Strings--specifically, shrill "E"s

[gauze]

I have the opposite problem on my Loar I feel the Es don't project enough. I find this odd.

[belbein]

You can actually hear a pretty clear example of this on the John Reischman video in the other thread, listen to his open As and Es. Ouch.

!!! I couldn't hear it. Makes me wonder if it's not vibration I'm "hearing".

[belbein]

tape

I'm going to try it. Thanks.

[Willie Poole]

I sometimes hear it myself and believe it is my hearing range, I go to a thicker pick and it seems to correct it but I also lose some of the loudness....When I play back a tape I don`t hear it so I still believe it is due to my hearing range....Ask other people if they hear the same thing...

[Tom Cherubini]

That high E string is small in diameter, it's under a lot of tension and the span from nut to bridge is short. In order to tune it to pitch it's gonna be shrill. My solution came by accident. I went through a plastic bag full of guitar picks looking for something that might work on mandolin and found this.
http://compare.ebay.com/like/2810533...Types&var=sbar

It must be white nylon or some similar material because it provides a velvety tone without any harshness all across the courses. I only play jazz and classical mandolin - it probably wouldn't work for BG. If I remember, I bought the thickest ones I could buy.

[Tom Cherubini]

Has anybody tried using an A string in place of the E? It might be fun to just tune an A string up to E right in place just to see what it sounds like, and whether it would break (I doubt it.).

[Bertram Henze]

It might be fun to just tune an A string up to E right in place just to see what it sounds like, and whether it would break (I doubt it.).

I doubt it not, but I am looking forward to your experimental results

[steady339]

I know this is an old thread but I thought I would comment because I hear what the OP hears on 90% of mandolins too--"shrill" E strings. I don't hear this shrillness on many old Gibson mandolins--but rather a beautiful woody, mellow tone top to bottom.

I have always felt that the shrill effect on mandolins can be compared to the shrill, thin tone of cheap violins. Fine violins have beautiful sounding rich overtones, carry very well, but are not shrill sounding in the upper registers.

[ajh]

I took the leap and went to mandola/tenor tuning about four years ago. I don't play bluegrass at all and found myself actively staying away from the e strings just because I didn't like "that" sound.....have never missed it for a second. If I really need it (the high notes), it is still there way up on the a string(s), but I rarely do.

[Don Grieser]

I've found the bevel on Blue Chip picks adds shrillness to the E strings or maybe causes it in my playing. I have one with hardly any bevel that doesn't cause as much of the shrill E problem. If I use a D'Andrea purple Delrin pick, it all goes away. So I'm using the BC less and less.

[Mark Wilson]

I don't play bluegrass at all and found myself actively staying away from the e strings just because I didn't like "that" sound.....have never missed it for a second.

To some degree E string tone must be hard to get perfect but from experience, there are builders out there that get it right. Pure and proud with no shrill

[pops1]

Interesting, I find thicker picks warm the sound, but when the E string is not intonated well the sound gets bright or shrill. By adjusting the bridge that goes away.

[Mandobart]

If I understand the "masking tape" method correctly it sounds like you dampen the afterlength with tape? Why not use the hardware store rubber grommets we all love?

Since this is a zombie thread, is the OP still around? Did he ever find the right mandolin or strings? Switch to mandola?

[precloading]

Tape worked for me. I put it on the e strings against the bridge on the side you strum on. Have the grommet on the other side of the bridge but it made no difference.

[f5loar]

If JR's Loar has it and it's obvious in that video, then we should only pray our mandolins sound this good. I sure didn't hear a problem with it either. JR has a different pick attack than I do. When I hear an E string have a funky sound, it's usually a bad string, or the nut or bridge top needs to TLC.

[Charlie Bernstein]

Good answers above.

I'm not a builder or pro player, but I'm on my fourth mando, and one thing I've found in my limited experience is that maple is ice-picky. Conventional wisdom says you need that for cutting through bluegrass.

It seems to be true, but since I don't play bluegrass, that feature is useless.

Of my four, I had one with a solid rosewood body and solid spruce top, and I now have one with a solid birch body and solid spruce top. Neither was or is piercing.

The other two were maple — one solid, one plywood. Both were pretty harsh. Maybe it takes spending more than $3k for maple to overcome that. I'll never know.

Also, while f-holes are loud, oval and round holes might deliver a warmer, more 3D sound. I'll leave that to people who know more to confirm or deny.

Anyhow, try some other woods, like birch, walnut, rosewood, or mahogany. There are hardwood density charts online. My bet is you'll find the sound you're chasing.

[DCHammers]

It is not the tinnitus that causes this problem, but a response called "hyperacusis" that may or may not accompany tinnitus in hearing loss. It seems counter-intuitive that you would hear sounds more loudly while suffering hearing loss, but it is not that uncommon. It is likely to be worse with higher frequencies. I have recently been supplementing the mando with a fiddle and it is that much worse with the higher volume. I use Westone custom molded concert ear plugs that cut out from 5-25 dB (you pick the level). You can get them from many audiologists at about $200/pair.