UK Only - Who sells Martin Monel single strings?
 

Are there any UK shops selling Martin monel strings as singles - I need a 0.026 and don't want to break into a full set, as the the ones on the guitar are not due for a change for another 6 months or more! Google is only getting me pages of shops selling sets. I've had to put on an 80/20, which is fine but it looks a bit odd.

if you're open to strings of the same alloy by another brand, newtone in the uk will likely sell you singles (they list heritage singles on their website but i'm sure would be amenable to selling their other types as well if you call them) and certainly sell custom sets of their monel strings. call them:

Telephone:- 0162 955 942

email:- [email protected]

Ahh.... Of course. I'll give Neil a call. I was buying 200 strings at a time a few years back when Malcolm ran the show. Hopefully Neil will have something.

I thought I'd also have a look for anyone selling pure nickel single strings. Pure nickel wraps are close to monel but without the copper content, so they should come up a little mellower.

Guitar Strings and Things in the UK have the Ernie Ball Classic Pure Nickel Wound electric guitar strings in 0.026 so I have ordered a couple of those. I've also ordered a set of the D'Addario XL Pure Nickel 13-56 Jazz Medium Electric Guitar Strings. I thought that I'd give them a try on my acoustic as an alternative to monel, they may have more warmth and a little less of that "edge" you can get with monel. Anyway, I thought that with all the hype around monel that it was probably worth giving pure nickel a try, even if the sets say "electric" (for the present!).

I tried the D'addario XL on an acoustic a few years ago. Can't remember what sort of sound it produced....but I remember that I didn't like it!

Have you tried Martin Retro monel strings? They often get the same reaction!!!!

Yes, I've tried them several times on different guitars and never got on with them. Mostly, I find them overly metallic sounding. Once I thought they were "ok" but that was as good as it got.

I know the whole spiel about "you have to leave them on for a week" but frankly:

a) I have left them on for a week and not noticed any significant change; and

b) No matter how good a string is, if I hate it for the first week, it's not for me.

So, yeah, I'm not a Retro guy, nor an XL (on acoustics) guy.

My go-to strings at the moment are the humble Jim Dunlop 80/20s. Actually, come to think of it, my go-to picks are also Jim Dunlop. Think I might be a JD fanboy!