How often do you change out your guitar strings? I sometimes like it when my strings get a lot of use of them. They lose their twang but I like playing around with the tones of old strings.

It all depends on the gauge for me. I usually play with heavy gauges since i play metal in drop c. And with the heavy's, I've noticed I don't get the best bending performance right off the bat. I need to work the strings in for 4 days to a week. Then they feel looser, and more productive. I change those about every month, or as soon as they break. Lighter gauges can be manipulated all over the neck, so for me they just need to be wiggled a couple times to give them a slight stretch, tune em', play them for a week or week 1/2 max and throw them out. I don't care much for lighter strings.

Man, and I thought I had to change strings often. I go through a set of bass strings about once a month. I like the old strings on some of my rock basses (like the old peavey), but when it comes to basses that get used for jazz and funk, I like being able to get a much broader range of tones and sounds, particularly bright ones that I can darken by palm muting or playing with my thumb.

As opposed to trying to brighten up dead strings, which still sound dead. I can mute new and bright strings and still have them sound clean and clear.

Lessee ... I changed strings on my Lakland almost three years ago. TI flats. They just sound so good and never seem to go dead. Of course they're flats to begin with and they lose a little top, but not enough to worry about. I juts got the Dingwall so I haven't had a chance to change 'em. When I was playing six nights a week and using Rotosounds, I guess I changed every two months or so.

I could never stand flats. I really couldn't get why people would want to have their strings sound deader in the first place, and I just don't feel comfortable playing with them. I feel like I have less dynamic control with them on an electric bass.

Now my uprights (even my EUB) of course always have flats on them. I change those about once every 5 years. That is, I've changed them once so far. And it was 5 years before they got changed. And I hope I don't start changing them any sooner, either. They're easily $200-$400 a set.

Have you ever tried Thomastik-Infeld Jazz Flats? They're quite nice -- not at all dull sounding. I started with Labella heavy gauge flst but eventually went to roundwounds (Rotosounds for about 15 years). When I started playing again I tried Rotos and really hated them. I finally settled on Lakland (GHS) nickel rounds and either TIs or D'Addario Chromes for flats. Chromes have more tension than the TIs and less midrange.

I don't really have a use for flats, but if I have some spare time, I may throw a set on my fender or on my peavey just for funsies. Thanks for the recommendation.

Only bad thing about TIs is the cost -- $65 for a 5-string set. Maybe $50 for a four-string set. But they last forever. None in Pittsburgh carries them. Justsstrings.com and Bass Emporium have decent prices online.

Ouch, that's not really a "try these and see what you think" price. Maybe once I've been out of school for a while.

I have at least one used set I'd be happy to give you. They're extra-long scale, though because they go through the body of my Lakland 35" scale. You'd just be missing a bit of snap from the top end 'cause they're about two years old.