Ferro-Magnetic Classical Guitar Strings???

valvenator

curious bystander, serious procrastinator
This probably seems like a really oddball question but does anyone know of wound classical guitar strings that are ferromagnetic? I'm talking about strings that can be picked up by a magnetic guitar pickup.
I actually have a set I got off the bay but can't find the manufacturer. Yes I've contacted the seller but they have no clue either. Any help would be greatly appreciated!
 
Never heard of them for a classical guitar. Most classical guitars use a piezo transducer type of pick-up which does not rely on a magnetic field being effected by vibrating strings to produce sound.
 
Generally, on a classical guitar, the top 4 strings are metal wound around nylon fiber centers, with the bottom 2 being solid nylon/plastic.

Fully metal strings would have too high of a tension to achieve "in tune" for a classical guitar, which for the most part do not have a neck truss rod or even a fixed tension bar to counter that high tension. That is why it is a ill advised to ever install regular acoustic steel strings on a classical.

Still not sure what the purpose of those strings would be on a classical. Or is it the smoke and mirrors that marketing can create. Remember Elixer strings that were supposed to sound better because they were flash frozen in the manufacture process?
 
No smoke and mirrors; these are made specifically for use on classicals, and are NOT high tension, nor are they "regular acoustic steel strings". Do some research. They are a specific product made for a specific purpose.

Happy trails,
Larry B.
 
Do you have a specific link? I had done a google for them before my former comment and gone several pages in but the only reference i could find to ferro-magnetic strings was in conjunction with electric guitars. None related to classical guitars. So unless they are something new used with Gibson's CEC, still a mystery to me.
 
Thank you for the links which all point to the same set of strings by Tomastick. Thomastik-Infeld Nylon/Silverplated Copper Flat Wound Light Rope Core is what they are called. Lots of great reviews.

I had been searching for Ferro Magnetic classical guitar strings. These strings are silver plated copper flat wound strings as the name implies. Silver and copper, neither are particularly magnetic. In fact both require a very large, powerful magnet to show any magnetic qualities.

So I am not sure these are the same strings that the op was referring too. He was looking for strings for a classical guitar that can be used with a magnetic guitar pickup.

Electric guitar pickups are almost all slightly microphonic, so they may pick up some sound from these strings. Hell, i've even shouted into a guitar and had it faintly come through on my amp.

As such i am not sure these are the strings being referred to by the op. None of the descriptions mention their ability to produce usable tones through an electro magnetic/ferro magnetic guitar pickup.
 
From at least one of the links....
"A unique design employing a highly flexible steel rope core brings a high playing comfort." - Thomastik-Infeld

So might work. That said, there's this...
https://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20100109034309AAxgpkR

I've never seen a classical guitar with electromagnetic pickups.. And any search I did for Thomastik and pickup seems to return references to Piezo transducers and the like. I couldn't find anyone using typical electric guitar pickups.
 
Last edited:
You can use a magnet to check if strings will work with a electromagnetic pickup. If it sticks it works. I'm sure you're all wondering why I even posted such a question. Here you go:

A while back I had the idea of building myself a short scale (25.5") 4 string bari/bass guitar somewhere in Cello/Baritone Sax range. Originally I planned to use heavy guitar strings, maybe flat-wounds.
Now as most of you know strings for electric guitars are made to work with electromagnetic pickups. Acoustic steel strings use a steel core so they likewise can be used.
Classical guitar strings however are nylon with the low pitched strings having a nylon core wrapped mostly with brass alloys therefore being non-ferro-magnetic and unusable with electromagnetic pickups.

I found I preferred the sound of the classical strings for playing bass lines. With the right combination of sliding and bending techniques they sound almost like an (fretless) upright bass. I had decided to go with the classical strings and a piezo pickup but while messing around, just for the hell of it, checked to see if the cheap wound classical strings would amplify with a magnetic pickup. Much to my surprise they did, which tells me these must include iron in their wrap. As I said before I have no idea who manufactured these cheapies but would love to see if I could get a set with a low B string to use with my bari/bass project and go back to the original plan of using electromagnetic pickups instead of or with the piezo. So there you go :boring: :boring: :boring:
 
Contact pickups are the way to go with classical, or really any acoustic. Check out K&K. I use them and have been very, very happy. Sounds like my Martin, only louder.
 
Back
Top Bottom