Tension - what will it actually do?

[Michael Jewels]

Everyone's always talking about the tension of certain strings, but, what will high tension strings actually do in the long run? Will they really ruin a neck, or is this just a theoretical quality that we really shouldn't worry about?

Anyone have any stories of what too much tension did to their bass?

Mike J.

[Flatwound]

I think a lot of the "tension" posts are about feel and sound, rather than instrument damage. However, if you like giant high tension strings, like the Jamerson Set, the Rotosound Steve Harris Flats, or Power Slinkys, it could be an issue. These might not be so hot on your Rogue, but an MIA P bass or other high-quality instrument should be fine. There have been a number of horror stories about Fender Geddy Lee sig. basses with maxed out truss rods, so I guess for some basses it's an issue. I've used such strings on my MIJ and MIA P's and they were OK, but I wouldn't try it on my old beater Washburn.