Comparing phosphor/bronze and nickel-bronze d'Addarios

[SkipII]

EDIT: Sorry, I was new to this forum and coming back into guitar-playing after many years off. I did not realize this topic has been worked over into a pulp!


I have a Furch Gc-CR Red Plus (cedar/rosewood). I am moving more toward lighter finger style playing after years of pounding away on a Martin HD-28.

I switched out the stock Elixir .12s for d'Addario PB .11s, mostly to reduce string tension. I am also have some intonation problems, perhaps because the factory was set up for .12s, not 11s.

I've listened to several YouTube demos seeking to show the difference between PBs and NB, but maybe my speakers (or ears?!) are not discerning enough b because I'm not hearing it.

Generally...what is the difference between the two? d'Addario makes the claim that the NB strings allow more of the natural sound of the tonewoods to come through rather than introduce sound from the strings characteristics. That might be arguable, but given that Furch voices both their back and sides on this level of guitar, I certainly want to make the most of it.

As well, they say you can move up one gauge given the lighter feel (and lighter tension??) of their NB strings. Given my intonation issue, I'm open to going back to .12s to come closer to the factory gauge and set-up if they feel more like .11s when playing.

Whew...anyway, any thoughts on all that are appreciated.

[dwasifar]

Originally Posted by SkipII

I've listened to several YouTube demos seeking to show the difference between PBs and NB, but maybe my speakers (or ears?!) are not discerning enough b because I'm not hearing it.

Generally...what is the difference between the two? d'Addario makes the claim that the NB strings allow more of the natural sound of the tonewoods to come through rather than introduce sound from the strings characteristics. That might be arguable, but given that Furch voices both their back and sides on this level of guitar, I certainly want to make the most of it.

I would put D'Addario's claim firmly in the category of "marketing hype." There is no question that NB and PB sound very different, but claiming that one is more "natural" than the other is completely subjective. In the wilds of nature, thin pieces of wood do not ever amplify the vibrations of thin pieces of metal, so there's no such thing as a "natural sound" of that happening. There is only what this metal sounds like vs. what that metal sounds like when we combine them artificially in this way.

If I were trying to write more literal marketing copy, I would say that NB sounds mellower and less forward than PB, or that PB sounds brighter and zingier than NB. If they want to interpret that as NB sounding less metallic, I suppose you could make a case for that. Personally I can't stand NB; to me they suck the tone out of any guitar I've put them on. So my bias is evident here, but it's my two cents.

[PerryE]

I write in another thread about my feeling of “treble overload” when going from old NB strings from Daddario to fresh PB. I have one steel string guitar which is a Yamaha LL16 - this makes me painfully aware of differences. To be honest I really like NB - they soften my LL16 in a way I like but the PB creates a lot of sparkly fireworks which is cool in a way

[Bill Ashton]

The Martin Tony Rice and D'Addario NB strings are an attempt to emulate the Monel strings from the 60's and 70's. That tone may be for you...and it may not.

I likes NB very much on my Collings D2H and my present H & D TD-R, they make the guitars sound like that "bluegrass" sound in your head. On the other hand, I could not get the Martins off my Guild F47 (Auditorium size) fast enough. Sounded like I had put used electric guitar strings on it! You are probably gonna have to just experiment...