Why can't I break in these strings on my acoustic-electric?

Question

So I put Elixir nanoweb strings on my Ibanez acoustic-electric about 2 weeks ago. I have pulled on them, beat on them.... basically everything I can think of to break these in and they still sound terrible. You can barely hear the notes in the chords, especially if I use a pick. It's noise instead of music. I play anywhere between 2-6 hours a day so I can't see why they still have such a bad sound. Any advice on how to fix this? I'm at the point where I don't even want to pick up my guitar any more.

Answer 1

Sucks to hear they don't work for you. Perhaps your ears are expecting something else... or maybe you put the wrong type of strings on?

I've played with Elixirs for a very long time, and for me I completely disagree with your assessment of them. It is my opinion that they aren't as good as some other strings... so perhaps you have a certain expectation that they can't meet.

Hey, ditch 'em and move on. I mean, you can try the Polywebs, but I kinda have a feeling you won't like them either.

Ernie balls aren't bad, and I've played some D'Addario strings that I thought were pretty decent. It's been an awful long time, though.

Hmmm. Although it seems very unlikely to me, is it possible you've already killed the strings? Maybe all of your stretching and whatnot broke them instead of breaking them in? =)

Saul

Answer 2

Aah.. they have a thin 'anti-rust' coating on them. It's just a gimmick. Ditch them and go for Ernie Balls or D'addario. Seriously, coated strings are pointless because if you're playing every day then you should change them every 2 or 3 weeks anyway, no time for them to rust. Good luck.

Answer 3

That's really strange, since strings are NOT supposed to be like this. I suggest taking it in to a music store and explaining to an employee the problem. Perhaps he'll put on a new pair of strings or something.

Answer 4

The reason they sound like this is they are coated. The thin plastic coating on the strings makes them sound damper by reducing how much they vibrate, as well as not allowing the guitar's pickup to feel the string's vibration as strongly. If i were you id just opt for an uncoated string, like the ernie ball earthwood series string. sure you'll have to change strings more often, but you'll get a much better tone from your guitar.