Ultimate Rhoads

Can anyone tell me the strings Randy used for his Custom LP? I want to get my Epiphone as close to Randy's LP as possible.

i think in england it was piccato strings and in the us it was ghs?i may be wrong but thats what i remember as far as his strings also a heavy gauge too axe...

Aye. 11s, I believe.

11s half step down
10s in standard

10's He switched to those from 9's because they wouldn't take his "abuse" of his wide vibrato (fingers) or leads when he would go back to chords and they would stay in tune. Not sure where you got the 11's story - I never heard that. He kept certain guitars in E and others in Eb. He didn't retune but switched between songs. His philosophy was that most bands played in E, B or A, creating the same tension or feeling (like Iron Maiden - live after death) song after song that produces boredom. With having guitars/basses to 2 different keys, you could play one song in E and the next in Eb and have it sound unique!

THANKS! I want my new LP to be as close to his as possible.

He used 10's for standard tuning, and 11's for half step tuning. That way the strings would feel about the same when playing.

Cryptic Night wrote:He used 10's for standard tuning, and 11's for half step tuning. That way the strings would feel about the same when playing.

Thats pretty Cool,Ive never thought of that or heard that idea,Cool!

Ya know,I often wonder if Guitar strings are made the same way or of thesame material as in 1980??? Because I have come across Old drum heads from that era & they look very similar but are definatly a bit different & absoulutly have quite a different sound,Cymbals too.Just a thought.

Well it makes sense. The string gauges become thicker, thus creating more tension, and so when you tune down the strings would normally become very loose and "flabby" and lose a lot of attack. So, if you use thicker strings, they feel and sound as if you were using 10's in standard tuning, when in reality you are using 11's in half step tuning.


Basically, the thicker the strings are, the lower you can tune your guitar without it sounding weak.

GHS I do beleive..10s and 11s live and possibly 9s in the studio but who knows...