String reviews from Reddit
Summary
We analyzed 172 Reddit reviews across 20 subreddits and 60 posts to rank the best String brands recommended by redditors, including communities like r/10s, r/AcousticGuitar, r/Viola, r/violinist, r/Cello. Top-rated brands include D'Addario (4.3/5), Ernie Ball (4.3/5), Head (4.1/5).
Stats
Reviews172
Subreddits20
Posts60
Brands56
Products74
172 reviews from
and
By Brand
/By Product
#1
D'Addario
4.3
(19)
"XS (which seem to never die really) but I like those much more than the EXP they seemingly replaced"
"D’Addario XS is current champ."
"D'Addario is king for me."
"Every bass should be strung with D'Addario EXL170s."
"My Taylor came with daddario xs and I like them allot."
"Silk and steel, Ernie ball or D’Addario"
"D’addario Helicores or Kaplans!"
"Have you looked into Helicore? They tend to have good longevity and give a nice sound boost to most student cellos."
"I have tried others, but always come back to D'addario EJ16s."
"The brands that support the widest range of players is D’addario."
#2
Ernie Ball
4.3
(10)
"For small body acoustics I love Silk and Steel."
"For me , Ernie Ball Earthwood 80/20. balanced tone."
"I always used Ernie ball skinny top heavy bottom for drop c. It worked out super well."
"Silk and steel, Ernie ball or D’Addario"
"Ernie Ball are always a great first choice, they are affordable and come in many different gauges!"
"I really like my 5120 that has 11 through 56 Ernie Ball heavy bottom slinky tops."
"Ernie Ball 10-52."
"Ernie ball Earthwood 12-54."
"Ernie Ball and D'Addario are both inexpensive but nice quality strings."
"Personally I’m a fan of Ernie ball Earthwood."
#3
Head
4.1
(10)
"A pretty great and long lasting combo is head Lynx mains, velocity crosses."
"One string to consider is the Head Hawk. I think it’s very good for value/durability/control."
"If you want touch I really like hawk touch."
"A new string that decent with some feel but not harsh but not to expensive is head hawk power."
"Try a mix of shaped poly on the mains multi-Filament on the crosses. If you are keeping with the head them: Lynx on mains."
"Head lynx tour 17g in grey"
"Head lynx tour! Strung lower at around 46-48lbs."
"In a 16x19, I use Head Velocity MLT because it's the most durable multi that I've tried."
"The most durable strings I've found are Head Hawk Touch."
"Head Hawk / Touch isn't a bad option to try."
#4
Elixir
4.4
(8)
"I use them exclusively now. I would put them first along with Elixir phosphor bronze and daddario xs."
"I'll vote for Elixirs Phosphor Bronze."
"Elixir for sure they last a long time and sound awesome."
"Elixir phosphor bronze 80/20 nanoweb, best overall."
"People in my area tend to prefer Elixir phosphor bronze nanowebs."
"Elixir strings. They sound great and last sooooo much longer than standard strings."
"Going to try Elixer 80-20 12s."
"I honestly have hated these strings on every guitar I own."
#5
Thomastik
4.4
(7)
"I've been using Thomastik Dominant Pros/Dynamo for the last couple of years, and love them."
"For clarity and longevity, I'd suggest Thomastik PI."
"Thomasik infeld flat wounds. perfect on a p bass and you’ll probably never have to change them."
"They project well and are reasonably responsive and focused, but they have a nice warmth of tone."
"Have since really been enjoying the new thomastik dynamos."
"Thomastik Alphayue (Warm, good response and cheap)."
"I’ve really enjoyed the Thomastik Dynamo strings."
#6
John Pearse
4.7
(6)
"John Pearse are by far and away my favorite strings."
"I like John Pearse strings the best."
"This brand doesn't get the recognition that it deserves. For my money, they're the best strings made today."
"Try John Pearse strings. They're excellent strings."
"I really like John Pearse"
"John Pearse and GHS have a somewhat different vibe than the strings you mentioned."
#7
Luxilon
4.6
(5)
"Luxilon 4G is better than Alu Power in my opinion."
"Luxilon 4G"
"Luxilon alu power, Head Hawk power, Hawk touch, Head lynx, Solinco Hyper G , and Solinco Tourbite are all great options."
"16G Natural gut and 4G soft for ultimate durability."
"Coincidentally he uses Luxilon Alu Power, although I’d wager the brand of string does not affect much how it responds to tension."
#8
Solinco
4.4
(5)
"The TL;DR is Solinco Outlast, but it's well worth reading through to understand how they arrived at that answer."
"Very good durability. A rare case where the name describes the string accurately."
"Maybe try Solinco X-natural on the mains and your choice low-friction crosses."
"Solinco hyper G is probably a good start for performance and price."
"I think going with a sided poly like a S/Hyper G or a stamped poly like a L/ Element Rough would be good."
#9
Yonex
4.0
(5)
"Yonex Polytour Pro, Solinco Outlast, and Toroline Enso Pro were my favorites."
"I use Yonex Poly Tour Pro 16L / 17 with the Ezone 98. It's a very plush setup and responds nicely to high RHS."
"I use this frame and hasn't gone to Yonex Poly Tour Pro 1.15/18. Soft, thin poly, so it's better for comfort and power."
"Should give you a bit more power and feel."
"Have you tried Yonex Poly tour pro? They would be a good intro to poly strings."
#10
Warchal
4.0
(5)
"Just got some warchal ambers and they've been lovely."
"I've tried their Amber, Timbre and Karneol. They're all excellent strings."
"I suggest warchal ambers or pirastro obligatos."
"Warchal Ambers could be good to try. They are warm and resonant."
"I’ve liked Warchal Amber and PI strings."
#11
La Bella
4.8
(4)
"La Bella White Tapes, regular, gold or copper are all good."
"I love LaBella medium flatwounds."
"Labella is on about half of my basses I’ve never had anything but compliments to give them."
"Either La Bella or fender strings, I don’t change mine too often so I’m not sure but those are my go to brands."
#12
Diadem
4.5
(4)
"Diadem Solstice Power is a great string!!"
"Try Diadem Solstice Power. Crazy Spin generation!"
"I use Diadem Solstice in a Pure Drive Tour and love it."
"Diadem Solstice Power"
#13
Pirastro
4.5
(4)
"This Pirastro Eudoxa-Oliv C string sounds like what you're looking for."
"I use a full set of pirastro perpetuals."
"I’ve heard some good things about the pirastro perpetuals."
"Honestly if you like Pirastro Passione A&D, you might enjoy Pirastro Perpetual Soloist Weich A and Soloist Medium D."
#14
Larsen
4.3
(4)
"I have tried their Il cannone soloist and virtuoso. Both absolutely amazing."
"I like Larsen strings. they last forever and sound great."
"I am happy but it's also based on what my viola needed."
"Anything from Larsen has a pretty weak durability."
#15
Stringjoy
4.3
(4)
"I highly recommend Stringjoy strings. I use them exclusively and have so for that past 10 years."
"StringJoy Foxwoods for me"
"String joy makes great strings and you can tailor your pack and reorder whenever."
"Stringjoy Foxwoods."
#16
Martin
4.3
(4)
"Martin Retros have brought new life to some old guitars for me"
"I’ve been loving the Martin Retro. Have em on my D-18 and J-45 they sound so good."
"I go between Martin retro Monels and Ernie Ball Aluminium Bronze."
"I’ve used the Martin Retro’s and the D’Addario NB strings on my D-28."
#17
Spirocore
4.7
(3)
"The Spirocore tungsten C works wonderfully for me with the regular Evah G and D."
"Lots of people swear by spiro tungsten C."
"Spirocore, Larsen, Evah Pirazzi gold."
#18
Earthwood
4.3
(3)
"Earthwound 6.00 great sounding strings can't be beat."
"I like earthwood phosphor bronze"
"I like the paradigms, but they aren't that much better than the earthwood PBs, which cost about half as much."
#19
Jargar
4.3
(3)
"I would highly recommend Jargar Classic A and D with a Heliocore G and C or a full set of Jargar Classic."
"Usually jargar A D and dominant c g works well and is economical."
"I always recommend the Jargar or Pirastro Piranito as a solid middle range string."
#20
Grapplesnake
4.3
(3)
"Grapplesnake Tour Sniper at 47lbs is my first choice."
"If you like Alu Power, try Grapplesnake Tour Sniper."
"Grapplesnake m8 is good at lower tensions, I had it at 42lbs and felt good still."
#21
Ibanez
4.0
(3)
"I’ve had good experiences with Ibanez in that price range as well as ltd."
"Ibanez, Jackson, Schecter are probably you're best bet."
"Ibanez is always a good option."
#22
Volkl
4.0
(3)
"Softer string but it grips so you can generate a lot of spin. Very durable too."
"I used Volkl Cyclone in the mains, and og micro sheep in the crosses."
"Volkl cyclone or v-square if you prefer the square strings."
#23
Ashaway
3.0
(4)
"The Crossfire ZX uses a braided Kevlar+ main string, while the ZX Tour uses a co-polymer monofilament main string."
"Ashaway Crossfire ZX"
"Powernick 18."
"Rather go for the Ashaway Powernick 18 or Ultranick 17."
#24
Rondo
5.0
(2)
"Big fan of Rondos, and I currently have Pirastro Perpetual solos, really love them."
"My Cello loves full Rhondo with an EP Gold G string."
#25
DR Highbeams
5.0
(2)
"I have used DR Highbeams on my 1974 4001 for decades. Love ‘em."
"Right now I have a set of medium DR Highbeams. Really like the sound I get with those."
#26
Zyex
4.5
(2)
"What you want are Zyex strings. They check all your boxes being under $60, with a nice warm sound and good durability."
"The Zyex string “mellows”out the Kevlar string. It’s a great hybrid."
#27
Technifibre
4.5
(2)
"Technifibre 305 ❤️"
"If you want more power - Technifibre 305."
#28
Alu Power
4.5
(2)
"Alu Power is the absolute gold standard for round polys in terms of peak performance (shorter life though)."
"I would go with alu power, it is good."
#29
Versum
4.5
(2)
"I'm really liking the Versum *Solo* A+D with the Spirocore G+C."
"For a versatile set I would try any of the following."
#30
Obligatos
4.0
(2)
"I use Obligatos on my C and G."
"I use obligatos and a Larsen A string, have a really warm instrument."
#31
Evah Pirazzi
4.0
(2)
"Evah Gold is the warmer version so you could at least start there if you're on the green ones."
"I have and like Evah Pirazzi Soloist C+G."
#32
4G
4.0
(2)
"I'd say go 4G (one of the stiffest strings on the market) at 50 lbs."
"4G is as crisp as it gets. Any of the polys should be fine to balance out an already soft racquet."
#33
Tonica
4.0
(2)
"Tonica might be under $60. You could also look at Alphayue."
"Check prices on Tonica (they sound just fine on violins) and Helicore."
#34
Dominants
4.0
(2)
"Dominants are a good starting point."
"Try neutral strings like Dominants, and see what's missing."
#35
Mach 10
3.5
(2)
"A good string not really talked about is mach 10. i felt like it was a more controlled version of hyper g and doesn’t notch nearly as fast"
"I found it more powerful than hyper g, less durable too."
#36
Stretch Magic
3.5
(2)
"[Stretch Magic] is the best. The cord size should be about the same size as the holes in the beads."
"Stretch magic dry rotted on me pretty quickly, and I'm really careful about my bracelets."
#37
Gut/Poly Hybrid
5.0
(1)
"Yea, if you don't mind the price a gut/poly hybrid is definitely worth trying."
#38
Gearbox
5.0
(1)
"Go gearbox mono. They sell it in a 550 foot reel which makes it one of the most economical options on the market."
#39
Harley Benton
5.0
(1)
"The Harley Benton R458 multiscale is an amazing guitar to get into 8 strings."
#40
Eudoxa
5.0
(1)
"The ones I like best are Eudoxa and Warchal Karneol."
#41
Evah Gold
5.0
(1)
"Try the Evah Gold Rope-core Tungsten C."
#42
Martins
5.0
(1)
"Martins are the only string I use now."
#43
Prince
5.0
(1)
"My ultimate recommendation for you of the listed options is the Prince Vortex Triad mains."
#44
RPM Rough
5.0
(1)
"Rpm rough it greatly enhances the already good spin potential, has great snapback, and it also improves feel and control."
#45
Pyramid
5.0
(1)
"I've had great experiences with Pyramid Gold flatwound strings."
#46
D'addario
5.0
(1)
"I'm very fond of the D'addario Bluegrass set, EJ14."
#47
Cobalt
5.0
(1)
"Cobalt flats are easily my favorite flats."
#48
Dunlop
5.0
(1)
"Pretty sure those would work for you, or you could play around with a string calculator and get singles of whatever strings you like."
#49
Thomastik Infeld
5.0
(1)
"The bees 🐝 knees. Hands down the best flatwounds on the market."
#50
DR
5.0
(1)
"DR Sunbeams: https://www.drstrings.com/sunbeams-bass"
#51
Ytex
4.0
(1)
"I have been playing with Ytex Quadro Twist for a few months and really like it. Good spin and holds tension well."
#52
Hill
4.0
(1)
"I’m using the hill special e string right now and I really like it."
#53
Sync
4.0
(1)
"Super slick string, great snapback, but nice and controlled from the round profile and non-launchiness"
#54
Weiss Cannon
4.0
(1)
"Weiss Cannon Silverstring 1.2 at 52 lbs is what I currently have in my PA 100."
#55
Polytour
4.0
(1)
"Polytour Pro or Alu Power."
#56
Rotosound
4.0
(1)
"Rotosound or labella flat wound."
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