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Is it a good idea to sand down your strings?

I cant imagine a single reason to sand strings down. I find it even harder to imagine anyone being able to do a qaulity job of it either. Youd have to do it exactly even the entire length and all around the string wrap. Not something doable by hand imo. I also pity the player who tries it then scrapes up his fingers on any little barbs etc sanding leaves behind.

Youd be far better off practicing your finger fretting nuances. Learning to use light touch and not so much dragging fingers down strings. Put on a set of rotosound swing 66. Then when youve become good enough to not have excess finger noise on strings. Youve graduated that learning and skill experience. Lol.
 
its not really finger noise im concerned with in all honesty. im just looking for a more focused sounding string by reducing the overtones to get more of a flatwound like sound without the loss in sustain. iv been considering TI flats though and may be my best option.
 
Sanding anything on your instrument is a bad idea...Not to be a smart ass , but if you are looking for more of a flatwound sound, buy flats... There are many flats out there with different tonal characteristics. Good luck and put away the sandpaper....

Peace

E
 
I've seen some weird stuff on the internet, but that link goes into a whole other dimension of bizarre.
i've read about these, questionable "advice" sites where people write about anything and everything in hopes to get found by search engines and make a little ad money.
 
The best way to cut down on finger noise is to improve your left hand technique.

i realize the importance of good fretting technique but finger noise is the least of my concerns especially since it mostly gets lost in the mix weather your playing live with a band or your recording in studio were they can take care of problem with eq
 
Sandblast your strings after every show, then slather on pure lard for that down home sound...

Seriously, don't do that. There are hundreds (maybe thousands) of string options to go with, find one that works for you and change them out at your discretion.
 
if you are looking for the flat wound sound just try some flats. I have only used rotosound flats and D'addario chromes. I didn't like the roto's but love the chromes, i've had them on for 8 or 9 months i think. I never noticed and sustain issues what so ever. Even if i am using a foam mute I can get plenty of sustain out of the strings.
 
In all seriousness, if you want a more focused tone, you have to sand down your fingers. Your fingerprints are causing all of the unwanted overtones by acting as a series of closely-spaced picks, creating a "micro strum" that disperses the tonal focus of the string.

Some people just sand down their fingerprints every other week or so, but if you want to save yourself a lot of hassle, just do a thorough job the first time, and take off a good 1/4" from each fingertip.

Try it, you'll thank me!
 
In all seriousness, if you want a more focused tone, you have to sand down your fingers. Your fingerprints are causing all of the unwanted overtones by acting as a series of closely-spaced picks, creating a "micro strum" that disperses the tonal focus of the string.

Some people just sand down their fingerprints every other week or so, but if you want to save yourself a lot of hassle, just do a thorough job the first time, and take off a good 1/4" from each fingertip.

Try it, you'll thank me!

Beautiful!
 

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