duluthdan Posted June 27, 2014 Share Posted June 27, 2014 Just got a few sets in the mail that I ordered specifically to try on the J-45 Legend. Couple of questions. The strings end has a interesting loose wind that gets tighter, until it seems to morph into the actual wound string. Is there a trick to stringing these? I ended up kind of getting about half the tight wound end thru the machine hole, and then tightening it up - sure doesn't look like I have enough string on the post, maybe a wind and a half. I put 12's on. 12-54, they sound ok, but really soft, both in terms of volume, and action. Maybe I should go to their Medium set 13-57. I should have taken a picture of that string end - but users should know what I'm speaking about. I generally use the "Taylor" method, and these just have me a bit confused. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Isaac Hunt Posted June 27, 2014 Share Posted June 27, 2014 Just got a few sets in the mail that I ordered specifically to try on the J-45 Legend. Couple of questions. The strings end has a interesting loose wind that gets tighter, until it seems to morph into the actual wound string. Is there a trick to stringing these? I ended up kind of getting about half the tight wound end thru the machine hole, and then tightening it up - sure doesn't look like I have enough string on the post, maybe a wind and a half. I put 12's on. 12-54, they sound ok, but really soft, both in terms of volume, and action. Maybe I should go to their Medium set 13-57. I should have taken a picture of that string end - but users should know what I'm speaking about. I generally use the "Taylor" method, and these just have me a bit confused. Did you cut them before bringing them up to pitch ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RichG Posted June 27, 2014 Share Posted June 27, 2014 I just got a set to try on my J55 but have not tried them yet. They are round core strings and although they don't say anything I assume they should not be cut until after they are up to pitch. Timely topic for me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
retrorod Posted June 27, 2014 Share Posted June 27, 2014 Interesting find Dan. I have never seen or used them. The short length baffles me also. I intend to write a review on a set of Mapes after I play them a bit. Mapes,being a piano wire company makes their guitar strings super long.....I measured 12-14 inches excess AFTER the wraps on each string....yikes Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duluthdan Posted June 27, 2014 Author Share Posted June 27, 2014 Did you cut them before bringing them up to pitch ? No. Round core no-no. I just got a set to try on my J55 but have not tried them yet. They are round core strings and although they don't say anything I assume they should not be cut until after they are up to pitch. Timely topic for me. I will try to get some pictures up later. Company's website tells you how to string a violin, but says nothing about guitars, so I adapted what I could. Its been overnight, and now that i play them again, they sound pretty good, not quite as "edgy" or raw as the Martin SPs, but pretty good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
onewilyfool Posted June 27, 2014 Share Posted June 27, 2014 If you guys want to enhance the "woodiness" and mids of your Gibson….try the "DR" dragon skins….they are coated, but you can't tell….they are a bit rough on the fingers, but they sound good right out of the box….if you do percussive playing, or like the enhanced mids……try one of these sets….I think they also give very good string separation…..and they are lasting a LOOOONG time on my guitar….which is rare for anything except Elixirs~!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scootch Posted June 27, 2014 Share Posted June 27, 2014 I bought two sets of the Spectrum Bronze lights. I've a set on my J-45. On that guitar it made it feel tight and restricted. Not bad but very precise. I wanted something a bit more relaxed sounding. Not much twang, there. So, I put the other set on a laminate Alvarez 5040 Koa. That guitar just sang with them, loud and clear and beautiful. I get compliments on it's sound. So it varies, from guitar to guitar. Maybe it was scale length thing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jedzep Posted June 27, 2014 Share Posted June 27, 2014 Hi Dan. One thing you've noticed is that lack of early brightness and the non-existent break-in period, but you should be happy with the long lasting consistency. I couldn't tell when mine actually faded, so after 7 mos. I just pulled them out of disbelief they could last that long. I had them on a '56 J45 and I think they could have gone longer. It is tricky knowing how much loose wound length to include in the winding but you should still estimate to allow 4 or 5 wraps. I find that aspect annoying, though, and the only downside...um, besides the price. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duluthdan Posted June 27, 2014 Author Share Posted June 27, 2014 i am hoping the picture below illustrates the Tomastik install question a bit better than my lame vocabulary. You will notice that on the posts for the E and A string there is a half a turn or so of the bronze string winding on the post. According to the violin stringing tips (remember on their website there is NO guitar winding tips, just violin) there should be no windings on the post, and I gather they should look a bit more like the D and G posts in this picture. Given the string length on the short-scale J-45 I don't think this is possible on those E and A string posts. Had a devil of a time figuring out how much slack to leave so I could get a couple of turns, as you can tell from the pic - I probably could.ve use a bit more slack. These strings are a bit weird. Sound pretty good though, but I think the Legend is looking for 13s. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jedzep Posted June 27, 2014 Share Posted June 27, 2014 VG illustration, Dan. There's an email address on the T-I website under support. I'd send them this pic and ask for some input. marketing@thomastic-infeld.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
onewilyfool Posted June 28, 2014 Share Posted June 28, 2014 http://www.stringsandbeyond.com/jope61siphbr.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DRC Posted June 28, 2014 Share Posted June 28, 2014 I've tried them on three of my guitars and they're good strings with a nice smooth bass response, but just not worth the $$ to me. I get similar results with other, much less $ strings. I'll add to Wiley's post regarding bringing out a natural woody sound and say that Martin Tony Rice MTR13 monels bring out a very natural woody sound in my J-35, but I'm just not a fan of mediums for what I do. And they didn't seem to last very long compared to other strings. But they did sound good. I prefer Martin M535 custom lights on the J-35 in DADGAD. DC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duluthdan Posted June 29, 2014 Author Share Posted June 29, 2014 http://www.stringsandbeyond.com/jope61siphbr.html I was curious about these JP Strings with the inner-silk windings, but then I read this from the Thomastik package ""mastery of mechanical filtering with their silk inlay technology..." so it seems these two string sets might be relatively comparable. The silk underlayment must also be why these strings pretty much sound broken in right out of the pack, as Jed suggested. Also probably the reason there seems to be little "edge" to the sound, unless I really play it hard, and thats difficult because I don't use a pick. Have been playing them a few days now, and they sound fine, but not sure they are the match for the Legend yet. Like I said before, it would be interesting to step up to the 13s and see how they ride. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RichG Posted June 30, 2014 Share Posted June 30, 2014 Dan I put the Thomastik strings on my J55 just now. It is a long scale, but I ended up with the low E wrapping the wound part about a quarter turn or less. I had DR Rares on it but thought it sounded too bright. These seem to have tamed it down a bit. I always use picks, half and half flat pick and finger picks. I really don't flat pick per se, just strumming with some bass runs. I love the DR Rares on my SCSJ. Rich Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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