John Pearse Silk Phosphor Bronze 610LM, Light Mediums

[Diane Kauffmds]

By: Diane Kauffmds
July 15, 2023
John Pearse Acoustic Guitar Strings, 610LM
Light Medium Strings (.012-.055)
Price: $12.59

Strings generously provided by: Strings By Mail https://www.stringsbymail.com/

Hi guys. I know the string reviews seem inconsistent, but it’s due to the new testing criteria. I’m including real world testing on wear and tear. You’ll be getting several reviews closer together for now, because most of the strings are close to needing replacement after several weeks/months. The majority of the strings are being tested by semi-professional/professional musicians, and I have to work with their schedules.

I selfishly kept the John Pearse Phosphor Bronze Silks for my guitar. I’ve wanted to try these strings for a long time, so I put the on my Country Roads custom built Martin Style OM “Forget-me-not Guitar”. I strung them in September 2022, just before the guitar was placed on display in a North Carolina museum. So, they weren’t played consistently until it was returned in February 2023. It was worth the wait.

For the new folks who aren’t familiar, I have young onset Parkinson’s Disease and some pretty bad hand problems, so I’m always on a quest for strings with less tension and a great voice, but I also repair a lot of vintage guitars, including old Martin and Gibson guitars; these old ladies should have strings with less tension.

The strings arrived in a sealed plastic pouch, containing six paper bags, each with one string; this protects them from corrosion. I place a very high value on corrosion resistant packing. The strings are round, wound onto a hex core. John Pearse strings are known for their quality and sound, so I was excited to give them a go.

They felt smooth and went on without a hitch, a sign of quality strings. I always test strings with the Bass E chord first. They rang beautifully. The voice was robust, well-rounded, and warm. They had just the right amount of treble, without sacrificing the mids. I play finger-style with no pick. The strings are articulate, with excellent note separation, and crisp attack, leaving a long sustain. There was no break-in period. They played beautifully, right out of the package, with just a tweak of the tuning. They stretched and settled into tension almost immediately.

The strings exert less tension when in tune, allowing for easier playing and less stress on the guitar. I prefer light medium strings, which exhibit the best of both words, with the robust sound of medium strings. Being slightly lighter on the bass end, allows me to play without undue stress to my joints. They’re great all around strings, and really shine for disabled folks, as well as newbies with sore fingers. Vintage guitars will thank you.

As most of you know, I hate string spooge! New strings usually leave residue on your fingers. John Pearse Silk phosphor bronze did NOT! This is a first for me. They were, and still are, as clean as a whistle. I’ve changed every imaginable type of string, including original Black Diamond strings on a 1930s archtop, which were installed and never taken off! I’ve removed strings that were so full of sweat, skin particles, and just plain dirt, that they smelled up my entire shop. I place a high value on string cleanliness and expect it right out of the box.

Strings with less tension can cause intonation problems. This phenomenon usually happens on short scale guitars, especially when the guitar is down-tuned. As many of you learn, there are no hard and fast rules when building. “Technically” the difference between a Martin 000 and OM, is scale length and neck width. There can be other differences as well, but these are the immediate differences. I built my OM top with forward shifted GE bracing, following a plan I drew from the photos of the 1932 OM 28 top, that graces our forum’s Reference Library of Guitar Tops (link below).

But, as I frequently do, I broke with tradition, making a short scale (24.9” scale length) OM with a 1.75” nut width. This is my favorite combination. I put a great amount of care into the modeling of my bridges and placement of the saddle slots, so intonation is no problem.

I play some songs in drop D, but I play one song that is dropped to B, with other dropped strings. The Pearse strings handles the crazy tuning perfectly and I love playing with them. They’ve been strung now since February and are in good shape. I don’t play as often as a professional musician, but this is a very respectable durability criteria. For instance, when compared to Earthwood Silk Strings, the Pearse strings easily last 2x as long, if not longer.

They’re nicely priced at $12.59 per set at Strings by Mail. The folks at Strings by Mail are good people and I hope you decide to check them out. Strings by Mail is a major KGF sponsor.

The Good:

Protective packaging
NO funky fingers!
Quick break in, held tuning
Minimal finger squeak
Long lasting

Excellent intonation at lower tunings
Reasonably priced
Robust, Warm, nice attack, soft fretting, with well-rounded voice

The Bad:

I’ve not found a problem yet. I highly recommend John Pearse Silk Strings!

610LM_JP.jpg

[Diane Kauffmds]

Link to John Pearse Silk Phosphor Bronze Strings: https://www.stringsbymail.com/john-pear ... -6261.html

[Diane Kauffmds]

Link to 1931 Martin OM top: viewtopic.php?f=54&t=5424

[Diane Kauffmds]

Here are the strings on the Forget Me Not Guitar, as well as a link to a sound sample. A friend is playing the guitar in the sound sample.

https://on.soundcloud.com/hsqUi

20220914_140852.jpg

[JLT]

Thanks for the review, Diane. I just finished one guitar and there's another one in the works. Since your playing style is much like mine, I think that these strings will do just fine!

[Diane Kauffmds]

Thanks for the review, Diane. I just finished one guitar and there's another one in the works. Since your playing style is much like mine, I think that these strings will do just fine!

Let us know what you think of the strings. Thanks.