How to Change Classical Guitar Strings (step by step restring)

[@ClassicalGuitarShed]

Read More about How to Change Your Strings: ClassicalGuitarShed.com/change-classical-guitar-strings/

[@ChasWilson1]

Thanks, this helps a lot!

[@AlanBram]

I watch this over again every time I'm about to change strings. Love it!

[@vincentmaloney5835]

I also watched several times. I am a slow learner. LOL

[@theghostoftama7013]

I cannot even begin to explain how helpful this video was. I kept putting this video off because of how long it seemed but after listening carefully and doing it, it really wasn't as bad as it looked. This is such a lifesaver

[@vincentmaloney5835]

This is the best video about restringing classical guitar. Before I take off old strings, following Your advice, using the dropper I put a little oil on the wheels of Tuning Pegs. Also: each time right after I take off old strings, I wipe the fretboard with Ernie Ball Wonder Wipes Fretboard Conditioner. I wait a couple of hours for the fretboard to get dry. Only after that I start installing the new strings. Thank You so much for Your help.

[@aldorechiasson]

Excellent tutorial! I kept putting off changing my strings because I was a little intimidated by the process but today was the day! I was able to get the strings on my guitar and everything seems perfect, this video made the process incredibly easy! I was not done in 16 minutes or anything and had to go back once or twice to make sure I was doing it right but I have to say for it being my first time changing classical guitar strings I am quite pleased! Thank you!

[@irvinretiz]

I’m barely going to begin learning how to play the guitar but I had to change the strings on this guitar my sister gave me and it was the first time I’ve ever done this and Allen made it super easy and explained everything really well. Thank you!!

[@ahmedidrissi7287]

I like your patience and attention to details

[@davidmorley6414]

This is the best video I have seen for clarity in the explanation of how to restring a classical guitar. It matches the excellence of the lessons given by Allen Matthews elsewhere on his website. Great stuff. Thank you.

[@georgescarlett2320]

Better, from C.F.Martin: kzbin.info/www/bejne/j6mUenpvaNh4qZY&ab_channel=MartinGuitar

[@1retos]

now i only need to know how to actually play a guitar and im good to go

[@juffurey]

So how's that going so far?

[@1retos]

@@juffurey not too bad actually haha, shouldve been more consistent with the practicing tho

[@juffurey]

@@1retos nice! Keep it going dude

[@motorbikeray]

(13:20) I'm glad that you remembered to mention first putting a card or piece of paper on the guitar body next to the bridge before changing strings. Doing so really does help reduce the chances of the guitar's top getting scratched up by the ends of the low E, A, and D strings. I use blue painters tape to protect that area before changing guitar strings.

[@windsorwoman]

"Smoosh it around like that with your finger" good technical description. Thanks for all the videos, Allen.

[@amandagrayson389]

Thanks so much for this video, Allen. I remember changing strings when I was a teenager and having to just figure it out on my own. I was never very comfortable with it. Now I have all these tools, including your great videos! Thanks again!

[@wolcottwu756]

Your presentations are expert, clear, natural and imteresting.

[@johannbach1903]

I change strings all the time on my electric guitars & this was my first classical. I was intimidated until I watched your video. Thanks for the info. 👍

[@poulbjrnberg378]

Thanks for showing it real nice and slow so you can actually see what happens. This is the best tutorial I have seen on this topic.

[@Bear4Bug]

Today I changed the strings on my classical guitar successfully for the first time thanks to this video, thank you!!

[@sugarmaven]

Just changed my first ball-less strings! I'll keep you posted. Thanks!

[@MAZiese]

Allen, really enjoy all of your presentations/lessons here on KZbin. Always filled with great suggestions on how to approach studying and practicing classical guitar. However I have a bone to pick with you on your comment of saying it really doesn't matter which strings you use on you classical guitar. I will agree it doesn't matter who's make or brand you use, but yes it can matter which "tension" and which composite string you put on your guitar. There are several considerations that a player should take into account when purchasing the strings they use. 1) Most standard classical guitars have a standard "scale' length of 650mm or in layman terms 25.59 inches. Also there are shorter scale (640mm or 630mm) Student or Parlor models. And the strings you would normally put on the "standard" 650mm don't play and sound as well on a shorter scale length guitar. As a general rule a "higher" tension will work and sound best on these "shorter" scale guitars, and conversely a "normal" or "light" tension string will sound best on a "standard" (650mm) length guitar. My parlor guitar sounds best with high tension and my Spanish made standard scale sounds best with normal tension. 2) It also depends on the style of playing you do... standard classical pieces or flamenco... Most flamenco players will use a "higher" tension string because of the method of playing (the way they attack/strike the strings). This is especially true when a flamenco piece utilizes lots of picados and rasgueados. Classical pieces such as Bach or Giuliani, Sor or Carcassi and most Renaissance pieces a normal or even light tension strings will work for the style of playing in these genre. 3) Also there is a risk of possibly and I say "possibly" damaging your instrument if it was not built to handle the extra amount of tension (pull on the bridge plate) these strings can exert. 4) Another factor to take into consideration is the ability of the player themselves. An experienced player who has been playing for years can and should be able to handle the little bit more exertion that will be required of their fingering, both left and right hands. Barr Cords require the strengthening of the index finger, especially if it across all six strings. And plucking the strings to get the best tone also requires strengthening the Index, Medius and Annaluris fingers (I, M and A). A beginner or student would probably be best suited for light to normal tension strings. 5) Also when choosing strings, there are bronze and silver wound bass strings. Bronze have a somewhat warmer tone, silvers tend to be more is bright in tonality. And then there are the higher strings (3,2, and 1) your G, B and E strings and the materials used in their composition. Some are normal nylon, then there is carbon and some are composites. There is a lot to take into consideration when choosing. I would suggest asking your instructor or luthier or the maker of the guitar which may be best for the type of player you are. Do the research is what I tell everyone and also get ready to try different brand and types before you find the ones that work for you and your style of playing.

[@davidwilliama.7296]

This is a great tutorial. It is clear and shows things close up. However, I still hate putting on new strings because I feel the pressure as I tune it up. My palms sweat and I get very nervous. I don't have much to fear because strings rarely snap, especially when they're new, and I only had one snap and make a mark on my hand when I was a kid, but that was because I was stupid and kept tuning it up and up because I was curious what would happen. That memory sticks with me to this day. I know I have nothing to fear, and yet I still feel lots of anxiety when restringing a guitar. It's why I don't change my strings very often. I am currently restringing my guitar, but I have to take a break after a couple of minutes because the anxiety builds up and I have to stop to calm down. I especially get nervous when I'm tuning it up and all of a sudden the note goes down. I am not sure if I did something wrong or if it's just part of the process. There are much more dangerous things that I don't fear, but for some reason I can't seem to not get anxious when restringing my guitar.

[@LiamEserda]

Looks like you have a PTSS because of a bad experience in your childhood with a certain string. I sometimes get scared up when tuning my steel string acoustic guitar when it sounds like a string is going te break. Scared of being hurt by a string when it breaks. I always keep my face and in particular my eyes not to close to the strings. Also with restringing; be aware of unpacking the strings carefully and of the loose/slack ends of the strings in particular steel strings! All strings can swing in your face; so with glasses you have already a certain protection otherwise wear safety goggles. Good luck!

[@pyromind9169]

The reason for the pitch going down suddenly is that the string is sliding. The tension has to be transfered to the part you wound around the plastic "bar". That happens through the string sliding. So nothing to worry about ;)

[@TheGeniuschrist]

I bought a nylon string- it's been great for practice hours- Thanks for putting this video up

[@1946gsp]

Best advice ever on anchoring the strings at the bridge

[@davidfelber]

Thank you. You walked me through the first restringing of my classical guitar, which I’ve been avoiding. I’ve restrung my steel string guitar and mandolin so many times, but this was a new frontier. Of course, my high E string slipped out AFTER I’d clipped it, which resulted in a lot of questionable language on my part. But I replaced it, and boom, there you go. You’re my hero. Stay well.

[@bhd4477]

Brilliant, honestly the best tutorial I’ve seen for this!

[@ottonelly]

Every time I find myself watching this tutorial when strings need to be changed and replaced the exact way you show. Well explained and simplified. You're a man of details!

[@Midna81]

I thoroughly enjoyed this string changing adventure!!

[@martindavidson2071]

Thank you. Whilst Ive been a guitarist for many years its been all steel string and I bought my first classical last night. It was second hand so i decided to change the strings. Luckily i bought a three pack, and went through two sets of these watching other youtube videos before coming across this. Im now in classical nirvana -:)

[@Thomas-we3ed]

I've been changing my strings wrong since I started playing (6 months). I'm happy to have watched this. Thank you!

[@alex-sd]

This was the best video I found but I preferred how my Yamaha classical guitar's knots at the bridge was done.

[@jaredb6378]

Yamaha C40 model?

[@alex-sd]

C45MA

[@amado9772]

Fantastic! Love the logic and the easy going sense of humor that makes one not take it so seriously and realize, have fun. Thank you.

[@franktriggs]

For the unwound nylon strings, I put the string through the bridge, then tie a knot at the end of the string, pull on the end with a pair of pliers to get it tight, then use a lighter on the very end, to ever so slightly melt the knot, for a second only. Then tie the knot around the bridge. This stops the nylons from slipping at all, and they stay in tune better. It gives you a ball at the end of the string to stop slippage.

[@elvira250]

Thank You, I had doubts how to string my guitar.

[@mangear2851]

Thank you. The best explanation I could find. Very smooth and stress-free. Nicely done.

[@susangoldsmith]

Excellent! After fifty years of doing this I picked up some great tips. Also love your comment on don't be eating brie with your hands (then play)!

[@john3music]

Thanks for the video. I used your method changing my classical guitar strings for the first time. Worked great.

[@klarinutte]

Thank you Allen. The perfect video instruction for changing strings. Not too long not too short.

[@vincentg.7499]

Thank you so much! Im a beginner and this is the first time I've ever had to fix my string, this video is short for what it needs to accomplish and yet very informative, you definitely earned a sub

[@mikebarnes7657]

Thank you for your clear and concise lesson... !!!

[@ChrisHaas1]

Thanks for this video! As a beginner I was having trouble getting my high E string knot to stay tight, but that double loop through the bridge did the trick!!

[@kayladeewhite6360]

Thank you so much for this. I watched a couple other tutorials and still had questions, so the detail you provided here really helped!

[@Антон-ы3ь]

Thanks, a lot! A was going to check several videos to collect all usefull pieces of advice and that was the first. And i don't need to watch anything else. I am a guitar stringer now!

[@ianhutch8940]

Five star tutorial. Thank you very much!

[@user-ol4np3yb8p]

These knots are just awesome, especially looping that high e, restringing became so much easier with this tutorial, subbed instantly.

[@James-nr9gm]

Great tutorial! Did my first following diagrams out of my method book and got pretty close to this, but this really filled in a couple missing gaps!

[@tomanderson848]

Excellent help as usual Allen. Thank you very much!

[@HopHeadSeattle]

Awesome video, thanks so much for all the helpful tips! After watching this, it only took me about six tries to get it right - but that's because I'm such a klutz haha. Really appreciate your putting this together & leading us through in such a coherent way!

[@maxcase7347]

Best video I’ve seen on this!

[@58MrMike]

Good job! Learned a few new techniques

[@Calletobefree]

There's a technique you can also use to better secure the remaining tail of the strings at the bridge. Take the tail of the "E" string, and tuck into the loop of the tail on the "A" string. Do the same thing on the A string, tucking it into the loop of the D String. For the treble strings, you can to the left, tucking the tail of the high "E" string into the loop of the B String, and so forth. It looks a lot better actually. Good video though!

[@rohadtanyad8908]

not a good idea. the e string is thicker than the a string and having it under there will not have the a string as secure as it could be. going in the other direction is fine though, starting at the high e string. keep going, the low e string will not be under another string.

[@RichardThornton_sasuser]

@@rohadtanyad8908 I do it this way

[@rohadtanyad8908]

@@RichardThornton_sasuser a lot of people do. but if you think about it you realize what makes sense. i have seen people have the string slip out.

[@RichardThornton_sasuser]

rohadt Anyad i meant I start with the first string working to B, G, etc. it’s looks neat and reduces buzzing, but it is a problem to replace an individual string such as a D string, which always seems weakened.

[@Anriuko]

@@rohadtanyad8908 Right. I read an article by Martin where they instructed to tuck the thicker string under the adjacent thinner string precisely where there should be pressure from the thinner string onto itself to secure it behind the bridge. They make guitars and didn't think about this?! Anyway, it seems like a gimmicky procedure. Maybe good if you don't want to use a wirecutter.

[@manansingh476]

Thank you so much for helping me out with the help of this video 🤗🤗

[@sarabush7087]

Very helpful video! Thanks so much for your thorough explanation. I now feel confident to change my own strings!

[@larsdahl6594]

5th video I watch on restringing a classical guitar, everyone does it differently emphasizing different things as the really important ones to pay attention to. I guess if it works it works is the message to take home.

[@mariannereed1555]

thanks to you i just changed my strings!

[@kendralussier2033]

i just got my first guitar and had to put new strings on it, and this video was so helpful! thank you!:)

[@RogelioGonzalez-bo6cq]

Be careful not to over tune😂 dont listen to apps if they say its to low lol

[@rjdom]

Very good complete tutorial, and the jacket tops it off!

[@SuperExadidas]

Thank you…great video

[@jboggs]

Great tip on the double loop for the high E knot. I got a nasty whip mark on one of my guitars that I don’t want to have happen again...

[@yishay6194]

Youre that dude i look up when my guitar strings bust out😀 awesome video bro

[@michaelduddy4119]

Thanks. Well done.

[@SC-SA]

A very thorough and very useful tutorial. Thank You very much!

[@rafael55]

Great information!! Thanks!

[@shadowsruss9106]

Perfect video - thanks very much

[@azizgassara2399]

Thank you so much this is the only video the truly helped me !!

[@ЖИЛЕ94]

Thanks for the the tips, i just needed to change my D string, but looked through the rest of the video for advice that i'm gonna definitely need in the future.

[@sockkhim8991]

Thank you for the video.

[@DAMusic-qu2ec]

The loose winding on the Low E string is to make it more flexible for the bridge knot, so that end should go in the bridge, technically. Though nothing bad happens if you flip it around.

[@AkayshaKay]

Thank you so much for these videos.

[@JohnJCButtigieg]

LEGEND! Best video!

[@GM-ie4yy]

Excellent thorough instructions. Thanks so much.

[@MisterGuitarItalia]

So easy to follow, great job! Compare this to the Martin tutorial that makes your head spin...

[@Andrew-dp3wh]

Thank you so much for this video!

[@hni7458]

I've always done a double loop for e1, but now last time I thought it'd suffice with four turns. I'm sure it does, this time, but I promise to get back to old habits next time - a long dimple into french polishing won't do.

[@skeletoneg]

this was amazing

[@BurningPandama]

excellent tutorial

[@cubingnesse8785]

thank you so much for this tutorial, the other day my guitar fell and it busted the low E string, and I fixed all the strings for the first time with the help of this video. Really a great tutorial 👍👍👍

[@wbishop1330]

Thx! This was really helpful.👍✌

[@taliii96]

Thank you!!! Really helped!! 🙂

[@nickyclark527]

Really helpful

[@TornacenseDeFuturo]

Thank you for sharing :) It's not easy as an electric guitar, but I managed somehow.

[@frederickmenu3140]

Usefull tuto. Thanks to you Jude Law

[@alexthomas2390]

Excellent video. Thanks.

[@danstune]

Thank you!

[@vividdreaming1]

Useful tips, thanks for this.

[@johnlay3040]

6 years ago, string ties probably have been invented. These days people use them. It is a lot easier and neater. The best thing about it is it eliminates the risk of string slippage which doesn't just mark the guitar but it marks the heart of the owner, especially if the lady is a new lover.

[@hasanshafie5623]

Thanks a lot 🙏🏻🤘🏻❤️

[@controllfreak7505]

My classical guitar requires metal strings which is odd bu this is still very useful I just have to adapt

[@ramonleonegea]

Very interesting, greetings.

[@johnkostakis4973]

Thanks ! Really useful

[@jacquesd5781]

Great video, thanks! The stretch time on these things is just excruciating lol.

[@RichardThornton_sasuser]

When I put the string thru the tuner hole, I like to loop it back thru again; this always holds it fine on the tuner end.

[@jamesfriedman1878]

Here’s another technique worth trying for the 3 nylon treble strings. Using a candle flame you can carefully melt a tiny little “ball” at the end which will go through the tie block. To do this carefully bring one end of the clear nylon string about 1/8” from the flame the ball will form instantly. Take it away immediately so the ball doesn’t get too big. Once you have a little hardened ball of nylon that will fit through the string hole in the tie block, tie the knot with 2 or 3 wraps, leaving about 1/4” tail at the the lip end, no trimming needed then. I always oil the fingerboard and polish up the frets with the same cloth when I change strings. Had one string whip incident many years ago, never had another since using this technique.

[@steveb9325]

Yes! Straight from Segovia! Thank you.

[@femmecorbeau]

Oh my God, I can't thank you enough!

[@garyschraa7947]

Hey wow it's you again . This is off topic . . . . but I know there is an actor out there that looks exactly like you . And I cannot think of who he is , but it's spot on . Sorry . cont.

[@ronsando2205]

nice job!

[@58158Dan]

Thank you

[@katven9029]

Awesome

[@jonvandenberg8509]

Thx! excellent video

[@teawinblad1733]

Very Good! Now I can do it on my own :-)

[@jamesdalian8774]

Allen, I'm very surprised that you didn't mention which way the the pegs are supposed to turn on each side of the guitar. I realize that is doesn't really matter, but I would like to know what is proper. I still liked the video though. Thanks so much.

[@edokaric4727]

did we get it? Is there a rule on bass strings which end goes towards the neck and which remains on the keel. Does the sticker on the Daddario strings indicate the end that is placed on the keel of the guitar? Someone says that the sound changes when the ends of the E6 string are replaced, for example.

[@patrickbrazil3383]

I was unable to get the high E to go through the hole a second time, so I triple wrapped/looped it like I saw in another video. Also, had a hard time keeping the “knots” from staying below the bridge, the D is especially closer to the top.

[@copsarebastards]

I had the same issue with my d string, not sure if i did everything correctly, hopefully in a few days it can keep tune