.12-.54 equivalent to Ernie Ball Silk & Steel? (They only make .11-.52 & .13-.56)

[PTL]

I've been playing around with the Ernie Ball Silk & Steel and like them for a particular type of tone. These are actually 80/20 Bronze with a silk wrapping.

However, they have .11-.52 and then jumps to .13-.56. Nothing in between.

Anyone makes Silk & Steel that is 80/20 bronze wraps, but in .12-.54 gauge?

Thanks!

[gibpicker]

I like EB's but it's odd they call 11/52 light gauge. Anyone have an answer?

[Brucebubs]

Expensive but ....

The Thomastik Spectrum Bronze strings are specially designed for the demands of professional recording and performance situations. A unique bronze formula, combined with Thomastik-Infeld’s silk inlay technology, gives a full, warm tone, with a sparkling clarity that lets you cut through a dense sound mix. Playing feel is very balanced, and they are surprisingly long lasting. Some of the finest steel string acoustic strings available.



GHS and John Pearse do Silk & Bronze strings in .012 but these are PB not 80/20's.

[fpuhan]

I like the Stringjoy Foxwoods. They make a .012 - .054 set. Of course, you can also buy strings individually from them.

[gmel555]

John Pearse makes Bronze & Silk in 12-53.

[PTL]

Thanks all.

Most of those suggested are Phosphor Bronze. The 80/20 has a shimmer that I'm conjecturing may be missing from the Phosphor Bronze.

I wonder if the Spectrum Bronze is 80/20 Bronze? But it is quite pricey for experimentation....

Keep the suggestions coming and thanks everyone for commenting thus far.

[jaymarsch]

You might try the GHS Bright Bronze. They are 80/20 and are round wound over a hex core. They have shimmer and flexibility.
Best,
Jayne

[PTL]

Follow-up. For what it's worth, every set recommended here including the Thomastik is phosphor bronze. Only the Ernie Ball is 80/20 bronze.

The most interesting thing is each of the strings recommended here has a few dozen reviews on Amazon. And the Ernie Ball has almost 2500 reviews. It is on par in popularity with D'Addario's Silk & Steel (made only in .11-.47) with over 2600 views.

So it seems that the buying public, over time, favor the Ernie Ball strings that has a silk wrap. I've only tried it in one guitar so far and it sounded quite beautiful.

FYI: The tension is slightly lower than the Martin Monel in the same .11-.52 diameter so these are lower tension than all-metal strings. Slightly.

[jaymarsch]

The GHS Bright Bronze are definitely 80/20 and not phosphor bronze. You can check their website site or email directly with questions. They are great with customer service. Good luck in finding the string you are looking for.
Best,
Jayne

[Roy B]

"The most interesting thing is each of the strings recommended here has a few dozen reviews on Amazon. And the Ernie Ball has almost 2500 reviews. It is on par in popularity with D'Addario's Silk & Steel (made only in .11-.47) with over 2600 views."

You were caught in the same trap I used to fall into. ALL of Ernie Ball Earthwood strings seem to have nearly 2500 reviews. If you drill down and specify the Earthwood Silk and Steel format only, it totals only 391 reviews. On the other hand, the D'Addario S&S format only still shows an impressive total of 1,969 reviews.

[PTL]

Originally Posted by jaymarsch

The GHS Bright Bronze are definitely 80/20 and not phosphor bronze. You can check their website site or email directly with questions. They are great with customer service. Good luck in finding the string you are looking for.
Best,
Jayne

Yes, but that is not a silk & bronze - it does not have a silk core. I'm looking for strings with silk cores along with 80/20 Bronze wrap....

[PTL]

Originally Posted by Roy B

"The most interesting thing is each of the strings recommended here has a few dozen reviews on Amazon. And the Ernie Ball has almost 2500 reviews. It is on par in popularity with D'Addario's Silk & Steel (made only in .11-.47) with over 2600 views."

You were caught in the same trap I used to fall into. ALL of Ernie Ball Earthwood strings seem to have nearly 2500 reviews. If you drill down and specify the Earthwood Silk and Steel format only, it totals only 391 reviews. On the other hand, the D'Addario S&S format only still shows an impressive total of 1,969 reviews.

GOOOOOOD Catch! Well done.

Though even at 391, it is still hundreds more than most silk/steel except for D'Addario. But D'Addario only has up to .47 for the low E if I remember correctly. Just too light for my tests.

THANKS for the reply.

[Flgatorgirl]

Martin makes them.

https://www.stringsandbeyond.com/mar...ght-12-54.html

[Sadie-f]

Sounds like the Martins might be the ticket.

I like 80-20s (and hate that in the guitar world this is called "bronze" .. copper zinc alloy is brass, not bronze and as Kipling would say, it can never b anything else).

I recently mounted up a set of spectrum silk/bronze and fwiw I like them better.than I did D'A silk & steel (copper wound with silver playing if memory serves). My prior set on this guitar were TI 10-38 silked flat wounds, which I liked enough that when I have two acoustics, one might wear those 80% of the time.

The Spectrums have brought back some chime I'd been missing with the flats. I'm not sure how they'd compare to a silked Martins.

[PTL]

Originally Posted by Flgatorgirl

Martin makes them.

https://www.stringsandbeyond.com/mar...ght-12-54.html

Thanks. Really appreciate your taking the time to post.

However, these are not Silk & Steel strings in the typical sense of the term. The Martins have silked ends right at the ball end so as to be more gentle to the bridge plate. The silk is on the outside of the wrap and ONLY at the end of the ball end.

Silk & Steel type strings have silk running the whole length of the string UNDER the wrap so that they have a softer tone.

Thus, the Martins are not actually this category of string.

Thanks for taking time to post.