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Kahalenahele
Lokahi
USA
102 Posts |
 Posted - 02/09/2003 : 6:52:33 PM
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Hello all,
I'm looking for a couple of suggestions. Im a brand new uke player, with a new tenor uke - 17 inch scale.
1. What brands of strings do you all use? My local store carries two - GHS and another brand (I can't remember which), and both sets appear to be identical. Black nylon with an aluminum wound third string. What do you use, and where do you get your strings?
2. My uke came with a low G string. I've since replaced the strings with a Ko'olau Gold set with a high G. Right now I like the sound of the high G better (tighter chords) - I also can't find a local source of strings with a low G. Who uses a low G, and what benefits do you see from the tuning?
3. My uke has geared tuners with a 4:1 ratio. I'd love to get some with a higher ratio - say 8:1 or higher. Unfortunately, I can't seem to find any tuners available with a ratio higher than 4:1. Any suggestions?
Thank you all in advance for your help!
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Pauline Leland
`Olu`olu
USA
783 Posts |
Posted - 02/09/2003 : 9:18:22 PM
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Hi John,
I have Nylgut strings ordered off the web on the Fluke and the C. Vega tenor. The Fluke is tuned high-G. I admit I tried to shift the strings around for low-G but it wouldn't work without enlarging the 4th nut slot. Since I use that uke for strumming, it's probably just as well.
The tenor is also used for fingerstyle and I like to be able to go to lower notes. The 4th string is copper wound.
Are they better strings than what was on there before? I don't know. The Fluke had the black original equipment strings, whatever they were. Vega put high-tension D'Addarios on the tenor; I was glad to get the fat C-string off but they had sounded just fine. The Nylguts sound just fine. Tin ears?
I don't know about tuners; I have the friction, ungeared variety. I've heard of one luthier using dulcimer tuners but he has to make his own buttons. |
Pauline |
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hapakid
Luna Ho`omalu
USA
1533 Posts |
Posted - 02/09/2003 : 10:29:35 PM
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My two cents on strings:
You should probaby try using standard strings (all nylon) on your uke and see if you like an unwound 3rd. It adds a little "plinky-ness" but takes away the somewhat slack feeling of a wound string, especially when the strings get older. I like Martin strings for this, but others are fine, I'm sure.
High G: I like the high G sound because it's distinctive to the uke, but a low G gives you a pseudo bass string to compliment most of the open string chords. You hear it in Bruddah Iz "Somewhere over the Rainbow" intro.
Tuners: Because tuning a uke involves tiny changes in the tuner, going to a higher ratio would probably make it hard to tune because the higher gearing (8:1) have you chasing the tuning around with larger changes in the tuner. FWIW.
Congratulations on the new uke! Time for kanikapila! Jesse Tinsley |
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