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  #1  
Old 08-11-2019, 03:03 PM
moondoggie999 moondoggie999 is offline
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Default (new) Martin Authentic SP 12's on CF...

GAH!!! NONONONONONONOooooooooooooooooooooooo

SO I know I am late to the party but forgive me plz...

I last bought a set of new strings in June of 2018. Yes those strings have been on for over a year. I love Martin SP PB 12's uncoated (MSP4100).

So I go to order new strings today and discover that Martin changed my belove-ed strings as of 01OCT2018. Since that was my 50th bday I can only assume they thought this would be a good bday gift????

sigh

So my fellow Carbon Fiber guitar players, you all know how PICKY our guitars can be with different strings (in a way that reg wood guitars aren't) which brings me to my question: For those of you who might be using Martin SP's on their CF guitars, can you tell an overall difference between the old and the new of the same lineage? (Say for instance between the MSP4100 and the replacement of the MA540 on CF guitars?)

Just curious for opinions since the new style of Martin "Authentic" SP's have been out for nearly a year now. I ordered a set of the MA540's today from Strings and Beyoooooooonnnnndddddd so should be able to test drive them next weekend.

Well ok if you wanna hear what my 1 year old strings sound like...
I recorded this version of Cabaret in June2019 on my Rainsong Shorty with the MSP4100's that were installed June2018:

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  #2  
Old 08-11-2019, 03:51 PM
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David Eastwood David Eastwood is offline
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I’d say your one-year-old strings sound great, the Shorty sounds wonderful, and I love your voice
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Old 08-11-2019, 03:54 PM
SpruceTop SpruceTop is offline
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You and your RainSong sound wonderful! Likely, the newest Martin strings will sound good for you too.
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Old 08-11-2019, 05:48 PM
Captain Jim Captain Jim is offline
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It all sounds good: the strings, the guitar, your playing, and your vocals.
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Old 08-11-2019, 06:00 PM
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Very nice work. Thank you for bringing it here. Also like the way you write.
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Old 08-11-2019, 06:17 PM
jdinco jdinco is offline
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Very nice Mooooooon Dogggggggie !
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Old 08-11-2019, 06:30 PM
steelvibe steelvibe is offline
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Always good to see a post from you Brett. Sometimes I miss the Shorty- I really love the tone but discovered I just couldn't get along with the NS neck.
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Old 08-12-2019, 01:51 AM
AZLiberty AZLiberty is offline
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I have not tried the new Martin strings. In the main forum there are a lot of folks who are... lets go with disgruntled.

The old strings had the trebles flashed with bronze, the new ones are flashed with tin. Most of the complaints I read are about the new trebles.

I have been mostly using EJ-16s. I remember trying John Pearse PBs several years ago, and thought they sounded about midway between the old Martin PBs and Martin SP PBs.
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Old 08-12-2019, 05:01 AM
kramster kramster is offline
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Really nice performance .... background looks like a real garage...sorta garagebandy without the rest of the band
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Old 08-12-2019, 05:38 AM
moondoggie999 moondoggie999 is offline
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AZLiberty did you get the impression that they were put off by the looks of the tin flashing compared to bronze or put off by the sound of the new strings? Or both? I’m curious to know if I’d be able to tell any significant diff between the old and new when I put them on this weekend. I’ll let you all know.

Also thanks to everyone for the kind words about the video. You all unexpectedly cheered me up because of that. I found out my former guitar teacher and friend passed away last month and I attended his celebration of life this past Saturday. I’ve been kinda down and heartbroken since. It takes time to process. A family friend told me a long while back that you never get over someone dying who was close to you, you just learn to live with it. Thank you all for the “pick me up”!
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Old 08-12-2019, 07:18 PM
AZLiberty AZLiberty is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by moondoggie999 View Post
AZLiberty did you get the impression that they were put off by the looks of the tin flashing compared to bronze or put off by the sound of the new strings?
I got the impression that most folks think the new trebles are a lot brighter sounding, and thus the balance on the new strings has changed.
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  #12  
Old 08-17-2019, 10:42 AM
moondoggie999 moondoggie999 is offline
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wow what a difference.

I put on the new "Authentic" acoustic SP lights last night after work. I played them a bit last night then woke up and played a bit more.

My initial impressions of the "Authentic" SP's on my RainSong Shorty (without comparing them to the old version just yet) are that they seem like a good solid set of acoustic strings. Overall there doesn't seem to be anything unpleasant in sound or balance, but there also wasn't anything that knocked my socks off so to speak, no real "wow" factor. These would probably be a good workhorse, well-behaved, non-offensive set of strings that actually work quite well, sonically, on my Shorty (which is a tall order on a CF guitar). In a word, "tame" (to my ears and on my shorty).

The differences that I hear between the "Authentics" (MA540) and the original SP's they replaced (MSP4100) are as follows: The Authentics, as a string set, seem to be much more subdued (and perhaps better balanced over all), the bass strings 6E & 5A have less bass response "boom/punch" to them, the trebles 2B & 1E have less warmth (but not unpleasantly so) and the middle 4D and 3G strings are much more crisp sounding and much more "out in front" sonically.

To my ear the original SP's have more bass, warmer (and more present) trebles and the midrange was pulled back a bit but still had an overall growl to them. For me I would describe the old SP's as bold and inspiring, they made me excited to play and practice, because the sound just seemed to leap effortlessly from my fingers on the guitar. They are musical, resonant and responsive and that puts a smile on my face every time.

As an interesting aside, I used to use the old SP's on my Martin DM, and although I liked them, they died quite quickly and I was not wow-ed by those strings on that guitar. When I first put them on the Shorty I was amazed at the difference sound wise and how long they stayed playable on a CF guitar compared to my wood guitar.

It's worth saying again that these are just my impressions and my ear and my opinion.

For those that recall the string comparisons I did a few years back, you can probably guess that yes I will be doing a quick comparison video of these new Authentics side by side with the original SP's. I'm going to let the Authentics settle in for a couple more days, record them, then put on a new set of the MSP4100 SP's and do the same, and splice the sections together so you can judge for yourself between the two.

Here are the two OCD videos I did originally (i'll probably post the new one here by next weekend I figure)


This one from late April 2015 where I compare the Elixir Polyweb 80/20's, DR Black Beauties, Wyres (PTFE coated phosphor bronze), RotoSound Nexus (polymer coated) strings and the original Martin SP's PB lights
https://youtu.be/FWytU5tRUHA



The first one from early April 2015 where I compare the Elixirs (Nanoweb 80/20) that came stock on the Shorty, the Martin Monels and the original Martin SP's PB lights
https://youtu.be/gjIeve2btEU
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Old 08-17-2019, 12:35 PM
jdinco jdinco is offline
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I didn't care for the "old" SP Lifespan strings, but have enjoyed the new version. Monels are OK, but seem to die quickly for me. Good post.
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Old 08-17-2019, 01:43 PM
moondoggie999 moondoggie999 is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jdinco View Post
I didn't care for the "old" SP Lifespan strings, but have enjoyed the new version. Monels are OK, but seem to die quickly for me. Good post.
agreed I didn't gel with the old lifespans either. Haven't tried the new ones yet! The Monels were more like flat wounds which I enjoyed but I ended up missing that acoustic jangle of reg acoustic round wound...
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Old 08-17-2019, 02:09 PM
kramster kramster is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by moondoggie999 View Post
I played them a bit last night then woke up and played a bit more.



I will try playing in my sleep too...might be on to something ...sleep strings... sorry, may have read it wrong ...in other words..my way...
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