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drcello
Registered User
Posts: 565
(8/14/01 2:25:00 pm)
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Strings turning
brittle
Do new Thomastic Dominant perlon strings go brittle and bad if not
used? What's the shelf life?
Marshall C. St. John
drcello@vei.net
Wayside Presbyterian Church
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CelloBass
Registered User
Posts: 49
(8/14/01 3:53:48 pm)
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Re: Strings
turning brittle
DrCello,
on their violin version of those strings Thomastik
mentions that the Dominant doesn't last as long as other strings,
but this fact would be accepted by most musicians because they are
cheap and sound almost like much more expensive gut strings.
Unfortunately they don't say if they go bad by playing or just by
being put under tension. Have you tried them? If yes, how did they
work? I plan to put them on my second cello, so any comment would be
highly appreciated. On the violin they are very easy to grip and
feel much more relaxed than steel strings. It would be interesting
to see whether that works well on the cello, or whether you bow them
too easily into the fingerboard.
Horst
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ruthann
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User
Posts: 541
(8/14/01 5:32:43
pm)
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Re: Strings
turning brittle
Horst - I recommend the dominants for my little cello students for
exactly the reasons you mention. They are easier for little fingers
to hold down and they sound good. For myself, I use the Pirastro
Obligatos, but the dominants are substantially cheaper and work very
well.
cello_suttonr@hotmail.com |
drcello
Registered User
Posts: 568
(8/14/01 6:44:10 pm)
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I've used
Dominants for years...
I put Dominants on my cello (D,G and C) about ten years ago. I
don't change them very often, I think it has been three or four
years, now. I have a new set that's been sitting in my drawer for
about four years. The ones on my cello seem OK, and no sign of
breaking. (And I play quite a bit, too). I like the sound, and they
are easy to play. My A string is a Prim (I think, it's been four
years).
Marshall C. St. John
drcello@vei.net
Wayside Presbyterian Church
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CelloBass
Registered User
Posts: 51
(8/15/01 4:17:00 pm)
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Re: I've used
Dominants for years...
Drcello,
do you use a Prim A because the Larsens are too
bright and loud for the lower Dominants? I just did a setup on a
violin and put new Dominants on it. I believe that I know now why
they don't last that long. They are stretched much more than a steel
string when you put them on an instrument and increase tension until
they reach correct tune. This means that the metal tape that is
wound around the core will get small spaces between the turns. When
played, the metal wiring will probably get loose after gripping and
bowing them thousand times at the same position. Furthermore I don't
think that they age when they are stored. Perlon ages very slowly,
mainly when exposed to ultraviolet light. Gut drys out. And the
Dominants don't have natural resin between core and metal wiring
which could eventually get hard. As far as I know D'Addario
Helicores have such an internal resin layer. So finally I think you
can store the Dominants for many years - as long as you don't play
them. 
By
the way, thank you very much for completing the online book about
Stradivari. It's one of the most interesting books I have read so
far about this matter. It is really a pity that you can't travel in
time, back to those years when a Strad was about 10$
Horst
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CelloBass
Registered User
Posts: 52
(8/15/01 4:21:58 pm)
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Re: Strings
turning brittle
Ruthann,
will I loose a lot of volume, compared to steel
strings? My second cello is a bit dark, lacking some brilliance.
Which strings would you recommend, the Dominants or the Obligatos? I
have heard that the Obligatos are a bit dark, so I would tend to put
Dominants on my cello. What do you think about it?
Horst
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ruthann
Registered
User
Posts: 544
(8/15/01 5:58:05
pm)
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Re: Strings
turning brittle
Hmm. I don't think of the dominants as being dark, just soft. They
can smooth out a loud, harsh sound. Mellow is a good word to
describe them. The obligatos have more power and a much fatter sound
- lots of overtones. If you need brilliance, you'll need to shift to
the rope core or solid steel strings. Several of the string sites
have good listings of strings by type (gut, synthetic, rope, solid
metal) with some characteristics associated with each one. Quinn
violins had one as did subscription strings. I'm sorry to say I
don't recall the url for either.
As for volume, it depends
on your cello. Mine is plenty loud with obligatos. But when I was
playing a concerto and had concerns about being heard through the
orchestra, I switched to a rope core string. But that sound was too
penetrating for chamber/orchestral work - on my cello.
Your
mileage may vary.
cello_suttonr@hotmail.com |
ThumbPosn
Registered User
Posts: 1
(8/18/01 9:53:32 am)
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Re: I've used
Dominants for years...
The set of Dominants currently on my cello spent a few years on a
shelf in San Antonio, where I know they were exposed to more heat
than was healthy for them, followed by 4 years in my cello pouch
before they finally were placed on the instrument. The strings did
seem to settle in faster -- it was less than the normal week before
they would hold their tuning -- but that was the only difference I
noticed. If that is "brittleness," bring it on, I
say!
Although I've considered trying other strings (Helicores
or a Larsen/Spirocore mix), I never have made the switch on this
cello. It is rather old, and the luthier said that the synthetic
core better approximated the gut strings that were current when the
cello was built. And I certainly do enjoy the soft feel of the
Dominants.
Mark Rooze
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