Nickel strings on an oval L4!

[KalamazooGuy]

I originally put PBs the first couple restrings on my ‘30 L4 and it sounded good I thought. I decided to go with nickel about a week ago and after the strings settled in, I am pretty certain the volume and tone has jumped up considerably. My wife even noticed how “loud” it is now. [emoji38]

[Steve DeRosa]

FYI the original factory strings would most likely have been monels, so I'm not surprised in the least that your L-4 sounds better with nickels (I'm assuming you're using some brand of pure nickel, and not the "nickel-plated steel" most electric players use in the interest of economy) - that said, I'd still give a set of Martin Retro monels a try somewhere down the line, just for the heluvit...

[fpuhan]

You probably already know this, but the term "pure nickel" is a bit misleading. I learn a lot (and purchase strings) from Stringjoy. For instance, here's a snippet from a post titled, "Pure Nickel Guitar Strings vs Nickel Wound Strings"

Probably the biggest misconception around pure nickel strings is that the finished string itself is “pure nickel,” core and all. It’s not. Nickel isn’t strong enough to hold up to the rigorous demands placed on core wire or plain strings, as it’s a much softer metal. If you made a nickel-core string, strung it up, and bent it, it would just stay bent and hang off the fretboard. That’s no good. Therefore, pure nickel strings always feature stainless steel cores and steel plain strings, just like nickel wound/nickel-plated steel strings do.

Stringjoy makes nickel wound, "pure nickel" and coated nickel strings under their Signatures, Broadways and Orbiters series. They are listed under "Electric guitar strings."

[KalamazooGuy]

They are the Martin retro monels. Very pleased.

[Robin, Wales]

Originally Posted by KalamazooGuy

They are the Martin retro monels. Very pleased.

13-56 Martin monel strings seem to work well on my acoustic archtop (Godin 5th Avenue). Although at the moment I have D'Addario pure nickel 13-56 fitted.

The difference is subtle. Pure nickel wraps are a bit softer than monel strings, so they are a bit more mellow. Monel is a nickel alloy, rather than just nickel. I can't decide if I like the "edge" of monel or the roundness of pure nickel best on my guitar. Pure nickel strings last so long that I may not try monel again until Xmas!

I think that the description "pure nickel" has come about to distinguish the strings from standard electric guitar "nickel" strings, which have steel wraps on steel cores that are just nickel plated. So asking for a set of nickel strings or a set of pure nickel strings are two very different products.