By Laurie Niles: What kind of sound to you like from your strings?
Different strings can definitely affect the sound you are getting from your violin, viola, cello or bass. A "warmer" string creates a more rich or "dark" sound, with more overtones. A "brighter" string will be more penetrating, and usually a bit louder.
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A string player's taste in strings is tied closely with his or her instrument. If you have a violin that naturally sounds rather dark and warm, you actually might want to balance that with "brighter" strings. Conversely, if your fiddle tends to already be loud and penetrating, the "warmer" strings might be just the thing. In my own experience, I was very attracted to Eudoxa strings when I was younger and had a violin that had a rather thin voice. The Eudoxas have a gut core, and gut strings tend to produces a thicker sound, with overtones. At the time I didn't realize it, but I was going for a "warmer" string to compensate for the voice of my violin.
But different violins call for different kinds of strings. An electric fiddle might serve better with a straightforward, non-complex, bright string, since it has the built-in option to change the sound with the way it is amplified. A very "dark"-sounding instrument might need the clarity and power of a brighter string. Or maybe you just want to go as warm as possible, or as bright.
As the saying (sort of) goes: Beauty is in the ear of the beholder!
How do you get what you want from your strings? Do you opt for warmer strings, or brighter strings? Or something halfway in between? Please participate in the vote, choosing the option that is closest to what you use for your most-used instrument, and then tell us all about it in the comments. What strings do you use? What is your aim in using them? How do your strings relate to the natural sound of your violin, and what are you trying to accomplish with your string choice? Or have you always used the same kind of strings and have not done much experimenting?
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