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I'm a rhythm guy--gypsy jazz / Freddie green style. I am interested in trying Labella tape wound strings on an archtop and 335 style guitar.
Your experience of these strings:
Black or White nylon?
Would you choose 600L Light 12-56 or 600M Medium 14-67?
Are both the black nylon and white nylon good acoustically?
Many thanks.
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05-15-2018 07:17 PM
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Oh.. I dont know if I would try them on a 335 but I have a set of 14s on my 90s Epi Emp Reg. I have tried them on a 165 and didnt like them at all. Very mellow but no thunk. I love them unplugged on the 17" Epi even though that is far from a great unplugged guitar.
I didnt know there were white nylons lol.
Side note: I had them on my Epi for 2-3 years and they were fine until my daughter knocked the guitar over and dented the strings. I replaced them and that was a couple of years ago.. they last a REALLY long time.
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I use them for years. Very like it but imho the 14-67 are better for jazz - nice mellow tone. Had 12-56 but were too light to me (it's subjective...). When plugged the nylon makes sound more acoustic. Unplugged - I don't think it's much difference. Never tried white (it's quite new line) but I guess it will sounds the same like black. It's just a colour...
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I've never used the Labellas you mention. However I have used Thomastic kn which are nylon wound on Steel. They're great strings only problem is that plugged in the signal response is decreased icompare to the completely steel strings, resulting in an uneven sound across all the strings.
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Get the .14s. They are low tension strings; the lighter gauge causes quite a bit of string buzz. The 600m set allows very low action without buzz. They sound great; i always come back to them when trying other brands. Very warm yet defined, articulate sound. For me, they give me the sound i’m after on the l-5. The don’t sound that great on my sheraton, though. The only way to be sure if they suit you is to try them, tastes differ... even though they are expensive, it still is a very minor expense (compared to all the other stuff we gearheads accumulate...) - and because of the nylon, they last a very long time. Oh, and don’ cut excess string; the tape unravels when cut.
Best regards,
bruno.
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I love the idea of these strings for fingerstyle but every time I have tried them (the black ones) on various guitars I have removed them after a short while. The two main problems I have had are (1) they are very low tension and so tend to thud rather than ring on the lower strings; (2) they are thicker in cross-section than other strings of equivalent gauge so that the lower strings (even in light gauge) may not fit through the tuning machines.
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Used the black ones for a couple of years on my 335. A very different sound, see if you like it down the road. They are kind of dark sounding though, so i don't know if they 'll work for gypsy and freddie green sounds.
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These are the worst strings invented for the guitar. Just play awful.
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I tried them a couple of times, and didn't like them much. They sound dead out of the package, and it doesn't get better. Some people love them - the Pizzarellis use them exclusively, AFAIK, but love is strange, as someone sang, and I can't love them.
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I like the 14s set BUT the difference in diameter between the unwound b and d strings is huge so slurring between them is harder than it should be...depends what you're playing. You may have to enlarge the low e tuning machine hole (drill it out).
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I haven’t tried them because of needing much higher gauges to match the equivalent of a 12 or 13 gauge set. The nylon adds thickness so inside of 56, for example, is a much lighter gauge string than a 56 from another non tape wound string. That would leave me probably getting the 14-67 but that is so thick that I would need to widen the nut slots and that is a serious commitment for just trying out a string so keep that in mind if you do want to try them.
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Thanks guys for all your info-much appreciated. 'Gotta give them a try.
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In comparison to regular flatwounds for example .11 the set of .14 feels much heavier?
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I have only used tapewound strings on electric bass but since the tape adds diameter and not tension then really the metal string inside is what you would compare to a normal string. I don’t know about vs. an .011 set but a tapewound string will be lighter tension than an equal gauge metal string. Of course the plain steel strings will still be heavier as they are not wound so you’d feel the extra tension on strings 1 and 2.
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I have only seen illustrations of the White Nylon Tape packaging, never seen them, never heard them. They are described as being brighter than the Black Nylon Tape akin to the difference between roundwound and flatwound.
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Today I got set of .14 Black. The six string got to the tuner with no problem - very tightly but with no any adjustments. The same thing about the tailpiece (Washburn J600k).
The feel very similar to .11 flatwounds.
It's my first impression but I really like how it's sounds. It is kind of dark (but not to much) and very mellow. I use it with Seymour Duncan Seth Lover pickup.
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As I’ve only used tapewound strings on bass so this is interesting info. The top two strings are plain steel, right? If the low strings feel that light then how do you feel about the string balance through the whole set? Also are they balanced sounding through the pickup and out of the amp?
Originally Posted by Mich
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I’m a big fan; warm and mellow describe the sound perfectly and the 4 wound strings have have a ‘punchy’ sound when playing single notes. E and B are plain strings. The texture (or lack of it) takes some getting used to - because of the nylon wrapping, they are not as slick as regular flats, but I got over that real quick. For me, they are like tomastic 12s tension wise. I tried the lighter set, and didn’t like those at all: too ‘floppy’. They have a very definite sound of their own; maybe that is why some players really dislike them. You can’t argue personal taste; it’s the differences that keeps life interesting...
so, just try them on your l-5, I really like them on mine. Make a great guitar sound terrific, and if you don’t like ‘em ... it’s only strings.
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Yes the first two strings - plain steel (according to Labella). There is no huge jump in thickness between first two strings and others. Originally Posted by rio
I would say, jump is to small to remember about it.
After several hours of playing I can say that I feel like it was a set of .12, (not like .11 as I said before).
I mean the low strings, especially 6 and 5, not that light at all. They have certain flexibility but not to much.
In my opinion the .14 set has a good balance, but I am a newbie in this stuff, so it's very sabjective opinion
Here is a small and cool demo:
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If you want to hear the black tapewound strings, give a listen to John Pizzarelli, as well as Bucky.
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Thanks - that demo is super useful because I’m using a Bud too as well as considering my 175 for these strings (coincidentally also a red one like that). I have an old set of TI swings on and was thinking of GHS flats since I have already put them on two of my guitars and like them a lot but being that I like the tapewounds on my fretless bass and like them I wanted to give them a try on a guitar. I would try them on my L5 but I’m afraid a 14 and 18 would be a little too much for me. I used to use .014s on everything but these days I prefer .012 or .013 depending on the guitar. I think that, considering the scale length, I could get used to the heavier E and B strings on the 175. (EDIT: whoops, I didn’t see the video description that your guitar is an L4. Couldn’t see the tailpiece so I assumed it was a 175). Originally Posted by Mich
Yes the first two strings - plain steel (according to Labella). There is no huge jump in thickness between first two strings and others.
I would say, jump is to small to remember about it.
After several hours of playing I can say that I feel like it was a set of .12, (not like .11 as I said before).
I mean the low strings, especially 6 and 5, not that light at all. They have certain flexibility but not to much.
In my opinion the .14 set has a good balance, but I am a newbie in this stuff, so it's very sabjective opinion
Here is a small and cool demo:
And regarding the Pizzarellis, I love their sound. John in particular I have listened to a lot and he’s the main reason I have toyed with the idea of trying them because I love his sound. I was mainly concerned about strings not fitting in the tailpiece or tuner peg hole so given that doesn’t seem to be an issue I’ll have to give them a go. And I could always swap out the top two strings I suppose. I didn’t mind the .014 much but .018 on string 2 took a while to get used to and gave me string balance issues in the past as well.
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Hah, no man, it is not my demo, and I am not such a good player, just beginner
. My guitar is Washburn J600k.
By the way, there is no .13 option, only 10, 12 and 14. In comments to that video this guy describes the .12 as "wet noodles". If you going to get it (I mean .12), please share your thoughts on it.
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I used a set on my Epi ES175, and they fit, although the bass E string was very, very tight in the tuner capstan. It's possible to enlarge the hole with the proper size drill bit and some care. It wouldn't be my first choice, but it can be done if necessary. You can swap the .014 and .018 for smaller strings if you really like the tapes. That would probably provide better tension balance anyway.
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Oh ok, thanks for the video either way! Regarding the .013, I just meant that perhaps I’ll switch out the .014 and .018 for a .013 and .017 - I keep plain steel single strings on hand since my wound strings always last a really long time but I like to keep the top two strings fresh. It is also a nice way to try to balance a string set with some brands by buying a .012 set and then replace the top two strings as if they were a .013 set. Originally Posted by Mich
Hah, no man, it is not my demo, and I am not such a good player, just beginner. My guitar is Washburn J600k.
By the way, there is no .13 option, only 10, 12 and 14. In comments to that video this guy describes the .12 as "wet noodles". If you going to get it (I mean .12), please share your thoughts on it.
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yep --sounds great, improved the tone of my monarch 16 -will put on other guitars...!
easier to play --sounds great!
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