Belfort Phosphor Bronze Acoustic
Light
Cheap phosphor bronze from a brand with no published specification
Under $15
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The short version
An Amazon-native set: phosphor bronze, roundwound, light gauge, sold with a bag of accessories and a great many positive reviews. It is worth being straight about what is and is not known here. Belfort has no manufacturer site publishing a specification sheet, so the alloy and the gauge label are what the listing states and nothing more - no individual gauges, no core material, no tension figure. Everything else on this page is our own assessment rather than a manufacturer's claim.
How we rate it
Scores are Fretline editorial ratings on a 1-10 scale. They are our own assessment and are not supplied or endorsed by Amazon or by any manufacturer.
- Brightness
- 6.0
- Sustain
- 5.0
- Durability
- 5.0
- Feel
- 6.0
- Tuning stability
- 6.0
- Value
- 7.0
Specifications
| Brand | Belfort |
|---|---|
| Model | Phosphor Bronze AcousticLight |
| Category | Strings |
| What it is | |
| Strings in the set | 6 |
| Materials | |
| Alloy | Phosphor bronze |
| Winding | Roundwound |
| Coating | Uncoated |
| In the box | |
| Sets included | 1 |
8 verified fields, taken from the manufacturer first and the Amazon listing second. Fields the manufacturer does not publish are omitted rather than estimated.
What it gets right
- Cheap, and usually bundled with picks and a winder
- Phosphor bronze is the right alloy choice for a general-purpose acoustic
- A sensible set to practise restringing on
- Large number of positive owner reports for the price
Where it gives ground
- No published specification: no individual gauges, no core, no tension
- More reports of dud strings and early breakage than the established brands
- Uncoated, with a short tone life
- Costs about the same as a set with a real specification behind it
Who it is for
What owners report
Patterns drawn from published owner reviews. Summarised, never quoted.
What comes up most
- Price and the bundled accessories are the two things owners mention most
- Many first-time buyers report them as a perfectly good first replacement set
Frequent complaints
- Breakage during fitting is reported noticeably more often than for the majors
- Some owners report tonal inconsistency between packets
Recognised strengths
- Adequate for practice and for learning to change strings
Recognised weaknesses
- Nothing about the construction is published, so nothing can be verified
The verdict
Fine as a spare set or a first restring, and a reasonable way for a beginner to practise changing strings without wasting a premium set. What you give up compared with an EJ16 costing a similar amount is consistency: owner reports are broadly positive but include more than the usual number of dud strings and early breakages. Given that a set of D'Addario or Ernie Ball costs about the same and comes with a published specification and decades of quality data behind it, there is not a strong reason to choose these over them.
We do not publish prices, because Amazon prices change constantly and a stale figure helps nobody. Follow the link for the current price and availability.
Sources
Compared with
- Belfort Phosphor Bronze Acoustic vs D'Addario EJ11 80/20 Bronze Acoustic
- Belfort Phosphor Bronze Acoustic vs D'Addario EJ16 Phosphor Bronze Acoustic
- Belfort Phosphor Bronze Acoustic vs D'Addario Pro-Arte Nylon Classical
- Belfort Phosphor Bronze Acoustic vs D'Addario EJ27N Student Nylon Classical
- Belfort Phosphor Bronze Acoustic vs D'Addario XS Phosphor Bronze Coated Acoustic
- Belfort Phosphor Bronze Acoustic vs Elixir NANOWEB 80/20 Bronze Acoustic
Other strings
D'Addario · Strings
EJ11 80/20 Bronze Acoustic
Light, .012-.053
The bright, brash acoustic string the whole category was built on
D'Addario · Strings
EJ16 Phosphor Bronze Acoustic
Light .012-.053, three sets
The default acoustic string, and the one to buy if you are not sure
D'Addario · Strings
EXL110 XL Nickel Wound Electric
Regular Light .010-.046, three sets
The electric string most guitars leave the factory wearing
D'Addario · Strings
EXL170 XL Nickel Wound Bass
Light .045-.100, long scale, four strings
The four-string bass set every other set gets compared to
Belfort is a trademark of its owner. Fretline is not affiliated with, endorsed by or sponsored by any manufacturer featured on this site.