Strings Warm Strings

Another Ukulele

Another Ukulele

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I listened to a player and their ukulele produced a very warm sound.
They told me they were using Worth Brown strings on their tenor.
While they preferred a brighter sound, I want the deeper, warmest sound possible for my Spruce top Kala Tenor.

Are there any recommendations, other than Worth Brown?
(Or direct me to previous discussions that I failed to find)

Thank you.
 
The characteristics of spruce is a louder, brighter, crisp sound. I'm sure there are probably strings that will help make it less bright but you'll probably not achieve a warmer sound like say mahogany would give you. You might want to consider a low G set. I have a solid spruce top with a wound low G on it and it seems to balance out the brightness nicely. It's got a sound that's bright but there's warmth there at the same time.
 
Ernie Ball black nylon strings seem about as warm as they get to me. Be prepared to hate them for several days though.
 
Yes, the nylon strings will take forever to settle, but once they do, they're very warm.
 
In my experience, the Aquila Super Nylgut have a rather warm tone to them - at least in my opinion and when used with koa. Certainly when compared to the Fremont Blacklines, anyway, which have much more ping to them. Best of all, Aquila tends to be less expensive than Fremount, and less than half the price of Worths.
 
Smooth nylon strings (not rectified or textured) have the warmest timbre. I used D’Addario Extruded Nylon Ukulele Strings on my spruce top Kremona and they were a notch warmer than Worth Browns. D’Addario Dynacore and D’Addario Carbon (fluorocarbon) were too bright for me on this instrument. But, yeah, I'm into sweet 'n fat tone and found solid maghogany, mango and some koa instruments are better for such timbral tastes.
 
The perception of warm should be explained. I would not contrast bright and warm as opposites at all. For me it would be bright vs. dull and warm vs sterile. I prefer my ukes to have a bright warmth or warm brightness.
 
Bill1 said:
I would try using a felt pick. Or a different strumming place on your fingertips. Or a different fretting pressure. it is a lot easier than changing strings. Just keep experimenting until you find the sound you want.

Starting out with loud bright strings is good, as long as they are all equally loud and bright and have some balance. Then you can adjust your technique or pick to get what ever sound you want. You can also do stuff like put a Tee Shirt inside the uke, which will muffle the sound.

Work on the principle that you control the sound of the uke. Instead of thinking that you need to change the strings every five minutes.
Click to expand...

Good points. The tone can also be substantially altered by where the strings are plucked or strummed. Close to the bridge usually creates a more sharp sound whereas near the fretboard could be considered warmer. And using fingernails or fingertips creates very different tone.
 
Have you tried microwaving your strings?

All joking aside... I would also recommend trying nylon strings for a warmer sound if brown/black fluorocarbon doesn't do it for you. Even clear nylon usually has a very warm tone but you should definitely try black nylon as well. D'Addario makes really nice clear and black nylon strings. Just be aware that they will keep stretching much more than fluorocarbon or nylgut strings.

Also, even though your uke has a spruce top (and typically a bright sound) it's certainly possible to get a warm sound out of it depending on the build and the wood used for the back and sides. A decently built spruce top ukulele with dark fluorocarbon or nylon strings will hopefully produce a nice warm tone but still have clarity in the sound. If the back and sides are laminate then I'm not quite sure but it's worth a try at least. A couple sets of strings aren't that expensive.
 
Uke logic high tension are pretty warm. Warm is 2 folds, the wood+build and strings.. You can try different strings but you might just need a different uke to get the sound you have in your head.
I have an all torrefied maple super soprano from Cripple Creek (David Hanson) and that is the warmest uke to my ears with Uke Logic high tension and Thomastik Infeld CF 30.
 
Another Ukulele said:
I listened to a player and their ukulele produced a very warm sound.
They told me they were using Worth Brown strings on their tenor.
While they preferred a brighter sound, I want the deeper, warmest sound possible for my Spruce top Kala Tenor.

Are there any recommendations, other than Worth Brown?
(Or direct me to previous discussions that I failed to find)

Thank you.
Click to expand...


I can tell you this: Today, I changed the strings on my Kala spruce top tenor, to Low G Worth Brown. Like having a brand new ukuleles. Very warm, without any loss of volume. Absolutely love my new uke. Easy on my arthritic fingers, too. I now have WB’s in all my ukes. All = 3.
 
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