After last week’s loudness experiments, and with the sonic carnage of NAMM just days away, I figured it was a good opportunity to dial down the decibels and share an interesting guitar/string combination I’ve been enjoying for a few months.
Last spring I wrote about several oddball acoustic strings I was trying out. Oddest of all was a set of Thomastik-Infeld Classic S Rope Core strings.
At $34 bucks a pop in the U.S., they’re blisteringly expensive, but they have a sound I’ve never encountered elsewhere. The result is the closest thing to a nylon-string sound I’ve heard from an ordinarily steel-stringed guitar.
I’ve had the same set on this guitar since May — they’re certainly long-lasting! Now I’m going to experiment with a few other options, but I wanted to document these before swapping them out.
Have a listen:
These strings fascinate me. They convert the guitar into what sounds like a hybrid nylon/steel-string instrument. They permit classical techniques such as rest-strokes, but when you bend them, they feel more like steel strings. The gauges are bizarre: .013 through .039. I’ve never played anything like them.
With these strings, my Martin is quieter than most classical guitars — more like the volume of Renaissance lute (an instrument I played a lot in my teens, though I haven’t owned one in many years). For me, this pairing has the same sort of sweet intimacy. This happens to be the one guitar I keep in my house — everything else is down in the studio. It’s quite literally a parlor instrument, and I’ve loved having a soft, quiet guitar to noodle on. It’s sometimes frustrating, though, how quickly these strings “overload” — the notes in the demo that snap and sizzle aren’t intentional — I’m just playing a little too hard.
I still consider this is a cool alternative classical sound, but after months of playing, I tend to think this combination would best suit a fingerstyle player who uses a lot of bending, smearing, and slapping. I bet Joseph Spence and Bert Jansch would have sounded great on these, as would Ry.
I may return to these extraordinary strings. Actually, in a perfect world, I’d have two lovely old Martins, one to strung conventionally, and the other strung with rope-cores. And since we’re talking “perfect world,” what the hell? Two pre-War Martins for everybody! No, make that three!
Dang you just named two of my favorite guitar players (Spence and Ry)! My son’s middle name is “Ryland”. Bert Jansch’s “Avocet” is also an awesome recording and I also have some groovy 60’s duets he did with John Renbourn. How ’bout Pierre Bensusan? That guy’s got some dynamics.
“this combination would best suit a fingerstyle player who uses a lot of bending, smearing, and slapping”
Ordered!
Interesting post and nice playing, as always. I have the same set on my Collings parlor right now, and they’re all the things you mentioned. I don’t like them as much as I thought I might, but at $34, I just can’t bring myself to change them yet.
LOL — I know what you mean, gee! I’m going to remove my set in the coming days, and I feel like I should wash them before storing them in a safety deposit box!
Thomastik-Infeld makes a classical string with steel centres in the treble strings,which also sound beautiful.As you probably know, it was common for classical/flamenco players to string trebles w/ steel in the twenties.The T-I strings last a long time for me,too.I've had a set on my re-fretted Teisco TG-64 for a year.Thanks,JOE! Great,as usual.
Actually, Al, I’m not sure I did know that. I guess I thought everyone used gut before Segovia popularized Augustine nylon strings.
But I was talking to classical guitarist Giacomo Fiore at the last String Out show about early wire-string instruments, like Renaissance citterns. And it occurred to me I had no idea what they might have sounded like with their pre-industrial wire. Probably lots of nasty overtones flying around!
The George Benson 12s were about the best strings ever for a Fender Jaguar, so expensive though, used to wince if I ever broke one.
I love those strings. I use Pyramids instead because they’re a little brighter. But man, I’d play those any day!
For anyone appalled by how decadent we users of expensive flat wounds are — well, you’re right! They’re expensive, and we’re decadent. But they do last a long, long time. I use a set for months and months, though I’ve gotten a bit more diligent about wiping them off after a session.
well, if it helps you guys justify anything, just imagine what it’s like for us ‘other’ string players who pay a minimum of $60-100/set for violin/viola/cello strings, not to mention that ‘playable’ instruments start at a few thousand bucks. So $30 for a good set of strings is hardly decadent…..
Totally true. If you played, say, classical harp? Your instrument might cost $40,000, and not for some special, historic model. Guitarists are quite spoiled in the sense that we can score instruments totally suited for professional use for a couple of hundred bucks.
WOW! That was just beautiful! Wish I had the chops to do justice to something like that…
Geeking out…Would LOVE to hear those on an electric, or an electric acoustic…I know they can overload quickly, but as someone who likes noisy filth I think that might be an interesting combination through a grungy overdrive!!
Very nice playing, nice sound, and a bit of history of the nylon string, too. Fun fact: Zeppelins (not the Led ones) internal hydrogen balloons were made out of cow gut. 250,000 cows per Zeppelin.
Oh, the humanity!
I’m intrigued. I wonder how a set would sound on 6-string banjo? Or on a National?
Wow — hadn’t though of that. It would probably sound pretty cool!
FWIW, I’ve had a set of Aquila nylon strings on my banjo for the last year. I’m WAY preferring them to conventional metal strings. This might be an interesting “split the difference” choice.
I’d been thinking about trying Nylons on my cheapie Dean 6-string for a while now, but these might indeed be a good compromise. The price is…ouch, but considering how often (ot not) I change my banjo strings, probably worth a shot. One of these days, I’d love to get a Deering or something nicer, but that Dean’s not too bad- even if every time I pick it up I think about those pointy Dimebag Darrel guitars amd wince a little.
Beautiful playing Joe! You mentioned flat wounds below – They stop making those cool D'Aquistos! miss those but the Thomastik-Infelds are pretty nice although anyone with a name that difficult to type should be fined!
That sounds gorgeous! I have my Godin Glissentar strung with two sets of these. At $68 for two sets it’s killer on the wallet, but there’s really no other string for that instrument once you get used to them.
Oh, cool! Actually, you’re the only other guitarist I’ve spoken with who’s tried them. And I wasn’t aware of the Glissentar, either. Looks interesting! What sort of stuff do you use it for?
It’s really an Oud / guitar hybrid, so I often play it with the traditional risha ( a pick that looks like a flexible popsicle stick made from cow horn) and go for Oud like sounds. But I also like playing it fingerstyle further up the neck, which gives a more fretless bass / nylon string sound. The TI strings are much better for a technique where you slide a lot, as plain nylon leads to friction burns. I have a small body acoustic I’d love to try these on, but it’s cheap 1970 Yamaha student model so I’m not sure it’s worthy.
I have a small, lightly built parlour guitar which might be crying out for a set of these, since it responds best to light strings. A sort of nylon/steel hybrid might be a cool sound for this guitar.
And for once they’re not more expensive in the UK than the US, I guess because they’re made in Europe.
I’m curious what you think! I also kind of liked the sound of old-fashioned La Bella silk and steel strings, and they were certainly a lot less expensive! But there were my faves.
I was thinking of purchasing these. However, you mention the gauge is “bizzare” “The gauges are bizarre: .013 through .039…” However, with the link you provided and through checking other sites I see the gauge starting at .016, Thomastik-Infeld KR116.
I want to make sure we are talking about the same strings. I have a parlor sized Larrivee 0-40 that I just purchased. I would prefer if the strings fit the nut and saddle. Thanks for the video!