Daddario ECG23

I was looking for the real Shadows - sound - the sound Hank Marvin produced with his Startocaster. I used a Strat, added some perfect echoes (the big secret) and I did not sound like Hank.
I read something about the early days and someone was mentioning that this special sound would only be produced with a faltwound string set - first I tried some with a bigger diameter but did not get the proper success - but even closer to the sound I wanted to get. A friend told me about these strings - I could not await the postman and I was really surprised: This is the original Shadows - sound! A bit harder to bend, but the fresh clean sound is worth every penny!
Of course the nut needed some rework.
A side effect: no fret noise anymore - great for clean soloing.

I have an old jazz archtop fitted with D'addario chromes - strings I haven't changed for years - and kept good with the occasional fast-fret application. I also have a now rare Yamaha AEX 500 jazz thinbody which plays beautifully but no matter what round wound strings I use, there's always that annoying string screech, especially when you're changing chord every half bar. The guitar construction is such that it doesn't suit heavier strings and so I decided to invest in the lightest gauge of D'addario chromes (010 on the first string) and see what improvement it gave. Voila! The screech is gone and the lighter strings don't overburden the guitar affecting set up and tuning. Also, the tonal balance is better and in the case of this particular guitar (a bridge piezo and a neck mini-humbucker), a sweetness on the lower strings that I couldn't get with the round-wounds. I tend to play classic, Great American Songbook type jazz through an acoustic amp and these string suit the style, the guitar and the player down to the ground.

Guitar strings (and drumsticks!) are guaranteed to provoke many a lively 'discussion' between musicians (and drummers - lol), but I'll give my thoughts for you to consider and/or ignore.
Flat wound strings are something you either love or hate. I hate the 'string squeak' you get from wire wound strings. I know that's partly down to technique (but I'm a drummer - what do you expect?). However, my Dad always used flat wound strings, and I've grown up preferring them also. You might get a little more treble from wire wounds, but you can also bet that from an amp or eq?
These strings were easy to fit, and very quickly 'settled in' (they didn't need more than one or two 'stretches' before they held their tuning.
Since fitting, the strings have kept reasonably good tuning, and played very well. If you want flat wounds (for whatever reason) then I'd recommend these.