I had heard that many people just don't cotton to the E string in the set of Dominants. On a new fiddle, I also thought it sounded somewhat harsh. I did some research, and purchased 2 different E strings to try.
The first I put on was the Lenzner Goldbrokat - steel, medium gauge. Boy what a different it made! Much smoother and less harsh sounding. Definitely improved the sound of the set.
I haven't tried the second string I purchased, the Jargar E, but if you are in the market for an E to go with the Dominants you play/prefer, definitely give the Goldbrokat a try.
When I put new strings on my fiddle a couple months ago, I just used every string I found in the Dominant package. As far as I'm concerned the Dominant E is just fine. Maybe a bit brighter than others I've used but no squeals, no squawks and no whistles.
I have replaced the Dominant E with an Oliv Gold E, much better... let a long time and has a nice mellow tone
Play Happy
Swing
It should be mentioned that the Goldbrokat is very reasonably priced too. I usually use whatever comes with a set, but replace broken E strings with the Goldbrokat.
Thomastik makes incredible string sets, arguably the best on the market, but the Dominant E strings just don’t work well. For decades, luthiers have been using the Gold Label or Goldbrokat instead.
The Goldbrokat works well on just about everything. You could always keep the Jargar as a spare for emergencies.
Edited by - The Violin Beautiful on 01/04/2021 19:48:39
I just put a dominant set on my violin... it works fine, but I have to say that I use violin only for lessons with my violin students while I play mostly Viola as a player, on the Viola I use obbligato strings that are great and... I have no problems with the E string! ;-)
I'm not about to put expensive strings on my fiddle as I'm pretty much a rank beginner, but people I know and respect use this Dominant plus replacement E string.
I accept that the replacements sound better, but I'm curious as to why. Different diameter? Different steel alloy?
I use Dominants on my fiddle and replace E with an Obligato gold E or something similar. Recently i had to also replace A string and my only spare was an Infeld titanium solo which seemed to be a great improvement. So next set will be Titanium solos with a gold E. My fiddle is very powerfull. Incidentally the gold E produces sweet, rich sound and is well worth the money even though i only play at home mostly. Cheers, Ken.
Presumably folks have tried the aluminum wound Dominant E which has lower tension than the plain steel. I find them really sweet.
I have Alphaque strings, which I guess are made by Thomastik. They seem good to me.
quote:
Originally posted by BrewerpaulI'm not about to put expensive strings on my fiddle as I'm pretty much a rank beginner, but people I know and respect use this Dominant plus replacement E string.
I accept that the replacements sound better, but I'm curious as to why. Different diameter? Different steel alloy?
To answer your question, I honestly have no idea about the Dominant E. Only that it is almost universally disliked and many E strings have been advertised to replace it. Almost a cottage industry has grown up around it's replacements. I've seen conversations among classical players wondering why Tomastic doesn't address the issue.
But I'm glad I looked for and researched a replacement. Otherwise, I wouldn't have discovered how much I enjoy the Goldbrokat E. As one poster said, I might use it on all my future sets of any brands I might try.
quote:
Originally posted by HectorPresumably folks have tried the aluminum wound Dominant E which has lower tension than the plain steel. I find them really sweet.
I have also heard the same good report about the wound Dominant E, but haven't tried it yet.
