Very Basic String Question

[Tumblinman]

The OP has touched on a topic of interest for me. I have always wondered how people tend to recommend changing from 80/20 to Phosfor Bronze when someone "complains" that their guitar sounds a little bright. If the Phosfor Bronze strings are warmer, which seems like a common notion, won't that make the string balance really bad since the plain strings still will sound bright? That is, you end up with warmer wound strings and bright plain strings.

[Silly Moustache]

I do b'lieve that the steel of the unwound strings ae generally of pretty high quality.
I also seem to remember that it is sourced (mostly by Mapes) from Sweden. (Pity it isn't from Sheffield in England which for many years was the steel capital of the world!).

The tolerance (conformity of the strings is very important in order to ring true.

I also suspect that many/most string brands - even though they may wind the wound strings, order the core and unwound strings in blk for from Mapes.

Until discontinued Martin SPs were "tinned" which , strangely made them a very attractive gold colour.

Elixir unwound strings say "anti-rust", which implies to me stainless steel -but I'm getting too clever ... where are our metallurgists when you need em???

The latest Martin Authentic" strings arrived duly sealed and packed as normal but the unwound strings were grey rather than shiney silver. I didn't care for the Authentics.

Back in the day it was fairly normal to see corrosion on strings wound and unwound and, strangely the last set that i saw tat was on a set of elixirs.

[jaymarsch]

Here is a link from the GHS string website FAQ page - it covers things like core-to-wind ratio and winding techniques. Just to add to the conversation.

https://www.ghsstrings.com/pages/faq

Best,
Jayne

[Matt G]

Originally Posted by Mandobart

I asked this same question of the good folks at d'Addario and DR. The d'Addario people answered that "for the most part, most are the same but not all. Some are also tinned or coated differently. Tone-wise it is not night and day."

I haven't received an answer from DR strings yet.

Regarding DR, I emailed them a couple months ago about the string tensions of their Sunbeams and Rares. Haven't heard back from them yet. Maybe answering customer emails isn't a big part of their strategy.

[Mandobart]

Originally Posted by Matt G

Regarding DR, I emailed them a couple months ago about the string tensions of their Sunbeams and Rares. Haven't heard back from them yet. Maybe answering customer emails isn't a big part of their strategy.

Here is what the good folks at DR Strings said, I just received their response:

"In theory we would say yes, they are basically all the same but there are 4 wire companies in the US and a couple more worldwide. We imagine they all have similar yet differing metallurgic formulas. All of our plains come from one source and yes, all the same."

They said no one had ever asked them that before.

[Matt G]

Originally Posted by Mandobart

Here is what the good folks at DR Strings said, I just received their response:

"In theory we would say yes, they are basically all the same but there are 4 wire companies in the US and a couple more worldwide. We imagine they all have similar yet differing metallurgic formulas. All of our plains come from one source and yes, all the same."

They said no one had ever asked them that before.

Good to know they check their email. I'll try again with my question about tension.

[M Hayden]

I’ll also vouch for the Thomastik John Pearses. I have them on an 1895 Martin, a classical, and a small steel string, and they add a nice texture with nearly the brightness of steel with the low tension of nylon or composite strings.

[Italuke]

Originally Posted by Wade Hampton

The plain steel B and high E strings are just that, plain steel. Some brands of strings have those two plated with something - I think Martin strings has one product line that has yellow metal-plated B and high E strings - but as a general rule those strings are the same from one brand to another. When piecing together a set of strings from spares I’m generally loathe to mix different brands of wound strings together, because they can sound jarringly dissimilar. But mixing in different brands of plain B and high E strings doesn’t seem to make any tonal difference whatsoever.


Wade Hampton Miller

Wade, now I'm confused. Please clarify, is it that:

a) the plain strings are all the same no matter the brand AND the type, e.g. PB vs. Monels, or:

b) is it that, e.g. all PBs across brands are the same, but say, Martin Monels are different than Martin PBs?

[RalphH]

Originally Posted by Italuke

Wade, now I'm confused. Please clarify, is it that:

a) the plain strings are all the same no matter the brand AND the type, e.g. PB vs. Monels, or:

b) is it that, e.g. all PBs across brands are the same, but say, Martin Monels are different than Martin PBs?

Certainly 80/20 vs PB they're the same. When you get to vintage or retro strings perhaps they target a steel composition that's different to standard modern strings. I dont know personally. I'm sure Wade probably does though.

Thought I'd give you half an answer while you wait

Originally Posted by Tumblinman

The OP has touched on a topic of interest for me. I have always wondered how people tend to recommend changing from 80/20 to Phosfor Bronze when someone "complains" that their guitar sounds a little bright. If the Phosfor Bronze strings are warmer, which seems like a common notion, won't that make the string balance really bad since the plain strings still will sound bright? That is, you end up with warmer wound strings and bright plain strings.

But you could make exactly the same argument that 80/20s sound unbalanced too - no wound string, whether it's 80/20, PB, nickel or anything else is going to sound exactly like plain steel strings. It's just part of what makes a guitar a guitar.

Fretted notes don't sound like open strings, we have micro intonation issues all over the place (like how the attack is sharper than the decay) and all the rest of it... Again, it's just part of what makes a guitar a guitar

[Alan Carruth]

I've done a bunch of work measuring the forces that strings produce as they vibrate. They may be the simplest part of the system, but they're far from 'simple', even if they're just plain steel wire.

Most steel strings are tinned or plated in some way to reduce corrosion.