View Full Version : DR Strings Fiasco
So...I ordered some DR mandolin strings, which I have used occasionaly in the past. I put them on my mando right before I had a gig. When I was tuning them to pitch I noticed that the A string felt loose, but I was in a bit of a hurry so I didn't dwell on it too much.
When I got to the gig, I noticed that my A strings would not stay in tune. Also there was much less volume from the A strings. About three songs into the set I realized that the A strings were actually E strings!
I ended up tuning half a step higher in a vain attempt to try and bring the strings to a reasonable amount of tension.
When I got home, I looked at my empty string envelopes and noticed that the envelope for the the A strings had a sticker that said .026. When I pealed it away, it said 1st underneath.
Has anyone else had this problem with DR? My mando sounded like dirt tonight, and I had to constantly avoid the loose strings. DR just went down a step in my mind.
mrmando
Dec-11-2009, 3:15am
Mistakes happen. Labels get put on the wrong envelope every once in a while. Your story, while tragic, doesn't suggest that there was anything wrong with the strings themselves, just that they ended up in the wrong place on your mandolin.
JEStanek
Dec-11-2009, 8:25am
I'm sure they'll send you a replacement set (maybe even more than one) and enter a complaint for their QA department to investigate and correct.
At the end of the day, this is a high volume industry (strings) and mistakes happen. Nobody died, right? It's not as if a pharmaceutical had been mislabeled?
Jamie
Mike Bunting
Dec-11-2009, 8:40am
"Fiasco"? Hyperbole?
Gail Hester
Dec-11-2009, 9:50am
I used to buy DR strings in bulk because I thought they sounded very good until I got about 15 sets from a lot that all had bad D-strings. I contacted DR and they refused to help whatsoever. I just don't buy them anymore.
MikeEdgerton
Dec-11-2009, 10:14am
Well, OK. I've never heard of them and I live in New Jersey. I thought everyone used D'Addario's. I live such a sheltered life.
Jonathan Reinhardt
Dec-11-2009, 11:50am
you must, mike.
but am i missing something here? most A strings are .014, .015, or .016. if they were marked .026, on top of and over a "1st" (.010, or .011), it should have been obvious that something was not right.
Big Joe
Dec-11-2009, 11:54am
Charlie and I did prototyping for DR mandolin strings in the 90's. At first they were a great string and really sounded good....especially for that time. Remember, we did not have EXP or Elixers at that time. They sounded good, lasted well, and were the guages and construction we requested. We had a good number of artists using them. Some are very high profile.
After a while...maybe a couple years...we realized the consistency was becoming a real issue. We called and talked to them and were basically told to stuff it. They were not about to alter what they were doing. Needless to say, we discontinued using them as did the artists.
Fast forward fifteen years. They came to see me last year and wanted us to know they had altered things and wanted us to "become friends" again. They indicated they had gotten rid of the guy who was causing the problems in leadership and wanted to regain their market share in acoustic and bluegrass markets. They spent some time with us telling us about what they are currently doing and a new coated string that was going to hit the market. They left us some samples and worked very hard to gain our input.
We were favorably impressed with most of what we saw. The bass strings are very good. The electric guitar strings are very good. The acoustic strings and mandolin strings were good, but they do not compare, in my opinion, with the D'Addario or Elixer coated strings and we expressed that concern to them. That was when they indicated they had a new coated string and would be getting me some samples in the near future. We communicated a time or two but they did not have the strings yet the last time we talked...early last summer. I have not heard from them since.
I do think they are trying to erase the image many had from their difficult years and I do believe they would want to take care of a customer with a complaint. I am anxious to test their new coated string when they get it and when I do, I will happy review it for everyone. I do like the people at DR and hope they do well. I always believe a problem is only an opportunity in disguise...as long as it becomes resolved honorably.
Nobody died, right?
Wrong. My soul died just a little. C'mon guys, I'm not trying to equate this someone getting killed. You guys really wouldn't be upset if you had to play a gig with 4 E strings?
Gail Hester
Dec-11-2009, 1:10pm
Joe, I agree with you and here’s the rest of my story. I had received a free set of DR light strings years ago and eventually tried them on an old Gibson mandolin I was working on. I was impressed at how robust they were for a light gauge set of strings. They produced lots of sound while having the benefit of reducing some down pressure on the tops of these vintage instruments. While had been using D'addario strings for everything I started using and recommending DR lights for vintage mandolins. I used them for years and rarely came across a set that I couldn’t use.
When I received the last batch of DR lights I wasted a lot of time trying to set up and intonate several mandolins that would not tune and the string pairs warbled badly up the neck when tuned open. At that point of frustration I remembered something that Charlie had said about these symptoms being a problem with strings that were not a consistent diameter. I started to check the wire with a micrometer and sure enough the wire on the strings I was having trouble with varied wildly. These problems went away as soon as I changed the strings on these mandolins to older stock.
I contacted the folks at DR and tried to explain my situation and the problem I was having. I was really just trying to work with them, make them aware of the problem and offered to send them one of the unopened sets from the batch I was having trouble with so that they could see what the problem and maybe work to resolve it. As you said, I was basically told to stuff it.
I know what the problem is now and can deal with it but I felt badly for my customers and others who I had recommended these strings to. I sometimes wonder how many players have had fits trying to tune their mandolins or spent money taking them to a luthier when the problem was simply defective strings.
I would appreciate your review of their new strings and would consider trying them again in the future if the consistency improves. When they are right, they are very good sounding strings.
MikeEdgerton
Dec-11-2009, 1:12pm
Wrong. My soul died just a little. C'mon guys, I'm not trying to equate this someone getting killed. You guys really wouldn't be upset if you had to play a gig with 4 E strings?
I think the real question here is did you contact them and complain and did you get a response and what was that response?
but am i missing something here? most A strings are .014, .015, or .016. if they were marked .026, on top of and over a "1st" (.010, or .011), it should have been obvious that something was not right.
You are right. The fact that it said .026 should have been a dead giveaway that something was wrong, but as I said, I was in a bit of a hurry. I always put my G and E strings on first to set my intonation, and then I quickly put on the other 2 pairs of strings without paying much attention to the envelopes. I guess I have been pampered by other string companies that have provided me with 4 unique pairs of strings. It wasn't until I got home that I noticed the crudely pasted sticker on top of the envelope.
mandroid
Dec-11-2009, 1:23pm
maybe they came up short on pre printed envelopes .. personally .011" look and feel different than a .015".
.026" is a wound string gage .. even Doc Watson could tell the difference between a wound and unwound string..
Mike--
Yes they will be sending me 1 package of DR strings to replace the defective set.
"Fiasco"? Hyperbole?
No. Hyperbole would mean an intentional exaggeration by the author. I am comfortable using the word "Fiasco" to accurately describe the situation.:)
Mike Bunting
Dec-11-2009, 2:17pm
So it was unintentional exaggeration then.
I'm suprised you didn't realize there was something wrong when you first tuned up the new strings. I guess you were just in a hurry.
PS. I'm pretty sure none of your soul died. lol
MikeEdgerton
Dec-11-2009, 2:33pm
Mike--
Yes they will be sending me 1 package of DR strings to replace the defective set.
Ok, so the manufacturer stood behind their product as they should in this instance. If the problem persists then I guess it's an issue, if not it seems to be pretty much done.
Ok, so the manufacturer stood behind their product as they should in this instance. If the problem persists then I guess it's an issue, if not it seems to be pretty much done.
It is funny you should say that. I just looked into the other pack of DR strings that I ordered to find the exact same thing!
Give me a few minutes to post a sound file of these strings to show you guys I'm not crazy.
Ok, here is a soundbyte from the "A" strings from the 2nd pack of DR strings.
In the second package of strings, the so-called A strings were actually labeled correctly at .016 . If you listen to the mp3 you will see that once again they are clearly E strings.
Edit: Upon further inspection, it looks like the so-called A strings were labeled as .016 in both packs (in the first pack I thought the A strings were in an envelope that had a crudely pasted sticker that read .026 .)
We can't tell the guage of a string from an MP3. Get a micrometer and measure them to see what you have. (I've even had strings that were one guage by the ball end and another gauge towards the other end of the string. I bought a micrometer when I was doing repair work for these kinds of issues or unexplained intonation problems.)
I guess the bottom line is DR had at least one mixup in their production process or packaging. If you really like the strings to the point where you don't want to use any others you'll have to double check that you have what you expect when you take them out of their envelopes.
Sorry, no micrometer. I was hoping from the soundbyte you could here how easily they tuned up to an E pitch. A string that was actually .016 would have either broken or been very difficult to bring up to an E pitch. I can tell you that when the E strings and the so-called A strings are both tuned to an E, the tension feels identical on both pairs.
If anyone has a micrometer, and wants to measure them, I'll be happy to mail them their way.
mandolirius
Dec-11-2009, 4:08pm
Wrong. My soul died just a little. C'mon guys, I'm not trying to equate this someone getting killed. You guys really wouldn't be upset if you had to play a gig with 4 E strings?
I'm surprised you didn't notice it when you were changing strings. I know you said you were in a hurry but still......
I'm surprised you didn't notice it when you were changing strings. I know you said you were in a hurry but still......
C'mon guys, give me a break!:) Yes I'm a little embarassed that I didn't notice that they were E strings instead of A strings, but as mentioned before I was in a bit of a hurry--and I suppose I'm just used to getting four unique pairs of strings in a package.
I bought two packages of DR strings, both of which had mislabeled strings in them--and somehow the concensus seems to be that it was my fault for being to thick to realize that they were not the proper gauge.:redface:
By the way, I'm not sure if the latter smiley is supposed to represent embarassment of being love-struck.
JEStanek
Dec-11-2009, 5:16pm
Matt, sounds like there is a real issue with the DR strings regardless of being rushed... happens to everyone. I hope they get it sorted out or you find a new set more to your liking (or at least your expectations of 4 distinct guages).
Jamie