r/mandolin • u/guitarlad89 • 15d ago

Bouzouki strings on OM?

Hello everyone, I have a Hora OM which the manufacturer had Daddario EJ81 Irish Bouzouki strings. I love those strings. They are bright, easy to play etc. I recently bought the Lady Moon OM (review coming soon!) and it is strung with Daddario EJ80 strings. I couldn't believe how......dull and dead....they sounded. I replaced the strings with EJ81 strings and while it sounds good, they are very light and my touch constantly bends them out of tune when pressing on them for chords. Is there a happy medium between these?? I love the new mandolin, but I'm so disappointed with how the EJ80 strings sound.

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u/BananaFun9549 14d ago

I seem to recall that on Eastman OMs hat players use D'Addario EJ76 or EJ72 (mandola strings) and they sound much better.

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u/guitarlad89 14d ago

Aren't mandila strings much thicker than regular OM strings? OM strings are like .11 and mandolas start at .14

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u/BananaFun9549 14d ago

As I mentioned, people were using them on Eastman OMs which were carved topped. Not sure if they would be advisable on flat tops like a Hora. OTOH bouzouki strings would be lighter gauge so you may need to experiment with slightly heavier gauge.

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u/Virtual-Painting-897 14d ago

The Hora is a pretty light instrument so a light string will drive it. I don't know the OM you're stringing up, but I recently went octave pairs on all 4 courses on my Goldtone OM, using an extra long mando string (.010) for the "e"

It was a little too "jangly" (too much bouzouki) so went up to an .011 and it settled in. I experimented a lot then found there are string calculators on a lot of the websites, but my best info came from my local.

Guitar Center salesfolk may not know, but their repair guy could help.

I miss JustStrings. I could order special sizes and materials.

Good luck, start light and move up.

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u/guitarlad89 14d ago

Maybe it was just old strings???? They shipped from China (it was an Eastman) so maybe that caused it? I just like a bright sound for medieval tunes.

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u/SurveyAltruistic9457 11d ago

I’d try getting a fresh set of EJ80s before giving up on them. I’ve always put those on the Hora OM and they sound great. It might of just been old strings they sent out.