Grab,

I was a little concerned to see that you have put a set of 0.13 gauge strings on your Lowden. The leaflet that came with my Lowden strongly advised not using anything heavier than 0.12s, in case the top became over-stressed.

For many years before that, I had played my guitars (which included Takamine, Sigma and Gibson) strung with 0.13s , but soon found that a Lowden with 0.12s produced just as much volume, and far greater subtlety of tone.

As to which brand of strings to use: I play D'Addarios a lot of the time. They are rather bland, but very dependable - the coated ones last significantly longer than the uncoated, though they seem to have have slightly less edge when fresh on. However, I prefer Gibson Bronzes - when I can find them - as their sound seems a little more characterful to my ears. In the end, though, it's all a matter of personal taste.

If your Lowden gives you as much pleasure as mine has given me, it will have been a very good buy at £1,000.


Wassail!