#1
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Dead Horse File No. 27b...
Are all plain strings exactly the same?
What's the current science here? Both comparing across type (e.g. PB vs. 80/20 of the same brand) and across brands (e.g. D'Addario PB vs. GHS PB). Go...😉 |
#2
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Yes. And no.
Yes because they are all plain steel. No because the string manufacturers buy in their wire from different makers who do things in different ways, and with slightly different alloys. And no again because some are coated, some are heat-treated, and most are neither. So if you compare, say, the plain .12 strings from a set of D'Addario PBs and a set of D'Addario 80/20s, they will almost certainly be identical. And if you buy a set of 12s from one of the other string manufacturers who happen to buy the same wire from the same wire factory, those 12s will be the same too. So in broad, yes. In detail, maybe.
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Tacoma Thunderhawk baritone, spruce & maple. Maton SRS60C, cedar & Queensland Maple. Maton Messiah 808, spruce & rosewood. Cole Clark Angel 3, Huon Pine & silkwood. Cole Clark Fat Lady 2 12-string, Bunya & Blackwood. |
#3
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#4
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Not entirely. My understanding is that there are differences between some plain strings and some other plain strings. With most electric strings, the 3rd string is plain too. And with my baritone, there is only one plain string: the "B" string (typically F# on a baritone but mine is tuned to G) is a .22 wound, and I love it. I'd have 6 woulnd strings if it was sensibly possible. Plain strings are always the problem children.
But in the main, yes: all that fuss we make about only four strings.
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Tacoma Thunderhawk baritone, spruce & maple. Maton SRS60C, cedar & Queensland Maple. Maton Messiah 808, spruce & rosewood. Cole Clark Angel 3, Huon Pine & silkwood. Cole Clark Fat Lady 2 12-string, Bunya & Blackwood. |
#5
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Personally, I’d say they were all extremely similar - like, most OM guitars are extremely similar. Identical? No -
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More than a few Santa Cruz’s, a few Sexauers, a Patterson, a Larrivee, a Cumpiano, and a Klepper!! |
#6
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Hi Italuke
I don't care…and I use them interchangeably. |
#7
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Regardless of anything said below, I've yet to notice a difference in sound or feel of any plain string of the same gauge.
RR Quote:
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Rick Ruskin Lion Dog Music - Seattle WA |
#8
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In 2015, we had a go around on this topic with Roger Siminoff, owner of Straight up Strings
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https://www.acousticguitarforum.com/...d.php?t=406222
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#9
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<<<Coating? There are really two issues here: plating and coating. The high-carbon steel wire - whether used for plain strings or as core for wound strings - needs to be protected because it is very susceptible to corrosion. So, while the alloy of the wire itself (as previously mentioned) might be virtually the same, the plating process is quite different among musical string manufacturers. (How this is done and what plating techniques are used would take a whole page here, and some of the processes are confidential to musical string manufacturers.) Regarding coating, as I mentioned in a previous post, the bronze wrap must receive a protective coating to keep it bright in the package and on in-store guitars to prevent it from tarnishing.>>>
Aha, so this helps. I may have seen the thread at one point but then got confused by other more recent ones. So this confirms though that e.g. GHS PBs and GHS Vintage Bronze likely use the exact same first two strings, but that there may in fact be a slight difference in the wires between GHS PBs and D'Addario PBs, due to differences in the PLATING process. And that's even before any talk of coatings, which may also differ somewhat tonally. |
#10
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IMO, the majority of variation in tone comes from my playing, my picks, the humidity, and the guitar. My playing however, is the key. A set of ears will quickly accommodate to tonal variations, but errors in fretting, rhythm and picking (of which I make many!) are easily discerned. best, Rick
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