String Review: Aquila Thunderbrown

Introduction
I started playing Kala UBasses back in 2010.
The first two years I only used the original Road Toad Music Pahoehoe strings, there wasn’t really any other option.

In 2012 the Italian string company Aquila released a string made for super short scale ukulele basses called Thundergut.
This string was “white” and had a different “rubber” blend. It was “stiffer” and had a different sound and feel compared to the Pahoehoe.

Since then I have tried the different offerings Aquila has put out, including the Thunder Reds and Thunderblack. See this playlist for related videos if you want to check out my thoughts about those strings. I have also written dedicated blog posts about these strings over at playubass.com. See links below!

In 2021 a new string has been released called Thunderbrown and there are new formulas for the Thunderblack and Thunder Reds strings as well.

On November 10th (2021) I put a set of the Thunderbrown strings on my 2017 acoustic/electric Kala California Ubass.
I sat in at a friend’s concert that same night and played my UBass. This was of course pretty risky since it takes a little while for all ”rubber” strings to settle in and hold the tuning…
A smartphone video from that show will give you a first ”look”! (It’s included in the video below!)

The Thunderbrown strings are probably the best ”rubber” strings I’ve played!
They seem to have the best of all, playability, low end, and tone.
On a fretless ukulele bass, I’m even able to get a convincing ”mwah” sound!
I have made a series of videos to highlight the tone, loudness, and playability of the Aquila Thunderbrown strings. (For full versions of these different videos check out this Aquila playlist!)

Conclusion
I believe these strings are something you should try if you like the feel of ”rubbery” strings and want to try something new. This is actually the first time I restring this UBass. I really love the Pahoehoe strings and they served me well on the UBass for almost 4 years. Trying out the Thunderbrown strings on this UBass is a whole different thing. Especially the E-string is so, so very good. It’s tight and feels quite a bit like the E-string on the Thunder Reds set but it seems to have even more focus and maybe a bit more tension as well. I encourage you all to try them out!
Next up is trying the New formula Thunderblack strings on my ”vintage” fretted Ubass!

Until next time! (Please subscribe to this blog, follow me on Facebook
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Links

Thundergut Part 1, Part 2, Part 3
Video: https://youtu.be/Dvu841-ly3Y

Thunder Reds (2014)
Video: https://youtu.be/HqK8x10Rtmg

Thunderblack (2018)
Video: https://youtu.be/zq7Ur03D_sA

String test (July 2019) Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z4BsC5C6NpU