Red cedar soprano or concert players... strings?

I'm loving my red cedar pineapple but 'm not crazy about Aquilas. Right now I've got Fremont Blackline mediums on it and love the bell-like ring and the soft touch. But I think I'm hearing it as being a bit too "banjo-ish" and want to tone it down just a bit.

I put Worth Browns on a previous red cedar soprano and thought that tempered it a bit too much. A friend gave me some Savarez which I'd like to try but I thought I'd ask here first before putting them on.

Have you experimented? What do you like, and maybe why?

Thanks for any input.

I just put some D'Addarios on my cedar top concert. To me they seem brighter than the Worth Browns that were on it before. A friend says they sound really good (and they do), but I sort of miss the browns. Don't know if that helps.

I really like SouthCoasts on my cedar top tenor.

I like martin m600 flourocarbons on my red cedar soprano mainland

dismount said:

I like martin m600 flourocarbons on my red cedar soprano mainland

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Not quite sure how to describe what I'm trying to avoid, but I'm trying to get away from the almost metallic "jangly" banjo-ish kind of brashness I'm hearing with the Fremont's. The Fremont's are wonderful for finger picking kind of stuff with the beautiful ring and sustain but I'm playing mostly accent type rhythm accompaniment with it. Don't want to take it down to the Worth Brown level of mellowness though.

Guess I'll put the Savarez on it that I've already got and try the Martin M600s next. And are your Martins fluorocarbons for sure? Not the Crystal Nylons?

Tx.

Ok, just went looking online:

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Martin M600 Clear Fluorocarbon Soprano/Concert Ukulele Guitar Strings allow you to tune-to-pitch tension while minimizing string elongation.

"Fluorocarbon is used specifically for our M600 and M630 Ukulele strings. The density of this material is higher than traditional nylon and produces stronger and richer tone." - MartinGuitars.com

Martin M600 Clear Fluorocarbon Soprano/Concert Ukulele Guitar Strings offer a rich, amplified tone. The fluorocarbon strings allow less elongation and therefore resist tone loss from stretching due to tuned-to-pitch tension providing longer play between tunings.

Gauge:
M600 Soprano .0191 .0256 .0340 .0216

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And from another site:

Martin M600 Standard Crystal Nylon Ukulele Strings

Gauges 21-32-36-25

Martin M600 Standard Crystal Nylon Ukulele Strings produce a mellow ukulele tone and have exceptional longevity.

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Note the different gauges. Accurate? I don't know.

Southcoast soft medium gauge. Clear yet warm soft sound. Perfectly balanced. Love them.

Lalz said:

Southcoast soft medium gauge. Clear yet warm soft sound. Perfectly balanced. Love them.

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Sorry, but just to be clear, on a red cedar soprano or concert? It's all about the cedar I think. Was just reading your sig.

My wife plays a solid red cedar top concert with Southcoast mediums on it- tone for days. Clear and bell like, but also warm like my mahog Martin vintage- really perfect for the uke.

TCK said:

My wife plays a solid red cedar top concert with Southcoast mediums on it- tone for days. Clear and bell like, but also warm like my mahog Martin vintage- really perfect for the uke.

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You've got me really interested, never tried them but have read many good things. Just went to the site and I'm overwhelmed by the variations of the "mediums." Any chance she knows the model designation? I'm thinking MU-NW? These are the plain "medium" medium strings, probably the middle of the road from what I'm reading.

Thanks for your input.

ukemunga said:

I'm loving my red cedar pineapple but 'm not crazy about Aquilas. Right now I've got Fremont Blackline mediums on it and love the bell-like ring and the soft touch. But I think I'm hearing it as being a bit too "banjo-ish" and want to tone it down just a bit.

I put Worth Browns on a previous red cedar soprano and thought that tempered it a bit too much. A friend gave me some Savarez which I'd like to try but I thought I'd ask here first before putting them on.

Have you experimented? What do you like, and maybe why?

Thanks for any input.

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I have used worth browns (currently my favorite on the red cedars) and kala reds and freemonts and the nasty sounding aquilas.

I liked Worth Medium Browns on my Mainland cedar/rosewood soprano pineapple.

guitarsnrotts said:

I liked Worth Medium Browns on my Mainland cedar/rosewood soprano pineapple.

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Different strokes, eh? I tried those on mine when I had your exact same instrument (before I got the long neck) and I thought they toned it down too much.

But, then again, I was used to the sound of the Fremont Blacklines on it and they are BRIGHT. Maybe I should try them again.