ROTOSOUND RS 6000 PROFESSIONAL VIOLIN STRING?
Has anyone used these strings? They are handmade by a reputable UK guitar string maker, who claim they supply professionals here with their orchestral strings.
The price is very attractive, but there is literally no information on their website apart from the guages (!) and the fact that they are chrome wound.
They are virtually invisible in the marketplace, so are they deservedly obscure, or a neglected bargain??
Replies (24)
Right.
$13? Why ask an opinion? Just dive in and see for yourself!
Seraphim. $13? You are being totally ripped off. You can get them on Amazon for $9.65 with free shipping (over $25).
They are labeled as "orchestral and Jazz"
and
"Quality flatwound set of four strings."
I can't tell if the core is steel (chrome) or synthetic.
http://www.rotosound.com/orchestral.php
Perhaps good for fiddles and electric violins, but I would not put them on my "ex-none" Guarneri Del Gesu.
Well, the other possible hidden gem I've turned up is the Lenzner Protos. Going to give one or other a try...
The Lenzner's steel, but they claim it's the string used by Roby Lakos which is quite an endorsement. Whatever you think of the guy he can sure play the fiddle.
The Warchal Russian A has convinced me that I should be more open-minded about steel, and the Shar String Guide which places the even cheaper Lenzner Goldbrokats in the same kind of sound class as Dominants. Seems that not all steel strings are strident and one-dimensional.
I suspect their are some neglected budget strings out there, now there are so many to choose from. The John Pierce Artiste is quite a nice string for quite a bit less than Dominants or Tonicas, for example, though it doesn't last all that long for me.
I've asked Rotosound for some info, and will post back if they respond. Otherwise, stand by for a budget string review.
$10?
Thanks for the Amazon heads up.
It would seem that they are nylon core?
it feels so hard on the fingers. maybe the set is good on electric violin. still i find it awful to finger on.
Thanks Vanessa - I'm on a tight budget right now, so I have to go with one or the other. I think I'll try the Protos instead. They're so cheap that I only have to get a month out of them and they'll have cost me the same as Dominants. If Roby Lakos uses them, how bad can they be??
give it a try, though. maybe it was my friend's violin bridge that wasn't properly set up (it was kinda high). Where do you buy violin strings online, actually? I'd recommend Thomann and Arc-Verona for cheaper prices (e.g. warchal brilliant set costs 49 euro on Thomann).
Otherwise, Thomastik Prazision is the cheapest strings from all the Thomastik line. (I haven't tried this set, might give it a try soon) (rotosound set is still cheaper than this set, ofc).
Ouch!!! The Warchel Brilliants are a scant $45 bucks here with free shipping nonetheless! At that price, the brilliants are the best strings in my humble opinion:)
warchal brilliant is what i'm using right now. The E string whistles after sometime so I changed it to Pirastro nr. 1 - E. I've used tonica, dominants, larsen tzigane, warchal karneol, & corelli alliance vivace, I must say I like warchal products better. Anddd...Pirastro Passione! :-)
Finally got some sense out of Rotosound:
In answer to your comments:
1.Steel Core with a Monel flat wrap wire applied by hand
2.Medium tension
Given that they're steel core, I think I'll try the Protos instead - they seem to have a bit more pedigree...
Protos ordered - stand by for a review. Here's Roby doing his thing with them:
nice playing! I shamefully have to admit that i didnt know about roby lakatos until you mentioned it. I and the orchestra i play in will be going to budapest this august for a concert tour, hope we'll be able watch his performance....i dont know where mr lakatos performs in august, but one can hope :)
According to the Pirastro site, Mr Lakatos uses their Flexocor/Permanent steel ropecore strings:
http://www.pirastro.com/public_pirastro/pages/en/Roby-Lakatos-00001/
As an aside, I just put on a set of the Flexocors, and like them so far. They seem brighter and clearer than the Helicores Ive tried previously.
Vanessa,
You may also want to check out Roby's lineage: his father, Sandor Lakatos was one of the best Hungarian violin players ever. His CD "Budapest by Night" is great.
When in Budapest, do not miss to go to a good restaurant where there is a live music played by Gipsy players. They will surround you with their sound and play for you like you are a queen and there is no tomorrow!
I had the privilege to attend Roby's concert here in Toronto. The music was too loud before the intermission, most likely due to poor work of the sound engineer. The musicians were great, and to my biggest surprise the whole band had a very casual and unassuming appearance. They mingled with the audience during the intermission. What is also great is that Hungarian Gipsy players are very relaxed while playing and their technique is outstanding.
Roby Lakatos plays on a bow by the wonderful Serbian bowmaker Vladimir Radosavljevic! His craftsmanship is out of this world
Hmm - Lenzner claim "Roby Lekatos (sic) is so convinced of the quality of this brand that it is the only brand of string he plays on.". He's probably played on both. Of course endorsement by one of these guys doesn't mean that the string will work on your own setup, but it does at least mean that it's worth a try. If the Protos works for me, it will be a bit of a discovery because of the very low price...
Interesting to hear of his Serbian bow. I suspect that there are real bargains to be found from makers who happened to be born in unfashionable parts of the world. If I can ever get the funds together, this is something that would be worth exploring!
Darret: thank you for the information on bow-maker from my fatherland. I can tell where my money will be spent on my next visit!
Geoff: Serbia is not in a "unfashionable" part of the world. We just happened to settle at the crossroad and never learnt how to bend when the winds of change blow.
Only $13 for a set of violin strings? Wow, might as well "dive right in" and give them a try. But $8.50 for a cake of rosin? Hmm, better go on v.com and start a new thread to see if anyone knows anything about it first.
Rocky, I had no intention of dissing Serbia - I was talking about fashions in bow-making. And we can surely agree that Serbia isn't the first country that comes to mind in that field?
So far as I can see, French and German bow makers generally ask for higher prices, merely becuase of where they come from. The same with Italians and violins...
http://www.radoviolins.com/english/biography.html
Vladimir is really a top-of-the-line maker - I heard a rumor that Aaron Rosand commissioned a bow from him recently. He makes particularly fine copies of Tourte, having owned six of them in his personal inventory.
thanks Rocky, I'm not so familiar with gypsy music, i'm more into celtic and classic (although if i have to guess the title of a celtic song I may not know because I don't remember song titles). Can't wait to be in Budapest...listening to that music is like new world! :D
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May 10, 2013 at 11:56 AM · For that price, I'm just going to order up a set! It can't hurt. Might as well throw in some viola strings too:)