D'addario strings identification

[Stelio Kontos]

Bulk pack D'Addarios have colored ball ends.

Not when they have been initially produced to go as single retail singles by the name XLB: https://www.thomann.de/gb/daddario_xlb050_bass_xl_single_string.htm

Edit: Open the link, click on DADDARIO in the top navigation menu and see how all these XLBs of various gauges all have brass ball ends.

 

[micguy]

I buy D’addario xl singles a lot. Brass ball ends yes, but they’ve always come in envelopes.

I’m thinking the OP has countertfeits

 

[BassDaddy77]

If counterfeit, seems weird to me that they would be selling them for less than a buck a piece though. Why bother advertising them as D'Addario strings if you aren't going to try and maximize the "brand name premium" they would command? I doubt they are making any money on them at those prices regardless whether they are the real deal or not. But the world is insane these days, so I suppose nothing really surprises me anymore.

 

[Deleted member 271037]

Not when they have been initially produced to go as single retail singles by the name XLB: https://www.thomann.de/gb/daddario_xlb050_bass_xl_single_string.htm

Edit: Open the link, click on DADDARIO in the top navigation menu and see how all these XLBs of various gauges all have brass ball ends.

Bulk packs aren't "initially produced to go as single retail singles". Bull packs are produced to go as bulk packs and like I said, D'Addario bulk packs have colored ball ends.

If you're talking about buying a bunch of D'Addario singles IN THEIR ORIGINAL PACKAGING you're right of course. But I doubt very much if anyone would remove the singles packaging and create some kind of unofficial "bulk pack" out of singles. If that's the scenarion we're looking at here I think there's a pretty good chance you've been sold fakes.

Pics probably won't tell you much. There are strings that look so much like D'Addarios XLs that you probably won't get a definitive answer unless you look under a microscope, or at least some very highly magnified pics.

 

[Stelio Kontos]

I buy D’addario xl singles a lot. Brass ball ends yes, but they’ve always come in envelopes.

I’m thinking the OP has countertfeits

Yes, the ones with brass ball ends come in envelopes usually. But not so when the seller sells them as "without packaging", as I have stated several times happened in this case. See the link of the offer I have posted. How can you expect them to be in envelopes when the seller clearly says there won't be any packaging (=envelope)?

Maybe the envelopes got wet or they need to get rid of larger quantities of single strings to free up storage space. Or they ordered them by large numbers before someone put them in envelopes for the single retail market.

Meanwhile, I don't think they're counterfeits. D'addario themselves don't think so, hence I'm just happy. I will stock up more on them and vacuum-pack them myself.

I investigated that this German shop I ordered them from is one of the very few remaining privately run guitar and music centers not belonging to a larger company. They have an excellent reputation and for the time being I just trust them and that they won't risk ruining their existence on counterfeit strings without even making a profit on them.

Most importantly, the strings feel, look and sound like absolutely good nickels to me.

 

[Stelio Kontos]

create some kind of unofficial "bulk pack"

But nobody ever did that. There was no pack. When you order 3 of them, they put 3 inside of a cardboard box. When you order 150, they put 150 of them into the box. There is no pack or such. They are singles without packaging. Maybe I misused the word "bulk"? Sorry, I don't use English much. I thought bulk just meant they were not in retail packaging.

Pics probably won't tell you much. There are strings that look so much like D'Addarios XLs that you probably won't get a definitive answer unless you look under a microscope, or at least some very highly magnified pics.

I absolutely accept that, you are right. So I won't ever know. They sound excellent so far, that's what counts. And I informed D'addario about them who say they are most likely real. Interesting topic though. I'd like to know more about counterfeit strings now.

Bulk packs aren't "initially produced to go as single retail singles". Bull packs are produced to go as bulk packs and like I said, D'Addario bulk packs have colored ball ends.

Sorry, I put that weird. D'addario produces strings with coloured ball ends. Some of them go into packs as sets, some of them sell in large bulk plastic packs by the dozen, right? D'addario however also produces strings with brass ball ends, as I have shown in the links I provided (XLB050, 055, 110, 145, 160 and so on and so forth). So, the seller in this case must have gotten a large quantity of brass ball end single strings that were initially meant to not go in huge bulk packages but into blue paper envelopes. D'addario confirmed that may have well happened.[/QUOTE]

 

[Deleted member 271037]

But nobody ever did that. There was no pack. When you order 3 of them, they put 3 inside of a cardboard box. When you order 150, they put 150 of them into the box. There is no pack or such. They are singles without packaging. Maybe I misused the word "bulk"? Sorry, I don't use English much. I thought bulk just meant they were not in retail packaging.



I absolutely accept that, you are right. So I won't ever know. They sound excellent so far, that's what counts. And I informed D'addario about them who say they are most likely real. Interesting topic though. I'd like to know more about counterfeit strings now.


Sorry, I put that weird. D'addario produces strings with coloured ball ends. Some of them go into packs as sets, some of them sell in large bulk plastic packs by the dozen, right? D'addario however also produces strings with brass ball ends, as I have shown in the links I provided (XLB050, 055, 110, 145, 160 and so on and so forth). So, the seller in this case must have gotten a large quantity of brass ball end single strings that were initially meant to not go in huge bulk packages but into blue paper envelopes. D'addario confirmed that may have well happened.

[/QUOTE]

Sure, but those singles are usually a lot more expensive than buying an actual D'Addario bulk pack. If you're getting singles re-packaged in bulk quantities for "too good to be true" prices... well it all sounds a bit fishy to me. But as long as you're happy with the strings it's all good, right?

 

[Stelio Kontos]

Sure, but those singles are usually a lot more expensive than buying an actual D'Addario bulk pack. If you're getting singles re-packaged in bulk quantities for "too good to be true" prices... well it all sounds a bit fishy to me. But as long as you're happy with the strings it's all good, right?

You are absolutely right. The incredible price is what made me start this thread. My friend in Germany offered to call up the shop later or on monday to ask them how they can offer these strings for such a price.

Sorry again for any misunderstandings.
To sum it up: Very very cheap strings that should usually be sold quite expensively as singles in paper envelopes. Brass ball ends is correct on XLB labelled singles. They are not the usual D'addarios that go into large bulk packs, as indicated by their brass ball ends. Somebody took them out of blue envelopes or bought from factory or vendor before they were put into these single string envelopes. D'addario is okay with it and says they are most likely real. The shop seems trustworthy. Mystery not solved.

 

[micguy]

If counterfeit, seems weird to me that they would be selling them for less than a buck a piece though. Why bother advertising them as D'Addario strings if you aren't going to try and maximize the "brand name premium" they would command?

Most counterfeits are done specifically to offer “too good to be true” deals. Low pricing is not indicative of the product being genuine; it’s the opposite.

Being offered without envelopes is also indicative of counterfeiting. Most counterfeits are made in one place, and if they’re going to be packaged or marked as the real thing, that’s done in a second location. That gives plausible deniability to the factory making the product, and protects their machinery from seizure in a raid by authorities.

I work for a company who’s products get counterfeited, so I have an education in the legalities and nuances of such things. What I read here isn’t proof that these things are counterfeits, but there’s a lot of evidence pointing that way.

 

[BassDaddy77]

Most counterfeits are done specifically to offer “too good to be true” deals. Low pricing is not indicative of the product being genuine; it’s the opposite.

Being offered without envelopes is also indicative of counterfeiting. Most counterfeits are made in one place, and if they’re going to be packaged or marked as the real thing, that’s done in a second location. That gives plausible deniability to the factory making the product, and protects their machinery from seizure in a raid by authorities.

I work for a company who’s products get counterfeited, so I have an education in the legalities and nuances of such things. What I read here isn’t proof that these things are counterfeits, but there’s a lot of evidence pointing that way.

Sad that issues like this prevail in our world. I'm certainly no expert on such things. I was merely suggesting that it seems unlikely that they are turning a profit on the strings at those prices, no matter who manufactured them.

 

[Stelio Kontos]

Being offered without envelopes is also indicative of counterfeiting. Most counterfeits are made in one place, and if they’re going to be packaged or marked as the real thing, that’s done in a second location. That gives plausible deniability to the factory making the product, and protects their machinery from seizure in a raid by authorities.

I work for a company who’s products get counterfeited, so I have an education in the legalities and nuances of such things. What I read here isn’t proof that these things are counterfeits, but there’s a lot of evidence pointing that way.

Thanks! We'll investigate that further. I'm preparing to send one string and full documentation including the paper invoice that clearly says "D'addario" over to D'addario's, if they are interested. I do not want to own counterfeit strings and I don't know why I didn't think about it before adding to cart... Greed.

One more perspective on the cheap price:
My friend in Germany will call that shop tomorrow, as I mentioned. He also already asked around among friends about the issue and one of his mates used to work in a music store until lately. A small chain that had like 5 or 6 shops around Germany. They had to close one of the shops for good and offered single bass and guitar strings for extremely cheap prices to get rid of them before closing. Not online, only sort of piled up next to the shop's door. In the end, despite them offering the strings for a couple of cents, most of them had to go into the scrap metal container. Maybe the shop I got the strings from has started cleaning out their shelves for good, too.

Right now I rather think that @micguy is right though. It reeks of product piracy.

Edit: My friend from Germany added that if he bought counterfeit products unknowingly he would be penalized nonetheless if he reported to authorities. Taxes, fees, penalty. He said I therefore should just shut up. Crazy world.

 

[micguy]

Greed.

That is precisely the motivation for both the seller and buyer of counterfeit goods. The majority of the time, both folks know what is actually happening, yet there is an implicit agreement that nobody say anything, to avoid spoiling things for both parties.

I've been in markets in China where a lot of counterfeit stuff was being sold. The first time, I took a couple of pictures; when I did that, one of the folks I was with hauled me aside and instructed me to never ever do that again - for my own safety.

 

[Stelio Kontos]

So my German buddy called the shop. Here's what they said, summed up:

- Their distributor got cancelled out of the delivery chain a while ago. Shops are asked to order directly from D'addario now.
- Their (former) distributor had thousands of strings left however. He sold them for peanuts to get at least something for them ere his time with D'addario ended.
- The shop I bought the strings from has plastic bags ("tubes") full of bulk D'addario strings (from their former distributor)
- 45, 65, 85, 105 XL Nickels have coloured ball ends.
- XLB 50, 55, 70, 90, 110, 125 etc. have brass ball ends, like these: https://www.thomann.de/de/daddario_xlb050_bass_xl_single_string.htm
- Yes, XLBs come out of the factory bulk in large plastic packs, too. They either go to large customers..? Heavy buyers? You know what I mean, bulk buyers, directly in large plastic bags by the dozens or hundreds.
OR they are packed individually into blue envelopes for the single string retail market (see link above).
- The shop clarified they purchased bulk plastic bag tubes of orignal XLB (among others) left-over stock from a distributor that went out of the D'addario chain. Everything's legal about them. They are a certified D'addario dealer.

D'addario already told me they found nothing wrong about the offer in the first place, however since most people were still sceptical (including myself) I forwarded all the information, including the statement of the shop, to D'addario again and asked them to please double check on that story.

Not much more can be done right now. Let's see what counterfeit experts at D'addario say, if they happen to be interested in this at all.

 

[Stelio Kontos]

Final news on the matter: While the ruling on the field stands - the strings are real and their origin seems feasible - it is illegal for retailers to sell them this way (without blue envelopes).

 

[Stelio Kontos]

Very final news: D'addario will send a rep to the German shop to tell them to stop selling their left-over stock strings without envelopes way under market value. They shall ask much more for it to not damage the brand I guess. And I get some more strings as reward.