You might have been in a situation where you\u2019re playing a song on an acoustic and a string breaks. The only pack you have on hand is a spare set of electric guitar strings. What should you do? Will it hurt your acoustic guitar? Long story short, not necessarily. It will just sound different.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In this guide, we\u2019ll discuss the difference between acoustic guitar strings and electric guitar strings, hear what they sound like, and ultimately answer the question, Can I use electric guitar strings on my acoustic guitar? Follow the sections below to get started.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Before we dive in, you need to understand string material and gauge, as they play an essential role in whether or not you can use electric strings on an acoustic guitar. Electric guitar and acoustic guitar string materials are much different. While they both typically have the same steel core, the material wound around the core is different. The average string gauge also plays a relatively important factor. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Let\u2019s go over the differences between the two. One consideration is the string gauge. Standard acoustic gauges and electric gauges are pretty different, so it\u2019s good to check individual string gauges if you\u2019re going to do a swap. If this is the case, you may have to buy individual strings. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Electric guitar strings are typically made of steel, nickel\/steel alloy, pure nickel, or other ferromagnetic material because these materials are best at producing electrical signals from the magnetism of your guitar pickups. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The electric guitar string gauge is often lighter, with the standard factory string gauge being about .009 or .010. Lighter string gauges require less tension, which makes bending the strings easier. It also requires less pressure to produce a note.<\/p>\n\n\n\n