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This particular page was created 14/02/2004 and last updated 13/11/2005
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| | These string sets are all for the low "Irish" tuned tenor banjo. Go to the tenor banjo strings page if you keep your banjo in standard - or some other high - tuning. You should also look at the standard tenor strings page if you want very light strings for low tuning. A "heavy" 011 standard tuning set also works as a ultra-light low tuning set. Finding strings for the Irish tenor banjo can be really difficult. Standard tenor banjo sets are generally too lightweight for this low tuning (although as I said, an 011 set might work). Most big string manufacturers do have Irish sets in their catalogue but you won't find many stores that actually sell them. I've had a look around the internet, and here is what I found.
My recommendationsIf you really want the best of the best you ought to try Newtone strings. They're a bit on the expensive side though and can also be hard to find.Boston has some affordable, good quality string sets for Irish tuning. I'd recommend their 012 set, but you might also want to consider the heavier 013 string set especially if you play a short scale banjo.
D'Addario also has a Irish tenor banjo string set. I'm not so sure about these. They're steel-wound rather than bronze-wound and that should mean a lot less response in the bass. I haven't tried them though, so maybe it is a good idea after all.
| A few words about this list | | D'Addario Nickel plated Irish tenor banjo strings - light plus gauge |   | I've been looking for an alternative to Boston's nickel-plated strings for a while and was really excited when I found out Music 123 had begun to stock D'Addario strings for Irish tuned tenor - and especially excited because they were so cheap! But then I realised these too were nickelsteel-wound strings. To me that sounds like a really strange idea. I feel the extra power and fullness of bronze-wound strings is important to the Irish sound. But of course others may disagree, so maybe you should try them yourself and see what you think. Medum gauge: 012-016-024w-036w | | Boston Irish tenor banjo strings |  | Good quality US made Irish tenor banjo strings at a very nice price. These are the strings I use myself. Available in medium (012-017-026w-036w) and heavy (013-020w-030w-040w) gauges. | | Newtone Irish tenor banjo strings |  | Newtone is all the rage among guitar, mandolin and banjo players in England these days. These strings are hand-made and of a completely different quality level (and price level too, of course ;-) than D'Addario, Boston and other mass-produced strings. The heaviest Newtone tenor banjo set is 011-017-026w-036w - that is a light-medium Irish set. They do deliver heavier sets on special order though. |
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Also, please note that Musician's Friend only ships within the United States. The other stores included in this list generally ship internationally, but there may be some exceptions. |
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