OK - I'm an idiot. I bought 3 sets of Elixir strings for my accoustic off of ebay for $20, which is under the price of 1 even on sale here.
They work, they're clearly not the real thing.
For my fellow guitar playing ozbargainers, where do you buy your strings from? The shop? Bulk online? Any suggestions?
Bigmusicshop dot com dot au? Good selection but doesn’t seem that much better priced than others, I’m looking at the ddario or elixir custom lights. Hmm
Strings are one thing where I don't mind supporting my local independent music shop, even if a few dollars extra
But during lockdown I have bought from these guys - free shipping on ebay
aussiestringsonline.com.au/
There are heaps of fake Elixirs out there, I think anything less than around $30 is likely to be fake
I go to my local music store and buy them there. Now in lockdown, I haven't needed any new ones actually but if I did - I would order online click and collect from them.
Amazon
They sell Elixir and D'addario. Free shipping (for Prime member) and lowest price you will find.
Read some comments on line that even Amazon might have fakes do you suggest any sellers or have a link?
I only buy from Amazon direct. Just make sure it says 'Sold by Amazon AU' and you will be fine.
Example: https://www.amazon.com.au/Elixir-Nanoweb-Phosphor-Acoustic-S…
Local music shop. Usually owned and run by a struggling fellow musician selling only good gear.
Support him or you'll end up buying online whether you want to or not. He'll usually like a chat too.
Local music shop. I change strings about once a year - happy to pay the premium to support local.
It's also an excuse to go out there and try other guitars.
Pay a few extra dollars at your local music store and support them.
Try buying cello strings, those things are like $300-$500 a set
Another vote here for the local music store.
I purchased D’Addario EJ16-10P for $69.99 in-store from Better Music at the very start of 2020 (before the initial lockdowns) and I have no regrets! They would sometimes knock a few dollars off the shelf price of items without me even asking them to do so (and I am not even a regular customer or anything like that).
I wouldn’t recommend Better Music at the moment though, as they’re completely shut down due to do ACT government restrictions, so don’t try to buy any guitar strings from them right now…
If you’re in Hobart, I highly recommend McCann's.
(I’m not associated with either music store, it’s just that they’ve both served me well with my music needs over the years!)
Vic , I was looking for a 10p set. If the price isn’t v different I don’t mind supporting local. Looks like I have my answer thanks!
Music shop, happy to support them.