It's all Gordon's fault!! Shouldn't have made such a big thing about this lovely instrument when he was recently at Lancaster. I had to go and buy one.
I absolutely love mine, but would value some advice on best strings ( both nylon and folk - make and weight). I am told that heavier strings will have better intonation, stay in tune, and still allow some bending ( too light, I have discovered, and the 6th string will roll off the finger board). Also that buying 3/4 length strings is not critical.
Views and experience please.
Vic
Vintage Viator Strings
Moderator: GORDON
Re: Vintage Viator Strings
Hi Vic.I tune my Viator above concert pitch in a C tuning. Certainly a heavy gauge set will work well in concert pitch. A really light gauge set will open even more possibilities for tune well above concert. Hope this helps buddy. G
Re: Vintage Viator Strings
Hi Vic,
I mixed the strings on my Viator with Medium and light gauge - 4th, 5th and 6th as medium and 1st,2nd and 3rd as light gauge. The effect is to give slightly more depth to the 4th to 6th strings, which I found more acceptable. However, as I am sure you are aware, the size of the Viator won’t give a deep bass. I would suggest the Viator is definitely not suited to nylon strings and that standard length strings are more readily available than 3/4 ... just a little more waste metal once shortened on fitting.
Gordon mentions tuning to open ‘C’ whereas most of the time I leave in standard EADGBE tuning. What brand of strings will depend on your own taste and preference. These days I tend to use Elixir Phosphor Bronze as their longevity is considerable given day-to-day playing of around an hour a day, though not in performance anywhere.
Best of fortune in your
I mixed the strings on my Viator with Medium and light gauge - 4th, 5th and 6th as medium and 1st,2nd and 3rd as light gauge. The effect is to give slightly more depth to the 4th to 6th strings, which I found more acceptable. However, as I am sure you are aware, the size of the Viator won’t give a deep bass. I would suggest the Viator is definitely not suited to nylon strings and that standard length strings are more readily available than 3/4 ... just a little more waste metal once shortened on fitting.
Gordon mentions tuning to open ‘C’ whereas most of the time I leave in standard EADGBE tuning. What brand of strings will depend on your own taste and preference. These days I tend to use Elixir Phosphor Bronze as their longevity is considerable given day-to-day playing of around an hour a day, though not in performance anywhere.
Best of fortune in your
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