I started using La Bella Silk and Steel because I saw Stefan Grossman putting them on his guitar at a gig thirty years ago. I found the lower tension made playing easier on my tomato slicer, but when I moved to a guitar with an easier action I found that they were too slack in dropped tunings. Using a lot of tunings also makes them break more frequently than standard bronze strings. Martin S&S used to break more than La Bella, but the silver plating lasted longer. I tried some Fender S&S once - they were slightly higher tension, sounded good, lasted longer than Martin or La Bella S&S, included some plastic film in with the silk. Haven't used them for ten years - bronzes last three times longer.