String explorer

Tannin · November 2022

These notes chart my exciting voyages to the remote borders of the World Wide Interwebby Thing. I am intent on seeking out as many different types of string as possible, armed only with an overstretched credit card, a post office box, and a small collection of acoustic guitars. One by one I try them out and write down what I think of them.

"* -----" at the start of an entry indicates strings I have here on hand or at least on order but have not tried yet.

** Sets I particularly like are marked with two stars.

The main price is in Australian dollars rounded to the nearest 50c including taxes and postage. I typically order 6 or 8 sets at a time, mostly from the USA but sometimes from Australia, Europe, or the UK. The sterling price is approximate as exchange rates vary and UK buyers pay less for postage but twice as much tax. It should at least give a rough idea..

Some comment categories are relative. "Tension: medium" generally means "medium for this type of string". A "medium" tension round-core string might have about the same tension as a "low tension" hex core string. In a perfect world I'd measure tension and report in kilograms. Maybe one day I'll look up manufacturer's figures for as many sets as possible and add them in.

The same applies to "Longevity". I expect coated strings to last twice as long as uncoated strings, give or take. A "long-lasting" uncoated string might be one which lasts almost as long as an "average" coated string. I did think of just saying how long each set actually lasted, but this wouldn't work - depending on which guitars I feel like playing, "six weeks before replacement" might be six weeks of intensive play, or six weeks mostly sitting in the case. Sometimes I leave a set on rather past its use-by; sometimes I take them off early. And of course, every player has different technique and different skin chemistry. On balance, it's probably best just to say something like "Longevity: medium."

"Sound", "Squeal", and "Feel" are of course entirely subjective. Make of them what you will. I generally dislike the sound of just-on strings and try not to draw any firm conclusions about a set until it has settled in; sometimes that takes an hour, sometimes more than a week, but mostly a day or two. I don't have a "standard reference set" to compare all others to but I do have a number of familiar favourites which serve that purpose, and because I have several guitars but restring only one at a time, differences between strings tend to be fairly obvious and reasonably consistent.

I play fingerstyle, mixing nails and flesh for the fingers but flesh only on the thumb, where I have a callus in lieu of a thumbpick. Some of the strings I like will sound awful with a pick, and vice-versa. I rely on a bit of friction between my thumb and the windings of the E and A strings to get a useful bass sound and tend to mark down strings which are too smooth-surfaced to get a good loud note out of that way. (Curiously, flats work for me, which seems counter-intuitive.)

String gauges are a moveable feast. In theory, the quoted gauge is the measurement of a string's diameter. In practice, the measurement is nominal and seldom exact, and is usually quoted using numbers which are neither metric not imperial measurements. A typical accoustic first string, for example, is 0.35mm or 0.0126 inches in diameter but is made from AWG gauge 28 wire and is usually called a "12". Acoustic string gauges are best thought of as just arbitary numbers, like a No. 8 knitting needle (actually 3.9mm) or a Size 9 shoe. Note that with wound strings in particular there are many ways to achieve a given nominal gauge (say a 32), ranging from a thick core wire with a thin winding through to the reverse.

Tannin · November 2022

Different strings work well on different guitars, not to mention for different players and with different musical genres. There would not be much point in reviewing a set of strings without saying what guitar they were tried on. (I can't do much about the genres or anything at all about the player - I always sound like me! - but at least I can say which guitar I used.) I've tried to give them names which will be meaningful to most players. For example, the one I label "rosewood" sounds pretty similar to most other spruce and rosewood instruments. The ones mentioned below are:

* "Rosewood": a Sitka Spruce and Indian Rosewood Maton Messiah 808. A fairly typical spuce and rosewood guitar, brighter than a Martin OM-28, warmer than a Taylor 714.

* "Blackwood": a Sitka Spruce and Blackwood Maton WA May with a bold sound, warm, and well-balanced. Blackwood has a sound about half-way between Koa and Rock Maple.

* "Cedar": a Western Red Cedar and Queensland Maple Maton dreadnought, a well-balanced all-rounder, more melodic than percussive. Cedar and walnut is probably the closest Northern Hemisphere equivalent. A very forgiving guitar which seldom objects to any string.

* "Myrtle": a lightly built Englemann Spruce and Myrtle Beech ("Tiger Myrtle") concert-size guitar made by Hobart luthier Paul Mineur. Myrtle Beech has a distinctive crisp shimmer over a full bass, both sweet and dry. It is not related to Northern Hemisphere beech or myrtle and doesn't sound very like any other timber I'm familiar with. This guitar tends to be fussy about strings.

* "Maple": a very large Tacoma Thunderhawk baritone jumbo in Sitka Spruce over Rock Maple. It has a rich, deep, cello-like tone with that characteristic crisp maple top end.

* "CO-2": a Guild CO-2, in Red Spruce (aka "Adirondack") and mahogany. A 000-size guitar not unlike a Martin 000-18. Very loud with particularly clear, sweet high notes but can easily be harsh and shrill.

* "Angel": a Cole Clark Angel 3 in Huon Pine and Silky Maple, rare Australian timbers with no Northern Hemisphere equivalents. A unique sound, not very like mahogany but even less like most other woods. Another one that is hard to categorise and is fussy about strings.

* "12-string": Cole Clark 2 Series dreadnought, Bunya on Blackwood. Loud, bright, crisp, and jangly. Sometimes strung as a 6. (Now sold.)

* "Leftie" a left-handed Maton 225, Sitka Spruce top on laminated back and sides. (Now sold.)

Tannin · November 2022

PLACEHOLDER (to allow expansion in future)

Tannin · November 2022

BRASS: brass is any alloy of copper and zinc. Typically brass guitar strings are 80% copper and 20% zinc; some use an 85/15 mix. Brass is the traditional material for acoustic guitar strings and was an almost universal standard until the mid-1970s when phosphor bronze became popular. It is often incorrectly labelled "bronze" which it certainly is not. (See any metals textbook.)

** D'Angellico Prohibition Bronze 85/15 USA $16.50 £9. Tension: medium. Longevity: low. Squeal: medium. Feel: pleasant, unmemorable. Sound: warm and full with just the right amount of zing. Remarkably loud strings. Tried on: Angel. Comment: amongst the nicest strings I've tried. 12-16-25 34-44-54

** Darco 80/20 USA $12 £7. Tension: moderate. Longevity: fair. Squeal: fairly high. Feel: excellent, rought but not unpleasant. Sound: shrill at first but settle down very well after a few days. Tried on: cedar, 12-string. Comment: a favourite. 12-16-25 32-42-54.

* Darco 80/20 (medium) USA $12 £7. Tension: moderate given the gauge. Longevity: quite good for a brass string. Squeal: medium. Feel: surprisingly easy-playing for a medium string. Sound: full-voiced and plenty of zing. Tried on: Angel, CO-2. Comment: great strings at a great price. 13-17-26 35-45-56.

* Elixir Nanoweb (medium) USA $30 £17. Tension: high. Longevity: good. Squeal: very low. Feel: as expected - firm and slippery. Sound: very good - the extra brightness of the 80/20 alloy is blunted by the plastic coating, resulting in a nice balance. Tried on: Angel. Comment: a little too heavy for me, the 12s would suit better. 13-17-26 35-45-56.

* Elixir Nanoweb (bluegrass) USA $27 £15. Essentially the same as the mediums, just slightly lighter. Tried on: rosewood, CO-2. Comment: wonderful sound but hard work. 12-16-24 35-45-56.

* Fender Mexico $10 £5.60. Tension: lowish, more like 11.5s than 12s. Longevity: average. Squeal: average. Feel: good. Sound: mixed reviews - I liked it a lot on one guitar (Angel), was underwhelmed on another (DR). Is that the different guitars or my changing tastes? Hard to say. Tried on: cedar, Angel. Comment: not bad, very cheap. 12-16-24 32-42-52.

* Fender (medium) Mexico $10 £5.50. Tension: moderate for mediums. Longevity: probably quite good. Squeal: moderate. Feel: good. Sound: excellent. Tried on: cedar. Nice but too heavy for me. 13-17-26 36-46-56

* ----- Fisoma F2120M 80/20 Germany $12.80 £6.50 12-16-23 31-40-52

* Galli RA1254 80/20 $13 Italy £7. Tension: medium-low. Longevity: low. Squeal: moderate. Feel: soft, smooth. Sound: much as expected. Tried on: Angel. Comment: very similar to the Galli LS phosphor bronze but not so lively. 12-16-24 32-42-54.

* GHS Vintage Bronze USA (85/15) $11.50 £6.50. Tension: rather low. Longevity: unknown. Squeal: moderate. Feel: quite soft. Sound: curiously mellow, even when new - rather like old, well-worn 80/20s with a hint of silk and bronze. Tried on: Angel. Comment: remarkably different to the usual 80/20 brass. Good strings in their way but not for me. 12-16-24 32-42-54.

* John Pearse bluegrass USA $13.50 £7.50. Tension: medium to high. Longevity: unknown. Squeal: moderate. Feel: good but heavy for their gauge. Sound: as expected (which is good). Tried on: Angel. Comment: good but too heavy for me. 12-16-24 35-45-56.

** La Bella Golden Alloy USA $14 £8. Tension: low. Longevity: fair. Squeal: very high. Feel: excellent: as supple and easy-playing as round cores. Sound: sweet and pleasing. Tried on: cedar. Comment: good strings with a sound and feel of their own. 12-16-22 31-41-52.

** Martin Authentic MA140 USA $14 £8. These are the same string as the Darco 12s above; only the packaging is different. Tried on: Angel. Comment: cost a little more than the Darcos but who cares? Still great strings and still good value for money. 12-16-25 32-42-54.

* Newtone Masterclass round core (bluegrass) UK $18 £10. Tension: medium. Longevity: unknown. Squeal: quite low. Feel: good, soft under the fingers. Sound: weak, lacking bass, shouty trebles. Tried on: Angel. Comment: quality strings but a crappy sound. Not a fan. 12-16-25 36-46-56.
* ----- Picato 80/20 $19 £9.50 12-16-24 32-44-54

* SIT Golden Bronze USA $10.50 £6. Tension: medium. Longevity: fair. Squeal: average. Feel: as expected. Sound: as expected. Tried on: cedar. Comment: pleasant, no surprises, good ordinary strings. 12-16-25 32-42-52

** SIT Silencers semi-flat 12-52 USA $13.50 £7.50. Tension: medium to low-medium. Longevity: fair. Squeal: moderate - certainly not "silent". Feel: very pleasant. Sound: warm and medium-bright, less shouty than most brass strings. Tried on: cedar (2 sets), myrtle. Comment: one of my favourites. (But ill-suited on the Mineur. Horses for courses.) By far the best of the various semi-flat or ground round strings. 12-16-25 32-42-52.

Tannin · November 2022

PHOSPHOR BRONZE (A-D): bronze is any alloy of copper and tin, often with traces of other elements. Bronze guitar strings are nealy always phosphor bronze, which is usually about 92% copper, 8% tin, and 0.2% phosphorus. Something like three-quarters of all acoustic guitar strings are wound with phosphor bronze.

** Adamas Composite USA $12.50 £7. Tension: low. Don't worry about the .015 B string, it works fine and doesn't buzz. Longevity: pretty good. Squeal: medium-low. Feel: smooth, slightly stiff at first but very soft when played in. Sound: light, crisp and pleasant. Tried on: rosewood, Angel. Comment: Adamas is an Ovation brand: for that reason I had low expectations of these strings. I was wrong, they are remarkably good. 12-15-23 32-44-53.

* Adamas Roundcore $13.50 £7 China. Tension: low, like 11s. Longevity: OK. Squeal: medium-low. Feel: smoothish, a little raspy, very pleasant. Sound: decent - weak and harsh at first but light and pleasant once played in. Tried on: rosewood, Comment: These are made in China (often a bad sign) but mellow into fairly good strings. Just the same, I prefer the slightly firmer, fuller hex core Adamas Composites. 12-15-23 32-44-53.

** Augustine Phosphor Bronze USA $12 £7. Tension: medium. Longevity: medium. Squeal: medium to medium-high. Feel: good, fairly soft. Sound: crisp, clear, musical. Tried on: myrtle. Comment: Not unusual in any way other than being very good strings with a lovely clear sound, and good value for money. 12-16-24 32-42-53.

* Black Diamond N600L USA $14 £8. Tension: high. Longevity: excellent. Squeal: fair. Feel: Stiff. Very stiff at first but they soften after a while. Sound: bright, crisp, pleasant. Tried on: rosewood. Comment: Old school strings. With use they improve and the rather shrill sound becomes beautifully clear and precise. I didn't expect to like these but, at least on this guitar, they feel fine and sound great. 12-16-24 32-42-53.

* ----- Career bronze wound (unknown country of manufacture) $10 £5 12-16-25 32-42-54

* Cleartone (coated) USA $26 £15. Tension: high. Longevity: not bad for coated strings. Squeal: high. Feel: rather stiff. Sound: reasonable. Tried on: blackwood. Comment: Decent strings, nothing to write home about. 12-16-25 33-43-53.

* ----- Cleartone Red ($19.59 £10.45) "Copper bronze". Some unspecified alloy similar to phosphor bronze but with an even higher copper content. Apparently now discontinued. 12-16-25 33-43-53

* Curt Mangan (quasi-coated) USA $20 £11.50. Tension: medium. Longevity: good. Squeal: moderate. Feel: pleasant. Sound: bright and lively without being jangly. Tried on: 12-string. Comment: nice strings with a bit of character. 12-16-24 32-44-54.

** Curt Mangan round core USA $15.50 £9. Tension: medium to medium-low. Stiffer than most round core strings, similar to a light hex-core set, but soften nicely with use. Longevity: good. Squeal: medium. Feel: firm but not hard, pleasant. Sound: bright and twangy but nevertheless pleasant and melodic. Tried on: blackwood (2 sets). Comment: very good strings in their own special way. I like them a lot. 12-16-24 32-42-53.

* D'Addario EJ16 USA $16 £9. Tension: rather low, but curiously stiff even so. Longevity: fair. Squeal: average. Feel: fairly smooth, but not very soft. Sound: slightly on the bright and thin side of average but can also be boomy. Tried on: Angel, CO-2, myrtle. Comment: Decent strings but for some reason I don't much like them. 12-16-24 32-42-53.

* D'Addario EJ38 USA $30 £17. (12-string set.) Tension: quite low. Longevity: rather good. Squeal: medium-low. Feel: soft and forgiving but not flabby. Just right for a light 12-string set. Sound: middley, well-balanced, pleasant. Tried on: 12-string. Comment: I like them. 10-10 14-14 23-8 30-12 39-18 47-27.

* D'Addario XT (coated, bluegrass gauge) USA $30 £17.50. Tension: as expected; play like standard 12s except for the B string which is too light and buzzes. Longevity: probably very good but I doubt I'll leave them on long enough to find out. Squeal: pretty good. Feel: smooth and silky, otherwise like EJ16s. Sound: at first thin and boomy both at once (same as EJ16s) but improves with time on and becomes quite pleasant. (Contrast with the "pleasant" phase on the uncoated EJ16s, which is very brief.) Tried on: myrtle. Comment: could be worse. 12-16-25 35-45-56.

* Darco D220 phosphor bronze light Mexico $10 £6. Tension: medium. Longevity: medium. Squeal: high. Feel: spot on. Sound: bright at first, settle in well. Tried on: cedar. Comment: exactly what you expect: very good strings at a great price. 12-16-25 32-42-54.

* Dean Markley Blue Steel USA $15.50 £9. Tension: medium. Longevity: moderate. Squeal: medium-low. Feel: not bad, like high-tension 11s. Sound: bright, lack body and bass. Tried on: myrtle. Comment: Perfectly playable but not a sound I care for. 12-16-25 32-42-54.

* ----- Dean Markley 2081 Helix HD USA $12.50 £6.50 I bought 11s by mistake. 11-15-24 32-42-52

* Dogal round core Italy $27 £15. Tension: medium-low. Longevity: medium. Squeal: medium. Feel: soft but not over-soft: a perfect balance. Sound: bright, warm, balanced, responsive. Tried on: myrtle, rosewood, Blackwood. Comment: Very expensive and very prone to dud strings. Two out of three sets were crook out of the packet. They also have over-size ball ends, which is daft. When they actually work they are great strings but they are just too unreliable. Fail. 12-16-24 34-44-54

* ----- DR Rare USA. $11 £6 12-16-24 32-42-54

** DR Sunbeam USA $14 £8. Tension: low. Longevity: medium. Squeal: medium. Feel: soft and responsive. Sound: lively, balanced, rich, responsive. Tried on: rosewood (2 sets), myrtle. Comment: outstanding strings. 12-16-24 32-42-54.

* ----- DR Veritas USA $14.50 £8.50 Like Sunbeams only coated. 12-16-24 32-42-54.

* ----- Dragão D100 Guitarra Acustica Spain $14.50 £7.50 12-16-24 32-42-53

* Dunlop Phosphor Bronze USA $10 £6. Tension: very high. Longevity: medium. Squeal: average. Feel: very hard. Sound: loud and over-bright. Tried on: cedar. Comment: A high-tension string, brash, shouty, and very loud.12-16-24 32-42-54.

Tannin · November 2022

PHOSPHOR BRONZE (E-G):

* Eko ACB1253M $7.30 £3.89 Made in China at a guess, sold by Eko of Italy. Tension: med-low. Longevity: don't care. Squeal: not bad. Feel: soft, oddly scratchy. Sound: weak, lacks body and ring. Tried on: cedar. Comment: very cheap and sound like it. 12-16-24 32-42-53.

* Elixir Nanoweb (coated) USA $30 £17. Tension: high. Longevity: high. Squeal: very low. Feel: stiff, soapy. Sound: clean but a little dull. Tried on: cedar (3), Angel (2), rosewood (2), blackwood. Comment: Love them or hate them, they are what they are. 12-16-24 32-42-53

* Elixir Nanoweb (coated) (bluegrass gauge) USA $29 £16. Tension: high. Longevity: high. Squeal: very low. Feel: stiff, soapy. Sound: brilliant, superior to the standard 12s (does the coating have less effect as the relative weight of metal increases?). Tried on: rosewood. Comment: Great sound but too heavy for me. 12-16-24 35-45-56.

* Ernie Ball Earthwood USA $17 £9.50. Tension: medium to medium-high. Longevity: moderate. Squeal: loud. Feel: very rough. Sound: standard, quite bright and present. Tried on: cedar. Comment: decent strings. 12-16-24 32-44-54

* ----- Fender phosphor bronze Mexico $19 £9.5 12-16-24 32-42-53

** Galli LS Italy $12.50 £7. Tension: medium-low. Longevity: medium. Squeal: average. Feel: soft, smooth, all class. Sound: warm, bright, rich, well balanced. Tried on: Angel (2 sets), cedar, CO-2. Comment: I love these strings! They are as good as it gets. 12-16-24 32-42-54.

* ----- Galli Fingerstyle. See under flat and quasi-flat.

** GHS Americana (quasi-coated) USA $16.50 £9. Tension: medium. Longevity: excellent. Squeal: medium. Feel: balanced, a happy medium in all respects. Sound: light but become fuller as they wear in. Tried on: cedar (2 sets). Comment: Great strings! 12-16-24 32-42-54.

* Godin A6 USA $14 £8. Tension: rather low, bass strings especially. Longevity: average. Squeal: medium-low. Feel: soft, light, easy-playing. Sound: Pleasant, light, middly. Tried on: cedar. Comment: pretty decent strings 12-16-24 32-42-53.

Tannin · November 2022

PHOSPHOR BRONZE (J-P): Although we talk about "bronze" or "brass" or "nickel" strings, these terms only describe the outer winding. Nearly all wound strings have a plain steel core. Almost all unwound strings are plain steel. It is often stated that so far as the plain strings are concerned, there is no difference between different manufacturers. This is incorrect. While most (not all) plain strings are very similar, there are differences between brands, presumably for the most part having to do with using different suppliers of the raw wire stock. A few plain strings are visibly different, for example GHS Americana strings are coated in brass; others have a tin coating to slow corrosion or even gold.

* John Pearse Phosphor Bronze USA $15 £8.50. Tension: medium to medium-high. Longevity: quite good. Squeal: medium. Feel: a little stiff but not unpleasant. Sound: excellent, well-balanced and versatile. Tried on: cedar. Comment: a particularly good implementation of a plain, traditional recipe. 12-16-24 32-42-53

* La Bella Phosphor Bronze USA $12 £7. Tension: low. Longevity: low. Squeal: very high. Feel: very soft and easy, more like 11s. Sound: light, bright, pleasant. Tried on: blackwood. Comment: very light and easy, need a gentle touch. Good sound and fun to play. 12-16-22 31-41-52.

* ----- Legacy Tru-Tone UK $15 £7.5 12-16-24 32-44-54

* Magma GA140PB Argentina $11.50 £6.50. Tension: medium. Longevity: fair. Squeal: medium. Feel: average. Sound: unexceptional. Tried on: myrtle. Comment: not bad, perhaps a bit lifeless compared to some. 12-16-24 34-44-54.

* Martin Custom Light 11-52 USA $13 £7. Tension: quite high for 11s, very playable on a guitar set up for 12s. Longevity: typical. Squeal: medium. Feel: as expected. Sound: marginally less body than 12s, but close enough for practical purposes. Tried on: Leftie. Comment: Ordered by mistake, these are fine strings, even for a player who generally dislikes 11s. If you like the Martin sound but want something a little lighter, these deliver. 11-15-23 32-42-52.

* Martin Flexible Core (Tommy Emmanuel signature) USA $13 £7.50. Tension: low. Longevity: fair. Squeal: fair. Feel: fairly soft, pleasant. Sound: as expected. Tried on: myrtle. Comment: nice strings, perhaps less characterful than some round core types but otherwise rather similar. 12-16-25 32-42-54.

* Martin EC Signature USA $14 £8. Tension: medium. Longevity: fair. Squeal: fair. Feel: average. Sound: as expected. Tried on: myrtle. Comment: decent. 12-16-25 32-42-54.

* Moonshiners USA $10.50 £5.50. Tension: medium. Longevity: average. Squeal: moderate. Feel: good, a little stiff at first, soften up nicely after a week or so. Sound: a little on the light and jangly side but pretty good. Tried on: rosewood. Comment: pretty decent strings made by an undisclosed OEM in the USA and rebranded here in Oz. Great price! 12-16-25 32-42-54

* Newtone Masterclass Double Wound round core UK $24 £14. Tension: medium. Longevity: fair. Squeal: very good, not absent but much reduced. Feel: very nice, heavy (as expected given that this is a 12-56 bluegrass set) but soft and flexible. Smooth under the fingers. Sound: nice tone, not enough bass though. Tried on: myrtle. Comment: I like them. 12-16-26 36-46-56.

* Newtone Masterclass round core UK $19 £11. Tension: very low. Longevity: fair. Squeal: outstanding - very low. Feel: excellent. Sound: crisp and clear but very bright and thin. Tried on: rosewood, Angel. Comment: great feel, shame about the sound on the rosewood Messiah. Much better on the Angel. 12-16-24 34-44-54.

* Optima Bronze Germany $24 £13.50. Tension: quite high. Longevity: good. Squeal: moderate. Feel: stiff but not unpleasant. Lovely and firm under the right hand. Sound: bright, brassy. well balanced. Very good. Tried on: Angel. Comment: Expensive for a standard uncoated hex core string, but might be nearly worth it. Bronze coated high E and B strings look great too. 12-16-24 32-42-52.

* ----- Optima Vintage Flex low-tension round core Germany $29 £17. 12-16-20 28-38-51

** Philippe Bosset Acoustique France $33 £19.50. Tension: low. Longevity: good. Squeal: moderate. Feel: soft and flexible but never floppy, excellent. Sound: full, rich, rounded. Tried on: blackwood. Comment: Very expensive for a standard uncoated hex core string - and worth it. Great sound on the spruce and Blackwood WA May, might be even better on a treble-rich rosewood guitar, adding body and control to it. The longer they stayed on the more I warmed to them. 12-16-25 32-42-53.

* Pyramid 307 Silver plated Germany $19 £10.50. Tension: very low. Longevity: fair. Squeal: medium-high. Feel: very soft and flexible under the fingers, also grippy. Sound: sweet, gentle, very slightly muted, but still has a flavour not unlike (but much more subtle than) a silk and steel sound. Tried on: myrtle. Comment: Shines at fingerstyle but versatile. 12-16-24 32-42-52.

* ----- Pyramid Phosphor Bronze Germany $24 £14 12-16-24 32-42-52. Ordinary hex-core strings - why so very dear? Possibly the retailer made a mistake.

* Pyramid Western Folk round core Germany $18.50 £10.50. Tension: low. Longevity: medium. Squeal: medium. Feel: lovely, very flexible but not sloppy. Sound: bright, warm, rich. Slightly fuller-bodied than the otherwise similar DR Sunbeams. Tried on: myrtle, blackwood. Comment: A lot to like about these excellent strings. 12-16-22 34-44-54.

* Pyramid Western Folk "hand-polished" round core. (See under "flat and quasi-flat".)

Tannin · November 2022

PHOSPHOR BRONZE (R-Z):

* Richard Cocco Bronze $25 £13 Tension: medium. Longevity: very good. Squeal: low. Feel: lovely: soft, smooth, flexible. Sound: very clean, rather soft. Tried on: Blackwood. Comment: excellent strings with a unique soft feel. 12-16-24 32-42-52

* Rotosound Jumbo King UK $12, £7. Tension: medium to medium-high. Longevity: average. Squeal: loud. Feel: raspy, pleasant. Sound: standard. Tried on: cedar. Comment: good ordinary strings. 12-16-24 32-44-54

* Rotosound Nexus (coated) UK $21 £12. Tension: medium-high. Longevity: high. Squeal: moderate. Feel: very nice: more tactile than Elixirs but softer too. Sound: very good, well-balanced. Tried on: rosewood. Comment: Good straight-ahead strings that last well. 12-16-24 32-44-54.

* Rotosound Super Bronze contact core UK $13 £7. Tension: medium. Longevity: fair. Squeal: average. Feel: seem fairly standard. Sound: tried on a different guitar so hard to compare, but it seems a bit odd. Tried on: an upside-down left-handed Maton of no great merit. Comment: can't really say much without getting another set to try on a different guitar, which I probably won't. 12-16-24 32-44-54.

* Santa Cruz Parabolic Low Tension (coated) USA. $30 £17. Tension: very low, like 11s. Longevity: high. Squeal: moderate. Feel: soft, responsive, outstanding. Sound: excellent, well-balanced. Tried on: Angel. Comment: Very expensive, but good enough to justify it. 12-16-23 32-44-56.

* Santa Cruz Parabolic Medium Tension (coated) USA $32 £18. Tension: medium, similar to an average bluegrass set (quite a lot more than the very light Low Tension ones). Longevity: good. Squeal: moderate. Feel: pleasant. Sound: good. Tried on: CO-2. Comment: Heavier than expected (but still a bit lighter than most brands); good but didn't impress nearly as much as the LT set did. 13-16.5-24 33-45-56.

* Savarez A140L France $14 £8. Tension: low. Longevity: probably lowish. Squeal: medium. Feel: soft. Sound: warm and very loud, lots of bass. Tried on: myrtle. Comment: Wrong guitar for these. Might go OK on the Messiah, or even the Angel. 12-16-24 32-42-53.

* Sfarzo Alloy 5109 USA $13 £7. Tension: high. Longevity: probably quite good but who cares? Squeal: reasonable. Feel: hard. Sound: cold, metallic, nasty. Tried on: rosewood. Comment: awful strings. Shipping a .015" second string on a set of high-tension 12s is ridiculous. 12-15-25 34-44-54.

* SIT Phosphor Bronze USA $9 £5. Tension: moderate. Longevity: medium. Squeal: average. Feel: typical. Sound: as expected. Tried on: Angel. Comment: Good ordinary strings. Not unusual in any way except the low price, nothing to dislike, great value. 12-16-25 32-42-54.

* SIT Royal Bronze USA $14.50 £8. Tension: moderate. Longevity: medium. Squeal: low-medium. Feel: pleasant. Sound: a good balance between richness, warmth and ring. Tried on: Angel (2 sets). Comment: SIT don't say what makes these strings different to their standard ones, just that they are a premium product. They are: they do all the usual things to a higher-than-usual standard, 12-16-25 32-42-54.

* Stringjoy Foxwoods USA $27 £16. Tension: medium. Longevity: pretty good. Squeal: lower than almost anything except Elixirs. Feel: very good overall but the coating is remarkably sticky. Fast Fret fixed that. Sound: full and balanced, well-suited to this over-shouty guitar. Tried on: CO-2. Comment: a good match for this guitar, might be too dull on many others. Expensive. 12-16-24 32-42-54.

12-16-24 32-42-54.

* Stringjoy Naturals USA $22.40 £12.50. Tension: low-medium. Longevity: very low. Squeal: low-medium. Feel: just right; enough roughness to feel like real strings, enough smoothness to be nice to play and not too squeally. Sound: well-balanced to start, bright without lacking depth, but dull very rapidly. Tried on: cedar. Comment: These are very good for the first few days but quickly go dull. Or you might regard them as over-mellow strings which take a few days to play in. Very expensive. 12-16-24 32-42-54.

Tannin · November 2022

ANOTHER PLACEHOLDER (to allow expansion in future)

Tannin · November 2022

NICKEL: nickel alloys are widely used for electric strings, of course. Nickel-based acoustic strings can be any of a range of alloys, from pure nickel (John Pierce) through D'Addario's unspecified mix and GHS' Aklloy 52 (equal parts of nickel and iron) to Monel, which is a trade name for a range of nickel-copper alloys with around 60% nickel and small amounts of iron, carbon, manganese, and silicon. The sound varies considerably between brands but is always flatter, with less attack. In general it is well-suited to blues and jazz, less appropriate for sweeter, more melodic folk and pop.

** D'Addario nickel bronze USA $17 £10. Tension: low. Longevity: very high. Squeal: quite low. Feel: slim and silky. Sound: dull, metallic, but in a good way. Tried on: Guild. Comment: brilliant strings for the right guitar. Tamed my shouty Red Spruce Guild CO-2 and turned it into a blues monster. Settle down to a good sound almost immediately (unlike Martin Retros). 12-16-24 22-42-53.

* Martin Retro 12-54 (Monel) USA $25, £14. Tension: low. Longevity: very high. Squeal: medium-low. Feel: silky, very nice. Sound: odd: flat and metallic but not unmusical. Somewhat unpleasant on the wrong guitar, brilliant on the right one. Tried on: cedar (so-so), Guild CO-2 (better). Comment: brilliant strings, great feel, last forever, a very different sound that may or may not suit. You *must* play these in for a long time before they sound good - around a week to 10 days in my case. 12-15-25 31-41-54.

* ----- GHS White Bronze USA $15.50 £9. Wound with Alloy 52, a 50-50 iron-nickel alloy. 12-16-24 32-42-54.

* ----- SIT American Roots Monel USA $13 £8. 12-16-24 32-42-53.

* John Pierce Pure Nickel USA $11.50 £7. Tension: medium-low. Longevity: good. Squeal: medium-low. Feel: silky, very nice. Sound: fairly similar to the D'Addarios, a little flatter. Tried on: Guild. Comment: nice but I prefer the D'Addario set. 12-16-24 32-42-54.

Update August 2023: it might be some time before I get around to trying more nickel and nickel alloy strings as I have moved my Guild on. That was the guitar which really liked nickels, not sure that any of the others would be suited.

Tannin · November 2022

FLAT and QUASI-FLAT: flatwound strings are a different world, better experienced than described. They generally don't strum so well but come into their own for fingerpicking and single string lead. "Semi-flat" covers a range of different attempts to make a string with the brightness and tone of round-wounds but the freedom from unwanted left-hand noises flats provide. Mostly this seems to provide something of the worst of both worlds, but try for yourself.

* D'Addario EFT16 Flat Top USA $18.50 £10.50. Tension: medium. Longevity: seems OK. Squeal: fairly good. Feel: hard and oddly raspy. Sound: peculiar - harsh and shouty but muffled at the same time. Tried on: Angel. Comment: Ground half-flat strings which meet their design goal of suppressing finger squeal reasonably well, but at the cost of good tone and playability. 12-16-24 32-42-53.

* ----- Dogal Nightclub flat brass Italy $59 £33. Probably unplayably light by acoustic standards. Note the extraordinary .016 wound B string. Very expensive! 12-16w-20w 28-34-46.

* ----- Galli chrome steel flatwound Italy $25 £14. 12-16-24 32-42-52.

* Galli Jazz Flat 80/20 brass Italy $25 £14. Tension: medium. Longevity: excellent. Squeal: none at all. Feel: unusual but not unpleasant, addictive. Sound: not a great strumming sound (never the Angel's forte anyway) but a remarkably pleasant, round tone playing fingerstyle. Tried on: Angel, rosewood. Comment: remarkably playable. The complete lack of left-hand squeal is downright eerie. Very unusual strings in every way, and far more playable than I expected. I was reluctant to take these off even after several months on the Angel. Not so convincing on the bright rosewood Messiah where they are rather treble-heavy. 12-16-24 32-42-52.

* ----- Magma Flat Phosphor Bronze Argentina $26.50 £15. 12-16-24 34-44-54.

* Pyramid Western Folk "hand-polished" round core Germany $24 £13.50. Tension: low. Longevity: medium. Squeal: low-medium. Feel: oddly raspy, stiffer and less pleasant than the un-ground ones. Sound: better than D'Addario Flat Tops but not nearly as nice as any good standard string. Tried on: myrtle. Comment: not a success. 12-16-22 34-44-54.

** SIT Silencers semi-flat. (Play more like an orthodox round-wound. See under "brass".)

Tannin · November 2022

BARITONE:

* ----- Galli Baritone $14 £7.50 16-24w-30 47-60-70.
** John Pearse 80/20 light baritone USA $18 £10. Tension: medium. Longevity: remarkably good for uncoated brass. Squeal: good. Feel: excellent, light but not flabby. Sound: full, deep, warm, well-balanced. Tried on: Thunderhawk (many sets). Comment: perfect for this instrument. 15-22w-30 43-54-68

* John Pearse 80/20 medium baritone USA $23.50 £13. Tension: fairly high. Longevity: unknown. Squeal: good. Feel: heavy. Sound: deeper than the lights but not nearly as present. Tried on: Thunderhawk. Comment: disappointing. 17-24-32, 45-56-70.

* Newtone Masterclass acoustic baritone brass round core UK $21 £12. Tension: low. Longevity: good. Squeal: excellent. Feel: very soft and flexible for such big strings. Sound: decent. Tried on: Thunderhawk. Comment: nice but not for me. 15-18p-28w 38-48-68.

** Newtone custom set: baritone, round core, phosphor bronze UK $25 £14. Tension: low. Longevity: good. Squeal: excellent. Feel: soft and flexible, a little too flexible for a very long scale. Sound: rich, warm. Tried on: Thunderhawk. Comment: very happy with these, will buy again. 15-22w-30 43-54-68.

Just a note that almost all baritone sets have a plain steel second string, which is downright daft. Standard acoustic sets have a wound 3rd because heavy plain steel strings intonate badly and sound poor. (Electric sets, being lighter as a rule, usually have plain 3rds.) For exactly the same reasons - better sound and correct intonation - the 2nd string on a baritone works much better if it is wound.

Tannin · November 2022

OTHER:

* GHS Silk and Bronze USA (nylon wrap over a round core, all wrapped in bronze) $13.40 £7.50. Tension: low. Longevity: below average. Squeal: quite good. Feel: odd - soft, very pleasant overall; the bass strings feel rather like nylons, Sound: mellow and sweet, soft but not dull. Tried on: rosewood. Comment: lovely in their own way but not strings you can rock out on. 12-16-24 32-42-54

* John Pierce Silk & Bronze USA $15 £8.50. Tension: low. Longevity: below average. Squeal: quite good. Feel: odd - soft, very pleasant. Sound: mellow but not dull. Tried on: myrtle. Comment: good for melodic fingerstyle. Nice strings, very well-suited to a delicate, responsive guitar. 12-16-24 32-42-53.

* ----- John Pierce Silk & Bronze USA $15 £8.50. 12-16-24 32-42-53.

* Optima 24K Gold Plated Germany $48 £27. Tension: medium. Longevity: fair to middling. Squeal: average. Feel: nice feel with an odd, raspy texture, Sound: Excellent, full, bright enough and well-balanced. Tried on: Angel. Comment: very nice strings with a unique character but stupidly expensive. 12-16-24 32-42-52

* Thomastik-Infeld Plectrum Bronze Austria $36 £21. Tension: low-medium. Longevity: medium-good. Squeal: quite good. Feel: stiff at first but soften. Sound: good, not so different to many others. Tried on: myrtle. Comment: a big reputation and an even bigger price. These combine plain steel E and B, flat-wound brass G, flat-wound bronze D and A, and an oversize round-wound bronze E to (they say) achieve perfect balance. In practice, you don't really notice. Good strings? Yes. Worth the money? Perhaps not. 12-15-24 33-44-59.

Tannin · November 2022

PLACEHOLDER (to allow expansion in future)

Tannin · November 2022

ANOTHER PLACEHOLDER (to allow expansion in future)

Tannin · November 2022

And one more PLACEHOLDER just for luck.

Mellish · November 2022

You don't like D'Addario EJ16?

Yes, La Bella are good, so are Martin MA-140, although both are not as good on this Dove as they were on my then HD-28.

Newtone Masterclass *can* be good but I've found consistency issues, although they *were* still playable, just not as good tonally.

goldtop · November 2022

Bookmarked for later.

My technique seems to create a lot of squeak, so I need all the help I can get!

Tannin · February 2023

Woops! I've pulled my old trick of writing a reply and forgetting to post it. The words below are from about the start of December and appear thanks to the magic website software here which saves unposted drafts. (Yes, I could trawl through "My Drafts" now and then but who has time for that? Mostly they are just things I never finished or decided not to post after all.) Anyway, FWIW, three months late .....

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Not really, @Mellish. I recognise that the EJ16s are good strings, but they are quite stiff and the sound is a bit thin, a bit meh. I'm sure they'd go better on one or other of the Matons, but then most strings do. The cedar-top in particular is very forgiving.

Cheers @goldtop I'm the same as you. I sometimes mind it, sometimes don't, but Mrs Tannin hates it and that keeps me on the ball.

It is one reason why I have bought all those flatwound and quasi-flatwound strings. I don't really like Elixirs (too stiff and they lack character) and not many of the other coated strings offer the same low-squeal benefit. I'm currently very much enjoying the Galli brass flats on my Cole Clark Angel. They don't have the full ring of a round-wound string but unlike (say) Elixirs or D'Addario Flat Tops, they strike me as having their own sound in their own way as opposed to being a not-quite-right version of a conventional round wound sound. I have ordered a set or two of conventional chrome or nickel flats to compare, but I don't expect to like them.

Not much happening strings-wise at the moment. I've been away but they don't seem to have rusted or gone off so I'm still playing strings I put on months ago. The Adamas Composites I put on the Messiah in July still sound good and feel great, which is extraordinary as I'm playing it a lot of late.

Oh, but I went stupid and ordered 13 more sets from Strings and Beyond on Friday, and another 7 from Strings by Mail on Saturday. I might have to open a shop. Or maybe buy some more guitars to use up all those strings.

Image: /plugins/EmojiExtender/emoji/fb/2.gif

Tannin · February 2023

Updated today with eight new strings.

Fitted only today, a set of D'Angellico Prohibition Bronze in 85/15 brass - lovely first up but how will they play in?

Augustine are known for their nylon strings, I didn't even know they made steel strings but a set of Augustine Phosphor Bronze turned out to be very nice - nothing unusual, just nice standard strings.

In contrast the Black Diamond N600Ls are very stiff and hard work at first, but they reward that play-in time with lovely clear, bell-like tones. Not what I expected!

The La Bella Phosphor Bronze are exactly what you'd expect if you have tried their 80/20 set - very individual strings and a lot to like about them.

The Magma GA140PBs were OK but nothing to write home about. I got bored and took them off early.

I finally tried that set of Newtone Masterclass Double Wound roundcore strings which has been lying round for a couple of years, and I like them.

Another surprise packet is the Philippe Bosset Acoustique set. These are so crazy expensive for - let's face - it - a stock standard uncoated hex core phosphor bronze string that I have been avoiding buying them for ages. Now that I've tried them, I have to admit that they are very, very nice indeed and I'll probably buy them again (as soon as the second mortgage comes through).

Finally, I put my two problem children together: the over-brash Guild CO-2 and the over-dull Stringjoy Foxwoods. Hmmm ... not bad, but I think I'll sell the guitar and I certainly won't waste my money on more Stringjoys.

Mellish · February 2023

Well, I've changed guitar, as you know, but EJ16 still work best. Coincidence or imagination? I'm not really sure...
I hear them as loud and full on this Martin OM28 Re-imagined, just like I did on the Gibson Dove...
Maybe it's cos I'm using them on good guitars

jdgm · February 2023

Where did you buy the Galli strings please?

Tannin · February 2023

LATE EDIT: Lord of the Strings in the Netherlands is also good.

@jdgm they are made in Italy but I get them from Strings and Beyond http://stringsandbeyond.com or sometimes from Strings by Mail http://stringsbymail.com depending on what else I am ordering. Both vendors are in the USA and have good prices and excellent service. Including postage and tax I pay about £13 for a set from Strings and Beyond.

However I am given to understand that the UK now has awkward and expensive import procedures such that buying even a small thing worth a few pounds from another country is not practical. If so that is a real shame. You might have to look elsewhere.

Galli have a website, of course, but it is in Italian which I can't read. Presumably they list their UK distributors there.

Thomann carry Galli but seem to mostly have their odd-bod instrument strings (orchestral, banjo, gypsy jazz guitar, stuff like that).

The LS are lovely strings and quite cheap - possibly my all-things-considered favourite standard string - but there are lots of other good orthodox phosphor bronze strings around. The Galli brass flats are almost unique. Magma make a phosphor bronze flat set which should be fairly similar (I have some here ready to to try out), and Dogal (another long-established Italian string maker, like Galli) make a set of flatwounds in brass gauged 12-46 with an extraordinary wound .016 B string. I have a set of those to try too, though how someone with my heavy right thumb is going to cope with a 46 low E I don't know.

Good luck!

ditchboy · February 2023

Mellish said:

Well, I've changed guitar, as you know, but EJ16 still work best. Coincidence or imagination? I'm not really sure...
I hear them as loud and full on this Martin OM28 Re-imagined, just like I did on the Gibson Dove...
Maybe it's cos I'm using them on good guitars

What did you settle on, on the OM28?

Mellish · February 2023

@ditchboy ; kind of got two I like, me old mate:

D'Addario EJ16
Martin Authentic Acoustic Lifespan 2.0.

On this Martin OM28 the EJ16s have more volume and punch but (as @Tannin said) they're a bit stiff. The Martin Authentic Acoustic Lifespan 2.0 are easier to play but (on this guitar) lack drive and punch. But they're still ok for home use.

Tannin · May 2023

Today's updates:

Changed the format a bit, added some useful background information (which nearly everybody reading this will already know), added the country of manufacture.

New strings: Galli RA1254 80/20s are nice enough but I don't love tem the way I do their phosphor bronze ones; Godin's A6 are a nice phosphor bronze set; Dean Markley Blue Steels are sort-of OK. I'd hoped that Savarez A140Ls from France would impress me as much as the Augustines I tried a few months back but they didn't. They were decent, nothing special.

Moonshiners were a nice surprise. These are the house brand of a local music shop and are made by an undisclosed OEM in the USA. (Next time I'm in the shop I'll ask the proprietor who it is. I imagine it's no big secret.) At $10.50 AUD (£5.50) they are crazy-cheap, and it turns out that they are pretty good. I'll buy more. Also John Pierce Pure Nickels. I had high hopes for these as I usually like JP strings and these both the cheapest nickel strings and are also said to be the darkest in tone. They are OK but I prefer the D'Addarios. Finally, a very nice custom baritone set from Newtone in round core phosphor bronze. These ring the bell.

Tannin · May 2023

I just discovered a dealer in the Netherlands who has an interesting range, good prices, and very reasonable shipping.

I ordered sets of R. Cocco (£13.23), Cleartone Red (£10.45), Adamas Roundcore (£7.25), Eko ACB1253M (£3.89) (all phosphor bronze 12s) and two sets of the superb Phillipe Bosset for £10.45 each instead of the £19.50 I pay in the USA. Also a very interesting looking set of double-wound Galli Fingerstyle (£10.42) and best of all, a set of Galli Baritone with gauges of 16-24w-30 47-60-70. at just £7.61. Note that wound 2nd string, an essential for baritones in my book.

All of this from the delightfully named Lord of the Strings. @jdgm these might be the people to use for your Galli Jazz Flats - I didn't order any this time as I have several sets on hand already but they stock them at around e20, which is very reasonable.

jdgm · May 2023

Many thanks for this, will investigate!

Mellish · May 2023

My favourite strings were D'Addario EJ16, but that's changed over the past week.

I tried a set of D'Addario EJ26 (11s) and immediately liked 'em.
I find I'm not losing much volume (if any), less tension (good for the guitar) and better tone.

Tannin · June 2023

My Lord of the Strings order arrived from the Netherlands on Tuesday. Great range of strings, including a lot of stuff you can't get elsewhere, delivery on time, and very reasonably priced. I will buy from them again for sure.

Updated today:

D'Addario XT are good strings but I don't care for them. Eko ACB1253s are very cheap and rather nasty; they lasted 3 days before I replaced them with a set of Darco Phosphor Bronze. I see the Darcos are marked "Made in Mexico". Have Martin switched over to a new factory? Or did they just not declare the country of origin them before? And if Darcos are coming out of Mexico, are the identical Martin-branded sets also made there now?

The 85/15 D'Angellico Prohibition Bronze I mentioned previously turned out to be great. Loved them. Can't wait to order more,. John Pierce Pure Nickels are fine but not, in my opinion, a match for my favourite nickel alloys, the D'Addarios.

From Germany, Optima Bronze are fairly high-tension but very nice just the same. Richard Cocco Bronze are another good new one, lovely and soft under the fingers like round cores but with that indefinable sense of precision and tautness you get with strings like Optima Bronze or GHS Americana.

Finally, I tried a set of my old favourite Galli LS on my Red Spruce Guild - always a problematic guitar I usually fit nickel strings to, and they did great things for it.

Newly arrived but untried as yet: Adamas Roundcore (very much looking forward to these after excellent experience with their hexcore sets - however I see that these are made in China where the hex core ones are made in the USA. I hope the quality hasn't suffered), Galli Fingerstyle (double wound strings from Galli - these could be great!), Cleartone Red (already discontinued I see - hope I don't like them!), and Galli Baritone (which ought to be great).

Mellish · June 2023

Hmm...thats interesting about Darco made in Mexico.
I'm tempted to say it may be that Martin regard them as a step down from their Martin branded strings.

AFAIK they haven't switched string-making to Mexico.

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