Using amplitube 5 without changing old strings?

[HyperActive7]

I have been playing my electric guitar without an amp for 1.5 years and I have never changed the strings. I started using Amplitube 5 and I have a question in mind. Could I be getting poor quality sound because I haven't changed my strings? How important is it to switch strings when using amp simulators?

thanks

[Boogieshoes]

Old strings left even unplayed will dull over time.

5 Years if you play regularly is a long time and if you don’t clean the strings then even more so… have you run a fingernail under the lower side of the string next to the frets… can you feel notches in the wound strings… does gunk come off on your nail?

New strings of the right gauge (do you know what gauge are on the guitar) can take a day or two to settle down when correctly fitted. Some people don’t like the ‘zing’ of new strings as well, but that soon goes off unless you use coated strings like Elixer.

[Peter_IK]

Agreed and I'm someone who doesn't change strings all the time. Five years is too long, though. Even sitting around they're probably a little crusty from just the environmental aspects unless you are in a perfect environment.

Personally I do not like brand new strings but playing them to break them in is an excuse to play! Like my wife says to other people, I play constantly even if it isn't formalized practicing (and she's not upset about it as she's also very musical) so they get broken in pretty quickly.

[carlaz]

Agreed and I'm someone who doesn't change strings all the time. Five years is too long, though.

I'm another player who is guilty of not changing strings often enough, but Peter_Ik speaketh the truth: 5 years is too long.

You will find a lot of (probably vaguely confusing or inconsistent) advice online, but I would think that if you are only playing a few hours per week, then changing strings every 3-6 months might be OK; if you play "a lot" of hours every week, then changing strings every month or so might be better. (And, then, if you are a full-time gigging musician, then changing strings every week or every gig might be better!).

New strings will benefit from a little "breaking in", just so they settle down and stay in tune better, but an hour or so of playing will probably do that. (People seem divided over the idea of "pre-stretching" when installing new strings, but maybe that helps, too.). Even if you are just playing casually to amuse yourself, you'll probably get better tuning stability and tone from relatively new strings (and, thus, you will amuse yourself better. ) If you are doing home-recording or something, newer strings will be a bit brighter and snappier (as well as more stable) and that will usaully help the guitar sit better in a mix.

And, yes, unless you are actually James Jamerson , bass players should also change string regularly. For most any kind of rock (and certainly for contemporary metal), the bass needs some high-frequency bite to cut through the mix, and that will be aided substantially by brighter, newer strings.

People report varied mileage with coated strings, though they're something you could try if you are a relatively infrequent player who wants strings to last longer. I don't play my acoustic as often as my electrics, and I mostly use it for strumming chords that reinforce electric rhythm parts in recordings, so I have coated strings on it (but not on my electrics).

[OldIKUser1]

Is there any reason I appear the be the only one who can see that the OP stated 1.5 years NOT 5 years? Just asking.

[carlaz]

OK! But 1.5 years is still too long.

[Peter_IK]

Yes, still too long. I was adding on to the first reply but I didn't realize the discrepancy either.

And again, still too long.