All Nylon strings?

[richard1]

Knew I'd seen them somewhere. This is where they were:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_CHBZAu5rG4

Edit: Just to clarify, I'd asked in a previous post if anyone knew where I could get a set of all nylon strings. Nobody had heard of them or whether it was even possible, but I knew I'd seen them somewhere.

[Rille]

Standard strings in that video. You can hear the slight squeak of the bass strings when he plays and also see that they are wound strings as usual.

Peace

[Dr O’Fluf]

Do you mean classical guitar strings? Like these https://www.daddario.com/products/gu...ormal-tension/ ?

[JERZEY]

He means a full set of nylons without metal windings on the low strings. They do exist. I have seen 2 different brands on the shelf in Sam Ash but for the life of me I cant remember who made them.

[Steve DeRosa]

Originally Posted by Rille

Standard strings in that video. You can hear the screech and also see that the 3 of the strings are wounded as usual...

...

[Rille]

Yeah, but English is not my birth language. So therefore it turned out a bit wrong.

Peace

[richard1]

Must have been mistaken by the video, but as JERZY says, that are available (or at least were). Just trying to find some.

[jwayne]

You best bet is to ask this on unfretted.com.

[Carey]

Originally Posted by richard1

Must have been mistaken by the video, but as JERZY says, that are available (or at least were). Just trying to find some.

They'd have to be some *seriously thick*, large-diameter bass strings, to be
all nylon. If they exist I can't imagine them sounding good (not that metal-wound basses are perfect, by any stretch). Monofilament nylon third strings are barely tolerable..

[TBman]

We need bass strings with a steel core wrapped in a soft rubber, lol.

[Carey]

Originally Posted by TBman

We need bass strings with a steel core wrapped in a soft rubber, lol.

Maybe they would sound better! I no longer use a thumbnail, to try to
get away from the brassy, metallic sound of the wound basses (esp the D string, which tends to sound 'stringy', anyway) ; that approach
has its own drawbacks, of course.

[Canoeman]

bass notes are supposed to have a bit of growl in them. In the case of the video the 'G' string is thick and then the 'D' is thinner. I am not so sure that i care for the sound of fretless guitars as this one is. Kind of dull.

[Tim E]

To revive this old thread, I would also like to find if such a thing exists.

About 10 years ago, I took an old $20 Paracho special and modded it to accommodate some nylon string trimmer line for the basses. The D is .060", the A is .073" and the E is .092". The goal was to make a plectrum played all-nylon string guitar, and to a large extent, it was a success.

It does feel odd, and I doubt Segovia would approve. The result is a very percussive, "plucky", "thumpy" kind of tone. With a plectrum, the volume is reasonable, consisting mostly of the attack, with a very quick decay. Played fingerstyle is less satisfying, as the strings demand significant energy to activate.

It would be interesting if a manufacturer could make some real strings like this. Being string trimmer line, there was no consideration of its tonal qualities when manufactured. I suspect monofilament strings designed for the basses would have more sustain and more closely match the tonality of the trebles. As it is, the sting trimmer basses are very distinctly different than the nylon trebles (which are a Savarez set that have been on there for about 25 years).

For me, the biggest downside, something I also find pretty interesting, is that the string trimmer line is very unstable, and won't hold a tuning for more than about an hour. They are very sensitive to presumably temperature and/or humidity. I wouldn't have expected nylon to be this variable. The trebles are very stable, and rarely need to be tuned. But every time I pick up the instrument, the basses are all over the place. They seem to vary about plus/minus a half note, and in all these years, have never stabilized!

Anyhow, just though you all might want to hear about this little experiment and how it turned out.

[Bax Burgess]

I have to wonder if there are differences between trimmer line brands, say Arnold, Ryobi, and Black & Decker. Husqvarna Titanium Force could be a serious player.

[Tim E]

Originally Posted by Bax Burgess

I have to wonder if there are differences between trimmer line brands, say Arnold, Ryobi, and Black & Decker. Husqvarna Titanium Force could be a serious player.

If only!

I revisited the idea a few years back to see if anyone else had progressed with this idea, and believe it or not, turns out Oregon Magnum Gator line was preferred among some rockabilly bass players. Which comes in some really thick sizes, up to something like .170 or so. I don't know why that was the stuff to use, but that brand came up. And I could swear I've seen trimmer line used on some tololoches (small modestly constructed double basses) used in some Mexican norteño combos. But no leads on guitar usage.