Light or medium guage

[Joel Shepard]

Taking my recently purchased Epi MM-50 to have setup. Being new to the Mandolin world was wanting opinions on strings for a beginner. Not for quality of sound at this point, but for ease of play. Will go for sound once I learn it a bit.

[UsuallyPickin]

Go with a lighter gauge string until you get some calluses built up. Then switch to a medium gauge string. Download Rob Meldrum's free mandolin set up book here on the café. As a newbie it is needed reading...... enjoy your mandolin journey. Attached is a list of things I recommend to new to mandolin players. R/

1. Learn both open and closed position scales and arpeggios.
2. Take lessons from a mandolinist in the style you want to play.
3. Every time you pick up your mandolin tune it.
4. Play everyday … a lot of what you are learning is muscle memory.
4. Keep a loose wrist and fingers. Tension is both a short term and long term problem.
5. Hold your pick at 90' to the side of your thumb.
6. Do a lot of active ,with mandolin in hand, and passive, while doing other things , listening to mandolin players.
7. Learn fiddle tunes. Then learn to play them in odd keys. Not to befuddle your jam mates but to really learn the fingerboard.
8. Find a jam to play with folks. It's the best way to dive in to playing.
9. Start practicing tremolo and crosspicking early on. Right hand control is crucial to tone production as well as keeping your play interesting.
10. If you don't already know basic music theory, learn it. It will help you evolve as a mandolinist and as a musician.

[Tmcmakin]

Light gauge to start them as you get accustomed to finger positions and calluses build up,move to mediums. The switch may result in a need to change your mandolin setup a little.

[pops1]

For me it would depend on the setup. Light gauge strings won't be able to have as low action as heavier strings. If the setup is good with level frets you can get a low enough action with heavier strings that it will play very easy, stay in tune better and sound better. Strings are not that expensive try both and see what works for you. I need an easy playing mandolin because or arthritis in my hands and wrists, I use 11-41 with a very low action and my mandolin plays very easy, plus I get to enjoy the sound these strings give the instrument.

[mandroid]

Light being 10 - 38.. 11-41 medium , bumping the E up to . 115" is a heavier tension, at pitch..

[lflngpicker]

I like medium gauge for most mandolins, generally 11-40. I do enjoy the medium-heavy D'Addario 11.5-41 gauge phosphor bronze on my J Bovier F5.