HIGH-SPEC ELECTRIC STRINGS

The latest and greatest in string technology ensures the best tone, durability and feel

CURT MANGAN PURE NICKEL FUSION MATCHED STRINGS (£12.99)

The Colorado-based firm is still small enough to give its strings the personal touch, carefully selecting USA-made wire and making “big tone” the priority. Crafted by wrapping pure-nickel alloys around a hex-shaped, tin-plated high-carbon steel core wire, this set tips a hat to the vintage tones of the 50s and 60s, and is perfect for digging out a character-rich tone for evocative blues licks. The price is very decent for a handmade premium string. www.curtmangan.co.uk

ERNIE BALL PARADIGM (£14.99)

The Californians’ eagle-branded flagship comes at a price, but there’s no doubting the performance of what director of engineering, Chris Harrington, calls “the very best strings we’ve ever offered”. Alongside that Slinky tone, there’s science behind the durability, with a plasma-enhanced process boosting the wrap wire’s resistance to corrosion, Everlast nanotechnology applied post-winding to repel contamination – and tensile strength boosted by 35 per cent. Take it from Slash: “To this day, I haven’t broken a Paradigm string.” www.ernieball.co.uk

ROTOSOUND PURE NICKELS (£6.99)

From Brian May to Guthrie Govan, some of guitar’s biggest beasts have alighted on Rotosound since the company was founded in 1958 (as Orchestral & Jazz Strings), and in modern times, the British firm’s Pure Nickels set represents the top-of-theline for electric. High magnetic response, singing volume and depth of tone are the calling cards – while noted Irish bluesman Simon McBride also cites the “smooth feel and very soft tone”, combined with supreme longevity and easy bending for lead work. www.rotosound.com

ELIXIR STRINGS NICKEL PLATED STEEL WITH OPTIWEB (£9.99)

Back in 1997, Elixir was the trailblazer behind the coated-string movement, and the firm’s latest Optiweb technology is its best yet. Crucially, these strings don’t feel like they’re coated, so you’ll enjoy that natural feel under your fingertips – plus a crisp tone – while benefiting from a full-string polymer coating that prevents the build-up of debris between the windings. They’re not the cheapest, but with Elixir players reporting fewer breakages, consider them an investment. www.elixirstrings.com

NEWTONE STRINGS LUCIDITY (£7.99)

Drawing on three decades of experience, Derbyshire-based Newtone takes a bespoke approach, offering custom strings to suit specific tunings, instruments, scale lengths and playing styles. But Newtone’s offthe-peg string sets are stellar, too, and the Lucidity series is a standout, serving up characterful tone from nickel-plated steel, hand-wrapped over a round core. Improvmaster Henry Olsen insists on the Lucidity sets for his electric guitars and “believes them to be the best there is”. www.newtonestrings.com

D’ADDARIO XT NICKEL-PLATED STEEL (£12.90)

The New Yorkers’ recent XT range is all about the lifespan. Sweat and humidity are refused entry by an ultra-thin hydrophobic coating, while the high-carbon steel core and fusion twist ball-end means they’ll take rough play and extreme alternate tunings on the chin. The XTs are toneful, too, with the nickel plating supporting both mellow rhythm work and knife-through-butter leads, and Pat Metheny recently praising the “evenness and clarity that jumps out”. www.daddario.com