D’Addario NYXL Electric Guitar Strings – NYXL1052-3P

back in the early ’80s, I was an Ernie Ball guy, and then in the ’90s I switched to D’Addario, but when I finally switched to exclusively 10-46, I switched back to Ernie Ball. These went on my Strat, Jackson and Variax. Then, last year, I bought a Strandberg Boden, and I kept snapping my high E, because the ball kept unwinding in the saddle. I went through 3 sets of Ernie Ball 10’s in a week! Since the OEM string was the D’Addario NYXL, I thought I would give them a try, as I liked D’Addario in the past. WOW, these things are a dream, and so smooth to play on, and the ball end stays intact. My first impression was the velvety feeling package they came in, but to my surprise, the strings had the same effect. The Strandberg has narrow stainless steel frets, which was a very different feel for me, but only the NYXL strings feel right on it. It’s amazing how different brands of strings can feel. Additionally, when doing the intonation on the Strandberg, I noticed that the tone was more stable, making it easier to dial in the intonation to perfection. I am completely sold, and though I still have EBs on the other guitars, I will likely be using NYXL exclusively, once I run out of my EB 10s. Yes, these strings are a bit more expensive, but are they worth it? I suggest buying one set and trying them on your main guitar and then forming your own opinion. But for me, the answer is yes.

Notes sounds nice, feel good. Easy on the fingers.

Very unstable tuning, chords sound terrible.

I like D’Addario strings. I’ve been using their “XL Nickel Wound Electric Guitar Strings, Light Top/Heavy Bottom, 8 String Gauge 10-74” for several years now on my Ibanex RG8. I’ve always been a little disappointed that there isn’t enough tension on my low 8th string, tuned to a low E. I get fret buzz with it. I hesitated on these because I worried that the thicker gauge wouldn’t fit through the machine head. Plus they cost more than double. Finally I decided it was time to try them.

Bottom line: not that much different from the cheaper 10-74s.

Sound: I can’t tell a difference.

Gauge: I definitely prefer the 80 over the 74 (and would probably prefer something heavier than 80), but I do not like that the rest of the strings are lighter, particularly the low B and E.

Does the 80 fit in the machine head: yes! (the last couple inches are tapered and that tapered part fits through; the rest of the 80 gauge string does not, but it’s actually just the perfect amount to wind the string).

Value: more than I want to pay, not worth the extra cost.

Now, I’ll probably buy these again because I like the 80 gauge string for the low E, and maybe enough that it’s an acceptable trade off to having lower gauges on the other 7, but I don’t feel like I’ve totally converted to a new set. For now I see these as a more expensive string set that doesn’t meet the expectation set by the price. I think these are a little overrated.

My main 6-string tuning is C# standard. On a 25.5″ scale guitar, these 11-56s provide the perfect tension for that tuning. The quality is consistently great. I have opened one rusty string in all my time playing NYXL, and I’ve been playing them since they were introduced. So I won’t even count that. The sound is snappy but not too bright. My Strandberg Boden NX Standard came with NYXLs on it, and I have yet to change them 6 months later – and I am recording an album with that guitar right now. If you take care of your guitars and you don’t have oily hands, they can last up to 8 months. Seriously. Change your strings more often than I do though, folks.

TL;DR: These things are some sort of magic steel forged from Dwarven Mithril. The hype is real, D’addario are string wizards.

Like a lot of guitarists, I never really cared that much about strings. Sure I’ve had packs that I liked more than others, sure I have a gauge that I prefer, but I was never overly picky and never saw the point in buying expensive strings. In fact, I had a bad experience with some premium Elixers years and years ago that probably wasn’t indicative of how good Elixer strings actually are, but it pretty much put me off of ever buying strings priced over $5.

After recently having multiple strings break while restringing with more affordable strings, I decided to finally give NYXL strings a try. I’ve always heard that they are really good but never gave in to the hype.

It’s kind of hard to accurately describe these strings. They are phenomenal really. They have a feel that no other string I’ve tried has. There’s like a slightly tighter tension there, but the resistance is still at the level I want for bending. I like 10s because I want easier bends, but still have more push back and resistance than a set of 9s (which feel like spaghetti noodles to me). These things feel almost like the tension of 11s (which I used to use for many years until I realized they were killing my fingers) but are so easy to play. They almost have like a very slightly waxy feel, which honestly feels amazing under your fingers. It probably sounds silly but they honestly do have a premium feel to them. I had zero issues stringing these up, and didn’t need to pre-stretch them near as much as other strings I’ve used. They also just straight up stay in tune. I’ve only had to retune my LP slightly, and my Tele is rock solid. I can imagine these working really well for trems.

I normally can’t tell the difference between how strings sound. Since I’ve switched from 11s to 10s I can’t tell a difference from either gauge besides feel. But these strings are obviously louder with a punchier mid range. Personally I’m not a huge fan of how bright and shrill a brand new set of strings can be, but these don’t have that issue. The bright treble is definitely there, but the mid range is so much more pronounced, which is what I like personally. I never thought I’d prefer the sound of one set of strings to another, but these really do make my guitars sound the way I feel they were meant to sound. They really fill out to sound of my Tele as well which was a pleasant surprise.

I’ve been playing these for hours on end on both my Tele and LP for almost a week now while playing at home and rehearsal in my band. I can’t see any real signs of wear. Normally around this time I’ve worn in a new set of strings pretty thoroughly but this are still pretty close to looking new. More importantly they still sound just as bright as a fresh pack.

The fact that D’addario offers a points reward system as well is pretty awesome. Seems like for every 8 packs I can get a free pack of these, which is more than I can say for any other brand.

Long story short, the hype is real. Yes these are at a premium price, but with how long they last, how great they sound, how long they sound great, and how great they feel, it’s really a no brainer. These strings truly are amazing. I won’t string any of my electric guitars with anything else now that I’ve tried these.

Can’t go wrong with these. They last a good amount of time. The coating doesn’t feel overbearing. Love the size options. They are comfortable and don’t get that gross penny smell. They sound bright and full. All in all great for my gretsch.