Worth Clears: Any other brand similar?

coolkayaker1

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I've grown to like Worth Clears (not Browns) the best. I, second, seem to like Fremont Blacklines.

I don't care for Worth Browns, Aquilas, and KoOlaus.

Those are all the strings I've tried.

Can anyone suggest strings for me to try that are similar to those that I like? I'd just like to have a couple other brand options if I don't have the ones I prefer, or to explore different preferences. Thanks. :)
 
Martins? Beyond that I can't think of another set of flourocarbon strings like Worth Clears that are quite as nice.

I will say this though...I've grown to dislike the boominess of Clears on the low G or C strings. They just don't sound tight enough and nice enough to me. I love the Ko'olau Golds that I put on my Pono, and I'll probably get a set of Southcoast strings next because I think I prefer wound C and G over unwound. My $.02, though...and every single set of strings will play differently on every single uke out there. Worth unwound clears are the things that make my Fender sing! On my Pono they were too flabby. I'm pretty sure I'd hate the Golds on the Fender, though. Weird.
 
I've grown to dislike Aquilas, and am trying Worth Browns on my new uke, but I can't decide if I like it enough to not switch to Martins, which are on my Ohana Pineapple. Try the Martins, on the PK-25, they sound like a friggin bell, smooth and clear.
 
I'm in the middle of testing South Coast strings, a selection of tenor strings that come in various thickness, hardness and tension. If you email Dirk, he can help you select what you like--there are quite a few choices. Right now I have Light Medium High G on my tenor mahogany Mainland (strung up this morning) and I'm really liking them more than the D'Addario J71 and way more than the Aquilas which really don't fit a mahogany uke (barky bark bark. Love them on my Dolphin and Eleuke, so it's not Aquila--it's the combo with the uke.) I plan to post a series of reviews on SC strings but it will take time. String, settle, record a test, restring.....repeat. You can see this will take time and I"m a busy gal as it is.
 
Check out the fishing line thread. How many factories are there on the planet that extrude fluorocarbon fibre? Some of the fibre is set up to be fishing line and some is set up to be sold as ukulele strings. I suspect it could all come from the same machines and ingredients. The treatment after it comes out of the machine is different, ukulele strings are chopped into short lengths and checked for some attributes which make them good for ukuleles, the fishing line is chopped into longer lengths and is checked for attributes which make it good fishing line. Some people are happy to use the fishing line for ukulele strings, some have no choice because there are no music shops on their island. Different middlemen put a different brand name on it and have different marketing strategies.

All true, I'm afraid, but what does it say about me that some fluoros "feel" different than others? (I don't like to admit that branding is, in fact, relevant.)

Back to the original post: I recently bought a uke that has Freemont blacklines on it and was pleasantly surprised. I'd put them in between Worth browns and clears, if that makes sense.

Can't wait for the Southcoast review, by the way. Their philosophy (as described on their site) is pretty interesting.
 
I've tried Southcoast strings. They are very good. To my ears, they combine the better properties of Worths (sustain and clarity) with those of Aquilas (a hint of vintage, gut-like tone and some crispness). I would also recommend them to those here who don't like a booming C string. I agree with Ken that different brands of fluorocarbon strings sound similar to one another, especially as compared to some of the other strings mentioned here like Aquilas or Alohis. But, if you like the sound of fluorocarbon strings, some experimenting with different brands may produce enough variation on particular ukuleles to be noticeable.
 
+1 for Southcoast varieties. High G and Linear combos. On the range of ukes I own (koa, mahogany, pau ferro, redwood) they sound and play very well.
 
+1 on SouthCoast FC, and you might try the Ko'olau Alohi. I liked Alohi on a Kamaka standard.

the Alohoi are monofilament, similar in feel to T2 from D'Addario, but sound more like FC.
 
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My friend coolkayaker1,
I've tried the Martins and can't tell the difference from Worth clears (course, I couldn't tell the diff with worth browns either, the one time I tried them). I'll bet Southcoast strings are great. The ones I have read about are fluorocarbon, so they're probably very much like the Worths.

I've had a set of D'addario classical strings for a year or so, but still like the Worths on my tenor so much that I wonder if I'll ever try them.

I do currently have a wound C string with my Worth clears on my tenor. It took a couple of tries to get used to a wound string, but I like this set-up very much.

But, I believe I'm sticking with the Worth clears on all my better ukuleles. When I have four hundred ukuleles and feel inclined to spend all my time stringing them and never playing, I'll try the fishing line thing.
 
Another +1 for Southcoast here. I went through about 8-9 sets of strings looking for "balance". Dirk from Southcoast replied to my thread and suggested his G650's and I haven't looked back. With that said, right now with my Kamaka tenor I'm experimenting with PhD strings which also sound very balanced but with less volume and "ring" than the Southcoast. Good luck in your search.

-Gary
 
Should have mentioned this before, re: booming C for Worth browns:

I had that feeling on my BB pineapple, which already has plenty of bass. I switched the C from a Worth BM to a CM, and voila, a much more balanced tone.
 
These are all fabulous replies. I respect and thank all of you who took the time to help me. Everything from KoOlauo Ahilo to Martins to others.

I see many votes for Southcoast, and Gwen's sound sample is helpful. And sweet, by the way, the tune.

I will order some SOuthcoasts (thanks for the link), but also refer back to this thread when I get jonesing for more flourocarbons. lol.

PS I will, indeed, review that fishing line thread. Who knows---Jake represents D'Addario, maybe I can get a contract with Berkley Trilene or Eagle Claw. LOL
 
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Martin flouros are extremely similar to worth clears. To my ears though, tested on both a tenor and a concert the martins don't have quite as much volume or thickness in sound. That said, love both and have Martins on my concert and worths on my tenor.

I'm not a fan of Aquilas ( now that will divide opinion!!) - they are hard to beat on a cheap laminate uke as they can drive any sort of top, but on my range of solid I struments I find they are overkill - boomy and muddy sound. When I'm playing a sweet solid instrument, particularly Koa, I want something to bring out a chime, a shimmer and clarity across the notes. Aquilas just don't do that for me.
 
Have you or anyone tried the new Kala pearls?
 
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