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New Strings = WOW!
Finally replaced my strings and I am in awe!!
Topic Rating: 5 Topic Rating: 5 Topic Rating: 5 Topic Rating: 5 Topic Rating: 5 Topic Rating: 5 (1 votes) 
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StaceyC
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March 17, 2019 - 4:16 am
Member Since: May 1, 2017
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I purchased this violin from a retired music teacher/musician.. I don't know how long he had used the strings that were on the violin. I used/played on them until I noticed the A string was starting to unravel. It got to the point where the A string would constantly make a weird scratching noise and it was driving me crazy.. Because of the fact that I had no idea how long the strings had been on the violin (especially since he hadn't played the violin in years himself...), I finally got around to ordering new strings after having the violin about a year and a half. 

I just put on the new strings and OMG... I seriously cannot believe the difference in sound!!!! (Actually, I should back up slightly. I did go to a local music store here in town and bought a really cheap set of strings just so I didn't have to play on the strings that were on it when I purchased the violin. I was so worried about the A string snapping and that weird scratching noise was driving me insane... Anyway, I used the really cheap set until I got around to buying my new strings...) So as I was saying, I cannot believe how much nicer and LOUDER my violin sounds. I am anxious to start playing it tomorrow! Once the strings stay in tune and I can break them in some, I would imagine that it's going to have such a sweet sound!!!  

I didn't buy extremely expensive strings. I feel like this is my beginning step up to really nice strings. Eventually I'd like to get a really good quality set. For now though, I love these and I've only just tuned it, so I haven't fully tested them yet. I bought Dominant A, D, G and Pirastro E string.. Here's the link to the ones I got on Amazon.  Has anyone else purchased these? What do you think of them?

You'll never know unless you try! What's in my violin case?

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MoonShadows
Stroudsburg, PA

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March 17, 2019 - 5:39 am
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I don't have any experience with new strings except the ones that came with my Fiddlershop Concert Violin when I purchased it two months ago. I'll have those for a while.

I was just reading on the internet last night that professionals usually change their strings every six months (I imagine some do it more often), and for the rest of us, we should change them every year. Enjoy the new strings...and the sound!

Jim

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Fran
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March 17, 2019 - 11:04 am
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This exactly the set I have and I love them!  Enjoy! Great price too

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AndrewH
Sacramento, California
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March 17, 2019 - 1:07 pm
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MoonShadows said
I don't have any experience with new strings except the ones that came with my Fiddlershop Concert Violin when I purchased it two months ago. I'll have those for a while.

I was just reading on the internet last night that professionals usually change their strings every six months (I imagine some do it more often), and for the rest of us, we should change them every year. Enjoy the new strings...and the sound!  

For that matter, even many amateurs change their strings every six months if they practice and perform enough. A professional who performs a little and mostly teaches will probably go six months on a set of strings too, but those who perform regularly may change their strings much more frequently, depending of course on how much they practice and perform. I've heard of players in the major orchestras (who rehearse daily and perform up to 150 concerts a year) changing their strings as often as every 3-4 weeks.

Depending on the brand, you can expect synthetic strings to be good for 100-150 hours of playing before they start to sound noticeably duller. After that, they're still usable for many more hours (I've gone well over 200 hours on a set of strings and there was still no sign of unraveling) but you'll hear a huge difference when you replace them.

It's a fairly common practice to replace strings after that 100-150 hours, so that they're still usable as backups in case a string breaks. If you need a string to perform on immediately, it's better to use an old string that sounds a bit dull but is already broken in and stays in tune than to use a brand-new string that goes out of tune.

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MoonShadows
Stroudsburg, PA

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March 17, 2019 - 1:18 pm
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I'll have to start keeping a clock on my playing time! violin-1260

Jim

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AndrewH
Sacramento, California
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March 17, 2019 - 6:44 pm
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I don't clock my time. I just estimate that I play 5-6 hours a week on average, taking a few weeks off each year, which works out to changing strings about twice a year.

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Fiddlerman
Fort Lauderdale
March 18, 2019 - 10:56 am
Member Since: September 26, 2010
Forum Posts: 16429

@ StaceyC - Exactly. You have no idea how old those strings were but they were worn. New strings will usually produce much more power directly but I'm guessing perhaps you even purchased steal core strings such as Prelude strings. Steel core strings are known to be more powerful in general but often, metallic, bright sounding and hard to play in tune as well.

"The richest person is not the one who has the most,
but the one who needs the least."

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