If you’ve ever been in a situation where you’ve needed to change the strings on your acoustic guitar but discovered that you only had electric ones available at the moment, you might be wondering if you can use electric guitar strings on your acoustic or if you’re just out of luck.
The answer to this question is both yes and no. Yes, you can use electric guitar strings on an acoustic guitar but they may not sound the same as they would if you put them on a regular acoustic.
The reason for this is because most electrical guitars have thinner gauge strings which are easier to play than thicker gauges.
There are also some other factors that come into play when trying to decide if you’re going to want to use these types of strings such as what type of tone you’re looking for or if it’s going to be used in live performance where volume matters.
Table of Contents
Is There a Difference Between Electric and Acoustic Guitar Strings?
Acoustic guitar strings are known for having a much fuller and warmer sound than electric guitar strings. This is mainly because acoustic strings tend to be thicker than electric guitar ones.
Electric strings are also much thinner, and because of this, many people have an easier time pressing down on electric guitar strings than they do with acoustic strings.
Does It Matter What Strings You Put On a Guitar?
In my opinion, it really does matter what type of strings you put on your guitar. There are a few reasons for this.
If you want to play the electric guitar like Jimi Hendrix or Stevie Ray Vaughan, then use an unwound string because they produce that distinctive sound and tone from their performances in songs such as “Voodoo Child.”
On the other hand, if all you’re trying to do is strum along with Taylor Swift’s latest hit song about being too young for her first love then maybe try using wound strings instead.
Another thing to note is if you put heavier gauge strings on your guitar and you’re still a beginner, you’re going to have a much harder time pressing down on those strings and producing chords.
Do Electric and Acoustic Guitars Have the Same Chords?
Contrary to what you may think, this question is quite common with many beginner guitar players, so don’t feel too embarrassed if you have this same exact question.
Because both the electric guitar and acoustic guitar have the same fretboards in general, you can play the same chords on an acoustic guitar that you would on an electric.
However, some chords that are more popular with the electric guitar such as power chords, will often sound better on an electric than they will on an acoustic.
