How to stabilize new strings

New strings that drop by themselves are not (necessarily) a tuner problem: they have not finished stretching and seating at contact points (bridge, nut, posts). Ten minutes done well changes everything.

Why they go out of tune

At install, the string still slips a little in the wraps, at the nut and bridge. Until it has “taken its place”, every pick stroke or bend slightly lowers tension. Hence the feeling that “new strings always go out of tune”.

A loose install (overlapping wraps, poorly managed slack) makes it worse. A clean install + good stretching = already 80% of the problem solved.

The simple method

1. Tune the string to the target pitch.
2. Pull it gently but firmly along the fretboard (several places), without twisting or yanking too hard in one go.
3. Retune.
4. Repeat until the note holds after stretching.

Do it string by string, then one last pass over the whole set. A few serious cycles beat an hour of frustration in rehearsal.

Tips

• Flush wraps and a clean install already reduce slip at the tuners.
• On a Floyd Rose, stretch well before locking the nut and moving to fine tuners.
• Nylon (classical / ukulele) needs even more patience than steel: plan several stretch / tune cycles.

After that, your guitar stays in tune much longer — and you play instead of juggling the tuner.

Source : D’Addario – How to Restring a Guitar