Strings Direct

Strings Direct: a UK online specialist in guitar strings

Strings Direct is a British online store dedicated to the sale of guitar strings and related accessories. Its catalogue is organised around instrument families rather than around a single product line, covering electric guitar, acoustic guitar, bass guitar, acoustic bass, classical guitar, ukulele, banjo, mandolin, folk and world instruments, lap steel and pedal steel, and orchestral strings. The company presents itself as a UK specialist in this field and dates its activity to 1997.

String sets by instrument and construction

The range of sets is grouped by instrument type and further filtered by construction. Buyers can browse round wound, flat wound, tape wound, half round and ground wound options, as well as balanced tension sets. Within electric guitar strings, the store separates nickel-plated steel, pure nickel, stainless steel, cobalt and plain steel variants. Acoustic guitar strings are divided into phosphor bronze, 80/20 bronze, nickel-plated bronze, 85/15 bronze, nylon and plain steel. Bass guitar strings include nickel-plated steel, stainless steel, phosphor bronze, 80/20 bronze, Monel and flats, with D'Addario Chromes listed among the flatwound options. Classical guitar strings are catalogued individually by position, from the E-1st string through to the E-6th string.

Brands stocked

The store lists a broad roster of string manufacturers, among them D'Addario, Ernie Ball, Martin, Elixir, Fender, Jim Dunlop, La Bella, Rotosound, Stringjoy, Cleartone, Elites and Aquila Corde. Specific product families named on the site include D'Addario XT, NYXL, XS and Pro-Arté, Ernie Ball Slinky, Rotosound Swing Bass 66, Elixir Nanoweb, Jim Dunlop Performance+ and PARADIGM, GHS Boomers and D'Addario Jazz Swing. Strings Direct describes itself as the official UK retailer for Cleartone Power Series and for LR Baggs acoustic amplification systems.

Custom sets and individual strings

Beyond pre-packaged sets, the shop offers a build-a-set tool and a section of customer-created sets, allowing players to assemble their own combinations. Individual strings are also sold separately, both to replace a broken string and to modify the composition of a standard set. Single strings are organised by instrument, with dedicated sections for electric, acoustic, bass and classical guitar.

Accessories and instrument parts

The accessory catalogue extends well beyond strings. It includes guitar straps, capos, tuners, string winders, wall hangers and stands, picks and plectra, slides, cables, bags and cases, effects, string dampeners, violin rosin, Gripmaster hand exercisers, batteries, feedback control devices and strap locks. A guitar care section covers care kits, cleaner and polish, maintenance tools, cloths, fret care, lemon oil, fretboard conditioner, string care and guitar wax. The store also stocks parts for acoustic guitars such as bridge pins, nuts, end pins, saddles and pickups, plus hardware including jackplates, pickup surrounds, screws, string trees, control knobs, switch tips and tremolo clamps. Fender parts are grouped separately, with Stratocaster and Telecaster pickguards, accessory kits, screws and bolts, string guides, knobs and switch tips. An electronics section lists selector switches, potentiometers, output jacks, pickups, Cry Baby and volume pedal spares, and bridges and saddles with tremolo arms, claws and springs.

Featured product lines

Among the highlighted items, the site presents D'Addario NYXL nickel wound electric guitar strings in a range of gauges, including 8-38, 9-42, 9-46, 10-46, 11-49, 9-40 balanced tension and 10-46 balanced tension, listed at £14.99 each. Ernie Ball Slinky electric sets appear both as single packs at £8.99 and as three-packs at £23.99 to £24.99, in Super Slinky, Regular Slinky, Power Slinky and Hybrid Slinky variants. Rotosound Swing Bass stainless steel bass strings are offered in long scale options such as 45-105, 40-100 and 45-130. Other featured lines include Elixir Nanoweb, Jim Dunlop TORTEX Flex picks, Xvive wireless audio systems for guitar and in-ear monitoring, and LR Baggs acoustic amplification.

Delivery and customer feedback

Shipping information on the site states that UK orders over £50 qualify for free next-day delivery, dispatched through Royal Mail Next Day, and that Royal Mail First Class Post is also used. The store displays a customer rating of [total_score] out of 5 based on 55,470 reviews, a figure that appears alongside a separate reference to more than 55,500 reviews elsewhere on the page.