My fiddle has been sitting attractively but silently on a shelf for quite a long time. Much to the chagrin of my wife, I recently decided to give it another go. When I tried to bring it up to pitch, I promptly broke the E string. Since the strings are so old, I’d just as soon change the whole set.
What are most people using for traditional styles of music these days-- steel? synthetics? I don’t want to spend a fortune. Thanks.
In a way, I’m not the best person to tell you, Paul, as I can’t helpl buying the most expensive strings there are. 
The strings I use are Pirastro Passione Solo, with a Goldstahl E string. They’re beautiful, gut core strings (apart from the gold plated, steel E), but they do cost a fortune, they take ages to settle in and they don’t last long when they have.
I wouldn’t recommend steel core. After a short time, they produce quite a dull sound, and it’s not possible to produce some of the subtleties that you’d want out of fiddle playing. Much better, I reckon, to buy the strings that seem almost to be the ‘industry standard’ for trad, and that’s Thomastik Dominants. Synthetic core strings that last a long time and have a good tone. Maybe not the fastest response, but, with a little work, they play just fine.
I was waiting for Ben to reply. 
I don’t think you can go wrong with Dominants, medium tension, for the reasons Ben stated. They’re also reasonably priced at ~$50 per set.
At the moment I have D’Addario Helicores on, but will be changing back to Dominants next time. Or possibly Infeld Reds for a darker tone.
Of course, Paul, I’m sure you know you may not have to change the entire set. Old is not necessarily bad. It’s more common to change out single strings on fiddle than e.g. on guitar. And a Dominant E will run you only ~$5 to get started again.
Heilcores, especially if you change tunings a lot in a session. I installed a new set yesterday replacing the Chinese set that came with the instrument. They sound great tuned AEAE. Unless your old set is crappy I would just get a new E string… Bob
I’m the worst fiddle player in the world (ask anyone!) but even I know you can change a single string effectively on a fiddle. With guitars and banjos and mandolins, even ukuleles, I change them all at once. But not fiddle, and I don’t even use the expensive ones!
My teacher suggested this set when
I wanted to replace my strings recently.
Dominants on bottom, Pirastro on top.
My goal was to sound quieter, though,
as my fiddle is pretty strident (it helped
a little).
I haven’t tried very many strings out there, and I don’t really know what most other people use, but I have just recently went from steel strings to synthetic strings. I don’t remember what brand strings I had before, probably the “el cheapo” Red Labels or something, but they didn’t sound very good. Anyway, the strings I now use are Corelli Alliance Vivace strings. They have a pleasant sound, but they can be driven fairly hard, they have good response, and they’re nice and loud, but not shrill. The only drawback I can find is that they don’t have a very complex sound; their tone seems a bit “flat”. However, they’re pretty cheap ($35-ish?). They are said to be some of the longest lasting strings out there, which is great for me, because I don’t want to be buying strings all the time. And I know that wasn’t an answer to your exact question, but its my 2c anyway 
Paul – I’ve got Helicores on the fiddle now. I was thinking I’d be cross-tuning, but I’m not, so I’m going back to my favorite Tonicas as soon as they show up in the mail. Tonicas sound better than Dominants on my fiddle, and it can be a fiddle-specific thing. The Helicores are very stable, but not as rich as the synthetics, to my ear. (They’re not old, though. If you want to give them a try when I restring, let me know, and I’ll walk them down to your place.)
I change all my strings once a year and use dominant but change e string after 6 months - just in case. I have been advised that keeping strings relatively new produces a good tone. I think pirasto are the really expensive? So far have got shop owner to do th strings except for e but this year will do my own - have been playing a long time but not so good at neat stringing and if done well, the strings need little tuning
Norma Parfitt
“I think pirastros are the really expensive?”
It really depends on the set (I’ve been doing a ton of research since my last posting). Some Pirastro sets are fairly cheap compared to the others (under $50 a set). They also make higher quality synthetic core strings up into the $80 range. With exception of Eudoxas, the Pirastro gut strings are normally around (or at least) $100. So, yes, they can be very expensive.
fearfaoin, that is a very good and popular set of strings. My last set (which apparently was not steel!) was that arrangement, chosen by the luthier who did repairs on my violin. That Pirastro Gold E is really nice, especially way up in the high register.
Ian, restringing really isn’t very difficult. You just have to be mindful of the bridge (you want to try and keep it straight, not tilted). It’s also best that when you wind the strings on the pegs, they looks like coils on a spring and not overlapping itself.
Just for the sake of saying (I’m not endorsing them, just passing on what I’ve found) - I’ve heard very good reviews from classical pro’s on the Larsen Tzigane strings, which I intend to try next. They’re supposed to be very resonant (and loud), complex, low tension (but still relatively thick in diameter), and responsive. From what I gather, they play and sound very much like gut strings (namely Eudoxa), but are more stable, and maybe even more responsive. Sounds like love! 
I don’t understand that. Fiddles need constant attention to tuning, and constant readjustment. It’s just part of the nature of the thing, depending on temperature, humidity etc, and not just the effects of those on the strings but on the wood as well. How you put a string on won’t affect that.
My daughter’s violin is strung with Tzigane strings, at the recommendation of the vendor. I can’t comment specifically on the sound quality of the strings, because we’ve never had anything else on it, but she’s still very happy with violin+strings, and we have no motivation to try any other strings on it. I will say that they haven’t proved as durable as Dominants, and have to be replaced more often. We’ve found it necessary to keep a full set of spares in stock.
Yeah, that’s the only thing I’m worried about. 
I figured I might as well chime in again.
I got my Tzigane strings about a week and a half ago. Phenomenal! Highly recommend. If you want a review, this will be coming from a Classical violinist’s viewpoint right now, so, unless you’re really interested, you might as well stop here.
Anyway, they are exactly what they advertise (for once!). Low tension, thick strings, BIG, full, and complex sound. They have lots of ring, and they respond to changes in bow pressure, speed, distance from the bridge, etc. very well. They seem to add a new dimension to the tone color and string response that I haven’t seen before.
If you’re having trouble being heard… these are the strings for you. However, they aren’t like a screaming soloist string. I guess you could describe them as an opera singer versus a screamer. They have power and “umph” behind the sound. However, I wouldn’t say they’re overly-loud.
Tunborough, I’d say they’re a good choice.
I’ve been using Pirastro Tonica because that’s what my violin came with. That was 6 months ago and I’ve been playing 3-6 times week for 30-60 minutes. I’m not sure how to tell if they should be changed.
I bought a spare set thinking I’d break some like I did with the guitar but so far no breaks. So I guess my next set will be the same brand. It’s not too cheap, around 25 euros if I recall. I figured I’d be the limitation for at least a couple years.
I’d like to try thomastik dominants next. I’m not sure if it’s worth the extra money (almost double) until I can make my violin sound good with my current strings.
One thing I’ve noticed is the weather here changes a lot, 28C one day and 16C the next. And I have to tune them each time I play. It seems they are always going flat. (Never sharp). Is that the strings stretching? Or could my pegs be slipping? My daughter’s violin (1/4) doesn’t have this problem. It has dominants which are at least 1 year old, it’s a rental and they were on it when we got it.
Speaking as a luthier, who sells strings, re-strings instruments daily, and has tried most strings on the market, I have a few suggestions. As with all things, string choice is personal and highly subjective, and what I (or anyone) likes may not be universal. And to clarify, I am talking here about strings I’d recommend for someone doing fiddle style music, be it folk, Irish, bluegrass, etc.
I recommend Thomastic Dominant strings or Thomastic Vision for a great mid-range price set (my shop sells them for about $60 a set). They don’t ‘stretch’ as much as other strings, and are pretty stable. They provide a really nice, even tone with good projection, and respond well to complex bow strokes and articulations. They last a good long time (as far as strings go), and even after they start to go ‘dull’ they still provide decent tone. All in all: not too bright, not too dark, they hold tuning well, have a longer than average lifespan, and don’t break the bank.
For something more expensive, I’d steer you towards Priastro Obligato strings. They’re pricy (about $100 a set), but worth it in my opinion. Pirastro strings (in my experience) take longer to settle and stretch than many other brands, and will need to be fine tuned more than some brands, but it’s a worth-it payoff, and learning to tune and fine tune is good for you Obligatos offer a nice big, round tone without being ‘tinny’ or obnoxious. They’re refined in sound, and for fiddle style seem (to my ear) to replicate that nice old warm fiddle sound (not the ‘swarm of bees’ effect). If you’re looking to splurge, give 'em a try.
The most inexpensive type I’d put my name behind are Pirastro Tonicas, at about $45 a set. I’ve currently got my favorite fiddle strung with these. Again, they take time to settle and don’t hold tuning forever, but offer good ballance across the treble and bass. For fiddle music, I find it important to have a set of strings that doesn’t sound whiney on the E and like farts on the G, but it ballanced across the range. This is especially true when recording, and in a session setting, your fellow players will enjoy this as well as yourself, as it’s easier to hear the group and predict your own ballance within it. Great utilitarian strings with a really nice tone and longevity. I’ve had this set on my fiddle for 3 months, and play at least an hour a day (more sometimes, certainly more at gigs) and they are just now starting to lose some of their luster.
I’d steer away from anything Super-Sensitive brand, Chinese ‘brand-x’ mass=produced strings that come on a lot of outfits purchased from Amazon or Ebay or similar, and Helicores. Super-Sensitive has never produced a string I’ve liked playing, and although they have a decent life-span, I couldn’t stand to have that sound coming from my fiddle for more than a few seconds anyway. Helicore strings are fine strings, but are very low tension, so they are very suceptible to humidity changes and even the slightest whisper across a fine-tuner on the tailpiece can make a jump in pitch of more than 10 cents as they age. They’re nice for cello and viola (I used them on my viola in college) but not for fiddling.
One other thing to always keep in mind is the fiddle itself. If the pegs are creaky or improperly fitting, tuning is always going ot be a bear, no matter what strings you use. Similarly, fine tuners or no fine tuners tailpiece side can help tuning, but also dull the tone of a fiddle noticably, and are a hot bed of rattling noises if not installed well. The position of the soundpost is a huge factor in sound, one I could talk about for days, as is the position of the bridge relative to it and it’s height, etc. If you’re having troubles with your sound, it may not be the strings alone. Pop in to your local luthier, and they (should) be able to offer advice about how to tweak the sound of your instrument.
Anyway, that’s just my $.02. I’d be happy to give my impressions about specific brands and labels if anyone’s curious, or different adjustments.
Im with ben here, get the best quality string you can afford . I stick with Pirastro Eudoxa with the aluminium wound top E . Its really the best string I have found, I tried a few gold plated strings but Eudoxa are my first choice, I buy a wad of them at a time so I never run out. Good strings will make a cheap fiddle sound good and poor strings will make a good instrument sound.. poor.
Gut strings have a tone and richness of quality that is unequalled IMO. Ive tried various pirastro synthetics and theyre not for me. The Tonica , as mentioned, are a good choice If Eudoxa are out of yr price range. i get mine from go-strings. Id still use the wound top E though whatever else I have on. At a pinch any quality gut string will do me.
I changed the strings my cheap fiddle (Stentor) came with to Tonicas because it was available when I was looking. Later on I also bought a spare set of Thomastik Dominants as a “spare set” and also just in case any of the strings snap. The Tonicas took a while to settle down … I haven’t tried the Dominants yet, but do you reckon it’ll take less time to settle than the Tonicas, or are they about the same?
You’ll probably find they take a little less time to ‘fall in line’ and stop stretching, but I feel they stretch a little more slowly and not as much as Tonicas overall. Tonicas (to me) have seemed to stretch out a good deal, and during an initial ‘break-in’ of half an hour or so of fairly aggressive playing, I have to re-tune up the Tonicas more than the Dominants. Some of this depends slightly on the instrument as well; some violins may ‘sink’ a little more when getting strung up, and thus need more adjusting, and some violins (usually older, well played, well maintained and well made) resist ‘sinking’ or yeilding to new strings of varrying tensions.
To minimize tuning woes when changing strings, I always recommend changing one string at a time. If one must remove all strings at once for some reason (perhaps to clean the instrument), one had better be confident in their ability to re-set the bridge in its proper place and alignment (not as straightforward as it looks) and have full faith that their soundpost is well fit and in its proper place, otherwise one will find oneself out of comission until a knowledgable luthier can get it re-set correctly, again not as straightforward as one may think.
Similarly, strings will resist stretching on the pegs some if you ‘cross over’ the string on itself around the peg. Thread the tip into the peg hole, and wind it away from the peg head a few turns, then pull the string towards the peg head so it crosses over itself and finishes winding toward the peg head and pegbox wall. The closer you can wind the string toward the pegbox wall on the peg head side, the more evenly it will pull on the peg, easing how the peg turns during tuning, and prolonging the peg life from turning the peg or pegbox holes from going eliptical over time. Finally, rub a tiny bit of no.2 pencil lead in the nut and bridge slots to minimize friction, prolong string life, and help keep the string from pulling the bridge over while tuning up.
Thank you very much =) especially on the advice with the pegs.