How to Choose Guitar Strings For Acoustic Guitars?

Strings are one of the most common guitar elements that get overlooked by a significant majority of guitar players. Although the impact a different set of strings can have on an electric guitar is large, things go to a whole new level when you start talking about acoustic guitars.

The reason for this is the fact that acoustic guitars produce sound merely by utilizing the physical properties of the materials used to make it. In other words, the tonewood of the guitar will impact the sound, but so will the strings.

Our mission today is to find out how to choose guitar strings for acoustic guitars. Without further ado, let's dig right in!

How To Choose Guitar Strings For Acoustic Guitars

Before we go into specifics of acoustic guitar strings, we need to talk about something that usually happens when new guitar players go shopping for strings for the first time. There are two major types of acoustic guitars.

You have your steel string acoustics and classical guitars. Each of these uses a very different type of strings. Former is what most people are aware off, and these guitars use metal alloy strings.

Latter, on the other hand, use nylon strings. Mixing these two is not a very common mistake, but it does happen. Using the wrong type of strings can cause damage to the instrument, not to mention a completely different experience that is often times useless from a practical stand point. If you are new to guitars, you need to pay attention to what type of strings your guitar needs.

Steel Strings

Steel strings are not really made completely out of steel. Instead, different alloys are being used which all have very different characteristics. The most popular are the bronze and phosphor bronze strings due to their warmer tone and that ringing effect.

We discuss different string materials and gauges in more detail in our dedicated article called Guitar Strings Explained, feel free to check it out if you're interested in more information on this subject. When choosing strings for your acoustic guitar, you need to take several things into consideration.

Your playing style should be the first thing to dictate which gauge of strings you might have the best experience with. In general, finger style picking works a lot better with lighter string gauges and allows for a much more comfortable playing experience.

On a similar note, if you are looking for that strong, driving sound of strummed acoustic guitar that will cut through a mix, a heavier gauge string might offer a better solution.

Besides your playing style, you also need to think about the size of your acoustic guitar. If it is a smaller acoustic, such as travel or parlor type guitar, lighter gauge strings are recommended.

With that said, they are sometimes a requirement, so make sure to read the instructions for your specific model of guitar. If the guitar is larger, such as Jumbo or Grand Orchestra, you will definitely want to have a bit heavier gauge of strings on there.

Aside from simply producing the tone, guitar strings also apply a certain amount of tension on the whole guitar. We're mentioning this because the condition of the guitar might be a limiting factor when it comes to how heavy you can go with string gauges.

Instruments which are in a poor condition due to age or lack of maintenance might have a hard time dealing with heavy gauge strings. If you want to preserve that instrument the best you can, we suggest you stick to lighter gauge strings.

When it comes to acoustic-electric guitars, you don't have to search for some specific type of guitar strings. Generally, anything you are used to will work well on that type of guitar as well. If you decide to go for heavy gauge strings for your acoustic guitar, it's highly recommended that you keep an eye on that guitar for a short while.

If you start to see any deformation in the neck area, it's time to take the guitar to the shop for them to see whether or not making corrections is possible. Using inadequate strings is one of the easiest ways to destroy your instrument. If you are looking for a good model of guitar strings to start with, check out our list with the good guitar strings for some ideas.

Final Thoughts

Aside from finding the right gauge of strings that fit you the best, figuring out which specific model works for you is something that might take some trial and error.

However, once you get to that point where you can say that one model of strings works better than another one, you are pretty much set. It's hard to point this out enough. A good set of strings can completely change the way an acoustic guitar feels and sounds like.

Investing some time and effort into finding that perfect set of strings is going to be more than useful down the road. If you want to experiment with different string gauges and materials, just make sure that you stay within what is acceptable for your specific model of guitar.

It is fairly easy to get lost in this process, which can ultimately damage your guitar. Being careful and considerate towards the manufacturer's specs can save you a lot of head ache.