Von Frankenstein Monster Gear Instrument Strings
Our score 4.5 out of 5 stars
Von Frankenstein Monster Gear guitar and bass strings are the brainchild of Doyle/Misfits guitarist Doyle Wolfgang Von Frankenstein. Produced in conjunction with Sheptone all strings are made in the U.S using the best-available, domestically sourced, raw materials. Each string is made by hand, one at a time, with nickel-plated steel that is wrapped over a treated hex steel core. Von Frankenstein avoids rushed mass production which helps ensures quality, feel and durability from every string produced.
When it comes to guitar and bass strings the market seems to be constantly flooded with new string products boasting enhanced feature including everything from wider gauge options and special coatings to the use of new metals all of which are supposed to help aid or solve all together the age-old pursuit of tone. Every guitarist and bassist at one time or another will struggle with finding a tone that is all encompassing. This poses the question of, do all these newly marketed features, and advances really help players achieve that? Not always. From my experience what often happens is you might get say improved output, but the strings do not have a great feel, or the feel is good, but the tone is lacking. Finding a string that has everything a player needs is probably harder at times than actually learning the instrument so it can certainly be daunting.
What we found in the newly introduced Von Frankenstein Monster Gear guitar and bass strings are outside of a few edgy product names like “Decapitators”, “Collateral Damage”, “Toxic Rocks” and “Beast Mode” a solid US made string with no gimmicks. What you see is what you get with the Monster Gear strings which are made through a partnership between legendary Doyle/Misfits guitarist Doyle Wolfgang Von Frankenstein and Sheptone (Sheptone has been producing instruments strings since 2007). We checked out the “Sentient-6” and “Von Frankenstein” guitar sets as well as a set of the “Beast Mode” bass strings and the first thing that jumped out at us was the unique packaging. Unlike a lot of bigger companies who package a majority of their strings all together Monster Gear individually packages each string in its own sealed bag. What is nice about this is it eliminates the possibility of strings rubbing together and/or creating an opportunity for corrosion and wear to occur even before being used. We checked every string as we installed them and found no flaws or trouble spots whatsoever.
From a playability standpoint both the guitar and bass strings all provided a smooth and balanced feel which made fretting chords comfortable and bending single notes almost effortless. The bass side of the strings provided plenty of low-end percussiveness that remained tight even in lower tunings while the treble strings rang out crisp and clear without being too bright or brittle. Even after playing on the strings for several sessions the tone has remained consistent as has the overall feel.
While boasting an artist roster which includes the brands namesake along with the likes of Exodus guitarist Gary Holt and Arch Enemy guitarist Jeff Loomis these strings are clearly aimed at players in the punk and metal genre however, we found that the tonal properties of the strings could be easily adapted to practically any style. If you are looking for a quality string that does not sacrifice tone or feel and, is hand made in the U.S. then look no further. Von Frankenstein Monster Gear strings are a quality product that guitarists and bassists from all genres and ability will surely enjoy.
To purchase Von Frankenstein Monster Gear strings visit www.vonfrankensteinmonstergear.com
