What are your experiences with these strings?

When I bought a MIM a few months ago, a friend gave me some Elixir Nano's because it was a new strat to me, I just thought it had a great sound to it and didn't give the strings any credit.

I like bright strings, and I like sustain and the Elixirs were exactly what I was hoping for.

Recently while purchasing strings, I asked for Elixirs and the guy at the store told me he stopped stocking them because Cleartone were so much better. I also remembered a couple of Guitar Center employees trying to sell them to me a few times. So I gave them a try. I used the same gauges.

To my surprise, the cleartones sounded dead and had little sustain. They really did not sound good to me at all. In addition, after playing them for maybe 15 minutes, my fingertips were black, which never happens with Elixir Nano's.

I took them off after trying them for a few days. All I had laying around were DR Blues which I like as well.

But after putting the Nano's back on, I am back to the tone that I am used to and love. Far more sustain and a more comfortable playing string for me.

Are you all having the same experience with the Cleartones? Is there more of a price margin, is that why the stores are pushing them? What's the deal?

I haven't tried the Cleartones yet, but after having worked for GC for a number of years, I've learned that things get pushed because there is a bigger profit margin. While it could be great making the extra money, in good conscience I couldn't push something I didn't care for/believe in.

That said, I've been using the DR Pure Blues for years and absolutely love them. I tried a set of the GHS David Gilmour on my strat and love those as well so now the Strats get the Gilmour's and the Les Paul keeps the DR's.

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The mind is like a parachute; it doesn't work unless its open-FZ

Dr Blues-same here +1............. Mike

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The blues ain't nothin but a good man feelin bad.

I'm a DR(tele) and GHS Gilmour(strats) man too!!

I don't know about strings mentioned in the OP but I can tell you this...

I used EB for a few years, then went to GHS Boomers for a few years. Tonight I've decided that I like the sound of the D'Adario EXL120s better still so I'll be switching to those.

i switched to d'addarios a while back and have loved them

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I like my tone like my women. Full round bottom, sweet and clean but can get as dirty as I desire.

+1 cherokee
+1 fhopkins

Strings like cleartone and elixir have plastic coatings on them making them very different from regular strings. I don't have any experience with cleartone but after playing the elixirs I went back to Ernie Ball (this was years ago). I just remember it feeling weird under my fingers. It's nice how the coating stopped the strings from corroding, though.

Now I play DRs... So much better. But you've rekindled my interest in checking out a few packs of these strings again...

I played Elixirs for almost 10 years. Then a few months ago, I got a new Am Spec Telecaster and when I was at the store discovered the Gilmour strings. I was curious because I liked the idea of the varying string gauges.

I honestly have no idea why I hooked onto those Elixirs for so long. The stupid Gilmour strings are just GHS strings which have been available to me during all that time. And they sounded, to my ear, so much better.

No more coated strings for me ever again. Not sure why I went down that path but my tone is much better now.

I have tried the Elixir Nano's, the Cleartone's, and DR's. I disliked all of them and went back to making my own sets from Dean Markley Blue Steel and Dean Markley Flatwound's.

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Chet Feathers

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I didn't Lose my mind, I traded it for this guitar.

This hybrid set sounds interesting. So 4, 5 and 6 are flatwounds? Curious what gauges? Do you think the cryo treatment really makes a difference?