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Post by philw on Jun 18, 2015 17:35:41 GMT
Hey guys n gals...wow its been a while and a pretty bad few months for us here so I guess I got a lot of reading up on the forum to do
Just wondered what strings you may recommend for my Martin D18 - i read up online the other day and saw that DR Sunbeams were getting plenty of praise so i got 2 sets.......what a waste. Got a set od med and a set of med lights and BOTH the bottom E and A string on both sets were dead as they come with a slight buzz aswell - and my guitar teacher put them on so i didn't cock it up, so 2 new sets of strings wasted really - so maybe they were just a dodgy batch? They were bought on fleabay from a music shop and were sealed so a mystery really, hmmm.
So i got today, and fitted myself, some D'Addario EJ16 Lights from a shop in town and they sound pretty nice, as my teacher said you cant go wrong with D'Addario strings, but try plenty to see what i like which has been said befor i know.
Anyone tried the Martin SP's as i might give them a whirl or maybe just the normal Martin strings?
Also looked at the Elixir but Christ they are bloody expensive, and i read many don't like the 'coated' strings?
Did i read someone uses Newtone strings - any good?
Also seen online Dean Malarky - never heard of them, but anyone used them?
I love a warm bright vibey sound rather than harsh/twangy - but open to all recommendations if you would cheers Phil
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Post by andyhowell on Jun 18, 2015 18:06:38 GMT
I now use Newtone exclusively. Worth trying.
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brianr2
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Post by brianr2 on Jun 18, 2015 18:10:17 GMT
I use Newtones on my short-scale Fylde, almost exclusively with open tunings.
I now use the low tension Heritage version because I am old git with weak hands. These give me the warm, mellow sound that I like, as did the standard Newtone Master Class strings that I previously used.
They last well and are not expensive. Fretsounds is a very good supplier, with Strings Direct as a fall-back.
Good luck with your quest.
Brian
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Post by philw on Jun 18, 2015 18:37:20 GMT
thanks chaps - strings direct were who I got the sunbeams off via ebay - but I made the error of leaving positive feedback before trying the strings, which to be honest I didn't expect to get 2 lots of dud strings Will have a look and order some newtone to try out
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Post by pnut on Jun 18, 2015 19:01:20 GMT
Oddly enought the last set of ej16s I put on and recently moaned about seem to be settling nicely, as I said in my other post they've been the string I keep going back to for years now, bought in bulk they are great value and whilst other strings do sometimes sound better for a moment or a certain style I've generally found them a good basic workhorse string.
Elixirs I found too bright and the tension seemed a bit higher, martin were ok but nothing special, rotosound were awful the 1st few hours after putting them on but then came on song and were ok for the money as they are cheap. EXPs where ok but didn't like the treble strings and for the money preferred the ej 16s. Earnie ball acoustics just didn't work on my Atkin, (Howard at oasis who fitted this particular set was also in agreement with that opinion, oddly enough he'd thought they were fairly good on other guitars so just goes to show diff strings suits diff instruments!)
I've yet to try the famed Newtones, where I live I'll have to mail order them and haven't got round to it.
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Post by philw on Jun 18, 2015 19:31:09 GMT
Oddly enought the last set of ej16s I put on and recently moaned about seem to be settling nicely, as I said in my other post they've been the string I keep going back to for years now, bought in bulk they are great value and whilst other strings do sometimes sound better for a moment or a certain style I've generally found them a good basic workhorse string. Elixirs I found too bright and the tension seemed a bit higher, martin were ok but nothing special, rotosound were awful the 1st few hours after putting them on but then came on song and were ok for the money as they are cheap. EXPs where ok but didn't like the treble strings and for the money preferred the ej 16s. Earnie ball acoustics just didn't work on my Atkin, (Howard at oasis who fitted this particular set was also in agreement with that opinion, oddly enough he'd thought they were fairly good on other guitars so just goes to show diff strings suits diff instruments!) I've yet to try the famed Newtones, where I live I'll have to mail order them and haven't got round to it. thanks for that pal appreciated
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Post by vikingblues on Jun 19, 2015 7:39:06 GMT
My name is Mark and I'm a Newtone Heritage user. I'm just taking things one day at a time! I have changed from being a long term user of D'Addarios and in the last year have moved to Newtone Heritage on three different acoustic guitars. I chose the Heritage for the same reason as Brian - low tension and ageing arthritic fingers. 131 lbs for a set of 12s. v something like 160lbs for normal 12s. Fortunately the change was a success in each case for sound and I do like the feel of these strings in that they are also all at the same tension - typically you could well have 30% difference between tension levels of the most and least tense string in a set of acoustic strings. I have also tried the Newtone Masterclass - a popular choice with members here, but their sound didn't connect with me as strongly as the Heritage. Typically I would say the change I got in sound with the Heritage strings is that the bass end is less rounded and there is a bit less note separation in chords, while the sound is more lively and sings / sustains more. Happily I don't like a thud from the lower notes, but I know lots of people do, so they'd be less keen on these strings. I feel it needs a decent amount of playing over 24 hours for the sound of a new set to settle in, and possibly 48 hours when changing from a non Heritage set for the ears to adjust to the changes. I suspect that Heritage work best on more responsive guitars where the lower tension won't ease things off too much on the soundboard - but that's just conjecture. Good luck with your search Phil - it's a tricky one with strings because the same type will sound different on different guitars and the only solution trying a set out for real. I'm not a great fan of Elixirs with the particular guitars I have - I'm not keen on the coated string feel and I've felt they don't sing on the higher notes for me while verging on dull and muddy on the lower notes. For a long time I was happy with uncoated D'Addarios but I'll only go back to them if Newtone go out of business or they drop the Heritage range. Mark
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Post by philw on Jun 19, 2015 7:51:27 GMT
Hi mark - thanks for the info dude - I will buy a set of masterclass and a set of heritage to try out for sure and see how they sing to me :)and will be interesting to feel the less tension heritage ones for a beginner like me cheers
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ocarolan
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Post by ocarolan on Jun 19, 2015 10:24:25 GMT
Phil, if you have not used Newtones before, please make sure you heed the warnings on the packaging about NOT trimming the strings to length before installing. Apols if grannies and sucky eggs come to mind, but Newtones (and the DR Sunbeams you mentioned earlier) use round (as opposed to hexagonal)cores for their wound strings - these will separate from the core when excess length is cut off (resulting in a dead string) unless the string is first wrapped and tensioned around the tuning post. Newtones don't appeal to everyone, but they do seem to have found a lot of favour around here for their tone and feel. Mark makes some very good points, and I would add that although the Heritage sets have considerably lower (and even) tension than would be expected it is also true that the wound strings in Masterclass sets tune to pitch at slightly less tension than similar gauges of most other brands (because they use differently gauged core wire), and also they feel more flexible in use - you can tell that as soon as you take them out of the packet. As a v long term user of newtone Masterclass PB 12-54 I must say it's a pleasure not feeling obliged to leap in on every string thread shouting the N word any more! Let us know how you get on Phil! Keith
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Post by earwighoney on Jun 19, 2015 10:48:56 GMT
I'll only go back to them if Newtone go out of business or they drop the Heritage range. Re Newtone, I read the original owner has retired and one of his employees has taken charge of the company now and his first action near enough was to move the company to a larger place of work in an industrial estate (not sure entirely, but I heard Newtone strings were built either from a home garage or something) Not sure what this will mean in the long run, but as a user of Newtone strings I hope they maintain quality if they do up production. One gripe about Newtones before is that they were often difficult to get hold off with only a few retailers selling their strings online. I flit between several brands, but Newtone are my favourites. IMO the 12 string set is the best one I have ever tried. I might order some 80/20's from them at some time...
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Post by philw on Jun 19, 2015 11:39:14 GMT
Phil, if you have not used Newtones before, please make sure you heed the warnings on the packaging about NOT trimming the strings to length before installing. Apols if grannies and sucky eggs come to mind, but Newtones (and the DR Sunbeams you mentioned earlier) use round (as opposed to hexagonal)cores for their wound strings - these will separate from the core when excess length is cut off (resulting in a dead string) unless the string is first wrapped and tensioned around the tuning post. Newtones don't appeal to everyone, but they do seem to have found a lot of favour around here for their tone and feel. Mark makes some very good points, and I would add that although the Heritage sets have considerably lower (and even) tension than would be expected it is also true that the wound strings in Masterclass sets tune to pitch at slightly less tension than similar gauges of most other brands (because they use differently gauged core wire), and also they feel more flexible in use - you can tell that as soon as you take them out of the packet. As a v long term user of newtone Masterclass PB 12-54 I must say it's a pleasure not feeling obliged to leap in on every string thread shouting the N word any more! Let us know how you get on Phil! Keith Oh shizzle, thinking back he does cut strings before winding and did with the sunbeams, problem solved then. Looks like aswell as some newtone strings I need to try the sunbeams again lol, and won't burden my tutor with stringing my guitar, watched a YouTube video and Re strung it myself yesterday, as I always struggled with the winding bit and the locking in part as it popped off before, but a short 5 min video by a guy from Martin has solved my incompetence
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Post by ocarolan on Jun 19, 2015 13:22:56 GMT
Ah - just goes to show that teachers don't necesssarily know everything! No shame in that though - many folk are unaware of round core string precautions. I wondered if that was what had happened but felt uncomfortable to say so more directly!
As for restringing, there's no need at all to "lock" the strings onto the post (if by that you mean passing the string back under itself and winding over) - it doesn't assist tuning stablity and it makes the strings a pain to remove. One wind above the hole, two below, tune up roughly and snip off as flush to the post as you can get. The "waisted" shape of the tuner posts (most slotheads excluded)will help the above and below winds to settle down onto the string where it passes through the post. Even that isn't necessary though, two to three winds around the post is plenty to hold the strings firm. I usually give the tuned string a couple of gentle pulls up away from the soundboard, retune, have a bit of thrashy strummage, retune and then it's good to go.
Insert string into hole and pull through roughly taut, then withdraw string approx the distance between two tuner posts, kink the string against the post towards the centre line of the headstock to hold it there while you tweak the button to wind the string on and up to pitch, guiding the first turn around the post over the protruding string and the next two below.
Hope that helps.
Other stringing methods are available, and are equally praised by their users, but that which I describe has served me well for over 50 years now. A short time of "locking " the strings showed no benefit, and several disadvantages, some of them painful!
Keith
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Post by philw on Jun 19, 2015 14:11:21 GMT
Ah - just goes to show that teachers don't necesssarily know everything! No shame in that though - many folk are unaware of round core string precautions. I wondered if that was what had happened but felt uncomfortable to say so more directly! As for restringing, there's no need at all to "lock" the strings onto the post (if by that you mean passing the string back under itself and winding over) - it doesn't assist tuning stablity and it makes the strings a pain to remove. One wind above the hole, two below, tune up roughly and snip off as flush to the post as you can get. The "waisted" shape of the tuner posts (most slotheads excluded)will help the above and below winds to settle down onto the string where it passes through the post. Even that isn't necessary though, two to three winds around the post is plenty to hold the strings firm. I usually give the tuned string a couple of gentle pulls up away from the soundboard, retune, have a bit of thrashy strummage, retune and then it's good to go. Insert string into hole and pull through roughly taut, then withdraw string approx the distance between two tuner posts, kink the string against the post towards the centre line of the headstock to hold it there while you tweak the button to wind the string on and up to pitch, guiding the first turn around the post over the protruding string and the next two below. Hope that helps. Other stringing methods are available, and are equally praised by their users, but that which I describe has served me well for over 50 years now. A short time of "locking " the strings showed no benefit, and several disadvantages, some of them painful! Keith Here is the vid I followed which was straight forward even for a clown like me not sure if you class it as locking it on or not (the string that is)
Don't worry about telling me how it is keith - if I need telling I'm a thick sod, go for it, fill yer boots pal, I can take it I will certainly giving my guitar tutor a ribbing for not knowing how to string a guitar properly....tongue in cheek of corse
right time to have another listen to that butterfly cd I have
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Post by creamburmese on Jun 19, 2015 14:14:26 GMT
I concur with Keith - locking steel strings inevitably results in pincushioned fingers when removing them! All in all, stringing ball-ended strings onto a steel string guitar is a doddle compared to nylon strings on a classical (those DO have to be locked and why they don't have a waist to the tuner post is beyond me). On my 12 hole bridge, I recently had a string pull through and ding the top even after I melted the end to stop it doing exactly that. Could only keep them stationary by threading them through the same hole twice - not for the faint of heart. Needless to say those super thin strings will not be found in the vicinity of my guitar ever again.
I like the Newtone Heritage strings a lot - I have them on 3 guitars right now. I even have the super light ones on the Froggy, though needed at least the 12's on the Taylor and may see if I can get hold of 13's for it, because currently it's a toss up between the Heritage and Elixir HD's (the smallest being 13's). I didn't get on at all with the single set of Masterclass strings I tried though.
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Riverman
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Post by Riverman on Jun 19, 2015 14:24:05 GMT
I have the greatest respect for Martin and their excellent guitars, but that method of restringing looks a lot more complicated than the method I use, which is pretty much the same as ocarolan's (except I cut them before winding - don't use Newtones! ). And whilst it's fine to remove all the strings at once, if you have an under saddle pickup you need to be careful not to disturb the saddle during the process or you could end up with string balance problems when amplified.
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