Ballend - Refers to the brass ferrule affixed to the end of a musical string.

Ballend Nylon - Sometimes referred to as Folk Nylon, these are standard nylon guitar strings that have a ballend affixed to one end. This enables quicker and easier installation on a nylon classical guitar or facilitates the use of nylon strings on a steel string guitar.

Bronze 80/20 - An alloy of 80% copper and 20% tin, sometimes referred to as brass. Delivers a strong, deep bass response with extremely bright and crisp overtones when used as wrap wire for acoustic guitar strings. Extremely brilliant sounding when new, they begin to lose some of their new sound after only a few hours of use. Preferred by many stage and studio performers.

Bronze 85/15 - An alloy of 85% copper and 15% tin, 85/15 bronze combines the brilliant sound characteristics of 80/20 bronze with the greater sustain usually found in phosphor bronze strings.

Bronze, Phosphor - Introduced to stringmaking by D'Addario, phosphor bronze strings last longer than conventional bronze alloy strings. The small percentage of phosphorous in the alloy helps them to retain their sound longer.

Composite classical guitar strings - in this catalog the term Composite refers to a new fourth generation polymer that is used as a mulitifilament core for the wound strings and as a monofilament for the third string in our Pro Arte Composite series. This new polymer is the closest man-made equivalent to natural gut.

Flat Wound - Refers to winding a flat or ribbon-like wire onto the core of a musical string. All D'Addario flat wound strings are digitally wound for precise wire spacing and then polished in three different steps to create an incredibly smooth, accurate string.

Floss Nylon - Refers to the multi-filament yarn-like material used as the core of wire-wound strings for use on classical guitar, oud, lute etc.

Half Round - Introduced by D'Addario in the early '70s, Half Round strings start out as traditional round wound strings that are then precision ground, leaving the outer surface of the string smooth and flat wound in appearance, while retaining the flexibility and most of the tonal characteristics of a round wound string.

Hex Core Wire - A high carbon steel alloy that is six-sided in cross section. When used as the core or center of a musical string, the 6 edge points firmly grip every turn of the wrap wire, ensuring a longer lasting string. Used exclusively on all D'Addario steel core strings.

Laser-selected Pro Art Nylon - The nylon used for all D'Addario Pro Art treble strings is an exclusive, slow extruded nylon that has harder and denser properties than conventional nylons. After extrusion, each string is passed through laser inspection where approximately 200 measurements are taken along the length of the string. The data is compared and averaged by an exclusive high-speed computer process and the string is sorted into the various tensions listed in this catalog. Strings that do not meet tolerance specifications in any one of their measurements are rejected in this process. This ensures consistent string tensions and virtually perfect intonation from every Pro Art string purchased.

Lock twist - the ball ends on all D'Addario strings are fastened with a standard twist and a series of tightly wound lock twists. Used exclusively on all D'Addario plain steel strings, it ensures that the twisted area will not unwind when under tension.

Mono-filament Nylon - Single strand extruded nylon commonly used for the treble strings on a classical guitar.

Nickel Wound - A vast majority of the nickel wound strings made today are made of a steel alloy that has an electroplating of 8% pure nickel. This is the formula used in the world-famous D'Addario XL string line. The steel alloy is ideally suited for magnetic pickups and the nickel-plating provides a cosmetic finish, oxidation resistance, and surface softness. It is bright sounding and long lasting without promoting premature fret wear.

Polished - A unique process of sanding or polishing a round wound string into a semi-flattened surface. We utilize three grits of sandpaper to produce the sheen you see in our Flat Tops line. At D'Addario, we wind, wrap, sand, and polish the strings on the same machine.

Nylon Strings - Nylon strings usually refer to the complete complement of 6 strings used on a classical guitar. Usually the first three (treble strings) are mono-filament nylon and the last three are wire wound on a floss nylon (multi-filament).

Nylon Trebles - Refers to mono-filament nylon commonly used for the first three strings on a classical guitar. D'Addario uses 3 types of nylon treble material; Laser-selected Pro Art nylon, rectified nylon, and standard nylon.

Rectified Nylon Trebles - Beginning with oversized standard nylon, each string is centerless ground to precise tolerances (+/- .0002"). Used in all D'Addario Classic series sets, rectified nylon strings have a more mellow sound and are preferred by many professionals for recording work and for use on Renaissance instruments.

Round Core Wire - A high-carbon alloy wire that is round in cross section. Used for plain steel strings and by some music string manufacturers in place of more costly hex core wire. Unless treated properly, it can yield loose or prematurely dead strings. See Hex Core Wire for further explanation.

Round Wound - Refers to the winding of round wrap wire onto the core of a musical string.

Silverplated Copper Wound - Bare round copper wire is electroplated with pure sterling silver. This wire is ideally suited for classical guitar strings.

Stainless Steel Wound - The stainless steel used by D'Addario is a 430 series highly magnetic alloy. Used in the D'Addario Prism line, 430 stainless steel strings are excellent for magnetic pickup amplification and are noted for their exceptional brightness, anti-tarnishing characteristics, and extreme durability. Also a preferred choice on acoustic/electric instruments.

Standard Nylon - This refers to commercially extruded material used by most other string manufacturers for classical guitar treble strings. Not recommended for the serious musician since control of diameter and density is usually unacceptable. Standard nylon is usually found in such products as hair brushes or fishing line.

Tapered Strings - The tapered area of the B strings is the area which crosses the bridge. This gives the string more flexibility and allows it to vibrate more truly. Traditional low B strings are fairly stiff, and don't bend well over the sharp angle of the bridge. This affects both the playability and the sound.

Wrap Wire - Refers to any material that is used to wrap or wind on top of a core to produce a musical string.