Customer Reviews

Pirastro Obligato 4/4 Violin String Set - Medium Gauge - with Ball-end E

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I just ordered my second pair of the Obligatos. They are great all around strings; much better than the Corellis I replaced. My first pair of Obligatos lasted a year and a half, then I noticed they weren't as responsive, and became more difficult to play. Actually, I was surprised they lasted that long. The new set was easy to break in (tuning stablizied within a week) and they have a great tone. (I think my violin would sound good with a lot of different brands of strings, however the obligatos really make a subtle difference to me, especially on sustained notes). They can make a really good violin sound great. I know they are expensive, but they last longer than traditional gut strings, and I love that they stay in tune. I ordered mine through Johnson String Instruments, and I received them within a week of ordering them. (I know JSI was a few dollars more than their competitors, but they have great service--this is my third order from them and I intend to order from them in the future.)
I wouldn't put the obligatos on a student level violin, but if you have a fairly decent violin ($5000-10,000 range) they are worth the price. If I could afford to change them out more frequently, I would, but they still sound great after a year and a half of playing about 10 hours per week.

I personally really enjoy these strings, but they're not for every instrument. If you've always thought your instrument was a bit too bright and sharp, these strings will probably be perfect. They can really soften up and add depth to your tone. If your instrument is already fairly deep sounding, they might just muddy up the waters.

On another note, they're also not the most powerful strings out there, so take that into consideration.

Brendan Mulvihill who was all-Ireland champion several times advised me to try the Obligatos. They are expensive but so rich and responsive. And yes, they can give a little subtlety to a violin that tends to have a brighter sound if you prefer dark. But we put a set of used ones on an old violin someone dragged out of the closet and played a gypsy duet, and wow! Just the ticket.

I bought a set, tried them on a few of my violins and can't say that they did anything for me. They took away any edge and interest from the violins, making it warm, soupy and bland. The gold e was unremarkable, except that it makes the set more expensive. They are heavy and not very responsive. I think from reading the boards, that people primarily buy them to tone down a brash, harsh, shrill violin. So they seem to be a fixer-upper string, if you have a misbehaving violin, they will make the sound more pleasant and smoother. However, on responsive high end violins, they take away the sizzle and spark.

I have also heard that they don't last long, and as one luthier joked, they're called "Obligato" because they oblige you to buy another set soon. Beware if the luthier fits a violin with Obligatos, he is trying to give you a warm rich sound on a violin that has the shrill nasties and only after the trial period is over do you realize the strings have gone false, and the sound has deteriorated. (insert smiley, half joking)

That said, I'll give it 2 stars because I'm sure there are violins out there where these strings are a perfect fit for, and someone out there will swear by them and love them.

These were very temperamental strings.

Obligato strings are known to have a warm and soft sound to them. These strings, however, were extremely loud, scratchy and could not handle even the slightest amount of bow pressure.

To their credit, however, the Obligatos sounded fairly decent when playing pianissimo, piano and mezzo forte passages. These strings simply could not handle anything at or above a forte dynamic.