Tell me about strings

[Mr5150]

Am new to the sport. What is out there? Different types, brands and thickness. How can I maximize my tone and playability?

Currently running D'Addario J73.

[JeffD]

Well if your mandolin is sound and has no issues, I would move up to J74s. I a little more tone. J74s, (or EJ74s I think now) are like a very good starting place. From there lots of choices, lots of options.

If your instrument is the Loar 520 in your sig, then yea J73s are likely to be a little light and give you a little less tone.

My opinion. Many will weigh in.

[George R. Lane]

I am a fan of the GHA270's. Sound great and are easy on the fingers.

[pops1]

I think what George was saying was GHS 270's, which I also like. I also make sets out of GHS white bronze guitar strings. Love the sound much better than Phosphor Bronze.

[colorado_al]

You're asking the right question. Changing strings is the single best way to improve the sound of your mandolin. I also think J73 are too light for that mandolin.
I think flatwound strings give better tone on the low end. Not as loud as roundwound bronze, but the tone is much more pleasant. Woodier. And no string noise when you move your fingers.
My favorites are D'addario EFW74.

[fatt-dad]

I'd agree for an archtop, you should go up in gauge. I'd agree that the gauge range is in the ilk of J-74s. You may like the difference in the monel strings (Sam Bush signature set).

f-d

[UsuallyPickin]

Each mandolin and each pair of ears has a favorite tone. Sooooo .... enjoy the search through the myriad makers of mandolin strings as you look and listen for the best one for you. A strings touch and longevity come into play , haha, here too. Over time your technique and what you listen for in a string may change because of changes in taste or instrument...... then you get to start your search again. Yes the 74 line from D'Addario is as good a place to start as any. Most players of archtop mandolins play an .011 through .041 gauge of string. Personally for my instrument I am using Curt Mangan .0115 through .041 ... for many years before that I used Martin and D'Addario strings......Luck.. R/

[Steve Ostrander]

Martin makes a set that is a little lighter than J74 but overall I prefer J74.

[mandroid]

How can I maximize my tone and playability?

done the set up already, ? that is your playability.

73 is lust thinner than the 74 set which is in turn lighter than the 75.

The harder you drive the right hand the heavier a string You May Like .

G & D get wound with Bronze, Brass, Monel And other nickel alloys,
as well as silvered copper.

[fentonjames]

they aren't 'strings,' they are 'strangs.'

[DougC]

First I hope you know what at good set up means. String height is just one aspect, and there is the groove in the nut for the size of string you use, and how it may or may not allow the string to slide over it when tuning. The frets though small have to be all the same height so the instrument plays in tune. There is a lot of stuff that is really un-noticed by players but makes a big difference in how the instrument works.

Right now I have some light gauge Thomastik flat wound strings on my Collings MT2 and the nut grooves are too big. The G string rattles a bit against the frets. The bridge moved a tiny bit and put the instrument out of tune. Sheesh, you would think this is easy as changing tires on a car.

However, the strings are as smooth as silk and they are super responsive to every touch. (The mandolin really shows it's quality here..). I have not tried playing really loud with the band yet. But just when I thought I had the best strings and pick, I found these strings and I'm freaking out on how good this mandolin feels and plays now.

Enjoy the hunt!

[colorado_al]

nut grooves are too big

If you're sticking with that gauge string, you should fill and recut the nut. I use super glue and bone dust to fill the existing slots. Then file them smooth to the rest of the nut, then cut in new slots to the proper width and depth.

[Mr5150]

To all, thanks for the info

My 520 came with J74s, but I figured the J73s would be easier to play. So a few weeks after I got the 520 I had the lighter strings installed. They were easier. Now four months later my fret fingers are much stronger. Based on what has been said here I plan to have J74s installed

[Barry Wilson]

I like the J74's but for me they wear out fast. When I can find them I like the coated Elixers. That is all I use on the guitar and they last far longer than the extra cost

[yankees1]

You simply have to try a number of different sets and decide for yourself which strings sound best to you.

[DHopkins]

they aren't 'strings,' they are 'strangs.'

They're "strings" if you play classical. They're "strangs" if you play country or bluegrass.

[Gibson John]

Am new to the sport. What is out there? Different types, brands and thickness. How can I maximize my tone and playability?

Currently running D'Addario J73.

I just switched from using the D'Addario J73 to the D'Addario EJ74's on my Gibson's F-4 & A-4 & I prefer the tone & sound on these much better.

[Ivan Kelsall]

You might care to try a set of DR MD11 strings. They're the same gauge as the EJ74s (used to be J74s),but they are a much stronger,more powerful sounding string & they also last a long time. What pick are you using ?. I bought some Dunlop ''Primetone'' picks around 15 months or so ago,& they added yet another 'boost' to the power of my mandolins. You could do worse than to try that particular pick/string combo.,although right now,i've gone back to EJ74's + Primetones,with DR's 'in reserve' if i need 'em,
Ivan

[dreadhead]

Does anyone on here use Ej75's or another brand with similar gauges? I want a beefier "A" string.....I currently use EJ74's on my Collings MT2 and I think the previous owner may have used a higher gauge set of strings because the "A" strings buzz slightly when played open. I have alleviated the buzzing pretty much by playing with a lighter touch, but I'm naturally a more hard driving, percussive type player....drums were my first instrument!

[JeffD]

I use 75s on a one of my mandolins, yea, because I was told the maker designed the instrument with those strings in mind from the beginning.

[pops1]

I use 75s on a one of my mandolins, yea, because I was told the maker designed the instrument with those strings in mind from the beginning.

More than likely your maker designed your mandolin with the gauge of the the 75's i mind as they are heavier. Meaning your mandolin will easily tolerate heavy strings, you could use heavy string from any company and you could easily try the 74's as there is not a huge difference. I am using guitar strings 11,16.24,42 from GHS. They are white bronze and I like the sound. They don't make a 40, and the 38 I thought was too light, but the 42 has a smaller core than their 40 mandolin string so it didn't bother me to try it and it is a great set of strings.

[LongBlackVeil]

I think what George was saying was GHS 270's, which I also like. I also make sets out of GHS white bronze guitar strings. Love the sound much better than Phosphor Bronze.

More than likely your maker designed your mandolin with the gauge of the the 75's i mind as they are heavier. Meaning your mandolin will easily tolerate heavy strings, you could use heavy string from any company and you could easily try the 74's as there is not a huge difference. I am using guitar strings 11,16.24,42 from GHS. They are white bronze and I like the sound. They don't make a 40, and the 38 I thought was too light, but the 42 has a smaller core than their 40 mandolin string so it didn't bother me to try it and it is a great set of strings.

Wouldn't that be the same as PF270s?

http://m.juststrings.com/ghs-pf270.html

I have some on order, can't wait to try them. I like the gauge and sound of the a270s best so far on most mandolins. But I also like the daddario 80/20 exps and I use 80/20s on my guitars. 80/20s usually have more cut and less overtones

[Ivan Kelsall]

At one point i went to a heavier gauge string,but i found that i had to pick harder for the same volume. I realised that i'f i'd just played as hard on the lighter strings,i wouldn't have needed heavier ones. So,i went back to lighter ones,which at the time were the DR MD11's that i was using. The DR's are still the 'punchiest' most powerful strings i've tried & a heavy gauge wasn't required on the mandolin i tried them on,
Ivan

[pops1]

Wouldn't that be the same as PF270s?

http://m.juststrings.com/ghs-pf270.html

I have some on order, can't wait to try them. I like the gauge and sound of the a270s best so far on most mandolins. But I also like the daddario 80/20 exps and I use 80/20s on my guitars. 80/20s usually have more cut and less overtones

Actually no, GHS doesn't make the white bronze in mandolin sets, yet, I am trying to persuade them. I like them because most bronze strings are too bright at first and when they sound good it's only for a short while and they start to get dead. The white bronze start out like other bronze strings after a week and are not as bright, but weeks down the road they are still sounding about the same. They are a nickel alloy and they will work with a magnetic pickup if anyone plays with a magnetic pickup. They are also thinking about pure nickel and if they do I will start a post on the cafe.

[mandroid]

Often "white Bronze" is just another name for Brass Cu+Zn rather than bronze Cu+ Sn
though bronze can be alloyed with a lot more trace elements too .

Bronze .. copper and tin are of course.. 3000 years old .. the first metal alloys Made .