How Do I Know When To Replace My Strings If They Don't Unravel

January 24, 2026, 8:13 PM · Strings should be changed once a year, at minimum. They wear out gradually, just from being strung up under tension, even if you're not playing.

Otherwise, strings generally are thought to have a lifespan of around 150 to 200 playing hours, with some brands having notably shorter and longer playing lifetimes.

I set reminders in my calendar for when to replace my strings.

January 24, 2026, 8:28 PM · If you're sensitive to the sound changes (which can be tricky, because it's gradual), they will tend to lose tone. You can check with fifths and notice that they become harder to play and intonation can become a little inconsistent.

I just go every 4ish months if I'm playing a lot, and maybe 6 months if I'm not.

January 25, 2026, 3:01 AM · Just to complete your confusion, I wouldn't say "should" but I rarely change my strings before they break. Unravelling doesn't seem to be the frequent event it once was with the Thomastik Dominant A. I'll make sure there's no build-up of rosin and just occasionally I'll notice difficulty getting a string to speak or out-of-tune fifths. I suspect a lot depends on the climate where you live.

January 25, 2026, 4:13 AM · I keep an Excel sheet showing what strings have gone on when. It is occasionally surprising to see what I used once 10 years ago. And helpful to remember that one violin does much better with light-gauge A and D.

Trial and error is your friend here. If strings have been on 6 months, replace them and see if there is some unexpected improvement. But also make sure the bridge is correctly placed now, so you're not setting the bar too low for the new ones.

(My luthier is a strong believer in the value of firmly-fastened pegs, and thinks that some of this improvement will be just from tightening strings with both hands.)

January 25, 2026, 5:38 AM · I usually notice when resonances don't sound as clear as I expect them to - when this "ring" you get when playing certain notes precisely in tune with open strings gets harder to hear. It makes it harder to play in tune, for me at least, when I'm pretty sure it is, say, a G on the A string, but it doesn't quite sound right, because it's too dull, and I have to actively force myself to trust my ear and not try to move my finger to get the resonance. With some strings this dullness happens of a sudden, and with others, it is gradual I can tolerate it for a few weeks even after it becomes somewhat annoying.

Edited: January 25, 2026, 6:45 AM · Yeah-- EP Greens can fall of a cliff really quickly, and make double-stops impossible to get right. Other brands will slowly decay-- never really sounding bad, but much less good than when they started. And pure gut will often sound fantastic until it breaks or frays visibly.

Edited: January 25, 2026, 7:13 AM · Depends on you and how much money you have and where you play and how often.
The only string I had unravel was a dominant A. The only strings I've had lose tune were E, especially Goldbrokat.
The Vision family lasts me at least 10 months, and I play in orchestras, so a 9-monthly change takes in 2 orchestra seasons, and my teacher has no complaints.
So, do what suits you. Unless you have commitments, play a set until they literally fall off your violin, time it, and work out what you want to do.

January 25, 2026, 7:57 AM · I follow my luthier's rule which is to change them after 120 hours of playing, or for me, every three months or so. It works well. Because they tend to go bad gradually, it can be hard to tell by listening when they need to be replaced, especially if you are an old dude like me whose hearing is not the best.

January 25, 2026, 8:11 AM · I insist in being polite, so I don't laugh inside me when i keep on reading of the XXX hours mark, often written by the same 2-3 partecipants here :)

It happened rarely to me, maybe once, to strongly desire a string change even if not damaged, and it was with (Thomastik for instance) strings that made correct tuning almost impossibile, when not new. For example, the first chord in Bach BWV 1001.

I already was mocked enough here when in the past I told that a frequent retuning of my tunable tailpiece compensates for coherence in harmonics, when the strings begin to get old, making them coherent and projecting for a long long time. So, i won't write again upon this concept.

If you who have no tunable tailpiece want to "shake" the afterlength tuning a little bit, you can try to go down fast with the tuner about 1 tone, then go up, then down, then up, so to move the strings wraps at the bridge. It could change things a little bit, giving back some resonance, or better: cancelling some phase artifact.

In general, my strings last at least 1 year. I use different strings for different violins: Jargar Evoke, Corelli Cantiga (stark and medium), Vision Solo.
The Evokes seem the most lasting strings i have ever seen, among synthetics.

January 25, 2026, 9:26 AM · You can look for signs of corrosion on the strings. If you see any on the outer surface, it has likely contaminated the core already, which will make the strings ring with less clarity. When a string tarnishes enough it will ring false. Another thing to check is the uniformity of the surface. Strings will get little nicks in their surface with a lot of use that can be seen when viewed at a raking angle.

Like the lobster in the pot, the gradual change isn’t always perceptible, but at some point you may realize the strings seem to be dead and just don’t project anymore. You may also notice that the strings feel more rubbery under the bow. They lose their “snap” over time. When new a string will be somewhat stiff, but with use it will eventually be floppy like a piece of kitchen string. The best way to feel this is to remove the string.

January 25, 2026, 1:33 PM · Luthier Jay Ifshin pointed out to me, many years ago, when I complained about how frequently I was having to change strings, that you could see how the bottom (fingerboard) side of the string windings had been smashed flat. That was no doubt damaging the cores as well.

(And I was tarnishing plain steel E strings in two weeks.)

January 25, 2026, 1:46 PM · Has anyone tried removing tarnish with a rubber school eraser?

January 25, 2026, 2:21 PM · When the sound and response are CLEARLY different from when you put them on, then it's time to replace them. The response is not the same, Pianíssimo and Fortissimo are harder to play.

January 25, 2026, 5:07 PM · Nickie,

There are several ways to remove tarnish from the outside of the string, but they don’t do anything for the inside.

January 26, 2026, 12:04 AM · @Nickie, Another poster here pointed out that natural rubber is vulcanized with sulfur, which is actually a source of tarnish and is sometimes used to test the purity of silver coins. I think you’re better off using a TPE block eraser than a rubber one.

I’ve used jewelry cleaning cloths, but of course those are mildly abrasive. Nothing is perfect.

January 26, 2026, 3:47 AM · I'm careful to keep fingernails trimmed correctly and do an almost daily LH inspection, but I still find slight surface indentations in my strings. I don't know why.

Edited: January 26, 2026, 11:56 AM · As to 120 hours, that rule of thumb may serve a pro well, but an OP's specific needs must always be considered.
We've had beginners here encouraged to learn ricochet, and if they're still at the caterwauling stage, it isn't due to that 121st hour that's being squeezed out of those strings against their will.

January 26, 2026, 9:08 AM · Ben, I didn’t know that. Thanks. I’ll look for a TPE block eraser. I have to make a trip to Office Depot soon.
Richard, is it possible you have a set of “light” strings? Are you aware if you’re pressing down too hard? That sounds like a very isolated situation. Have you noticed excess wear in your fingerboard?
I get fret dents in my ukulele fluorocarbon strings, but only after at least 1,000 hours. I’m so cheap, I can take off the strings, turn them around and use the other ends to fret on!