I’ve been a faithful user of Ernie Ball mandolin strings for almost ten years. The mandolin strings other manufacturers produced always sounded too polite and plinky to me. Ernie Balls had a ruder, more powerful gutbucket tone.

As much as I like the tone, I’ve been experiencing consistent problems with Ernie Ball strings over the past four months, problems that I’ve never experienced with any other string. Mandolin strings, as you probably know, have a loop end that attaches to the instrument tailpiece. This is different from most guitar strings, which have a ball end. The loop looks like a mini hangman’s noose, with the string wrapping around itself several times to stay snug. And they do stay snug. I’ve been through hundreds of sets of mandolin strings and never had a problem, until my most recent batch of Ernie Ball strings.

My ‘E’ strings have consistently been coming unwound. They work for about four hours of playing, and then they begin to unwind. The string will quickly drop in pitch, about a half step at a time. It will usually do this at the most inconvenient possible time, like in the middle of a mandolin solo. The string can be brought back to pitch a couple times, but, in a few minutes, will break completely.

This has happened with every set of Ernie Ball strings that I’ve bought this year.

I’ve never had anyone else’s mandolin strings come unraveled.

Strings usually break at the bridge, or at the point where the pick makes contact with the string. I’ve never broken a string at the tailpiece, until this batch of Ernie Ball strings. But it keeps happening over and over again.

I played a gig in Wisconsin this evening, and both ‘E’ strings popped at the same time. During a ballad. Sending the remaining six strings sharp. I had to finish a set with six strings. Not good.

I’ve been burned enough times. No more Ernie Ball strings.