddle is to use the saying “If the fretted note is FLAT, move the saddle FORWARD”. If you find that the note is sharp, then you’ll need to move the saddle back. Minor adjustments will make a big difference, so make sure you don’t move stuff around too much.

In the next video, we’ll have a quick recap of all the things we went over in this series.

Quick Recap

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Congratulations you’ve reached the end of this series on changing the strings on your guitar. In this video, we’ll go over all the things that you should now have a solid understanding of. Knowing how to perform these simple tasks is a great way to better understand your instrument and also save some money.

The first thing you should now know is the differences between the types of strings. It’s important to note that you will need to experiment with the string variations and find which one works best for you. Don’t be afraid to change your own guitar strings, the worst thing that will happen is that you’ll break a string. Intonation is something you may want to know how to do yourself, but it also may be something you’d rather pay someone to do and that’s perfectly okay.

Feel free to move right along to a new series, and come back to this one whenever you need some pointers on changing strings or setting your intonation.