Nylgut Strings by Aquila

[balfour-knight]

Thanks, Harp Column staff, for sorting this out. The only thing missing here is Mark’s last post, so maybe he will put it up here again. It sounded like he has had great success with the New Nylgut strings on his Dusty 36 string lever harp.

Harp Hugs,
Balfour

[Mark Pfannschmidt]

Hello Everyone,

Unfortunately, I didn’t save my earlier post and when I went back to edit it, it had disappeared. So I’ll try to recap my experience.

NYLGUT STRINGS ON MY DUSTY STRINGS FH36B
My Dusty is designed for nylon strings, but also to allow the substitution of lever gut strings for many of the strings. Dusty doesn’t recommend gut on top (probably because they’re too likely to break) and they don’t recommend gut for 4th octave F to 5th octave B.

STRING GAUGES CHOSEN
Aquila engineered Nylgut to have the same tension and gauges as regular gut.

Below are the gauges of Aquila Nylgut I have on my harp. Nylgut gauge numbers are in hundredths of a millimeter. Dusty Strings recommended gut string gauges are given in parentheses. Because I chose to use Nylgut for everything except the bottom wires, I reduced the gauges for some of the 4th and 5th octave strings.

1st Octave:
#1 C 52 (0.52 mm) red
#2 B 54 natural
#3 A 56 natural
#4 G 58 natural
#5 F 60 black

2nd Octave:
#6 E 62 natural
#7 D 64 natural
#8 C 66 red (Dusty .66 mm)
#9 B 70 natural (Dusty .70)
#10 A 73 natural (Dusty .74)
#11 G 76 natural (Dusty .76)
#12 F 79 black (Dusty .80)

3rd Octave:
#13 E 82 natural (Dusty .82)
#14 D 85 natural (Dusty .84)
#15 C 88 red (Dusty .88)
#16 B 94 natural (Dusty .93)
#17 A 97 natural (Dusty .96)
#18 G 100 natural (Dusty 1.00)
#19 F 104 black (Dusty 1.05)

4th Octave:
#20 E 112 natural (Dusty 1.15)
#21 D 120 natural (Dusty 1.20)
#22 C 124 red (Dusty 1.24)
#23 B 128 natural (Dusty 1.30)
#24 A 132 natural (Dusty 1.40)
#25 G 136 natural (Dusty 1.52)
#26 F 140 black (Dusty doesn’t recommend lever gut after 4th octave G)

5th Octave:
#27 E 145 natural
#28 D 150 natural
#29 C 160 red
#30 B 170 natural

DRAWBACKS
My harp had to be regulated. Since this required changing some of the lever handles, I used this as an opportunity to replace all of them, since they were the original handles from 1991 and several of them had already broken and had been replaced. My luthier put me in touch with Robert at Loveland Harps and the whole set including expedited shipping cost only $90.

BENEFITS
The Nylgut strings are a little warmer and more resonant, which I like better since I am primarily a classical harpist.

I also love the way the strings LOOK. The non-colored strings are called “natural” and it is a creamy off-white–quite opaque. This greatly enhances the visibility of the strings in any lighting.

I also love the fact that I can use them in the 1st octave without fear of breakage. I have had them on for 6 months and I haven’t broken any strings, except at first when I was learning how to install them (see below).

INSTALLATION OF THE HIGHEST STRINGS
Aquila recommends that the highest strings (1st/2nd octave) be brought up to pitch gradually. They have a great YouTube video about how to change their strings. Look at it before you install the 1st/2nd octave strings.

To highlight a few things from my experience: don’t tune the 1st octave strings up to pitch right away. Tune them about 1.5 steps lower, wait a few hours (or overnight) and then bring them up to pitch. If you change them every 6-12 months I don’t think you’re likely to break any strings. They aren’t subject to changes in humidity, unlike gut strings.

When first installed they will probably have 5-6 windings. DON’T TRIM THE ENDS! Leave the extra length on the tuning pin for 24-36 hours–they really s-t-r-e-t-c-h. I wind the extra string length in a small circle to keep them out of the way and leave them on the harp during the stretching period (my harp looks like she has a curly hairdo).

After about 24-36 hours, unwind the string and reinstall it. (At this point you can bring them immediately up to pitch.) I find that I typically take up about an inch (about 2 cm). After I reinstall the string, I have 3-4 windings on the tuning peg. With the highest strings, if they have 4-5 windings, I just leave them. Once any reinstallation is complete, trim any extra length as you normally would.

VALUE
Nylgut comes in 120 cm lengths up to 1.45 mm and 180 cm lengths starting at 1.50 mm. If I tie my knots carefully, I can get 4-5 strings in the 1st octave, 3 strings in the 2nd octave, 2 in the 3rd octave and 1 in the 4th and 5th octaves.

As of this writing (June 1, 2025)
1st octave strings are $3.50 each ($17.50 for 5 strings)
2nd octave strings are $3.85 each ($26.95 for 7 strings)
3rd octave strings also $3.85 each ($26.95 for 7 strings)
4th octave strings are $5.05 each ($35.35 for 7 strings)
5th octave E/D/C are $9.70 each ($29.10 for 3 strings)
5th octave B is $12.00
Total cost for 30 Nylgut strings: $147.85

If you change your strings once a year and change the 1st-3rd octaves twice a year, you have a full year’s supply of strings (except wires) for about $160 (including about $9 shipping). That’s much less than half the cost of natural gut.

CONCLUSION
I’m glad I tried Nylgut; I won’t go back to nylon; and for me, natural gut is too expensive. I love the sound and the strings stabilize in about a week. Unlike natural gut, they are not affected by changes in humidity.

Lastly, I really like that I can order exactly the gauges I want. However, it took me several hours to determine what those gauges should be. I had to hunt for information.

Curtis at AquilaUSA is working to keep the most popular gauges and colors in stock, but you may have to wait several weeks for your order if some of the strings have to come from Italy.

I hope this is helpful,

Mark Pf…

[balfour-knight]

Hi, Mark!

Thanks so much for posting the above information and your testimony about how wonderful the new nylgut NGH strings are on a lever harp! Since I started this thread, I say “thanks” to all who have posted here. There is plenty of information right here for anyone brave enough to try these superb strings on a lever harp, or a pedal harp.

My experience with the nylgut on the top 16 strings of my Camac Atlantide Prestige concert grand pedal harp has been THE BEST! Since Dec. 2023, only ONE of those strings has broken; I think it was because I kinked up the knot on the little wooden dowel anchor. I replaced that top 0G more than a year ago, and the new one is still on the harp. So if you use my scale of string gauges which I posted earlier in this column, you should have the same success with the longevity of these strings. Your harp might need some minute regulating, of course, so it would be better to change strings before your normal regulation.

Hope all of you are having a wonderful day and that you are making beautiful harp music!
Cheers and harp hugs,
Balfour

[Mark Pfannschmidt]

Hello again Everyone,

I put Aquila New Nylgut (NGH) on my Camac Atlantide Prestige in December of 2025. I had already tried them down through the 3rd octave and really liked the sound. In December of 2025 I put them on the 4th octave. Wow! What a difference. I had been using Premier Gut, which is a great string, but I definitely liked the sound of the Nylgut strings on my French harp. The harp itself is a little brighter (I grew up on Lyon and Healy), but as with any instrument, you learn what you need to do with your fingers to get more of the sound you want.

After a year, my 5th octave gut strings are getting pretty dead. The 5th octave C, B and A on this harp are rather weak. I’m hoping that the Nylgut will help with projection for these notes. The original owner of this harp told me that her harp technician recommended Savarez nylon strings for those 3 strings and that she felt that helped to even out the sound between 5th octave D and the bass wires. I’m hoping that Nylgut will do the same thing!

Camac Harps has a column listing string gauges for Nylgut, but they must be a specially gauged string set. The specific gauges they mention are not available from Aquila or AquilaUSA. Nylgut string gauge numbers are in hundredths of a millimeter: 48 is .48 mm.

Here’s what I’ve been using:
String/NGH gauge
0G/48
0F/50 BLACK

1E/52
1D/54
1C/56 RED
1B/58
1A/62
1G/64
1F/68 BLACK

2E/73
2D/76
2C/79 RED
2B/85
2A/88
2G/91
2F/94 BLACK

3E/97
3D/100
3C/104 RED
3B/108
3A/116
3G/120
3F/124 BLACK

4E/128
4D/136
4C/145 RED
4B/150
4A/160
4G/170
4F/180 BLACK

5E/190
5D/200
5C/200 RED
5B/220
5A/220

I’ll post later about my reaction to putting Nylgut in the 5th octave.

FYI: Be aware that if you order Nylgut strings it can take several weeks before you receive your order. My last order was placed on April 8 and I didn’t receive it until June 20! Production delays in Italy are common. I normally expect to receive an order about 3-4 weeks ahead of time. My next harp recital is May 14, so if I can’t get Nylgut in the next 2 weeks (Curtis does have some gauges in stock) I may end up putting gut in the 5th octave just to have fresh strings. I’m guessing that there may not be much demand for 5th octave strings, but I hope I’m wrong.

Mark Pf…

[Mark Pfannschmidt]

Hello again Everyone,

I put Aquila New Nylgut (NGH) on my Camac Atlantide Prestige in December of 2025. I had already tried them down through the 3rd octave and really liked the sound. In December of 2025 I put them on the 4th octave. Wow! What a difference. I had been using Premier Gut, which is a great string, but I definitely liked the sound of the Nylgut strings on my French harp. The harp itself is a little brighter (I grew up on Lyon and Healy), but as with any instrument, you learn what you need to do with your fingers to get more of the sound you want.

After a year, my 5th octave gut strings are getting pretty dead. The 5th octave C, B and A on this harp are rather weak. I’m hoping that the Nylgut will help with projection for these notes. The original owner of this harp told me that her harp technician recommended Savarez nylon strings for those 3 strings and that she felt that helped to even out the sound between 5th octave D and the bass wires. I’m hoping that Nylgut will do the same thing!

Camac Harps has a column listing string gauges for Nylgut, but they must be a specially gauged string set. The specific gauges they mention are not available from Aquila or AquilaUSA. Nylgut string gauge numbers are in hundredths of a millimeter: 48 is .48 mm.

Here’s what I’ve been using:
String/NGH gauge
0G/48
0F/50 BLACK

1E/52
1D/54
1C/56 RED
1B/58
1A/62
1G/64
1F/68 BLACK

2E/73
2D/76
2C/79 RED
2B/85
2A/88
2G/91
2F/94 BLACK

3E/97
3D/100
3C/104 RED
3B/108
3A/116
3G/120
3F/124 BLACK

4E/128
4D/136
4C/145 RED
4B/150
4A/160
4G/170
4F/180 BLACK

5E/190
5D/200
5C/200 RED
5B/220
5A/220

I’ll post later about my reaction to putting Nylgut in the 5th octave.

FYI: Be aware that if you order Nylgut strings it can take several weeks before you receive your order. My last order was placed on April 8 and I didn’t receive it until June 20! Production delays in Italy are common. I normally expect to receive an order about 3-4 weeks ahead of time. My next harp recital is May 14, so if I can’t get Nylgut in the next 2 weeks (Curtis does have some gauges in stock) I may end up putting gut in the 5th octave just to have fresh strings. I’m guessing that there may not be much demand for 5th octave strings, but I hope I’m wrong.

Mark Pf…

[balfour-knight]

Thanks for posting this, Mark. I’m so glad your experiments with NGH Nylgut have worked out so well. Your gauges are different from mine–sometimes thicker, sometimes thinner, for the same notes, but they make sense. Of course it is how they SOUND and hold up that’s important. I’m looking forward to further updates from you about how these wonderful strings perform over time.

My 0F second string down from the top broke after being on my Atlantide Prestige for over two years, and the new one is doing great. Only 0F and 0G have broken, since Dec. 2023!

Have a great harp day!
Balfour

[balfour-knight]

Hello Mark (and everyone!)

Upon further examination of the pedal harp stringing chart above, designed by Mark using NGH new nylgut strings, I have found that it is closer to “Heavy Gauge” on the Camac chart. (String Chart for Pedal Harps) If you look earlier in this thread, I posted stringing charts which are closer to Camac’s “Classique Gut” chart.

A column on Camac’s chart called “Nylgut” is also closer to “Heavy Gauge” on this same chart. Just as Mark said, there are gauges on the “Nylgut” chart that are NOT available from Aquila, who makes these strings. If you encounter this problem, just use the next size smaller gauge listed by Aquila. This will not place too much tension on your harp.

This is a very interesting chart by Camac. It includes gauges for Nylon Special (0 and 1st Octave), Classique Gut, English Gauge, Heavy Gauge, and Nylgut. There are also gauges for Standard Galli Wires and Light Wires.

The chart came with my Atlantide Prestige pedal harp, but I believe that it appears on Camac’s website and can be printed out. I recommend it.

Best wishes,
Balfour

[Mark Pfannschmidt]

Hello Balfour,

You are indeed correct about the string gauges. Perhaps I will try the slightly lighter gauges, although I don’t want less sound and this harp is plenty bright. I believe this is a characteristic of French harps. It also projects well over all.

This particular Atlantide Prestige has the two reinforcing bars–one on each side of the string strip. It requires small dowels (about 1″) to be inserted into all of the knots.

I’m enjoying Nylgut in the 5th octave on this harp. Curtis at Aquila USA didn’t quite have everything in stock, I’m waiting on one more 220 (2.2mm) for the 5th octave A. I think that will help those 5th octave strings to project better on this harp. My gut strings were only 10 months old, so they were not particularly old.

Mark Pf…

[balfour-knight]

Hi Mark,

I’m delighted that your New Nylgut NGH strings are doing so well! When I run out of Premier gut strings, I plan to try some more octaves of Nylgut. I am so pleased with the ones I have put on my Atlantide Prestige (she dates from 2017).

Too bad that Curtis has to try to stock all the string gauges in all three colors! Even one scale size larger or smaller places the red and black strings on different gauges. I guess that is why they tried to standardize the gut strings and sell them in packages, all gauged and ready to put on a harp. It is only someone like you and I who delve into this thing a little deeper, and we experiment with trying to make it better.

These NGH strings are just fantastic, in my opinion. They last longer, sound better with a tiny bit more sustain, are more visible on the harp, and are far cheaper than gut. Also, they stay in tune better than any harp strings I have ever had experience with. NylGUT is not Nylon, and the tone doesn’t degenerate like nylon after about 6 months. The tone is much fuller and clearer than nylon.

Happy harping, Mark and everyone else here.

Balfour

[Saul Davis Zlatkovski]

What exactly are they made of?
I have no problem using high-quality nylon strings in the 0-3 octaves. They require the least pressure and are the most responsive, with completely pure harmonics. With Bow Brand heavy-gauge gut strings in the 4th and 5th octaves, and silver and bronze wire strings, I think I have the closest approximation to the balance between treble and bass that you hear on a piano. I would like to be able to compare the different materials now used for strings, but it is hard to compare them as each harp is a little different. I did try going back to gut strings in the third octave, and they were so muted, it was like playing with mittens on. I had to take them off. The advantages of having nylon in the third octave includes having melody lines happening on the same material, and not having an awkward switch in mid-line. But I cannot stand gut strings in the second octave, as they do not sustain at all and have so much less projection. The harp needs the glamor that nylon gives the high treble. The harp also needs the touch of gold, which I obtained by adding a gold crown to my 23.

[balfour-knight]

Update! Still no more broken Nylgut NGH strings on my Camac Atlantide Prestige! These are some of the best harp strings I have ever tried in my long career! Being able to custom design the exact gauges and scale that you want is a huge plus. Nylgut doesn’t go false like nylon can in six months, either. They continue to sound good long after being installed on the harp.

Best wishes and harp hugs,
Balfour

[Author]

Posts