According to Roger Mayer, Jimi Hendrix used the standard Fender 150 set with gauges of .010, .013, .015, .026, .032, and .038.
We were using the normal one, not the very high radius but definitely curvy. The actual strings we used were not what people would expect. The string gauges would run .010, .013, .015, .026, .032 and .038.
The Secrets of Jimi Hendrix’s Guitar Setup: Interview with Roger Mayer
The Fender 150 set referred to a complete set sold during the late sixties and early seventies. According to Fender catalogs from 1953 to 1979 (including 1968), this set was branded as “Spanish Guitar Light Gauge Rock ‘N’ Roll” and included the following strings:
- 151 E-1st, Plain .010”
- 152 B-2nd, Plain .013”
- 153 G-3rd, Plain .015”
- 154 D-4th, Wound .026”
- 155 A-5th, Wound .032”
- 156 E-6th, Wound .038”
In case you’re interested in trying out a similar set, nowadays Fender sells these 10-38 sets branded as Fender Hendrix Voodoo Child strings.
Buddy Miles Claim
However, Mike Bloomfield claimed that Buddy Miles insisted Jimi used a custom string setup with very heavy strings on the low end, medium gauges for the A and D, a Hawaiian G string, a light (not super-light) B string, and a super-light E string. According to Buddy, Jimi did this not just as an experiment but as a regular practice to help keep the guitar in tune better.
There’s photo evidence of receipts that Jimi was buying packs of single 9 strings and using these to swap out the higher tension 10 in the Fender Rock and Roll set.
Jimi once stated, apparently, that his favorite set of strings were Fender 9-40 but they were discontinued.
Did Jimi always re-string his own guitars ? If he had a roadie, or someone that
prepped his guitars. Perhaps that person could verify the string gauge that Jimi preferred.