STRING SEARCH 2: MARTIN acoustic strings by the C.F. Martin Organisation, Nazareth, U.S.A.

Set sampled: M150 Bronze Wound Medium Gauge 013.
RRP: £4.40.
Distributed by Strings & Things, (Contact Details).

To a lot of acoustic guitar players, the name Martin equals God. Their instruments are legendary — but how about their strings? We fitted a sample set to a five-year-old Ibanez Artist dreadnought, which tends to be a bit light at the bass end — what would the Martins do for it?

Well, to start with they played in very quickly, with hardly any need to keep on and on retuning until the strings 'settled'. They're bright too — very bright, yet without any trace of tinniness; a rich, full but sharp sound that projected very well indeed. Response was excellently balanced right across the neck, from a strong and positive bass to a ringing top that could snap like a wildcat when asked, and sustain was little short of superb - I found I could virtually play the guitar with one hand!

These Martins hold their tuning well, too — I tried leaving the guitar for a fortnight without touching it, and presto! Still in tune. Life? A bit better than average, I'd say, and when they do dap-out they go very fast, so there's no long-drawn-out 'borderline' to cope with.

To be fair, there are cheaper bronze-wound strings on the market, and I certainly haven't yet tried all of them or anything like it. But, on their own merits, I'd be hard pressed to fault the Martins. Manufacturing quality is excellent, and they respond marvellously to the player, whatever his or her style. If you want a top grade string that's capable of getting the best out of your guitar, then try them — I think they are well worth the money.

COMING SOON

VOX electric guitar set, VINCI Phosphor Bronze Acoustic and PICATO Rock 'n Roll electric.