The new kulele Lava Series

Great idea! Thanks for the info!
 
Mimmo

You had made an announcement a few months ago stating you were coming out with a florocarbon string that was not just "fishing line". How far along are you on that and when can we expect to see those. I had emailed and sent you a Pm a while back but no reply. I would be more than happy to test them out for you ;)
 
If I interpret this correctly, these are just the same strings with a different color. I don't like this direction: replacing qualitative choice with mere bling. Today lava, tomorrow fuchsia and marigold. I've seen too much of it in supermarkets. What I read this as is an attempt to flood most suppliers with additional products that are essentially identical, so they have to reduce stock of other, more useful string offerings from other string makers. Image over substance. I'd rather see further improvements to the reds, or some qualitative (tonal, tension) difference between the Lavas and other strings that would at least justify this "new" product. If I'm mistaken, my apologies, but you can understand my concern.

"Lighten up, Francis."

They are strings. Buy them or not. Aquilla will make their business decisions based on the market.
 
If I interpret this correctly, these are just the same strings with a different color. I don't like this direction: replacing qualitative choice with mere bling. Today lava, tomorrow fuchsia and marigold. I've seen too much of it in supermarkets. What I read this as is an attempt to flood most suppliers with additional products that are essentially identical, so they have to reduce stock of other, more useful string offerings from other string makers. Image over substance. I'd rather see further improvements to the reds, or some qualitative (tonal, tension) difference between the Lavas and other strings that would at least justify this "new" product. If I'm mistaken, my apologies, but you can understand my concern.

ubulele - I understand your concerns, and your frustration. Your points are well taken.

I have bought most of my uke strings online, so I have not idea if there is such competition for 'shelf space' in brick & mortar retail stores. From what I have seen around here, most local music shops in my area will MAYBE and ONLY have the D'Addario Nylon, GHS Nylon, Martin m600's and Aquila Nylguts and that's it. Nothing else.

Sorry but I'm not a fan of nylon strings so far on any of my ukes, and the others work for me only a specific uke each. Most other strings I use are one of the 12 varieties of Worth Brown sets, Aquila REDS, Fremont Blacklines and Living Waters. (Southcoast strings are next on my list)

I WANT *more* options, and I can only find them via online vendors. Many of the bigger online sellers drop ship so I do not think they worry about warehouse space for inventory - however when I have bought from stringsbymail.com, stringsandbeyond.com, and even the UU store, I always find a handwritten thank you note (which I find a nice touch), so these folks maybe carry inventory themselves.

BTW - Uke Republic has the Living Water strings now.

(sorry to digress...as per above)

But maybe what you have said above, is the cart before the horse here. We know almost nothing other than what the label says in Mimmo's photo.

It's been discussed here on the UU forum at length and elsewhere online that Aquila REDS are a different composition from the white Nylgut or their BioNylon (co-developed) with D'Addario, and the SuperNylgut is quite different from regular Nylgut.

Similarly, Worth CLEAR fluorocarbon strings SOUND and feel different than their BROWN fluorocarbon strings, as do the Fremont CLEAR and Fremont BLACK strings from each other.

I have read elsewhere online that the addition of the dyes whether before the extrusion process, or even after the strings are 'made' can 'color' the sound in different ways (pun intended). I'm not sure if this is true in all cases, but it makes sense to me based upon my own experiences.

Some people lack the necessary acute hearing perception or just do not CARE about the differences. That is their own path (for some folks ignorance is bliss - no judgment here from me - bless them :)). But if you can hear and feel them, the differences are obvious, even if subtle.

Having said all that, MAYBE, just maybe this new "LAVA" string SOUNDS and/or feels different from all other Aquila ukulele strings, despite having it's base material coming from "Nylgut" (which is all assumption on my part, I have no idea what it's made from).

Regardless, I think it's a blessing that Mimmo continues to innovate and try to come up with newer and/or better and/or DIFFERENT options, for in the end, we as the players will have MORE CHOICES, which most of us seem to appreciate.

I am looking forward to the Aquila Lava strings, as well as their forthcoming fluoro strings, and will be buying at least one tenor set of each, to try them out, as part of my String Changing Obsession, which has not dissipated in the least over time. :)

-Booli
 
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Hi Guys,
I know...
a certain point i felt the same thing: there too much different strings in the market and I intriduce also the black nylguts?
well, I had in aim two different things_
one was to homage hawaiian pepole to spread this wonderful instrument ( I am a player myshelf and sometime I have a few spare time to teach to childrens, adults etc) .
the best thing to do, as I am just a stringmaker, was to do a special black version of our strings.
you know: when we introduced the white strings we received may many many mails asking us please please switch to the traditional black colour. in those times many that wrote me were from Hawaii.
So i learned that the black colour was a very important colour for them ( the vulcan symbol etc)
still today some ask us to do some black strings.
So a few months ago i realized: why not? It is real I made the Lava Series in forst instance to homage those guys and, in the same time, follow a market expansion.
Expansion is always the rule both for emotions, respect and business and I like to test, discover thinks like an... hunt dog.
----
Aquila Fluocristal??
yeah, I am still waiting the raw material that came form USA.
months of waiting guys....
I do not know why the waiting time is so long
Maybe the Atlantic Ocean became longer, maybe the boat is without gasoline?

I have the extruders waiting, like wild horses, the raw material...me too!

warmest gretings frome the rainy and could Italy
Mimmo
 
Congratulations, Mimmo!

Sometimes I don't think Aquila gets enough credit around here. Part of the problem is there are a lot of cheap Asian knock-offs that are difficult to tell from the real thing, and almost always have horrible intonation problems. Another thing is that Mimmo is very much a traditionalist. Nylgut mimics gut, and comes fairly close in many respects. "Gut on steroids" (and a bit more uniform in tone) would be a good description for me.

It's a wonderful thing if you like that sound. The fact that you have that sound now in a black string to me is very cool. I also associate "black nylon" with traditional Ukulele stringing. I'm not a fan of that black nylon sound, but I like the color. "Black Nylgut", I am sure, will be a big improvement in sound over the old tynex material.

Mimmo is not afraid to put out innovative material, and it's generally based on old tradition. Look at the Red series. It may have had some problems, but "loaded strings" have been a chancy proposition since they were first introduced in the Renaissance. Leave it to Mimmo to take up the challenge again, no matter how difficult.

Good luck with the new series - looking forward to whatever you do next!
 
Hey Dirk,
thank you very very much for what you say.
there are some other materials to investigate but i am going to think that there are just a few that seems to be ok for musical strings.
I hope to meet you in the future fopr a cofee or a bear togheter. Maybe at Music china in october? Namm in january?
Ciao
mimmo
 
Hi there mimmo,
Would it be possible to manufacture bio degradable strings other than gut strings?
 
There is no any chance ufortunately
Our bionylon came all from plants but there is nothing to do with biodegradability that it is another matter
Those that are bio degradable are just a few plastic compounds that has no musical propriety
very sorry!
Mimmo
 
Thank you very much for sharing your knowledge.
I use your current product and like it very much.
Greetings
Mark
 
Mimmo

Thank you for explaining your new black series of strings, I think that is wonderful you are honoring the hawaiian people. I am a fan of your strings and that is why I was excited to hear about the florcarbon strings. Hopefully that boat gets some more gasoline. That was very funny and I had a good laugh :biglaugh::biglaugh:

Dirk, that was very nice of you to chime in, big big aloha spirit there. Oh and I like your strings as well......alot :shaka:
 
"ONLY have the D'Addario Nylon, GHS Nylon, Martin m600's and Aquila Nylguts"

That's all the choices we have here, and sometimes not even that. 99% of our club's members play the white Aquilas, and nobody complains about them. It never occurs to most of them to ever change strings, but then I don't think very many of them play every day like I do. I love the Aquilas on my plywood Kala, but I hated em on my Moku...the D'addarios were perfect....to each his/her own. I think the Reds work pretty well on my solid mahogany uke. But I wanna know, and maybe Mimo can tell me....why does the Aquila C string always sound thuddy when fretted on the headstock end of my ukes? I've tried different finger positions, different pressures....nothing helps....
 
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