Kort om strengar til akustiske gitarar.

Det finst strengar med ulike "coatingar"; eit tynt  belegg rundt strengen som bekyttar mot korrosjon og ureinheiter.
Coatinga kan legge ein liten dempar på lyden, men over tid vil lydkvaliteten vare lenger. På biletet i midten har strengen ein sekskanta kjerne (hexa core), på det første biletet er det ei rund kjerne (round core). Strengar er laga i ulike materiale, under beskriv eg nokre akustiske strengetypar som ein kan få med og utan coating samt med rund eller sekskanta kjerne:

Bronsestrengar gir den klaraste og mest artikulerte tonen av alle metalstrengane. Skjønt ingen strengar er av rein bronse, men er ein miks av fleire ulike metall som tin-fosfor, sink og kopar. Strengekjernen er som regel laga av stål. Bronsestrengar er kjent for sin klarheit i øvre register, men dei gir også ein rik klang i nedre frekvensområde. Bakdelen med bronse er at det korroderer lett og mistar briljansen etter få timar med speling.

80/20 bronsestrengar består av 80% kopar og 20% sink. Kopar er svært korroderande, men sink bestanden sakkar ned korrosjonen og gjer strengen hardare. 80/20 strengar er kjent for sitt rike tonespekter og ”krisp” lyd. Strengane har bere få timars speletid før dei mistar sitt  tonespekter.

Fosfor/bronsestrengar vart utvikla for å ha lengre varigheit. Dei har omkring 75-80% av briljansen til eit nytt sett med 80/20 bronsestrengar. Dei er den strengetypen som gir varmast og mjukast lyd, samt at dei gir lite plekterlyd.

Stålstrengar har ein mjukare lyd og lågare volum enn bronsestrengane.

Titaniumstrengar har lang levetid. Det tonale spekteret er ein stad mellom stål  og bronse med ein eigen unik klarheit og rikdom.
          
Til tjukkare strengar - til meir masse må settast i bevegelse (som krever meir energi frå gitaristen), resultatet er meir lyd. Gitaren vert meir tungspelt med tjukkare strengar fordi strengen må strammast hardare for å oppnå same tonehøgd enn tynnare strengar. Dette fører til at gitarhalsen få eit hardare spenn, som igjen gjer at ein må stramme thursrodden når ein går opp i strengetjukkleik. Meir om dette seinare. Her som ofte elles må ein vege opp spelbarheit(funksjonalitet) kontra lydgjenngiving.


Litt om strengar til el-gitar på engelsk, henta frå The Hub:

How to Choose the Right Strings for Your Electric Guitar
Posted on Monday, 24 February 2014 21:31.

The strings on your electric guitar have a major impact on its sound and playability. If you’ve taken a look at the huge Musician’s Friend guitar string assortment, you’ve likely realized that there’s a lot to consider in figuring out which strings are right for you and your instrument. Read on to find the strings that best match your electric guitar, music, and playing style.
Every type of string has its own sonic qualities and playing characteristics. Exploring the options is a fun and rewarding part of creating your own signature sound.

Table of Contents
All About String Gauges
String Set Gauge Designations
Factors to Consider When Shopping for Electric Guitar Strings
String Gauge Playing Characteristics
String Durability
Electric Guitar String Construction Materials
Types of String Windings
Signs That it’s Time for a String Change
How Often Should Strings be Changed?
Some Other String Tips

​All About String GaugesElectric Guitar Strings are manufactured in a range of thicknesses or gauges. These gauges are designated in thousandths of an inch. The lightest strings are typically an .008 (often referred to by guitarists as an “eight”) and the heaviest a .56 (or fifty-six). String gauge has a big influence on playability and sound.
Lighter gauge strings:

• are generally easier to play
• allow easier bending of notes and fretting
• break more easily
• produce less volume and sustain
• are prone to cause fret buzzing, especially on guitars with low action
• exert less tension on the guitar neck and are a safe choice for vintage guitars

Heavier gauge strings:

• are generally harder to play
• require more finger pressure to fret and bend notes
• produce more volume and sustain
• are preferred for low tunings such as drop D
• exert more tension on the guitar neck

String Set Gauge Designations
Most string manufacturers identify the string gauges in a set using terms such as “extra light” or “heavy.” While the exact gauges may vary slightly among manufacturers, here are typical gauge ranges for electric guitar string sets:
Electric Guitar String Set Gauges

• “extra super light": .008 .010 .015 .021 .030 .038
• "super light": .009 .011 .016 .024 .032 .042
• "light": .010 .013 .017 .026 .036 .046
• "medium": .011 .015 .018 .026 .036 .050
• "heavy": .012 .016 .020 .032 .042 .054

String sets are sometimes identified by the gauge of the high E string—the smallest-gauge string. A “medium” set of electric guitar strings for example might be just identified as an “0.11 set”.
Factors to Consider When Shopping for Electric Guitar StringsThe most important factors to consider in shopping for electric guitar strings are:

• Your playing style and music genre
• How often you play
• The sound character and tone you want to achieve

The things that impact those factors are:

• String gauge
• String construction materials
• Type of string winding method
• Uncoated vs coated string treatments

We’ll next look at each of these variables to come up with the strings most likely to work for you and your guitar.
Electric Guitar String Gauge Playing CharacteristicsAs we discussed above, lighter strings are easier to play. If you aspire to be a shredder burning up the fretboard with lighting-fast leads and intense rhythm chording, you’ll want to use lighter gauges. That said, if you’re a metal player who uses detuned scales such drop-D tuning, heavier gauges are needed.
Blues and classic rock guitarists who use a lot of string bends often settle on medium gauges that combine reasonably easy bending with more sustain and fatter, richer, darker tone. Mainstream jazz guitarists typically use heavy-gauge flatwound strings since they don’t typically do a lot of note bending and want a broad tone spectrum.
Most new guitars come strung with super-light or light-gauge strings. For beginning players, that’s probably a good place to start. As you develop fretting and picking skills and your fingers gain calluses and strength, you may want to gradually move up to heavier strings, depending on the music you play and the tone you seek. Many guitar manufacturers make specific recommendations about what strings to use. Some produce their own strings or have them custom-manufactured to their specifications.

The key to finding the gauges that work best for your playing style is experimentation. Try various gauges, brands, and string compositions to find those that feel best to your fingers and are most pleasing to your ears.
Differences between various string types can be pretty subtle, but focusing on the nuances of touch and tone can help lead to your own signature sound.
Keep in mind that changing string gauges may require adjustments to your string height or “action” at the bridge saddles as well as adjustments to the nut and neck. Depending on your skill and the type of guitar you own, this may be better left to a guitar tech.

String DurabilityAnother factor to consider is the frequency with which you play. If you’re an occasional guitarist who plays just a few times a month and tend to play with a light touch, you may find less expensive strings perfectly suitable. On the other hand, if you’re devout about practice or play often and hard, premium-grade, heavy-duty strings may prove a better buy in the long run. Many manufacturers grade their strings according to their durability.
Electric Guitar String Construction MaterialsAll electric guitar strings are made using steel, nickel, or other magnetically conductive metal alloys since they’re essential for transmitting string vibrations to the magnetic pickups. The type of plating or coating applied to the steel alloy has a significant impact on the strings’ sound. Here are some general tonal characteristics of the most common types of strings:

• Nickel-Plated Steel: Balanced brightness and warmth with more attack
• Pure Nickel: Less bright than nickel-plated steel with added warmth
• Stainless Steel: Bright, crisp, “edgy” tone with sustain and corrosion resistance. Less prone to finger squeaks.
• Chrome: Warmth with less resonance; often chosen by jazz and blues guitarists
• Titanium: Fairly bright tone with excellent strength
• Cobalt: Wide dynamic range with notable brightness and pickup response
• Polymer-coated: Less sustain than equivalent uncoated strings; corrosion-resistant
• Color-coated: Some coatings have added colorants for visual appeal; tonality varies

Types of String WindingHigh E, B, and sometimes G strings are unwound. The other strings have a winding wire wrapped tightly around their cores. The method used to wrap the strings affects both tone and playability as noted below:

• Roundwound: The most popular winding method by far, they have a noticeable ridged texture and produce more sustain, attack, and “bite.” They tend to produce more finger noise and fretboard wear.
• Halfround: (also called groundround): Smoother texture with darker tone and less attack than roundwounds.
• Flatwound: Very smooth touch with flat, dark tone that’s less responsive to picking dynamics. Popular with jazz and blues guitarists.

Signs That it’s Time for a String Change

• Getting in tune and staying there is more challenging than usual.
• You’re seeing rust or discoloration on the strings.
• String wraps are unwinding exposing the core.
• Your tone sounds “flat” or “dead.”
• You can’t remember the last time you changed strings.

GHS Precision Flatwounds have a very smooth touch and their stainless steel construction offer highly energized pickups response.
How Often Should Strings be Changed?There is no stock answer, but here are some factors that shorten the life of your strings:

• You sweat a lot when playing; your perspiration is acidic.
• You play aggressively with a lot of bending and/or hard picking.
• You play frequently.
• You change tunings frequently.
• You smoke or play in smoky environments.

Some Other String Tips

• Keep a clean cloth handy and wipe down your strings after every playing session to prolong their life.
• Washing your hands before playing will help prevent string oxidation.
• Invest in a string winder; they’re inexpensive and speed up string changes.
• Note the date you changed strings on the package, then put it in your case to keep track of the age and type of strings you’re using.
• Buying single strings in bulk can be a smart, budget-friendly move, especially where light gauge strings you tend to break more frequently are concerned.
• Keep an extra set and a few high-register single strings in your case for emergency changes that you or a bandmate may need