Martin M160 Ball End Nylon Classical Guitar Strings – Review & Sound Test
Can a $5 set of strings sound good? I decided to try the Martin M160 High Tension Classical Guitar Strings to find out! These strings can be found in nearly every music shop and are a great choice for players on a budget. Surprisingly, I’ve been pleased with the sound thus far.
Timestamps:
Intro – 0:05
Price – 0:15
Ball End – 0:23
Unboxing – 0:51
No color coding – 1:44
Restringing – 3:03
Giuliani – Landler No. 1 – 04:15
Melchior Neusidler – Dance for a Fugger Lady – 05:15
Wrapping Up Restringing – 05:55
Appearance – View – 06:15
Review – 06:15
Appearance – 06:32
Feel & Gauge – 06:55
Recommendation – Value – 07:17
Affordable Option – 07:23
Money Saver – 07:44
Best for which users? – 07:58
Quick Restringing – 08:17
Luis Milan – Pavana No. 1 – 08:54
Gaspar Sanz – Folias – 09:16
Gaspar Sanz – Torneo – 09:28
John Dowland – Orlando Sleepeth – 09:46
Caleno Custore Me – 10:13
Melchior Neusidler – Dance for a Fugger Lady – Relative Lute Tuning10:24
Fernando Sor – Op. 31 No. 1 – 10:58
Fernando Sor – Op. 35 No. 2 – 11:15
Ferdinando Carulli – Op. 121 No. 1 – 11:23
Ferdinando Carulli – Op. 241 No. 2 – 11:44
Ferdinando Carulli – Op. 241 No. 5 – 12:01
Ferdinando Carulli – Op. 241 No. 18 – 12:21
Francisco Tarrega – Study in C -12:39
Francisco Tarrega – Study in E Minor – 13:06
Romance Anonymous – 13:38
Maximo Diego Pujol – Suite del Plata – Preludio – 14:10
Leo Brouwer – Movido – 14:28
Leo Brouwer- Un dia de Noviembere – 14:37
Outro – 14:56
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Guitar: Alhambra 3C (https://www.alhambraguitarras.com/en/classical/student/3-c)
Strings: Martin M160 High Tension – (https://www.stringsbymail.com/martin-m160-silverplated-ball-end-classical-guitar-strings-full-set-1443.html)
Recording:
Camera: Sony FDR-AX700, 4K @ 30fps, 100mbps (https://www.sony.com/electronics/handycam-camcorders/fdr-ax700)
Mic: Blue Yeti (intro) (https://www.bluedesigns.com/products/yeti/)
Mic: Tascam DR-40X (sound test) (https://tascam.com/us/product/dr-40x/) @ 96khz/24bit
Editing: Adobe Premeire Pro (https://www.adobe.com/products/premiere.html)
Hashtags:
#guitar #classicalguitar #music #Spanishguitar #classicalmusic #martinguitars
#Martin #M160 #Ball #Nylon #Classical #Guitar #Strings #Review #Sound #Test
Originally posted by UCSBajOsHCivOrTH2l3IL9Cw at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=88Qrfcjx6gk
Well done with this review! You're extremely thorough and cover everything I would want to know. I like the time lapse segments with the guitars playing over the top, and you picked great pieces for the demonstration at the end.
Do you have any trouble seeing the black strings? My classical has a black fretboard and I’m thinking that the black strings may be hard to see. I just ordered a set of LaBella 830 folk strings. I figured if it’s good enough for Willie Nelson, it should be good for me. Just hoping I can see the black strings
Great review! And excellent playing!!
I’ve been using these for years in high tension on my Godin SA and Yamaha Classical guitars. Been perfectly happy with them. I use them for triggering and sequencing my MIDI synthesizers. Thanks for your review. They sound like your video does. Can’t beat the price, and the ball end makes them very easy to change.
I use High Tension so I can get the action as low as possible without any buzzing.
Youtube is really good at suggesting your videos to me ????
Really cool review for players on a budget! ????
FYI they make them in medium tension too. I find that properly tying the strings at the bridge is the best for tuning stability. These seem to go out of tune quicker, but for the lazy and beginners they are awesome.
plata o plomo
Today I ordered Martin M260 strings ( medium tension, ball end ). These Martin strings should fit the bill too. Nice playing as always, Josh!
i enjoyed this video and bought the strings too- thanks 🙂
Thanks for the video! I've never used ball end strings on my classical guitar so I was really curious to see how they would fit. I like the sound of hard tension strings and will give these a go. I enjoyed your guitar playing and singing by the way 🙂
Beautiful played!
Would you recommend D'Addario EJ46 or EJ45 for Yamaha C40? Last time I restringed my guitar (Well, my former guitar teacher did the job) was in 2014…I had D'Addario normal tension exp 45.
Soulful and Soothing music Josh ????
Great review josh, very informative!
Great my friend!!! U can play with any string u want to! Hehehe your talent is beyond! 🙂
Great review video! Really enjoyed the performances at the end of the video!! I grew up living around the corner from Martin ???????? and I’ve tried these strings too! One of the reps @ the factory got me into their Magnifico strings, which I believe they collaborated with Aquila to develop? Have you tried these?
Excellent review and great sound test! Best wishes from Elly ❤️❤️❤️
That was a great, detailed review video.
Haven't used Martin strings in ages, but I know they are great.
Have a great day.
I like the rooster calendar in the background! Lol
very nice video my dear friend thank for sharing like from me ????????????
Great review!
Never used ball ends myself. I didn't even know they existed to be honest. Makes it a lot easier… They sound ok…
Amazing ????
Nice Vedo Like
Interesting review! Thanks for sharing! ????????
❤️Nice work????????Enjoy Cheers!!!????????????????
????????Keep Sharing????????Stay Safe & Blessed ????????
Man sounds really good, affordable and all, the color is so transparent. There are so many nylon brands we don't know and good enough to play casually
This was a great video Josh very well done indeed, Ball Ends are king! Haha, i really enjoyed your performances and in particular the Milan Pavane, have you done a full length video of that one?
That's actually not bad for $5 – it's worth buying (I recently got a set of strings and it cost me $10 lol). It has such a mellow sound and the tone is pretty nice. Great review, Josh! 🙂
Great review! Enjoyed the format of the video also. Well done! The strings sound great, just the 3rd string dropped from G go to F# needs a little pull to settle on pitch better. But that's easy to resolve, the intonation seems to be really good! 🙂
Wow, I am pleasantly surprised how good these sound. As you know I really like the Martin Magnifico Normal tension strings. I often go through strings so much as I play so much, so these may be a good solution for me! Not to keen on the ball end, I like to keep it as traditional as possible! But I am willing to give them a shot! I wonder how long the life the strings last in comparison to the Magnifico's. Also, I recognized our piece in the beginning from Giuliani! Nice review and playing!
Very nice playing & review!
I really like your voice. It's so relaxing.. just like your guitar covers
me: is trying to fall asleep watching an asmr video
youtube: notifies me that you posted a new video
me: stops watching the asmr video and watches yours instead
Hi, aposentado introduce me to your YouTube channel. Very well played. Congrats.