How to help a muddy guitar sound — part III

Our friend Nicola Linde sent me this excellent message apropos of muddy guitar tones; with her kind permission, I’m reproducing it here for your edification!

Just read your Jamie’s list today … and I have another thing to mention/think about when talking muddy electric tone.

String gauge.

I used to pride myself on playing 11s on my electric. They’re fat and beefy. They’re slightly more durable for heavy strummers like myself. They get great low end. And they’re badass (or so I was told as a young player).

But my tone always sucked. Always muddy. Regardless of pickup/amp combination.

Most electric guitars are sold from the factory with 10s. That’s what they’re set up for out of the box (I worked 6 years in a guitar store in the early 2000s and that was the case then also).

I recently switched back to 10s and already hear way more clarity in tone. Eventually, I will probably move down to 9s.

Keeping in mind with every gauge change you need a setup to check your action and intonation, as the gauge affects the tension on the truss rod in the neck.

I thought this might be helpful for DIY guitar player/engineers to know. It’s kinda the opposite of what you’d expect. I’d expect thinner string = thinner tone. Not the case though!

Thanks Nicola 🖤 — jamie