Oliv (Pirastro)
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Reviews
A. Valle (1/26/16)
Violin shop bought, non-promo set as reviewed: G "Stiff" 16, Silver D 13 3/4, A 13 1/2, E "Goldstahl" Stark (6 months old at the time of this review.)
As far as wound gut is concerned, for me the "best" sound and playing charactetistics available for my instrument. Additionally, no other synthetic set or combo compares, tonally-wise (and I most certainly have nothing against synthetic options.)
G: very robust, rich, but also very "alive". Great clarity in its upper register, as well as resisting very energetic fortissimo play. Super sturdy, seems to have a ridiculous lifespan, considering its current sound and perfect winding state. Great value, even at $68.00+ (current market price.)
D (Silver-not Stiff Gold-Aluminum D): Great sound and volume, very nice, even "bright," though also rich and smooth. Tone doesn't die when playing "up there" (not a problematic sounding D in my experience.) Great tonal match between G and A-in fact, a good option to reduce the cost of the set, as the gold wound version is pricier. I love its singing tone while playing Sul D. Indeed, have never been more impressed with any other D-even the better ones out there. Despite not being "Stiff", still resists good bowing pressure (perhaps not as much as Evah Pirazzi, but nothing that will impair vigorous music making, in my estimation.) Windings are not yet ruined per se, but have a small worn area near the end of the fingerboard. Sound is still great, though it should have lost a bit of power.
A: the supposed black sheep of the family, it's actually a great sounding and quite powerful string. Not really that warm, but very rich sounding. Good and clear sounding Sul A. Is it less stable? Yes, but not unusable.You got to let it warm itself to your hand and body even more so than the other two strings. Once it is in that state, it will rarely go out of tune-it is not as horrible as I though it would be reading opinions on the Internet. The conundrum of this string is: should you go synthetic/steel A or perhaps pure gut or Passione wound gut as a replacement? I don't think you must, but there are many options. The problem is that this Oliv A does have a very, very beautiful and powerful tone, and although the response is slower than steel-obviously enough-you will have to compromise somewhere whenever using a substitute. Sound is still great, the volume is still good, though there is a similar worn winding area by the end of the fingerboard.
E (I go Stark, though some also like Medium): many can't deal with it due to the whistling, but I am fortunate in that it's not a problem for either me or my violin. I can practice many, many hours without even a single squeak. This is my favorite E as well-powerful, rich, brilliant, but not "steely-harsh" (though its reserves of power may sound "hard" on the ear to some.) I also love the 27.5 Westminster E, but truthfully, the tone of the Oliv (and Obligato) E is just that excellent, and matches the Olivs as a set very, very well. Has not lost much of its "golden" luster yet, but I do not have perspiration problems. Slightly less brilliant now, not false, still sounding great, loud, and clear in the uppermost register, which I love about this particular string.
Great alternative to Eudoxas, though not as warm. Project extremely well due to its rich sound, though the raw power may not be as initially impressive as an Evah Pirazzi (or similar modern synthetic). However, an EP set after 6 months would sound almost dead, plus hard to play on-my violin with its "worn" Olivs sounds brilliant and ridiculously open even after so long. I "should" change them, but they still sound-and play-so good. So much for the "gut doesn't last as long as synthetics" statement, which I have found untrue times and time again.
I find them super rich, but not very warm. Warmer than Passione/Passione Solo, but actually very clear sounding-just very rich and brilliant at the same time.
Another aspect to them is that bowing is such a pleasure on these and other wound-gut strings. Such a marvelous initial attack and great articulation (thanks to the supposed "slow response", which is usually cited as a negative.) The feel under the hand is lovely-another aspect in which even the better synthetics have a difficult time replicating (though to be fair, some old school synthetics tend to do better on this regard.)
Lifespan is way above modern average-they may snap before really going dead, by the way it looks.
I wouldn't hesitate to recommend them as a full set (prefer the Silver D, as cited above) and if the A or E become a problem, just switch accordingly to something better suited to yourself or your violin (or both.) They are initially expensive, but if you switch strings frequently due to a faltering tone, these may end up being a better value.
As far as wound gut is concerned, for me the "best" sound and playing charactetistics available for my instrument. Additionally, no other synthetic set or combo compares, tonally-wise (and I most certainly have nothing against synthetic options.)
G: very robust, rich, but also very "alive". Great clarity in its upper register, as well as resisting very energetic fortissimo play. Super sturdy, seems to have a ridiculous lifespan, considering its current sound and perfect winding state. Great value, even at $68.00+ (current market price.)
D (Silver-not Stiff Gold-Aluminum D): Great sound and volume, very nice, even "bright," though also rich and smooth. Tone doesn't die when playing "up there" (not a problematic sounding D in my experience.) Great tonal match between G and A-in fact, a good option to reduce the cost of the set, as the gold wound version is pricier. I love its singing tone while playing Sul D. Indeed, have never been more impressed with any other D-even the better ones out there. Despite not being "Stiff", still resists good bowing pressure (perhaps not as much as Evah Pirazzi, but nothing that will impair vigorous music making, in my estimation.) Windings are not yet ruined per se, but have a small worn area near the end of the fingerboard. Sound is still great, though it should have lost a bit of power.
A: the supposed black sheep of the family, it's actually a great sounding and quite powerful string. Not really that warm, but very rich sounding. Good and clear sounding Sul A. Is it less stable? Yes, but not unusable.You got to let it warm itself to your hand and body even more so than the other two strings. Once it is in that state, it will rarely go out of tune-it is not as horrible as I though it would be reading opinions on the Internet. The conundrum of this string is: should you go synthetic/steel A or perhaps pure gut or Passione wound gut as a replacement? I don't think you must, but there are many options. The problem is that this Oliv A does have a very, very beautiful and powerful tone, and although the response is slower than steel-obviously enough-you will have to compromise somewhere whenever using a substitute. Sound is still great, the volume is still good, though there is a similar worn winding area by the end of the fingerboard.
E (I go Stark, though some also like Medium): many can't deal with it due to the whistling, but I am fortunate in that it's not a problem for either me or my violin. I can practice many, many hours without even a single squeak. This is my favorite E as well-powerful, rich, brilliant, but not "steely-harsh" (though its reserves of power may sound "hard" on the ear to some.) I also love the 27.5 Westminster E, but truthfully, the tone of the Oliv (and Obligato) E is just that excellent, and matches the Olivs as a set very, very well. Has not lost much of its "golden" luster yet, but I do not have perspiration problems. Slightly less brilliant now, not false, still sounding great, loud, and clear in the uppermost register, which I love about this particular string.
Great alternative to Eudoxas, though not as warm. Project extremely well due to its rich sound, though the raw power may not be as initially impressive as an Evah Pirazzi (or similar modern synthetic). However, an EP set after 6 months would sound almost dead, plus hard to play on-my violin with its "worn" Olivs sounds brilliant and ridiculously open even after so long. I "should" change them, but they still sound-and play-so good. So much for the "gut doesn't last as long as synthetics" statement, which I have found untrue times and time again.
I find them super rich, but not very warm. Warmer than Passione/Passione Solo, but actually very clear sounding-just very rich and brilliant at the same time.
Another aspect to them is that bowing is such a pleasure on these and other wound-gut strings. Such a marvelous initial attack and great articulation (thanks to the supposed "slow response", which is usually cited as a negative.) The feel under the hand is lovely-another aspect in which even the better synthetics have a difficult time replicating (though to be fair, some old school synthetics tend to do better on this regard.)
Lifespan is way above modern average-they may snap before really going dead, by the way it looks.
I wouldn't hesitate to recommend them as a full set (prefer the Silver D, as cited above) and if the A or E become a problem, just switch accordingly to something better suited to yourself or your violin (or both.) They are initially expensive, but if you switch strings frequently due to a faltering tone, these may end up being a better value.
F. Rupert (1/8/14)
The silver violin D may be the finest sounding of all D strings. It's wonderful--warm, complex, and brilliant all at once. Its pitch stability is quite good and the string is very durable. The G is very fine also, though very pricey. The A is a good sounding string, although I concur that pitch stability is an issue. I haven't tried the E. These strings have sounded good on every violin I've tried them on.
D. Martins (12/11/13)
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A. Chander (5/4/13)
I only use the G and D strings of Oliv because I have heard bad reviews about the A and I prefer a Goldbrokat E string but for me the sound is unsurpassed on my old Italian violin. They have a depth of tone that I haven't found in any synthetic core string - warm, but with plenty of projection and a textured sound. They are also stable in pitch. Very happy.
R. Milankov (4/17/13)
These strings somewhere in between their predecessor, Eudoxa, and newer "Passione" brand. G and D are probably the best in the violin gut string world, especially "stiff" versions, as recommended by Pirastro. The trouble with A is well known among gut-string lovers; this string is notorious for its instability and problems with pitch. It is usually replaced by Passione solo or some other compatible brand of gut strings. Although E works well on some violins, I usually replace it with GodBrokat or WestMinster because it is too "soft", not clear and does not ring well.