I never learn

[Br1ck]

I have over the years learned to do setups on my instrument, done repairs and a fret job or three, and even built an F style, so the fact it is even plausible that I wouldn't troubleshoot any issue whatsoever by starting with the strings is incomprehensible to me, yet here it is.

I was hearing a degradation in tone as I played up the neck. It was more pronounced as I crossed the 12th fret. Must be fret related, or a bridge issue. Humm, much thought. Was at a friend's, so asked his opinion. First question, how old are the strings? Was it two months? Three? But at average three hours a day, two months would be a lot of hours.

Duh. Guess what solved the problem. This is akin to making sure your electric guitar is plugged in.

[pops1]

Simple test for strings is slide you fingernail under the wound strings. if you can feel a bump where the frets are it's time to change.

[Randi Gormley]

Yeah, human error. I spent 2 days trying to trouble shoot my computer -- it was in the dock but i just could NOT get it to work on the big screen although it worked fine on the laptop and finally flagged down an IT guy who walked over and -- yup, turned ON the screen.

[stevo58]

In the mid 80s I was doing heavy-duty C programming on Vax and Unix systems, using a PC-XT as a terminal. I couldn’t boot one day and called support. He came, checked a few things, and plugged my PC in. I was embarrassed, and said “That probably happens a lot.” He replied, “ Yes, but that’s the first time
for a programmer.”

Since then I always check the obvious things first.

Steven

[JeffD]

Here is my rules of thumb. If I think the strings need changing I change them. If I think the strings might possibly need changing, I change them. If I wonder if the strings might need changing, I change them. If it is not obvious that the strings do not need changing, I change them.

[Jess L.]

In the mid 80s I was doing heavy-duty C programming on Vax and Unix systems, using a PC-XT as a terminal. I couldn't boot one day and called support. He came, checked a few things, and plugged my PC in. I was embarrassed, and said "That probably happens a lot." He replied, "Yes, but that's the first time for a programmer."

Since then I always check the obvious things first.

That's a cool story!

I'm not a programmer, just a tinkerer, but in previous years I used to like to think I knew a thing or two about computers. I came to find out different, when one time I actually did the proverbially-obvious thing of plugging a power strip into itself, as a result of rearranging a bunch of my stuff and adding yet another peripheral... there was such a complete rat's nest of wires and cables behind my computer cabinets that it was hard to know which wires were going where (yeah I know, that's a problem in itself, but I had never before had reason to bother with making it more organized). But that day I spent the rest of the afternoon trying to figure out why some of my peripheral gadgets had completely ceased to work. That was back in the days of the well-known "SCSI voodoo" on Mac, and I just assumed I had the SCSI devices' order or termination wrong (common problems back then). Didn't even occur to me that it might have been something as simple as ensuring the darn things had the necessary electric current going to them, I just took it for granted that they were plugged in, because, well why wouldn't they be? Lol! Live and learn!

Here is my rules of thumb. If I think the strings need changing I change them. If I think the strings might possibly need changing, I change them. If I wonder if the strings might need changing, I change them. If it is not obvious that the strings do not need changing, I change them.

You're wise. However, I'm the opposite, I typically change strings only a last resort when I simply can't stand the sound/behavior of the darn things anymore. A definite character flaw of mine, for sure. Probably helps that I almost exclusively play in first position (fiddle tune melody stuff, little to no chord work aside from a few double stops), so as long as the intonation on frets 1-5 is acceptable, that's adequate for my purposes. (Actually that's mostly frets *2* through 5, as I very very seldom play in flat keys or anything else involving the first fret, it just isn't required in the stuff I play, so correct intonation seems easier to achieve in that limited range of the fretboard.)

[Timbofood]

If I feel like changing them and it been a year AND there’s a gig coming up, I MIGHT, might change them.

[MikeZito]

When I was first learning to play (self-taught) I had no idea that you were supposed to change the strings! I thought that as long as the string wasn't broken, it was good . . . but then, (surprise), about a year later, my guitar simply would not stay in tune. - so (thinking the guitar had somehow gone bad) I got rid of it and bought a new one! Luckily, I caught on to the fine art and necessity of string changes, before yearly instrument replacements became a habit of ignorance.

Live and learn . . . .

[CES]

I change strings when my A strings start getting finicky to tune. I usually wait too long, ie, waiting until they’re driving me totally nuts. For the record, it takes EJ 75s longer to get to this point than EJ 74s...

[Br1ck]

The other sure clue is one day you are playing and you think to yourself, man I need a better mandolin. Change strings immediately.

[John Bertotti]

A few years ago I put NYXL strings on my Penguin. 9 months later I have a weird buzz, wrap leather above the nut below the bridge. pull out my feeler gages check string height pup height nut slots bridge slots frets, change string buzz gone. This has happened twice with these strings. Funny thing is the new strings sounded no better or worse than the 9-month-old strings they just didn't buzz. I use a wound G and I wonder if wraps just loosen enough to touch a fret over time. No matter it has TI on it now as well. This has not happened to me on a mandolin yet. But one day on my Vega bowl back I poked my finger on a string at about the 5th fret, blood comes and I am left wondering how the heck did I do that then I notice the wraps are worn through to the inside string on about 7 frets! I guess I left those on to long.