Paul14 Posted April 1, 2020 Share Posted April 1, 2020 Anyone tried both? Interested in your opinions. I want to try these strings, based on what I’ve read on this forum. Will more than likely try both but would appreciate opinions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buc McMaster Posted April 1, 2020 Share Posted April 1, 2020 (edited) I did try the D'Addario NB some time ago and while I cannot recall the specifics, I do know I was unimpressed. Of course, this may have everything to do with the fact that the NBs were a detour from the Martin Retros I had been using regularly at the time. I can tell you that, as the name of both of your suggested sets imply, these are nickel plated wound strings, brass being pretty much 80/20 and bronze being phosphor bronze. Martin's Retros are a pure nickel winding and not a plated alloy. If you're looking to test your guitars' tone with nickel, I'd recommend the Retros for the full effect. As an aside, after playing Retros for a couple years on my J45, I have recently gone back to phosphor bronze.........but the set of Gibson 80/20 on there now are quite nice. Edited April 1, 2020 by Buc McMaster Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul14 Posted April 2, 2020 Author Share Posted April 2, 2020 Well you told me some stuff I didn’t know. Thanks. I like 80/20 on my J-45 too. on my J-45 rosewood I prefer phosphor bronze. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MorrisrownSal Posted April 2, 2020 Share Posted April 2, 2020 Paul, I have tried both. The Retros are nice... but you have to wait a week. They do not sound good out of the chute. Too Brash. I actually loved the D'Addario Nickel Bronze lights on my hummingbird-y guitars. I also thought they really toned down my Martin rosewood dreads (HD-28 D-35) at the time. That's what I wanted - to tame the overtones. These were a nice choice for that as well. What guitar are you thinking of for these string sets? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul14 Posted April 3, 2020 Author Share Posted April 3, 2020 2 hours ago, Salfromchatham said: Paul, I have tried both. The Retros are nice... but you have to wait a week. They do not sound good out of the chute. Too Brash. I actually loved the D'Addario Nickel Bronze lights on my hummingbird-y guitars. I also thought they really toned down my Martin rosewood dreads (HD-28 D-35) at the time. That's what I wanted - to tame the overtones. These were a nice choice for that as well. What guitar are you thinking of for these string sets? Thinking of my J-45, & J-45 Rosewood. I’ll deal with the Maples later, as I just put new strings on those. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vacamartin Posted April 4, 2020 Share Posted April 4, 2020 I've had a set of Monels on my maple b/s L-00 for 7 months, and yesterday I thought they sounded the best yet! Put a set of Elixir Nano's on my Crossroads a few months ago and they've begun to wear in sweetly. Just takes some time with the varying humidity and temp for those old woods to settle in😎 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
generaldreedle Posted April 4, 2020 Share Posted April 4, 2020 I've enjoyed 80/20 on my Southern Jumbo, and I should try retros on my Nick Lucas L100 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul14 Posted April 4, 2020 Author Share Posted April 4, 2020 I put some D’Addario Nickel Bronze on the J-45 Rosewood this morning. Went form phosphor bronze 12’s to 11’s. I have to say, I love the new ones right out of the box. If they get better with age, that’s an added plus. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Joseph Posted April 5, 2020 Share Posted April 5, 2020 When I put the Martin Retro's on my Hummingbird it was like a match made in heaven. That was back in late December and there still on the Bird. I play everyday as long as I want to now I'm retired so the Retro"s have gotten a lot of work. I tried them on my HD28 but while they were ok other sets have sounded better. The D'Addirio N B I've tried a couple times on my HD28 to I thought they were a little brighter on the high end and the bass was really deep a good thump. I might give them a try on my new Eastman E8D. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul14 Posted April 5, 2020 Author Share Posted April 5, 2020 9 hours ago, John Joseph said: When I put the Martin Retro's on my Hummingbird it was like a match made in heaven. That was back in late December and there still on the Bird. I play everyday as long as I want to now I'm retired so the Retro"s have gotten a lot of work. I tried them on my HD28 but while they were ok other sets have sounded better. The D'Addirio N B I've tried a couple times on my HD28 to I thought they were a little brighter on the high end and the bass was really deep a good thump. I might give them a try on my new Eastman E8D. I’ve never like brass on Rosewood. That’s why I went with the D’Addirio’s on the J-45 Rosewood . I’m pretty happy so far. Will probably try the retro’s on either my J-50, or my J-45 mahogany. I’m also happy with the 11’s the only difference I can tell is it’s a little easier on the fingers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BoSoxBiker Posted April 6, 2020 Share Posted April 6, 2020 I've tried the Retros only one time. It was on my SJ. I did not leave them on. All's I remember from it was not so much a tone thing, but a feeling I got from them. A strange combination of being taken just past my action comfort zone and the feeling like my guitar was angry due to small extra bit of tension. I wish I could remember for sure if I thought they were too bright or not. I landed on the NBs, but not directly. I had a set of Elixer PBs on it in between the two. The NBs have been good with the one exception of being a little bright on certain plectrum materials - and not in a good way. 3 of 4 have the d'add NBs on it right now, fwiw. The 4th, my Hummingbird, just got an experimental set of DR Sunbeams. Perhaps I will try Retros again. I've replaced extremely loose bridge pins, changed out the saddle and files my nut slots down close to specs on that guitar. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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