What is so special about aquilla strings?

C-roy

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:cool: I want to know before I buy some :music:

Why do you choose these strings over the other brands?
 
WHAT? You dare to question their rich tone and formidable volume?? :p

As it's been said here before, strings are a very subjective matter and will sound different on different instruments. And there are plenty of popular strings besides Aquilas -- D'addarios, Worths, Ko'olaus, etc.

I personally like Aquilas for their volume, esp. bringing out the bass notes on a soprano. I like them visually as well, although obviously that's is a secondary concern.
 
I have nylguts on a soprano. They have a unique sound that isn't nylon, and it isn't fluorocarbon... its not even gut... its NYLGUT, and sometimes that makes all the difference.

However, 4 out of 5 dentists agree that Worth CM are the superior brand of string on 4 out of 5 'ukulele.
 
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However, 4 out of 5 dentists agree that Worth CM are the superior brand of string on 4 out of 5 'ukulele.

89% of people say that 96% of all statistics are completely made up, 85% of the time.
 
If I played with fingernails or a pick or something, I'd probably hate them. But with fingertips, they can achieve this great mellow, blended, full tone. While still having superior volume. Me likey Aquila.
 
Studies show that 60% of the time, they work everytime.
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They're made in Italy just like Ferrari, Lamborghini, and Maserati but I cannot afford these 3 so I... ;)
 
I personally like Aquilas for their volume, esp. bringing out the bass notes on a soprano.

Wholeheartedly seconded! I finally got some Aquilas for my cheap uke, and it was the first time I'd ever heard the C string sound... you know, nice. Partly that's just an individual ukulele thing, but I'd definitely suggest that (especially if you have a lower-end ukulele) you try them out. They certainly got rid of some of the plinkiness! I am a happy camper.
 
:cool: I want to know before I buy some :music:

Why do you choose these strings over the other brands?

They are loud. That's all I can say. I don't have them now on any of my ukes. I even removed them from my Kala acacia and changed to D'Addarios. If you play with your fingernails - they give sound that is very strange and unpleasant to me. If you play without nails - they sound very nice.
 
wow, ahahaha.

Yeah, I don't play with my finger nails, so I'm definately gonna give these a go.

Is music guy mic's ebay the best route to go with these?
 
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The good thing about Aquilas is that they, almost without fail, make a lower cost laminite ukulele sound louder and richer. I had my honeymoon with Aquilas for my first year of playing. I thought they were the most amazing strings ever made and put them on literally all of my ukes. Then I tried Worths and D'addarios (Ko'olau golds just weren't for me) and I found that they sounded better than Aquilas in a different way, and I could actually do bends with less effort, and it also took less effort to fret the notes. The only reason I don't take the aquilas off my ukes and replace them with worths or d'addarios is that those Aquila sets cost quite a bit of money and I can't afford to waste them.
 
Aquilas are excellent for driving laminate tops. They can give a cheap, ply uke surprising volume and tone.

I'm experimenting with others for my solid ukes though. The Nylguts do wear and get rough if you play with fingernails. I strum with my nail and fingerpick a lot.

Oddly, a couple of nights back, the Aquila Nylgut A string on my wife's soprano just snapped with a bang! Weird.
 
I have a few of the ukes srung with Aquilas, and they sound awesome. BUt i recently started rocking out some J65's and wow! its another world. I guess im in love with the new sound. idk, strings are strings, i like how hilo strings sound like. hehehe, i actualy like ne ukulele sound. i can chill at a isle at any store that sells cheap souvenir ukes and still have a ball. spend a min tuning and its off to the races.
 
I'm very fond of aquila strings, although they're impossible to find in Ireland. I like the bright sound and their percussive brittleness when strummed muted.
After about three days of constant tuning they stay in tune pretty well too.

I'm just not keen on white strings. I wish they'd make a black version like the d'addario J53. They looked great on my little reso, but sounded a little dull IMO.

p.s. I'm not a goth ;)
 
I wanted to order the Aquilas from Amazon, but they didn't have them in concert size. They do have D'Addario though, so I ordered those.

My local music store has strings for Tenor; can anyone tell me if those will do for a concert? How different are they? (Presently I have some oud strings on my uke, because I had them and they gauged about right.)
 
My Kala (which is a laminate, tenor) game with GHS strings that I hated (thought they sounded dull), and I changed those to D'Addarios. Now the uke has a really smooth, clean sound. My Mahalo (which is a cheapie soprano) came with mystery strings which really weren't all that bad (but bent so easily I'd bend the strings out of tune all the time while fretting chords), which I replaced with the hilos that came on my Flea. Now it has a smooth (but plunky) tone, which I kind of like. And I think it looks good with the black strings. My Flea came with Hilos, which I wish I had taken the time to really try out... I replaced them with the Aquilas I ordered almost immediately. This is my second brush with Aquila strings... My verdict?

I liked them on josuegroundhog's (hope I spelled that right) concert when I tried it, but on my Flea the sound is really thick and a little too loud for my liking. It's an OK sound, but I can't help but think that it would sound better with something else... I'm going to try Worths next, but that's another debate for another thread :D
 
Geesh, when did the Aquila backlash start? When I started a little over a year ago they were the strings and people couldn't recommend them enough. How fickle tastes are...

But as long as it's come up again. I'll toss my pennies in since Mileage Varies for everyone.

There is always an ideal match of string to individual instrument and individual player. One player's smooth and mellow is another's dull and lifeless. So as always read people's personal preferences with that in mind. It's a unique alchemy. Even individual instruments from the same maker will have different sounds. (I've got two otherwise identical Koaloha concerts made a couple months apart that sound very different even with the same strings on them.)

Aquila's are very bright and loud strings. They can bring out a lot on a cheapie laminate. They're on the stiffer side which is good if you fingerpick. (which is what I generally do) and have trouble with loose string sliding around while you play. I've got them on a Kanile'a made concert. They're a good balanced fit on that particular instrument. They project well and have a good clean ring under my nails. I've got other strings matched to other ukes, but Aquilas work best on that one. (I've also got them on a Pono soprano trying to eke out a little more sound from it.)

But what I always suggest is that since Aquilas are one of the most distinctive sounding strings on one end of the spectrum (with Ko'olau Golds on the other "mellow" end) it doesn't hurt to give them a try because even if you end up ultimately not using them, they're a good general baseline to start with in your quest for the right match to your ear. And a lot of string chatter uses them as the basis of comparison, so it's good to know what that sound is like to begin with. Ultimately, since your strings have a huge impact on the sound of your ukulele you'll want to experiment a bit. Strings are the cheaper than new ukes.
 
i had them on my bushman.. and i liked them.. but i am told that cretin ukes do better with certain strings.. i go with worth brown on my koaloha and hilio? on my flea.. not sure what is on the tangi.. i am sure i will get experimental with my strings the more i play..
 
I had a couple Ponos - a PTS-E and a PSO - that came with Aquilas. I just didn't care much for the sound. I put Ko'olau golds on them and loved them.

Now I have a couple of Kanile'as - they come from Kanile'a with Aquilas and I love the sound.

Finding the right match for YOUR instrument will give the best results, IMO...
 
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