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As if I weren’t already blowing enough money on arcane strings, I’ve got a new obsession: Thomastik-Infeld Plectrum series acoustic strings (which sell for $24 in the U.S.). If you hang out here much, you’ve heard me bitch incessantly about acoustic strings. I hate the way most modern strings are all hyped treble […] No longer ridiculously expensive. Now they’re just very expensive. I spent last week covering the Musikmesse musical instrument trade show in Frankfurt, Germany, for Premier Guitar. I had a blast, and Chris Kies and I posted details and pics of more than 70 new products. (Here’s the short list of our personal faves.) […] Holy crap! Now THAT’S a guitar string! Man, it pays to curate a blog frequented by smart people! I wrote last week about my experiment with silk-and-steel strings. It’s the latest chapter in my ongoing search for the right acoustic strings. Most available options simply sound far too harsh and bright to […] Silk and steel — bad-ass, or strictly for wusses?. It’s been a long, long time since I’ve tried silk and steel strings. I’ve always thought of them as a transitional set for students migrating from nylon to steel strings. At least that’s how my mom used to explain them to me back […] So smooth. So sexy. So frickin’ expensive! Hi. I’m Joe, and I’m a flatwound addict. It took me a long time admit it. “What wrong with a little recrational flatwound use?” I used to ask. “I can quit anytime I want.” Sure, I’d sometimes put flatwound strings on my Guild archtop. And sometimes […] 
The ’80s were tough on guitars. Last weekend I went to a memorial service for a music pal I hadn’t seen since the ’80s. Judging by the pictures I saw and the stories I heard, Brett remained the gentle, generous music lover I’d remembered till he died in his sleep a few weeks […] 
Like Talos the Giant from Jason & the Argonauts, most modern acoustic strings are made from bronze. Like him, they can be cruel and inflexible. UPDATE: I’ve updated the audio examples to include 80/20 bronze strings, as detailed in this newer post. Can I share my steel-string psychodrama? I’m lucky enough to […] 
A message from Earl? Weird but true: After my experience last week with simulated gut strings, I ordered a banjo set, figuring I’d restring my beautiful Deering with “nylgut” for an old-timey pre-bluegrass sound. But as soon as I tuned up, BANG! The head ripped in two. I went upstairs and told my […] 
PLUS: New Contest! Name the Classic 6-String Bass Riffs and Win a Seymour Duncan Pickup Booster Pedal! "We both love candlelight, long walks on the beach, and really expensive old-school strings." NOTE: The contest is at the bottom of this post. You can skip ahead if you don’t care about rare and expensive […] |
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