wierd shit

[jestaudio]

As it says, weird shit, switched on my Mesa yesterday and plugged in , totally different amp from a few days ago, chasing myself in circles trying to see what the difference could be, cables, nope, valves, nope rolled a few and got pretty much the same sound, eureka moments, strings,

WTF I here you say, yep, changed gauges and make from hybrid 9,s to D'addario regular 10,s, that in itself could not account for the total tonal change, however a bit of investigation as to where my last bulk buy came from, Fleabay, revealed a interesting note, the seller I used had multiple negs for selling fake Fender(my usual brand) strings,
The question to all you tech minded folk is could it be down to shitty knockoff china town crap as to why my tonal woes have been getting me down

[rp]

Woah, fake strings!!! Never occurred to me. In Italy strings being USA imported and hyped and with the extreme VAT are a luxury good, like $15/pack and no 4th of July MusiciansFriend 10 packs for $35 w/free ship. Man, I could really see there being a market for fakes, even from "honest" retailers. Now you got me paranoid.

As for tone issues: From the mid '70s to mid '80s when the hifi crowd realized that they had been conned into throwing out their great old tube gear for inferior sounding early solid state crap there was a tube revival w/ Conrad-Johnson and Audio Research being the big ones on the tube side, while the new is better techo-geeks pushed on believing they can and must improve solid state w/ the most famous in that corner being Levinson and Krell. Krell back then made the Hummers of amplifiers for the big rich boys with big expensive toys market. One high-end mag asked the designer why he didn't also offer a tube line and his answer was, to paraphrase, "tube stuff never sounds the same from one day to the next."

[jestaudio]

Yeah I take the point about tube gear, however I tried my Rocket clone and my new build HRM, all sound better, more low mids and clarity, weird shit as I said

[Leo_Gnardo]

WTF I here you say, yep, changed gauges and make from hybrid 9,s to D'addario regular 10,s, that in itself could not account for the total tonal change, however a bit of investigation as to where my last bulk buy came from, Fleabay, revealed a interesting note, the seller I used had multiple negs for selling fake Fender(my usual brand) strings,
The question to all you tech minded folk is could it be down to shitty knockoff china town crap as to why my tonal woes have been getting me down

We went thru all this @ 2 years ago more or less, D'Addario's rep even joined TAG to explain their frustration with MIC (we assume) ersatz strings. "If you're getting too good a deal, beware." Like $2 a set.

Get your strings from a reputable dealer, not some fly-by-nite outfit on Ebay. And expect to pay for them. FWIW I like Just Strings in New Hampshire, I'm sure there are others.

[LeeMo]

I always make it a point to buy strings and such locally. I know that I'm paying more per unit but since I don't go thru a lot of strings anymore it doesn't amount to many beans. I want my local guys to be there when I need them.

[David Root]

It's strange, one of the best makes of strings (electric) I've used is made in Germany, and they're worth $12/set here. Pyramid. Especially the old school round core ones.

[Teleguy61]

WTF I here you say, yep, changed gauges and make from hybrid 9,s to D'addario regular 10,s, that in itself could not account for the total tonal change, however a bit of investigation as to where my last bulk buy came from, Fleabay, revealed a interesting note, the seller I used had multiple negs for selling fake Fender(my usual brand) strings,
The question to all you tech minded folk is could it be down to shitty knockoff china town crap as to why my tonal woes have been getting me down

We went thru all this @ 2 years ago more or less, D'Addario's rep even joined TAG to explain their frustration with MIC (we assume) ersatz strings. "If you're getting too good a deal, beware." Like $2 a set.

Get your strings from a reputable dealer, not some fly-by-nite outfit on Ebay. And expect to pay for them. FWIW I like Just Strings in New Hampshire, I'm sure there are others.

Ditto.
Another Just Strings user here.
Good price, super fast ship.

[Leo_Gnardo]

I always make it a point to buy strings and such locally. I know that I'm paying more per unit but since I don't go thru a lot of strings anymore it doesn't amount to many beans. I want my local guys to be there when I need them.

The discussion about fake strings started here with a TAG member who bought from his local shop somewhere in the mid-west, Oklahoma or Kansas. Can't blame a mom n pop shop owner for taking advantage of a cheap deal, tough to make a profit any way these days. Likely the shop owner didn't know the strings were fakers. So it's not necessarily true that your local will always have the correct non-counterfeit strings. Best to not invest too much until you're sure your local muso store is carrying "the right stuff." Extra annoying, even the faker D'add packaging was copied down to the fine details, including serial numbers on plastic interior packets. Except D'addario never released any strings with those serial numbers.

Apparently your shop is on the ball LeeMo, and of course that's good. Anyone trying out a new store, or one you're unfamiliar with, caveat emptor, iow "buyer beware."

[jestaudio]

The seller seemed legit and the strings were not that much cheaper than my local shop, out of interest I strung up my mates strat with one of the few sets I had left, stretched them in and played for half a hour through the Mesa, next to no low mids, or low end , swapped over a set of Ernie ball hybrid nines , same procedure and whoop whoop great sounding amp again.

I suppose what I'm getting at is its hard to believe there is that much difference between Chinese shite and decent steel

[Firestorm]

This is weird (the e comes before the i like in werewolf, originally weirwolf, or in the weyard sisters in Elizabethan Macbeth). But I digress. Strings are not hard to make, nor profitable (unless you treat them cryogenically, or coat them in polymers). There used to be only four or five string manufacturers in the world. Have the Chinese "cheap at all costs" invaded that space, too?

[Leo_Gnardo]

Strings are not hard to make, nor profitable (unless you treat them cryogenically, or coat them in polymers). There used to be only four or five string manufacturers in the world. Have the Chinese "cheap at all costs" invaded that space, too?

We kicked this around, June 2013:

[quote="Firestorm]Anybody know how many different string manufacturers there actually are anymore? Doesn't seem like the sort of industry that could support many. [/quote]


Who makes their own strings? In the USA, and I could be wrong about some or all... so pitch in & correct this list as necessary.

A few "for sure" AFAIK

GHS
LaBella
D'addario
Dean Markley
Ernie Ball

maybe DR

hm....

Martin claims they do but I dunno.

Some claim that John Pearse are especially good but I haven't tried 'em.
Perhaps JP has a small string factory.

I recently heard about a fellow who's making "hand made" strings. Maybe this is Richard Cocco, at least that's what shows up on goggle. Must be tough on the hands. Maybe he's well stocked with Corn Husker's Lotion.

DR also claims "hand made." This is getting to be a trend. What next, organic, GMO free, non gluten?

Wonder who really makes strings branded for guitar companies, Gibson & Fender. Those Fender "bullet" ends are unique.

And how about "Snarling Dogs" ?

That's all for now, add or correct as necessary. Inquiring minds want to know...

edit: add Curt Mangan in Colorado, thanks billy z for mentioning them! One of my crusty customers likes 'em too.

- - - - - - - -
Back to present:

So if there's a China shop making strings, they may have some things sorted out, but still have a long way to go if those poxy sounding ones are an example, made of the "wrong stuff."

[randalp3000]

Pretty sure DR makes their own. There is another place in MI that makes strings for Throbak and a bunch of others, been around for a long time.
Martin and Fender are now made in Mexico, not sure if Gibson is doing the same.

Nickle Rocker 10's for me, I buy em unpack-aged by the gross. stupid cheap

[vibratoking]

How do you get them unpackaged?

[norburybrook]

I use Jim Dunlop strings, Made in California.



Marcus

[Leo_Gnardo]

There is another place in MI that makes strings for Throbak and a bunch of others, been around for a long time.

Wouldn't be susprised if it's GHS in Battle Creek. Get your fresh corn flakes & strings all in the same town.