Do I to replace my strings?

So, I've been playing (using that term loosely) my uke's and was wondering if I need to replace the strings to get better sound? Or, just play the stock strings for awhile?

If so, Aquila? Or, does it depend on the uke?

That's Aquila (a lot of people in the US pronounce it it as if it were Spanish). These may well be the "stock" strings anyway. A great many ukulele companies use them.

My answer would be: no, it doesn't depend on the uke. This is contrary to what I used to believe and certainly goes against what most people would advise.

My view is that it depends on the sound you like. If you like the Aquila sound, and a lot of people do, then put them on everything. If you don't like the sound of Aquilas, and a few people don't, then try something else. When you find a string that you like, it will work on everything.

Thanks! I am not sure what sound I am looking for since I am a noob. Maybe I'll just buy a few different sets of strings since I have 2 uke's to test with.

I have a great deal of respect for the Aquila company. You can't go far wrong with them, and they are easily available.

Ken Middleton said:

That's Aquila (a lot of people in the US pronounce it it as if it were Spanish). These may well be the "stock" strings anyway. A great many ukulele companies use them.

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Just a note - Mimmo kindly put up a sound file for us (in another thread) and it's actually pronounced very similar to aquifer... ah kwi LA (or kwee).
(it's Italian)

http://www.aquilacorde.com/images/aquila.mp3

Aquila mean eagle.
Mimmo

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I very much like the Aquila strings on my Kala okoume tenor. I didn't like them at all on the spruce and lacewood. I agree with Ken that it really depends on the sound you want overall, not precisely on the uke type. I don't necessarily agree that one type of string will work on every uke though.

If I'm reading the original post correctly you were asking if you should try Aquila's... do you know what the uke is strung with originally? (sometimes it's not specified when purchased)

Edit: watching them make the strings is fascinating, found a video from 2009 that is just wonderful: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2_Cwe_pz0Uo

Ken Middleton said:

...When you find a string that you like, it will work on everything.

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Well...with all due respect Ken, on that part I really have to disagree, unless you have a very loose definition of "work." A few examples...

KoAloha longneck soprano - Worth CM strings intonate reasonably well and sound very good, Ko'Olau gold concert strings sound lovely individually but intonate very poorly, Worth CH strings intonate well but completely strangle the uke (tension is clearly too high for such a lightly-braced uke).

Mainland mahogany soprano - Aquilas decent intonation and okay sound, Worth CM fair intonation and a little quiet but also okay, Worth CH almost perfect intonation and bark and volume for days.

Mainland mango soprano - Aquilas decent intonation and okay sound, Worth CM fair intonation but a little "tinkly", Worth CH almost perfect intonation but so loud and bright it's almost painful, Ko'Olau gold concert strings very good intonation and lovely tone.

I could go on, but just looking at these three ukes and the "load" that is rapidly becoming my favorite on many ukes, i.e. Worth CH high tension strings (or their Seaguar equivalents), it's pretty obvious that they don't work on all ukes. They're great on the mahogany soprano (and on a mahogany tenor), they "work" but are kind of bright on the mango soprano, but they don't "work" by any reasonable definition of the word on the KoAloha.

Now, the Worth CM and Aquila strings "work" on all three of the above ukes, so maybe it would be fair to say that some strings "work" on any uke - but neither of them is near being "the strings I really like..."

John

I used to think the same as you, John. I have several videos where I say the same sort of thing. I have since completely changed my mind, however. All this stuff about one particular brand working well on laminates and others sounding good on all-solids, well, I just can't go along with it.

I must admit that nylon strings are a bit of an exception. I think that they generally produce such a neutral sound, so lacking in tonal complexity, that they cannot in any way improve the sound of an inexpensive laminate, whereas a more hi-tech string, like Nylgut, might. However, nylon strings are particularly good when amplified, of course, as they start from an even playing field.

Strings are reasonably cheap try some out. I really like Living Waters Strings from Ken Middleton. I plan on ordering more soon. Also, I like PhDs. Trying out different strings is worth your time and limited investment.

Ken Middleton said:

I used to think the same as you, John. I have several videos where I say the same sort of thing. I have since completely changed my mind, however. All this stuff about one particular brand working well on laminates and others sounding good on all-solids, well, I just can't go along with it.

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But that's not what I'm saying, at all. I'm saying that there is not a particular brand that is necessarily good on all solids, or all laminates, or what have you. Or rather, if there is, I've yet to find it. I think that if you really want to get the very best sound from any given uke you need to experiment with strings on that uke until you find the ones that work for that uke - not laminated ukes or solid ukes, not that brand of uke, or even necessarily that model, but the specific uke. Yes, we can start with some generalities, but they are just a starting point. For example, knowing (now) that mango tends to be pretty bright, I tend to balance them with strings that let the brightness through but don't accentuate it.

The strings that I like most on my Mainland mahogany soprano and tenor "work" but are very bright on my Mainland mango soprano and tenor - and they are flat-out useless on the KoAloha! Strings that make both of my mangos sing (tenor and concert Ko'Olau gold strings, respectively, on mango tenor and mango soprano) intonate very poorly on the KoAloha and work but are a little muted and somewhat dull on the mahogany ukes.

So, I'm not saying "put Aquilas on laminates and Worth clears on solids" or anything like that. I will go so far as to say that Aquilas are at least "okay" on just about any uke I've tried them on - and Mimmo and friends deserve a lot of credit for that accomplishment. I always keep plenty of Aquilas on hand for just that reason - if a friend brings me a uke to setup I know if nothing else really works on it the Aquilas will at least make it tolerable unless the bridge is positioned wrong or something fatal like that.

Basically, though, I'm not going to pay hundreds of dollars for a uke and then settle for the first strings that are "okay" on it. Strings are pretty cheap, if it takes me four or five or ten sets to find the strings that are going to make a given uke intonate well and have a timbre that I find pleasant, that's a drop in the bucket compared to the price of the uke.

I've had ukes I was going to sell (in one case going so far as listing it in the marketplace) until I tried a different set of strings (that, in fact, I didn't really expect to work well on it which is why I hadn't tried them on it before) and fell completely in love with the uke.

I have a big plastic container full of strings and string setup tools and whatnot. Having just recieved some bari strings I am probably up to several dozen sets of strings in there now, from a variety of manufacturers. I've got probably a dozen sets of Aquilas and one thing that I do love about them is that when nothing else seems to "save" a uke the Aquilas will at least intonate reasonably well and make it sound acceptable. That's not a criticism, it's actually quite a compliment. But, just because the Aquilas "work" on almost anything doesn't make them "best" for everything!

John