breaking in strings

[montrell]

I installed some heavy gauge half rounds (55-110) and I'm still getting used to the higher tension. The trussrod/neck are fine and I've gotten the action pretty low. Now I've noticed that they *seem* a bit less tense after 4 days of them being on, but is that just because my fingers are getting used to them, or do they actually loosen up a bit in the first few days?

I like the tone, but they make me feel more sluggish and require more effort to play.

[JimmyM]

They stretch a little, but they don't really loosen up. You'll get used to the extra tension in time. Or not. If not, just buy thinner strings.

[Daniel Baskin]

I like the tone, but they make me feel more sluggish and require more effort to play.

Lowering the action and using a lighter touch (meaning you need to have the amp louder too etc.) will speed things up for your right hand. In my opinion, these strings were built for low action for two reasons. The first is that they cause (at least for me) no buzz even when they are low, and the second is that if you want to slap and pluck on them, you can choose to get a steel string "bite" out of them.

If you have problem with your left hand, all I can tell you is that you'll get used to the feel. Shifting feels a little different on these strings, but they actually improve shifting once you get the feel of the strings.

[montrell]

cool. thanks for the replies. Right now my right hand likes them more than my left, but I'll stick with them and hopefully strengthen my left fingers in the process.

[violatedppl]

ha I used to play .115-.055 thats a mans set. JK it was cool for drop tuning and thats about it. couldnt bend notes for crap. but playing in drop D was just like playing in stadard with a .105. now I play .110's and its effortless, But I think it helped my build up the strength in my hands.