Lowden Premium Strings

[Zandit75]

Who has the lowdown on these strings?
I was searching for Baritone strings, but the only ones available I could find through most dealers here in Australia was either Elixer, or the newly released Lowden range.
The Elixer's were currently out of stock, so I grabbed two sets of the Lowden 16-70's while I could.
Hopefully my Faith Baritone does not require string changes very often, as these sets cost me $45 AUD ea. To make matters worse, this was their special price, normally being $50 AUD!!
Considering the new D'Addario XS strings only cost me $24 AUD, which is about $10 cheaper than the XT's I bought last year, I thought these new XS's were a fantastic price.
I've looked for feedback on the Lowden strings, but not having much luck.
Any info would be appreciated.

[Dru Edwards]

I've never heard of Lowden strings before but that seems like a big premium to pay for them. How much do the Elixirs cost in AU?

[Malcolm Kindnes]

Lowden strings are expensive, personally I don't think they are worth it. Buying them in Australia probably adds another whack of duty or tax onto an already expensive product.
When I had a baritone guitar a few years ago I used D'Addario strings, which although I can't remember the exact cost, didn't seem very expensive to me.

[Tannin]

Zandit, I've been using John Pierce baritone strings and really like them. I'll write them up in more detail on your other thread (which I've had open in a background tab for about a week, intendiong to post in it). Very reasonable price and fast delivery from stringsbymail.com or the heavier gauge from stringsdirect.co.uk

(There is a parcel at the Huonville Post Office waiting for me since Friday. I ordered strings from the UK and the USA on the same day. Which one will get here first?)

[Tannin]

Sorry Zandit, that other thread wasn't yours and wasn't about what I thought it was about.

Malcolm Kindnes, there is no import duty here worth mentioning, and GST at 10% is half as much as the 20% VAT charged in the UK. Shipping is not really much of a factor either, nor is the "small" market - it is the same size as California or Taiwan. (So why are some things so expensive? Good question!) Dru Edwards, Elixirs are very dear here. The company plays consumer-unfriendly games with different pricing in different countries, charging 30% extra here as compared to the US.

So far as I've been able to discover, Zandit, there is not a string retailer in this country smart enough make it sensibly possible to find baritone strings on their website. (Compare with the likes of Strings by Mail and Strings Direct, where you can generally find exactly what you want with just a few clicks.) I spent hours hunting and eventually gave it up as a hopeless task and ordered from the USA. I buy most things locally, but strings I've pretty much given up on now and just mail order from overseas. Except for Elixirs which you can't buy overseas and I'm not going to get stung 30% over the going rate every time so I'm actively trying out alternative brands of coated string to replace Elixirs on the one guitar I have that still uses them.

The John Pierce baritone strings are, in my view, outstanding. Two reasons for saying that. First, the brass winding makes way more sense than phosphor bronze for a baritone string. It gives the bass strings some extra snap and zing and avoids those low notes getting lost in general muddiness. It also lifts the treble strings up a bit, and because a big baritone body naturally has less treble than a smaller instrument, this helps too.

The second reason is that the JPs come with a wound 2nd string. On just about any guitar, the heaviest plain string is the usual problem child. On baritones, a plain 2nd is very heavy and even more prone to have issues than is is on standard acoustics. John Pierce's wound 2nd banishes those intonation and false note problems. I wouldn't ever go back to a plain 2nd now that I've experienced the difference.

The JPs come in two gauges: the common "light bartitone" set is 15-22-30 43-54-68 (all wound except the 1st); the hard-to-find medium baritone set is 17-24-32, 45-56-70. The former is sold by quite a few vendors (I use and recommend Strings by Mail), the latter is very difficult to track down, but I have a set on the way from Strings Direct in the UK. (.co.uk, not .com).

I'm playing a Tacoma with a 637mm scale length and the light JPs are just a fraction too light for my taste when tuned to the standard B. I have to take them up to C to avoid buzzes - but I am a former bass player and tend to hit quite hard, so another player might be OK with them. This is why I've ordered the medium set: I hope that they will feel as great as the lights but let me tune down that extra semitone.

Your Faith baritone has a very short scale: 680mm. That's only about 30mm longer than a standard guitar. Compare with the common Alvarez baritone which is 705mm. So it might make sense to look for fairly heavy strings and tune it up a bit to avoid buzzes. Alternatively, you might be a someone who plays with a very light touch and be just fine in B. Good luck with it!

[Zandit75]

Thanks for the input Tannin, most appreciated. Good to see other Taswegians in here!!
I didn't really want to spend that much for the strings, but also didn't want to run the risk of not having anything spare available.
I'll check out the JP strings for next time.
The Faith Baritone is shipped with D'Addario EXP23's, which as we all know are becoming extinct, and I can't find them anywhere.
It's funny you mention the 680mm scale, as most retailers say it's 700mm.
I'll double check when I get home from work later today.

[Zandit75]

Originally Posted by Dru Edwards

I've never heard of Lowden strings before but that seems like a big premium to pay for them. How much do the Elixirs cost in AU?

Looking at local dealers, anywhere from $38-44 AUD, so the Lowdens are not too out of the equation.
The Aussie Dollar has a different market value to the USD, so anything is normally dearer that what the US gets.
A standard set of D'Addario EJ16's can cost around the $14-18 AUD mark
EXP16's were costing me around $25 locally, and the one set of XT's I bought were $35, and only lasted 2 weeks before I took them off the guitar. I hated them.
That's why I was so surprised when the new XS strings were only $24 AUD a set!

Originally Posted by Malcolm Kindnes

Lowden strings are expensive, personally I don't think they are worth it. Buying them in Australia probably adds another whack of duty or tax onto an already expensive product.
When I had a baritone guitar a few years ago I used D'Addario strings, which although I can't remember the exact cost, didn't seem very expensive to me.

Probably the EXP23's, which are no longer available. Same as what's actually fitted to this Faith Baritone.
When I get around to changing the strings I'll do a review/comparison.

[Tannin]

Cheers Zandit, I've never played or even seen a Faith baritone, I was just going off this page on their website: https://www.faithguitars.com/guitars...oustic-guitars

[Zandit75]

Originally Posted by Tannin

Cheers Zandit, I've never played or even seen a Faith baritone, I was just going off this page on their website: https://www.faithguitars.com/guitars...oustic-guitars

Just measured the guitar, and surprisingly, the Faith webpage is incorrect! It does actually have a 700mm scale! How weird is that!!

[Tannin]

Weid indeed! But good. I'd rather have the extra 20mm anytime. That puts the Faith midway betwen the Taylors and the Alvarez.

(I tried out a recent-model Taylor 8-string baritone the other day, spruce on Blackwood, but I didn't much care for it. Too muddy. Maybe a change of strings would have benefited it.)

[Zandit75]

Originally Posted by Tannin

Weid indeed! But good. I'd rather have the extra 20mm anytime. That puts the Faith midway betwen the Taylors and the Alvarez.

(I tried out a recent-model Taylor 8-string baritone the other day, spruce on Blackwood, but I didn't much care for it. Too muddy. Maybe a change of strings would have benefited it.)

Who had that in stock? Modern Musician?
I was seriously looking at the Alvarez 8 String, but there was no stock available until at least June/July. I had the itch, so widened my search and found the Faith at Billy Hyde in Melbourne.

[jaymarsch]

I discovered Lowden strings just before the pandemic. While I haven’t used the baritones, my two rosewood guitars sound great with the 12-53s and they lasted me 6 months on the guitar that I play the most and 9 months on the guitar that I play a bit less. I didn’t like them as much on my mahogany guitars. They sound brilliant on the rosewood but a bit flat sounding on the mahogany guitars. Have no idea why. I like the feel of them as well. With my particular playing style - mostly flesh with a bit of nail, they have minimal string noise and the tension feels just right - not too stiff or slippery feeling.
Your mileage may very depending on your attack and skin chemistry, but I have found these strings to be worth the price.
Best,
Jayne

[Tannin]

Classic Guitars and Amps in Elizabeth Street, Zandit. But be careful, they also have a fabulous Guild GF-60 and an outstanding Martin HD-28.

CG&A's website says it is "updated frequently" but they still have my Thunderhawk listed for sale and I've had it since spring. Updated frequently once a decade, I suspect. But they have some lovely guitars.

Jaymarsch, that soiunds good. I'll give them a try on my Messiah.

[Zandit75]

Originally Posted by jaymarsch

I discovered Lowden strings just before the pandemic. While I haven’t used the baritones, my two rosewood guitars sound great with the 12-53s and they lasted me 6 months on the guitar that I play the most and 9 months on the guitar that I play a bit less. I didn’t like them as much on my mahogany guitars. They sound brilliant on the rosewood but a bit flat sounding on the mahogany guitars. Have no idea why. I like the feel of them as well. With my particular playing style - mostly flesh with a bit of nail, they have minimal string noise and the tension feels just right - not too stiff or slippery feeling.
Your mileage may very depending on your attack and skin chemistry, but I have found these strings to be worth the price.
Best,
Jayne

Thanks Jayne, most appreciated.
I'll provide an update when I get around to trying them out.

[nootis]

While I have a Baritone, I have not tried Lowden strings on it. I have used Martins and Elixirs on it. I like both.

I do have an acoustic from Michael Bashkin, and when he finished the guitar, he asked me what kind of strings I normally use. I told him Martin SP's. He said he put a set on, but perhaps they had been sitting on the shelf too long. He just didn't like the sound he was getting from them, so he put on a set of Lowden strings and sent me the guitar.

Fit and feel are excellent, and at least for that guitar, they are my preferred string. I really like them. The only problem are the expense.

The only place that I am aware of to get them are from the USA Lowden website. They are expensive no matter where you get them. I believe they are around $26 for lights and $28 for Baritone.