Different strings on laminate ukes?

iamesperambient

iamesperambient

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I know this has probably been asked many times here but I'm trying to decide if its worth it for me to try different strings on my laminate tenor i changed the strings once to oasis and found it to bright and went back to aquila and found it was much warmer and nice sounding but the thickness of the strings i find not as pleasing as well as it doesn't sound as natural to me. I'm about ready to put south coast SMU strings on my tenor just wondering before i put them on if anyone else has tried other brand strings like this on a lam tenor with better results.

I put living water strings on my cheap rogue baritone and it really transformed it into a playable instrument...which is why i considered doing this on other ukes. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
 
Well it's not expensive to try so I'd certainly consider it worth the trouble. IMO it's hard to beat Aquila however and maybe especially for laminates.
 
Icelander53 said:
Well it's not expensive to try so I'd certainly consider it worth the trouble. IMO it's hard to beat Aquila however and maybe especially for laminates.
Click to expand...

thats what i hear im almost afraid to waste the aquilas if they sound better i feel like i wasted them :/
I do have a set of those aurora silkguts too which i assume are similar to nylgut so i guess if these
don't work out i can always put those on.
 
iamesperambient said:
I know this has probably been asked many times here but I'm trying to decide if its worth it for me to try different strings on my laminate tenor i changed the strings once to oasis and found it to bright and went back to aquila and found it was much warmer and nice sounding but the thickness of the strings i find not as pleasing as well as it doesn't sound as natural to me. I'm about ready to put south coast SMU strings on my tenor just wondering before i put them on if anyone else has tried other brand strings like this on a lam tenor with better results.

I put living water strings on my cheap rogue baritone and it really transformed it into a playable instrument...which is why i considered doing this on other ukes. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Click to expand...

yes you have....:)

sometimes you need to let new strings settle on your uke...maybe for 2-3 weeks not 2 or 3 days to get the real sound of the stings...let them sit on your uke longer and see what happens...

or you will drive yourself crazy.....:)

my 2 cents
 
hawaii 50 said:
yes you have....:)

sometimes you need to let new strings settle on your uke...maybe for 2-3 weeks not 2 or 3 days to get the real sound of the stings...let them sit on your uke longer and see what happens...

or you will drive yourself crazy.....:)

my 2 cents
Click to expand...

my tenor came with aquilas, and i liked how it sounded but found it a tad too 'fake' or unnatural sounding and i thought it was bright
but once i put on the oasis i realized they were not bright at all! i from the get go did not like the oasis on my tenor mainly
because the tension was so high it sounded not like a tenor anymore.

I put aquilas back on and they settled in pretty quick its been 2 weeks now and honestly it sounds really great
but still i'd like something mellower still with a little less punch and a little more natural sounding. I think the south
coasts should do it but i'm nervous to change them after what happened with the oasis strings.

The guy from oasis was kind enough to send me a replacement set with a low G i have to try those out soon too (never did low g yet).
I just keep hearing strings other than aquila won't make a difference on a lam uke, but i feel like its semi untrue because a string change
really did improve the sound so much on my cheap baritone rogue.
 
iamesperambient said:
my tenor came with aquilas, and i liked how it sounded but found it a tad too 'fake' or unnatural sounding and i thought it was bright
but once i put on the oasis i realized they were not bright at all! i from the get go did not like the oasis on my tenor mainly
because the tension was so high it sounded not like a tenor anymore.

I put aquilas back on and they settled in pretty quick its been 2 weeks now and honestly it sounds really great
but still i'd like something mellower still with a little less punch and a little more natural sounding. I think the south
coasts should do it but i'm nervous to change them after what happened with the oasis strings.

The guy from oasis was kind enough to send me a replacement set with a low G i have to try those out soon too (never did low g yet).
I just keep hearing strings other than aquila won't make a difference on a lam uke, but i feel like its semi untrue because a string change
really did improve the sound so much on my cheap baritone rogue.
Click to expand...

you can try DiAdarrio Nyltech...same compound(formula) as the Aquila's but made in the US by DiAdarrio
maybe has a different feel...

if you don't like Oasis that is fine..you don't have too....stick with the Aquila...bottom line it is your uke,,,do what you feel is best....
 
hawaii 50 said:
you can try DiAdarrio Nyltech...same compound(formula) as the Aquila's but made in the US by DiAdarrio
maybe has a different feel...

if you don't like Oasis that is fine..you don't have too....stick with the Aquila...bottom line it is your uke,,,do what you feel is best....
Click to expand...

well i ordered south coast SMU they came in a few days ago just nervous to put them on they may really change the sound for the better and or worse
just for some reason i'm having anxiety about changing strings now lol
 
iamesperambient said:
well i ordered south coast SMU they came in a few days ago just nervous to put them on they may really change the sound for the better and or worse
just for some reason i'm having anxiety about changing strings now lol
Click to expand...

I can see the strings are already driving you crazy....:)
stick with the ones you like and again leave them on for more than 2 or 3 days.....
 
I like living waters custom tenor dGBE on my tenor. Don't know if you are looking for something that mellow but if I want something brighter, I play my concert or soprano.
 
If you're looking for something mellower, maybe try the Aquila Red's. They're a different formula, and they feel different than the regular Aquilas (less "sticky") It might be what you're looking for.
 
bunnyf said:
I like living waters custom tenor dGBE on my tenor. Don't know if you are looking for something that mellow but if I want something brighter, I play my concert or soprano.
Click to expand...

nah i want something more mellow.
I actually have living water dGBE on my baritone and i love it.
I was considering trying them on my tenor but i still want that C tuned
uke voice on my tenor or maybe bflat as dirk suggests.

The only reason why i took off the oasis so fast was i was actually worried the bridge was going to fly off
it was that much tension it seemed dangerously high. I guess i'll try the south coast if i dont like them i
do have silkguts i can throw on which should be the same or similar to nylguts anyway.

Just from reading here i have it in my head if its a laminate you can only use aquila :/ maybe i'm reading into it too much
 
YogenFruz said:
If you're looking for something mellower, maybe try the Aquila Red's. They're a different formula, and they feel different than the regular Aquilas (less "sticky") It might be what you're looking for.
Click to expand...

i had reds on my epi les paul concert which i no longer own.
I thougth they really brought out the volume and sounded good
however the tone is very metallic and thats not really the tone i'm
after for this instrument. I did like them on the les paul though.
 
I recently changed out the Aquilas on a couple of my ukes, solid and laminate, to Worth CT and BT which are a bit thinner and easier for me to press, and I find the Worth to be a little warmer. I ordered the 63" to get two sets in a pack.
 
kohanmike said:
I recently changed out the Aquilas on a couple of my ukes, solid and laminate, to Worth CT and BT which are a bit thinner and easier for me to press, and I find the Worth to be a little warmer. I ordered the 63" to get two sets in a pack.
Click to expand...

thanks for the tip worth browns are actually next on the list to try. I'll put on the south coast see how it goes leave them for a week or 2 than im going to give worth browns a try, i may end up full circle back to aquila but i guess its worth trying out.
 
kohanmike said:
I recently changed out the Aquilas on a couple of my ukes, solid and laminate, to Worth CT and BT which are a bit thinner and easier for me to press, and I find the Worth to be a little warmer. I ordered the 63" to get two sets in a pack.
Click to expand...

I have come to the firm conclusion that there are no firm conclusions when it comes to strings. Kohanmike feels Worth CT and BT are easier to press than Aquilas, I find the exact opposite. Another poster said try Aquila Reds because he found them warm, I find them bright. It is all so personal that your own experiment on your own ukes is the only valid point of view.

On topic regarding string chances on laminates, it will change the sound just as you have found out on your other uke. Either dive in head first and change strings till you find the unicorn or stick with the Aquilas that you already like.
 
DownUpDave said:
I have come to the firm conclusion that there are no firm conclusions when it comes to strings. Kohanmike feels Worth CT and BT are easier to press than Aquilas, I find the exact opposite. Another poster said try Aquila Reds because he found them warm, I find them bright. It is all so personal that your own experiment on your own ukes is the only valid point of view.

On topic regarding string chances on laminates, it will change the sound just as you have found out on your other uke. Either dive in head first and change strings till you find the unicorn or stick with the Aquilas that you already like.
Click to expand...

i agree on aquila reds i find them metallic and overly bright even more than nylguts.
thanks for the tip ill dive right in i think i have those silkguts to fall back on anyway
if anything doesn't sound good.
 
iamesperambient said:
i agree on aquila reds i find them metallic and overly bright even more than nylguts.
thanks for the tip ill dive right in i think i have those silkguts to fall back on anyway
if anything doesn't sound good.
Click to expand...

Save the strings you take off. I never cut them off, just unwind them. You can even leave the knot tied and just slip the long end out. Because they stretch and with the wraps there is always enough length to put them back on. This way you are not wasting anything, just stock piling lightly used strings.

This should go with out saying but make sure you label them as they come off. Hard to tell which string is what after the fact.
 
Last edited:
DownUpDave said:
Save the strings you take off. I never cut them off, just unwind them. You can even leave the knot tied and just slip the long end out. Because they stretch and with the wraps there is always enough length to put them back on. This way you are not wasting anything, just stock piling lightly used strings.

This should go with out saying but make sure you label them as they come off. Hard to tell which string is what after the fact.
Click to expand...

good idea maybe i will take them off and put them in the pack of the other sizes in the pack labeled for each string so i know which one is which
i think ill try that. thanks!
 
Couldn't agree more. I'm sometimes lazy with my labelling and often end up with a messy array of used strings in various boxes - often the boxes/packets not even matching the string type.

I'm my own worse enemy. It used to be the same with my CD collection haha!
 
All of my concert lams have sounded and played great with Aquilas. However, my lam soprano sounds just as bad with them as it did with the black strings I took off. It's plinky and tinny sounding. ARGH! Any suggestions?
 
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