String recommendations....A.K.A. Potentially beating a dead horse

[xSinner13x]

I am sure this has been asked here a hundred times or better.

I am currently using Martin Bluegrass 11-38
Mostly because they can be had for less than 5 dollars a set, budget constraints what they are today.

I am looking to the seasoned ladies and fellas around here, is there something "better"
I could/should be using, or is the current choice good enough?

Back in the day my father swore by Black Diamond for guitar, are they still as good a quality?

[Tobin]

I haven't used Martin strings, but the "standard" strings that a lot of people tend to swear by are D'Addario J74s. Your Martin bluegrass set is more of a "medium light" set, being 11-14-24-38 string sizes. The J74s (and other medium sets) will be a tad heavier at 11-15-26-40. Most folks find this to be more suitable, but of course it's all about personal preference. A set of these is still under $5.

[mandroid]

D'Addario has a Following here.. Phosphor bronze wound . and newer Flatwound ..

Gibson has a Monel Winding string , or bronze.. Sam or Bill

GHS is also a good string-maker..

the gage numbers have influence on tension to reach pitch, smaller, lower.

If you lay into the string with force, you may like heavier strings.

[xSinner13x]

Coming from a guitar background, I have always used 10's.
I like the Martins Okay, Maybe I'll order a few sets over the next month or so and just try a few different gauges.
looks like the D'Addarios will be my first venture.

[mandobassman]

I don't know of anyone who uses Black Diamond anymore. I'm sure someone does or they wouldn't still be in business, but I have never heard of anyone here on the Cafe mention them. Certainly everyone has their preferences on sound, but if you were willing to experiment with something different you could try D'Addario's FW-74 flatwound strings. The initial cost of a set is around $12 or so, but they will last 10 times longer than bronze wound strings (no exaggeration). I had the last set on my mandolin for 16 months. That comes out to about 75 cents per month. The current set on my mandolin now was installed in the beginning of January and they still sound great. So, if cost is an issue, these are really quite a bargain. Something to think about.

[Randy Smith]

I am sure this has been asked here a hundred times or better.

I am currently using Martin Bluegrass 11-38
Mostly because they can be had for less than 5 dollars a set, budget constraints what they are today.

I am looking to the seasoned ladies and fellas around here, is there something "better"
I could/should be using, or is the current choice good enough?

Back in the day my father swore by Black Diamond for guitar, are they still as good a quality?

D'Addario J73s might be good to try (before you try the J74s) only because the gauges will be very close to the Martins but (imo) sound a lot better.

[Ivan Kelsall]

There's a very good reason why D'Addario J74's are liked so much - they're very good strings & suit most players & styles of music.
Re.Black Diamond strings - i tried a set of their medium strings, which were exactly the same gauge as the J74's i use, on both my mandolins last year. They were ok - nothing more.They felt very tight under my fingers as though they had more tension in them.They also had a brightness to them that never quite went away completely & that was something that i simply didn't want. So,i'm back with J74's,
Ivan

[xSinner13x]

well I still have a few sets of martins to burn through, but next purchasing round will be a Smorgasbord of string types/ manufacture.