How to tell when you have a false string?

[Anonymous]

Hello everyone,

I bought a used pedal harp in 2012, and I’m finally getting around to getting it regulated in February. My teacher told me at my last lesson that my harp has a few false strings; she tuned it for me at a Christmas concert we did together. She couldn’t remember which strings were false, though, which is understandable considering there are 47 to choose from! Anyway, I can’t tell which strings are false; perhaps the difference is subtle, or maybe my ear just isn’t good enough yet.

My teacher mentioned that a false string sometimes won’t show up properly on a tuner, but with the exception of the very low and very high strings, I can see all of them on my tuner. She also suggested putting the harp in front of a TV and watching how the string vibrates with the screen in the background. I tried that, but I don’t know what to look for.

How can you tell if a string is false? Any help would be appreciated. 🙂

[lyn-boundy]

Please note I’m only a beginner here myself so don’t take too much notice of anything I say (and I’ve no idea what is actually meant by a ‘false string’) but I just can’t help wondering why on earth it would matter if all strings sound equally good? Are you sure your teacher doesn’t sell harp strings?

[Marco Hilgeman]

Hi Ben,

I guess what your teacher probably means is that those ‘false’ strings are the ones that have to be regulated because they don’t produce a correct natural or sharp once the pedals are in use. But if the strings can be tuned correctly when flat (on a pedal harp that means when the string is not shortened of course), the strings themself should be fine. After all, you may expect that every string of a renowned brand should be of a certain quality, considering that they are not 15 years old, as ageing will decrease the tuning possibilities of every string of course.
The only way I can think of when a string could sound false is when you pluck it really hard, which would bend it up just a little to a sharp and then it comes back to its natural pitch, but this is not what your teacher means I suppose.

My own harp has some strings that respond different than others acoustically, but that doesn’t make them false…basically it has to do with the construction of the harp, mainly the sounboard and the way it converts the vibration of the string to a tone with specific frequency characteristics. Some of these frequencies can sound a bit strange to the human ear and produce overtones which make it harder to tune (for instance your tuner can sometimes swiftly detect a G when tuning a D, which makes sense because a G is an overtone of a D string). Usually when the string is plucked once again, the tuner will detect the correct note. This can be different on every harp, on various strings (with different frequency characteristics).
As said, this can be noticeable when tuning…some strings might not be tuned as accurately as others because of this, but most tuning machines can pick up the correct pitch; if not at once, then after one or two more plucks. A clip-on tuning mic can also help to improve pitch detection by a tuner, because you can attach it on the soundholes near the lowest or highest strings which are sometimes hard to detect.

So if you ask me, a string can only be ‘false’ when it’s not regulated properly and this basically has nothing to do with the string itself.
Just tune your strings regularly (for starters, they will stay in tune better in the long run) and once it is regulated, you should notice the difference.

Best of luck Ben!

[kay-lister]

Watch the tuner, and if the light on the tuner doesn’t center up, and just jumps slightly back and forth off the center, then THAT’S your false string. I is not vibrating correctly even though it still may sound ok.

Kay

[catherine-rogers]

If a string registers correctly on a tuner when played normally but not when you play a harmonic on it, it is usually false. If your tuner has a needle display it may be harder to detect, but if you use a stroboscopic display, it should be obvious. Strings are false when they are not uniformly round, either from wear or from manufacturing defect. Has nothing to do with the regulation. A false string will not regulate properly.

[barbara-brundage]

If you can afford it, you will get the best results from your regulation with a set of nice new strings, although I realize that’s a pretty big investment for a lot of people. But you will be amazed at how much better your harp sounds, if you can justify the expense. It will also help your ear to develop more quickly when the strings are true and in tune.

If you do decide to go for it, do it now so that they can settle in before the regulator gets there. Some regulators will put on new wires if you have them there ready as part of the regulation. (Those don’t need so long to settle down. Nylon needs the longest time, then gut, then wires.)

[angelica-vianna]

Catherine Rogers is absolutely right, bad regulation does not cause a string to be false, it only gives the wrong interval when pedals are changed. A false string is usually deformed wich causes bad overtones (not matching ones). It is very hard to identify by ear.

[Sylvia]

A strobe tuner will show the pattern going both ways. I get false strings because I leave my strings on as long as I can stand them….mainly because new ones take so long to adjust they drive me crazy…even tho I crank them up continually and press on them to hurry them up. Guts I have to change because they will break once they fray…no way out on those, but even those take quite a while to stay at pitch.

What I’m wondering is why the teacher did not give specific instructions to the student as to what strings needed changing and how to tell if the string is false. Seems like the teacher should be the one to consult in this situation. I think a teacher would want the student to be independently able to deal with tuning, replacing strings, changing felts, etc.

I’ve never understood why new strings should be put on before a regulation because new strings keep stretching (especially the nylons)…..and the different types of strings all take different amounts of time to settle.

[Anonymous]

Thanks everyone for your help – I’ll go through and find which of my strings are false today and replace them, so they have time to settle in before my regulation.

Sylvia – I think I have to defend my teacher here; the day of our Christmas concert, things were very hectic, so she didn’t have time to point out the specific strings that were false. At my next lesson, she remembered, and explained a few methods (using the tuner, and using the TV screen), and she tried to find a false string on her harp to show me the sound, but when I got back home, I guess I didn’t quite understand so I came here for clarification. I was planning to ask my teacher again at our next lesson, of course, but we live almost 3 hours away from each other, so I figured this would be the quickest way to get information. I think my teacher did her best to give me specific instructions, I just didn’t quite grasp it by the time I got home to look at my harp.

[carl-swanson]

Ben- Most of the suggestions and explanations here are on target. A false string is one that is impossible to tune, and which always sounds too high or too low. Strings get old and worn, and the diameter over the length of the string gets uneven, causing it to vibrate unevenly and sound false. Also, over time, the place where the disc closes on the string can create a gouge or hollow. This is particularly true with old nylon strings. So I would suggest that you change the strings in the 1st and 2nd octaves, and maybe the 3rd octave if you can as well. And do it well before the harp is regulated. In order to regulate the harp, all the strings have to be holding pitch. So make sure you change the strings a week or more before having it regulated, and tune and play the harp during that week before the regulation so it is stable by the time the regulator works on it.

[Sherri Matthew]

I’m not sure if this meets the definition of a false string, but on my wire harp the G above middle C is variable in quality depending on the humidity. For example, if I have to lower the tension to tune that string (because the humidity has changed), it will sometimes develop an unpleasant rattle. But if I need to raise the tension so it’s in tune, the slight buzz goes away. It shows on the tuner as being on pitch pretty consistantly, so I haven’t replaced the string. Also I checked the tuning pin and there didn’t seem to be any problems there, so I concluded it was the string beginning to show metal fatigue.

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the new responses – I didn’t see them till just now.

Carl – thanks for the advice; I’ve replaced the false strings that I found, but I’ll go ahead and do the rest of the 1st and 2nd octaves as well in the next few days as well, so I have time for them to settle in.

[Author]

Posts