What is WikiStrings

WikiStrings is a free listening tool for acoustic guitar strings. Sixteen sets from Martin, D'Addario, Elixir, DR, John Pearse and Dogal were recorded on the same guitar, by the same guitarist, with the same microphones, playing the same phrases in five styles. The player keeps one timeline per style: when you switch from one set to another, the music continues from the same point and only the strings change. That is the whole idea, and it is called Real Time Switch.

We do not tell you which set sounds warmer or brighter. Every set has a specification sheet and a link to buy it, and the comparison is left to your ears. A blind test hides names and photos if you want to be sure the brand is not deciding for you.

The 16 sets

• 
  Martin

  MA540

  Phosphor Bronze · .012–.054
• 
  Martin

  MA540T

  Phosphor Bronze · .012–.054
• 
  Martin

  MA540FX

  Phosphor Bronze · .012–.054
• 
  Martin

  MA530S

  Phosphor Bronze · .010–.047
• 
  Martin

  MEC12

  Phosphor Bronze · .012–.054
• 
  Martin

  M170

  80/20 Bronze · .010–.047
• 
  Martin

  MM12

  Nickel · .012–.054
• 
  D'Addario

  EJ11

  80/20 Bronze · .012–.053
• 
  D'Addario

  XT Phosphor Bronze

  Phosphor Bronze · .012–.053
• 
  D'Addario

  EZ920

  85/15 Bronze · .012–.054
• 
  DR

  DSA-12

  Phosphor Bronze · .012–.054
• 
  DR

  RPM-12

  Phosphor Bronze · .012–.054
• 
  Elixir

  11050

  80/20 Bronze · .012–.053
• 
  John Pearse

  200L

  80/20 Bronze · .012–.053
• 
  John Pearse

  960L

  Nickel · .012–.054
• 
  Dogal

  RC148D

  Phosphor Bronze · .012–.054

Popular comparisons

• Martin MA540 vs Martin MA540T
• Martin MA540 vs Martin MA540FX
• Martin MA530S vs Martin MA540
• Martin MA540 vs Martin MEC12
• Martin M170 vs Martin MA540
• Martin MA540 vs Martin MM12
• DR DSA-12 vs Martin MA540
• DR RPM-12 vs Martin MA540
• Dogal RC148D vs Martin MA540
• DR DSA-12 vs Martin MA540T
• DR RPM-12 vs Martin MA540T
• Dogal RC148D vs Martin MA540T

All comparisons →

The five playing styles

Five phrases were recorded with every set, because strings behave differently under a pick and under fingers, on bass notes and on a single ringing chord.

• Strumming: Full chords played with a pick, the most common way to hear a set of strings.
• Pick arpeggio: Single notes of a chord played with a pick, one string at a time.
• Bass arpeggio: An arpeggio on the low strings, where the wound strings do the talking.
• Fingerpicking: A fingerstyle pattern, thumb and fingers, no pick.
• Single chord: One chord left to ring out with its harmonics, the simplest way to hear sustain and decay.

Materials

The sets are grouped by winding alloy and by coating. Each material page lets you listen to the sets of that group side by side.

• Phosphor bronze: Phosphor bronze is a copper alloy, roughly 92% copper and 8% tin with a small amount of phosphorus, wound around a steel core. It is the most common winding alloy for acoustic guitar strings today.
• 80/20 bronze: 80/20 bronze is 80% copper and 20% zinc (metallurgically a brass). It is the original acoustic winding alloy, still offered by every major brand.
• 85/15 bronze: 85/15 bronze is 85% copper and 15% zinc, an intermediate formula between 80/20 bronze and phosphor bronze.
• Nickel and Monel: Nickel-based windings: pure nickel wrap wire, and Monel, a nickel-copper alloy (about two thirds nickel) used on acoustic strings since the 1930s.
• Coated strings: Coated strings carry a thin polymer layer, or a surface treatment, over the wrap wire to slow down corrosion and dirt build-up. Each maker uses its own process.

Frequently asked questions