D'AddarioGuitar Strings - XL Half Rounds Electric Guitar Strings - Semi-Flat Wound - Bright Tone, Smooth Feel, Reduced Finger Noise - EHR310 - Regular Light, 10-46

Love sliding on these strings. I have them on my acoustic, my strat, and my semi-hollow. They really outlast other strings at a great price. I just bought a set to replace the set i gave to a friend. That set was to replace the ones i put in my semi-hollow a year and a half ago. Still don't need it, probably won't need it very soon, but i like having the next set on hand. Whether it's the stainless steel, the reduced grooves to get gunk into, or a combination of the two, the longevity really makes them a great bargain even though you can get traditional strings for half the price. And, if you like to slide on the strings(either with a "slide" or bare fingered), you'll love them. A little mineral oil or fast fret, and you go so fast and smooth. Very little noise even without greasing up.

In their vast line of strings, I know of only one D’addario just got totally wrong (their Gypsy strings are terrible; what were they thinking?). These are not only terrific but needed.First: for me, the perfect compromise for those looking for a string that approximates the feel of a flat wound, more or less, but has a ton of sound. Good, rounded bottom, but they’re stainless steel, which is THE brightest string metal. I can’t imagine playing a round wound stainless string—would not only be unbearably bright (for me) but also would grind up your frets pretty quick. They got this one just right.Note: any flat or semi-flat is going to have greater tension than conventional strings of comparable diameter. Thus an 11-49 set is going feel more like an 11-53. And there’s a huge difference in the total tension of the 11-49 set and the 12-53, so factor that in.Finally: THESE CAN BE USED ON ACOUSTIC GUITARS. (Remind me somewhat of the sound the Beatles got with Pyramid Flats.). Obviously, not for everyone, but I use these on a couple 00/000 guitars, giving them a really unique (kinda bluesy) sound. A bit like Martin Retros but more interesting. A choice to consider for acoustic guitars with a magnetic sound hole pickup.

Look - they’re not as bright as phosphor bronze yet more highs than true flat wounds. I love the feel and the controlled tone, as I prefer the more mids and less tinny treble. Your preference and mileage may vary, yet I have these on tele, les paul, and big jazz body guitars. Tone varies from pickup types and playing styles and the half-rounds give me the tones I like. Don’t knock ‘em ‘til you’ve tried ‘em - and I say try ‘em!

I usually play DR Pure Blues strings, but the last few packs seemed a little off to me. I'd rather not make major adjustments to my neck and bridge every time I change strings. So, I decided to try something else.These half-round guitar strings are something else. They sound almost the same as a new set of Ernie Ball regular slinkies on my guitar, but they feel so much nicer. The entire reason I switched to the DR strings was they had a warmer tone that really compliments the brightness of my guitar, a heavily modified, maple-necked squier affinity strat with EMG-HZs. I usually played with the tone knobs on 9 with the DR strings, but now I find them around 6 to achieve a similar tone. So it's not quite as clear at the top end of the spectrum (I play through a modeler and a bass amp) but the mids and lows are very close.Now lets talk about the merits of these strings. First off, they feel super smooth. What turned me off of D'Addario's in the first place was how rough the strings were, and how many D strings broke halfway up the neck. I'm happy to report that the strings haven't broken, and are easily the smoothest strings I've ever played. They actually feel better than my bassist's tapewounds. Since they are half flat, there is no finger squeak for me, even when sliding barre chords up the neck. They hold tune quite well. I've tuned the guitar 3 times since I've put the strings on, and they've stayed in tune despite the floating bridge and stock tuners. And did I mention that the first 2 times were while I was installing and breaking in the strings? I've never had a set of string hold tune this well. *knock on guitar* As I've said before, the strings sound about as bright as regular roundwounds. So if you like that tone, definitely give these a try. I can't comment on longevity since I haven't had them long enough, but I will say that they are stainless steel, so rusting should not be a problem.Part of the reason that I switched to pure nickel wound strings is that they are easier on the frets. These stainless strings will wear your frets much faster than their nickel counterparts. The frets on the inexpensive necks are notoriously soft (and poorly leveled, but that's another topic) so the strings wear through them faster than say, stainless frets on a higher end instrument.I personally don't care for the tone of these strings, but the feel of them almost makes up for it. They are also kind of expensive, so if you like the feel of your roundwounds, stick with them, as these have nothing to offer you. But if you like the feel of flatwounds and the tone of roundwounds, these are a good string to try.EDIT 4/2013: I don't play that much during the winter, but the strings are just now starting to go dead. No corrosion or nastiness I'm used to with roundwound strings, but they are starting to sound dead and not stay in tune as well. (They still hold tune better than the DRs they replaced though.)

I have been playing on these strings since the early 80s. I mostly played Jazz/Rock/Funk Fusion. But I wound up playing a bunch of other things more main stream.. Like everyone else, I would either go between flats for Jazz or rounds for everything else. The first problem I had was the round wound strings would go dead. They would lose their brightness. To the point that I had to change them frequently. The next problem I had was I would have 3 different brands of strings depending on the gig/session. Then I found these. First thing is I did not have to change them very often. They would keep their brightness longer. They turned out to be more durable. I stopped going through frets. I did not have to change to flats to play Jazz band stuff. For distortion/high gain the output is smooth and consistent.Are they a trade off? Yes!!! If you play cover stuff, you may be limited as to what kind of players/sounds you can imitate. But in the long run these will save you time, money and setup time. Just keep them clean!

Bought an archtop in January 2024, and I've tried 6 or 8 different kinds/gauges of strings: flatwounds, roundwounds, and jazz tapes. Gone round and round. Rounds seem too bright for an archtop, and my fingers get stuck while sliding. Flats sound a bit dull to me and don't bend well. D'addario Half-Rounds are the perfect intermediate string. Bright but not too bright; they bend; and my fingers can slide easily. Great strings! Love 'em!