Martin SP Phosphor Bronze MSP4100 (Lt 12-54, BULK)

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Diane Kauffmds
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Joined: Sun Mar 09, 2014 8:13 pm

Martin SP Phosphor Bronze MSP4100 (Lt 12-54, BULK)

Post by Diane Kauffmds »

Martin says, “Martin MSP4100 Phosphor Bronze Light Acoustic Strings are ideal live, in the studio, or wherever maximum string life is desired. The creation of these new high performance strings is a result of research done in cooperation with specialty steel producers. Due to the development of an industry leading ultra-high quality steel core, Martin SP strings resist breakage better than average strings. In addition, both the core wires and the plain strings are plated with a smooth, acoustic bronze finish. Though this golden bronze finish does enhance the beauty of your guitar, its purpose is much more functional - to prolong brightness, string life, and superior tonal quality to meet the high expectations of demanding musicians.”

Martin MSP4100 Phosphor Bronze strings are manufactured by Cleartone, to Martin specifications. Their cost is more than reasonable at $5.55 per set; they can also be bought as bulk strings, which aren’t in the retail packaging for ~ $2.50 per set. When bought in retail packaging, they’re sealed in plastic. Martin goes the extra distance by replacing the air in the packaging with nitrogen, to prevent oxidation. Since I buy several sets of strings at one time, I place a high value on packaging, and thus far, Martin has the best packaging. As I strung the OM with the 4100's, I immediately noticed that that the Martin Lights seemed heavier than any of the other strings I’ve reviewed, although they're the same class (lights).

Since C.F. Martin developed the modern American flattop (steel string) acoustic guitar as we know it, I expect good things from Martin. This statement is not meant as a challenge to anyone's opinion on guitar manufacturers; I make it to explain why I have high expectations from Martin, and their strings are no exception.

I was a bit disappointed in the sound of the strings, when I first strung them. For the first 72 hours after stringing, they sounded “muffled” to me, but with sustain. They weren’t dead, but they were lacking projection. I made several recordings and compared them with my recordings of the Newtone and GHS strings, and indeed, they were quieter. However, I left them on and played them daily.

On day 4, they opened up and started to shine. I would expect this from a set of coated strings, but since these were uncoated, it came as a surprise. The overall tone was warm and bassy, but with bright trebles. As I was comparing the recordings, it became clear that the mids blended well and had presence, but were easily overshadowed by the booming bass and bright trebles. The strings gathered momentum, finally settling in after about 5 days.

As a fingerstyle player, the lack of articulation made all the difference in the world to me. Does this make them bad strings? Not by any means. I simply prefer strings with a stronger mid tone presence. However, if you like a soft, warm, rich tone, that is well blended, then you’ll love the strings. I think they’re particularly suited for strumming, or for someone who plays hard. If you want projection and articulation across all of the strings, consider the other strings I’ve reviewed. I don’t know if buying the packaged version would have made a difference, but I’m definitely going to take a second look at the MSP-4100’s, but with the retail packaging.

For those who may have a hand disability, the Martin strings are hard, so it will take more strength to finger notes. In fact, they seemed to land somewhere between light and medium strings. But with the hardness comes a wonderful sustain. As with the other strings I tested, the Martin SP’s emit a moderate amount of string squeak when sliding up or down the strings, but this is to be expected since they are uncoated. Interestingly, even though they were uncoated, I noticed very little “finger funk”, which disappeared very quickly.

Overall, the strings are very good, but not outstanding when fingerstyle played. Great sound potential was there, but since the mids didn’t articulate as much as the treblese, they never reached their potential. In my opinion, they’re excellent for stringing a guitar for the first time, especially for people like me, who are newbies to building. It’s much easier on the wallet to sacrifice an inexpensive set of strings, than a $25 set, especially when you can buy these in bulk. In fact, I keep several sets of Martin MSP 4100 phosphor bronze sets on hand, and will use them when I replace the top on a project guitar and build my 00.

The Good:

1. price, Price and PRICE (especially if you buy in bulk)
2. Warm, rich, blended sound
3. Minimal finger funk, compared to other uncoated strings
4. Great packaging
5. Sustain
6. Minimal Finger Funk (I really dislike black fingers!)

The Bad:

1. Lack of mid-tone articulation
2. String hardness (only an issue for those with disabilities)
3. String break-in period (longer, but they shine after break-in)
martin SP phosphor bronze MSP4100.jpg
MARTIN MSP-4100 phosphor bronze.mp3
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Diane Kauffmann
Country Roads Guitars
countryroadsguitars@gmail.com
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