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How long should i keep a set of strings on my uke? I play it almost everyday. Thanks for your help 🙂
Many people, many opinions. I’d like to hear what our fearless leader suggests.
I’ve heard a few months. I’ve also heard that if you run your finger nail along the under side of the strings and feel big grooves from the frets, it’s time to change them. Any other rules out there?
And what are your favorite strings, folks? All I seem to be able to get around here is Aquilla and D’Addario, but I really want to try Martin Fluorocarbon.
In fact i just changed from aquila ew nylgut to martin fluorocarbon yesterday. They feel a bit different while playing i think, but they where still so out of tune all the time, that i didnt really had the chance to compare the sound.
But the little bit of playing while tuning didnt sound that much different to me. But as i said, it wasnt really palyable just yet
Edit: oh and i too have no idea when its time to change the strings. I have played for 1 1/2 years and i have never changed the strings on my first Ukulele for example, i have no idea if i should or how i could tell if should. I guess i will just wait until they break or until i find other strings i want to try just like the Martin ones.
I also kind of like the cheap strings on my cheap Ukulele to be honest. They do sound terrible, but they are thin an they have much more “elasticity” (if thats a word in english :p) than the aquila strings i’ve tried otherwise. I really quite like playing the cheap ones, even if they sound like a dying cat.
I’ve been to a couple of music stores to try and find out if there are better strings out there with this same elastic/thin feel to Them but with a higher sound quality. But the answers i got so far were always something like “soprano ukuleles do sound Bad, you can’t change that with strings” or “get a concert with aquia strings”. I dont think they understood the question though.
So if anyone has any suggestions, im happy to hear Them 🙂
This question came up a lot for the upcoming lightning round video, so I’ll def be answering it in the video 🙂
I just changed my strings yesterday, and it made a big improvement! I have had my old ones on for 3 years, I defiantly went over the time. I didn’t play it for a year though. I started to feel grooves under my strings. Now it sounds a lot better!
@ lisadmh: so i have tried the Martin fluorocarbon strings on my everplay soprano Ukulele and i really dislike Them so far and i wouldn’t recomment them or buy them again.
I don’t know if they would be better or more fun on another Ukulele (since i also slightly dislike the one i’ve put the strings on) but i think they do not sound very good compared to the aquilla ones i had on the ukulele before. They are black though, so they get one bonus point for the better look :p
Hmm. I’ve tried the Martin’s on actual Martin ukes at the store and loved them. I’m curious how they’d sound on my little guy. Something about the C string with Aquillas always annoys me and I felt like the Martin’s were better, and felt better on the fingers. I’ll not get my hopes up though. Thanks for the thoughts, gahanby!
I’ve been told by a professional player and Uke dealer to rarely change the strings. So, for most of my 11 ukes, I have only changed strings once on one and only because another player said I should. Wasn’t needed.
I put on a low G on my Kala Concert, my first real Uke.
I have a low end Diamond Head Uke that I cracked. So when I was gluing it and painting it, I replaced the strings. What a difference! I would swear the factor strings were fishing line!
At this point, unless there is a break, I have no reason to change strings. But I’m open to other information.
Personal experience only: I have been playing for about 3 months, 30-90 mins most days. My strings started to sound sour (although they were staying in tune for a change!!). They were inconsistent and sounded great with some strums so i thought it was my playing. I was losing confidence and my E chord sounded awful. I have changed strings and now my ukulele sounds wonderful again.
So, my vote is 3 monthly if playing a lot for someone with a full time jobor if you start to think you are doing something wrong. Also, I just changed to Tenor Aquila Reds with Low G (unwound), much much better than the standard Aquila with a wound G that I had before. No more buzzing and less odd booming notes.
@betsy wauw! Your uke looks so beautiful with the painting on it!
Can it happen btw that some weather conditions make that you need to change strings more often? Here my strings get out of tune very quick in the spring when the temperature changes very often..
I’ve just changed my strings from Aquila Nylgut to Martin Flourocarbon. Yes they are not staying in tune at the moment but I’ve been told it takes a while for the strings to settle.
Southern Ukelele Store (the equivalent of Uke Republic in the UK in my opinion) did a video recently on strings which may help anyone interested
From their video it looks like a) personal preference and b) differenr strings suit different ukes
I personally think the Martin’s have made a bigs difference sound wise to my solid mahogany uke.
Kay, you keep posting the best videos! I love these. LOL.
So recently, I got my solid mango Pono and it’s the first one that didn’t come standard with Aquila nylgut strings like my first two (laminate) ukes. They’re transparent and more flexy (might be due to slightly smaller gauge, I’m not sure). They’re taking much longer to settle than I’m used to with Aquila. However, I find that I’m really liking the mellow sound of them as opposed to the brighter sound of Aquila. It pairs well with the warm sound of my mango. I also like the feel of them (smoother with less tension) in my opinion when I’m plucking.
I actually don’t know what kind they are, so I’m going to need to ask HMS (The Ukulele Site) the specific brand and type. I’ll have to get more! It really does come down to preference. I’m not sure if I’d like these strings on all my ukes (I quite like Aquila on my other two). I’m waiting for two new ukes to be delivered in a couple weeks (strung low G). I’m sure they’ll come standard with Aquila, but I’m looking forward to trying more types of strings to see how they sound/feel.
After reading Ko’olau string descriptions and watching that video, I suspect they’re Ko’olau Mahana strings. I’ll have to try out the Martins since Alex described them to be very comparable on Pono. Thanks again for posting that video!
I just bought a new Pono Mango uke a couple of weeks ago. It’s beautiful, but I’m struggling with the strings and feel it’s a bit difficult to play. I think it’s the strings. The C string is a wound string…and they included a card saying it’s D’addario strings. I’ve listened to alot of videos about strings. I thought fluorocarbon would be good for fingerstyle which I am focusing most of my effort on.
I’m thinking about taking it to a uke shop and either get Aquilla’s (like my other ukes) or maybe try Worth brown strings….but I’m nervous that I may make another mistake if the Worth strings aren’t any easier to play.
Has anyone had this issue of getting a new uke and it being hard to play?
Anyone using Worth brown strings and liking them?Maureen, I got my Pono mango in August and it took over a month of consistent playing for the strings to settle. The fluorocarbon aren’t as high tension as Aquila nylgut but I really love the sound of them. And they can feel slippery, but the sound is sweeter on the mango. You can try Worth strings, but I’m not sure you’d like them any better.
I have a concert so it didn’t come with the wound third but I imagine that’s like having a wound fourth on my other ukes and that also takes some getting used to because it doesn’t play the same as the other strings. I have heard that the most common request for Pono tenors is to not get the wound third at the time of purchase. They all come stock that way.
Strings are tricky because there are so many types and it’s all preferential. I like Aquila on my other ukes, but I can’t imagine having them on the Pono. It’s mellow and plays so smooth the way it is. I’ll continue to use the same fluorocarbons that came with them. I even bought two extra sets for when they need replacing.
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