Acoustic Guitar Strings - My Favourites

Medium Gauge Phosphor Bronze strings [12 to 53] are my all around favourite strings for everyday acoustic playing, they are bright and alive with plenty of attack and they project well. Guitars that have a thicker soundboard may need a heavier gauge string to get the soundboard resonating, you have to work a bit harder but the payoff is in the tone and volume you get. Light gauge strings just won't do the job if you want to do justice to a Gibson J200. I also have a Yamaha APX 20 acoustic that is a shallow bodied guitar with a stereo under saddle pickup which leans more toward the way an electric guitar is played and for that I use lighter gauge strings [11 to 50] and treat it like an electric or semi-acoustic guitar. I have too many guitars so for the ones that don't get played that often coated strings like "Elixir" do a pretty good job. They maintain tone for a long time and don't corrode due to the polymer coating on the strings. Not as bright as the plain phosphor bronze and more expensive as well but they do last a long time. It takes a bit of trial and error to get an ideal match for a particular guitar. I have a small bodied acoustic with a slightly shorter string length and it just won't tune with light gauge strings. With medium gauge strings it behaves perfectly but a couple of times when I have tried light strings I had to take them off after about half an hour.When you change strings it is a great idea to keep the front of the packet to identify the gauge of strings and also to write the date you put them on. That way if they are a great string you replace them with a matched set without guessing brands and you get an idea how long they last.

Zoom H4

The Zoom H4 portable digital recorder is one essential piece of equipment that travels with us everywhere we take our acoustic guitars. We like to record our music in the open air trying catch the mood of the piece where the song first comes to life. At the creation stage we tend to use the inbuilt mics with the recorder mounted on a lightweight camera stand. The next stage we would use a pair of Shure beta 87's or EV dynamics if we are outside so we can position the mics for either optimal guitar sound or a blend of guitar and vocal. If we are indoors we use an Audio Technica 5050 switched to Figure 8 mode paired with with an Audio Technica pencil condenser
or a RODE valve mic, which are both bigger than the Zoom H4.

Guitar Picks by Michael Wegen

My Michael Wegen guitar picks arrived from the U.S.A a few days ago and forced me to learn a lot about my picking technique. They were recommended to me by bluegrass champion player Innes Campbell who really impressed me his crystal clear note separation and tone on single notes and bright full tone when he strummed. The picks come in right and left hand versions depending on which edge of the pick is chamfered. I found the picks very sticky at first and it took me a while to figure out what the problem was. It turns out that even though I pick with my right hand I rotate the pick slightly anti clockwise when using a standard pick which is the opposite of what the Wegen picks are designed for. With the help of my fret dressing file and some 1200 grit wet and dry I chamfered the pick on the opposite side and it all came together. The picks are 1.4mm thick and quite hard so they tend to be fairly precise in the way they bring out the sound of the string. You can't get away with much in the way of sloppy picking technique. My normal pick is a Dunlop Ultex with the Rhino on it around 1 mm thick. For more a more attacking sound I use a ligher gauge 0.75 that gives me a bit more twang. My plan is to keep experimenting with both styles of pick over the next few weeks, do heaps of playing, and possibly some recording and see where the sound leads me.

Favourite Acoustic Guitars

Two favourite guitars chilling out before an outdoor recording session.

Gibson Doves in Flight

Here's the headstock of my number one acoustic guitar taken during a break in playing earlier this year.

Innes Campbell - Flatpicking Guitar Workshop

I was lucky enough to catch a guitar workshop by Innes Campbell during the Imbil Acoustic Weekend recently & picked up a few pointers on flatpicking guitar. Innes recently won first prize in the CMAA National Bluegrass Championships in Tamworth in flatpicking guitar. He passed around a 1.4mm Wegen plectrum that he uses to get a great clean attacking sound when picking single notes or strumming chords. His preferred string gauge is 13 to 56 for reasons of tone. Since his perspiration is fairly corrosive he prefers elixir strings which have a protective polymer coating. I found them to be long lasting strings which don't sound particularly bright when you put them on but they do last a long time. They don't corrode but they get furry after a lot of playing. To get tone that really projects my personal choice is Martin phosphor bronze strings either 12/54 or 13/56 depending on the guitar I am using. Important points Innes made were to improve your playing you need identify & work on your weaknesses & bring them up to par & also to split practise time between things he needs to work on & things he loves to play. Playing position was important as well as staying relaxed. You can check Innes & his music out here - http://www.myspace.com/innescampbell

Acoustic Excellence - Duane Allman - Little Martha

Acoustic Excellence - Carlos Vamos - Little Wing

Soulshine live from Heron Island

Acoustic Guitar open air studio

This is my idea of a great way to record music. Looking out into the trees across the creek & playing whatever comes along in the moment.

Sun Sand & Strings

Guitars on holiday off the east coast of Australia.