Gearank

Gearank Recommendation

The 525A's appeared on our recommended list for Nylon / Classical Guitar Strings from June 2017 until July 2019 when they were out-ranked by other string sets.

Overview

The first thing to know about these strings is that they’re intended to replicate the tone of gut.

Looking at the model name they appear like they’d be make from gut, but these strings are actually made from nylon. As a result of this, the set has more warmth than one would expect for the tension.

Though this may be an asset in many situations, the greatest strength of these strings is also their greatest weakness. The warmth they have can give the strings a warm and lyrical quality that they wouldn’t otherwise have, but when used with a darker voiced instrument they may sound a bit dull.

These strings are also reported to lack the volume of other nylon strings, though considering that the vast majority of ensembles are amplified anyway this won’t have much of an impact during a live performance.

An interesting thing about these strings is that they’re one of the few nylon strings available which are able to approximate the tone of the lute.

With these strings you can come close to getting an authentic tone for Baroque arrangements. While Baroque and other arrangements from antiquity aren’t widely played, these strings are the best option for musicians looking to play these genres of music without having to use fragile and expensive gut strings.