Ali
Oud Maniac
Posts: 98
Registered: 10-17-2005
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Aqilla strings
Has Anybody used Aquilla brand for strings , I wanted to try it , I thought may be somebody Who used that before , Could give me a
tip about them .
Thanks
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Dr. Oud
Oud Junkie
Posts: 1370
Registered: 12-18-2002
Location: Sacramento, CA, USA
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| Quote: | Originally posted by Ali
Has Anybody used Aquilla brand for strings , I wanted to try it , I thought may be somebody Who used that before , Could give me a
tip about them .
Thanks |
I've been using them for over a year and have not found any strings to be as good, either in tone
or longevity. The trebles have a fuller tone than either plain or rectified nylon. The wound strings use a finer wire for the winding which makes them
smoother to tune and they don't seem to tarnish as soon as others, and they hold their tone very much longer. I changed the last set after almost a
year of playing. I like them so much I decided to become a dealer.
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Elias
Oud Junkie
Posts: 126
Registered: 6-3-2004
Location: italy
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Hello,
I strongly reaccomend you to try them...i think there are no other product with such fine quality...just consider that they are still handmade!...The
High Nylgut strings are amazing and you can finally have a nearly real gut sound but with all the advantages of nylon...The wound strings still have
inside this nylgut core that give them such a particular tone...I also use Nylgut for the RE 3rd string wich is fantastic....
...By the way they also make fine lute strings that i am using in this period on my ouds wich are very soft and with a warm sound...
Salamat
elias
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Brian Prunka
Oud Junkie
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Location: Brooklyn, NY
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I didn't like them; the sound was dull and the tension was too high. I think that perhaps they may work better on some ouds than others, depending on
the characteristics of the particular instrument.
Just try them and see how they sound on your oud, maybe they will work for you--a lot of people here like them.
who knows, i may try them again at some point if i can get a more appropriate tension.
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Elias
Oud Junkie
Posts: 126
Registered: 6-3-2004
Location: italy
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HEllo Brian,
You're right, it change from an instrument to another, like every other strings in my opinion,... just think about Pyramid super wich i tested on my
ouds and i removed immediatly due to their hard tension....
By the way if you play with Plane 3rd string you will see that aquila Nylgut Re is amazing (i suggest .97mm e 1.00, not more...)and the tension of all
the strings will be lighter...but it's normal you know...the fact is that with Nylgut 1st,2nd and 3rd strings you can have a very nice and old style
sound particulary apreciated on ancient ouds...
I never found a dull sounding string made by Mimmo, but who knows, when you produce strings handmade i think it could happen that one set could not be
totally fine....
ELias
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freya
Oud Junkie
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In general, the Nyguts (the trebles) have worked fine for me but there have been a few instruments where the characterisic "thunkiness" just sounded
too dead. For those instruments I use PVFs. And BTW, I find the gauges that Hank Levin spoke about in a recent post works just fine in Arabic
tuning.
I haven't been able to make up my mind about the basses. The Nygut cores on the wound strings do seem very stable tuning-wise but I can't really tell
if they sound consistantly different than basic Pyramid Oranges on different instruments.
Slightly off topic, does anyone have a recommendation for Pyramid lute string wound gauges for Arabic tuning?
Harry
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Jonathan
Oud Junkie
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Registered: 7-27-2004
Location: Los Angeles
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In my limited experience, they sound great on Arabic ouds, and not as great on Turkish ouds.
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mavrothis
Oud Junkie
Posts: 1674
Registered: 6-5-2003
Location: NJ/NYC
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Hi,
I originally liked these strings, but now from my own experience and the advice I've gotten from other players and makers, I find that they have too
high a tension and can be dangerous for an oud's soundboard. Perhaps they need to rework their specs to allow for less tension for each respective
tuning.
mav
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Elie Riachi
Oud Junkie
Posts: 582
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Location: Kansas
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Mood: Gebran Tueni Lives For Ever, 12-12-05.
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Hello,
The Aquilas for Arabic sound very oudie even on my tourist oud (only oud). I haven't noticed any damage caused to the soundboard on this oud. The
soundboard is ~2 mm at the bridge and tapers to ~ 1 mm at the bottom of the large sound hole. In particular, the c g d A F sound very oudie but the
bass C string sounds a little dead, which I am using double also it still sounds acceptable but not as bassy and strong as F, of course this may be an
imperfection of the tourist oud (which I am milking for every pulse of sound wave energy) and not the string. But any way I think they are the best
that I have tried so far if you want your oud to sound like an oud and not so much like a guitar! My $0.02.
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LeeVaris
Oud Junkie
Posts: 379
Registered: 12-16-2003
Location: Los Angeles
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Different Strings for Different Ouds
Just echoing the sentiments here. I happen to like the Aquilla strings on certain ouds and others really do better with the lower tension custom
Pyramids. This is especially true for the Turkish ouds that I've tried - my Dincer oud really shines with the brighter PVF trebles and generally
brighter Pyramid lute strings. The arabic instruments have a punchier sound that seems to suit the Nylguts... the Aquilla strings have a rounder tone
that can sound dead on the wrong instrument.
I've found that my Samir floating bridge 7 string likes the higher tension of the Nylguts and the rounder tone calms down its somewhat brittle sound.
My Foad Bashir oud prefers the custom Pyramid Bashir set from Matthais Wagner - the bright PVF trebles sit well on top of the almost boomy bass that
this oud projects but Nylguts sound more "thuddy" on this oud. Oddly my Egyptian Abd El Haliem can go either way - in general this oud has a more
closed up sound and it doesn't seem to matter too much one way or the other what strings I put on it - the Nylguts seem to have a little more sound to
them on this oud but that may just be the extra tension. either way the character doesn't change too much with different strings on this oud.
To be fair these sound differences can be fairly subtle and its not like the quality of either string is worse or better than the other - just
different. The brightest strings I've tried are Savarez lute strings - they have an almost brassy sound... just a tad too metalic sounding for my
taste but some people may prefer them on certain ouds.
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Stefan Andalus
Oud Maniac
Posts: 59
Registered: 10-15-2004
Location: San Francisco
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My Foa'ad floating bridge oud LOVES nylgut, which I have tuned down a whole step to relieve tension purshing down on the oud face. I'm playing Bach on
this oud, and the lush, rounded sound is lovely. My highest string (Treble B) sounds whiney, but that my be idiosyncratic to this particular oud.
BTW, how do you order the special Bashir Pyramid set? Is there a particular lute string set that any of you think would be wonderful for Bach (I'm
gradually transcribing as much Bach as I can for oud, and I'll send the collection out in a couple of months after an announcement in this forum.
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LeeVaris
Oud Junkie
Posts: 379
Registered: 12-16-2003
Location: Los Angeles
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Mood: oud lover
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Custom Lute strings
You can order lute strings directly from Pyramid but I like to order from Matthias Wagner - his web site is at: http://www.lutes-strings.de or http://www.music-strings.de - you'll have to poke around quite a bit to find info about oud string sets - there is an "Aoud Saiten/strings" PDF
downloadable from: http://www.music-strings.de/shop/e-shopindex.html where he has different matched sets for different tuning and string tensions. To order strings
you can email Matthias at: saitenversand@music-strings.info
Not the cheapest way to go but there are some unique Bashir sets with appropriate tensions.
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DD
Oud Maniac
Posts: 91
Registered: 8-31-2005
Location: The same as yours, my friend.
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Mood: one mirror reflecting another
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| Quote: | Originally posted by Elias
Hello,
I strongly reaccomend you to try them...i think there are no other product with such fine quality...just consider that they are still handmade!...The
High Nylgut strings are amazing and you can finally have a nearly real gut sound but with all the advantages of nylon...The wound strings still have
inside this nylgut core that give them such a particular tone...I also use Nylgut for the RE 3rd string wich is fantastic....
...By the way they also make fine lute strings that i am using in this period on my ouds wich are very soft and with a warm sound...
Salamat
elias |
Hello Elias,
I'm glad to hear of your experience with Aquila strings and with the plain Nylgut 3rd. I have a plain 3rd coming in the mail from Mimmo that should be
here any day; he suggested a 94 for my purpose (low-tension preference). I wonder if I might ask you two questions:
1. My understanding is that while the tension of, say, a 97 is significantly lighter than the other strings in the Aquila oud sets, the density of
such a thick string balance that out such that the feel of the tension is close to the same. Do you notice much difference in the feel of the plain
3rd string's tension compared to the other strings?
2. About those Aquila lute strings that you like: Were these a custom-order arrangement, in which you told Aquila what you wanted and they chose the
gauges for you, or are there standard lute sets available (which I can't find), or...?
Many thanks,
Don
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Elias
Oud Junkie
Posts: 126
Registered: 6-3-2004
Location: italy
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Mood: Oudy
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Hello Don,
First of all i've never tested .94mm Mimmo's string, i will ask him to send me some, cause i was immediatly fine with .97 or 100...
By the way,...yes, personally i feel some difference between that plane string and the others, in my point of wiew they need a smoother touch and more
sweetness with risha but i think that having such a soft strings helps in crossing passage between 1st to 3rd strings, and give you a more omegenius
sound having the first 3 strings with the same material...just consider that till the half of the last century 1st,2nd and 3rd ouds strings were made
with gut, so if you search for an old style sound having 3 first strngs Nylgut you can go very near in obtaining that sound, expecially on old
ouds....
Salamat:-)
elias
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Elias
Oud Junkie
Posts: 126
Registered: 6-3-2004
Location: italy
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.....sorry i was forgotting....About the lute strings for the moment i serched in Mimmo's lute strings production the same tension and weight and
dimension of the Pyramid lute strings wich i liked phisically but i didn't apreciate too much in sound cause too bright for my tastes...You can order
them from Mimmo, i think no problem they make part of Aquila standard production...
...they are warmer in sound respect Pyramid lute that are too close to guitar strings sound while aquila lute strings are real lute strings with the
real warm sound that a lute string should have in my opinion..., and the oud is a lute.....
By the way i am thinking to make me project some similar but particular strings....i will let you know...
Elias
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DD
Oud Maniac
Posts: 91
Registered: 8-31-2005
Location: The same as yours, my friend.
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Great, Elias,
I'll send my email address U2U, so that when the time comes, you can let me know about your project.
Thank you and all the best, Don
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dinaakh
Oud Admirer
Posts: 1
Registered: 11-16-2005
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Need to buy Aqilla strings-help
i need to buy Aqilla strings -Arabic tunning during a very short visit to D.C. next week. Any idea where i can get it from?
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Dr. Oud
Oud Junkie
Posts: 1370
Registered: 12-18-2002
Location: Sacramento, CA, USA
Member Is Offline
Mood: better than before
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I have Aquila for sale
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